THE ALBA CHRONICLES (XII)
Don Esteban Alonso Fitz-James Stuart y Silva has been travelling from one his manor to the other. He has been reviewing the work of his stewards, checking the financial records and issuing various orders. The wineries had to be cultivated, the contracts with the renters rechecked and prices for the crops and сattle set. The Duke of Alba hated this kind of work - he had enough responsibilities with being in charge of the foreign policies of Spain. However, he knew that unless your check everything, the clique of your lawyers, wardens, accountants and laborers would simply rob you dry. He also had another aim - one of propaganda. It was important for him to keep in touch with the rural peasants, one of the backbones of the Carlist regime. Even if the smell sometimes was killing him.
In the Buanavista Estate, near San Fernado in Cordoba, everything seemed to be fine. The former dependants were pleased with the King, who granted them lands and freed of former feudal duties. The olives and cereal grains sold well this season, the citrus fruits a little bit less so, but still tolerable. The small hospital Don Esteban has built for his tenants was very succesful, though, it turned out that due to its popularity the locals went there even with very insignificant complaints. Say, one woman accidently drank a glass of milk with a small frog that was swimming in it - and immediately ran to the doctor, afraid that the frog would now live inside her stomach.
Walking across the orchard and followed by his minion, Montcada, and the alcalde of the village, a leering balding man, Don Esteban entered a small cottage. The shepherd, Sancho, lived there - and when the group walked it, he was sitting near the fireplace and eating a porridge out of mashed pumpkin and grain. Seeing the lord of the manor himself, the man jumped up and started buttoning his shirt.
- Your Excellency! - he exclaimed. Smiling, the Duke of Alba patted his back. Then de Montcada put a large basket full of snacks before the shepherd.
- How are you, amigo? You know, I have heard your wife is ill, so brought something for you... Cheese and freshly baked bread would be good for her .. - Don Esteban said, as the peasant beamed and uttered his thanks. After a short chat (in which the Duke underlined that it is the King the laborer should be grateful to), the Duke left the house. As he walked back to the village, his gaze became emotionless again, as if the jovial sparkles did not shine there few minutes ago.
The Duke of Alba was a cold man. While very loyal to the ideals such as the Crown and Country, he did not hold an individual in much regard. Most people were selfish beasts that tried to get as much out of this life as they could. However, he understood that at this age absolutism needed benevolence as well as a sword - and this is why he, during this travel through Spain, did acts of charity, financed fairs and gave out food and cloth. All of it in the name of Carlos.
The MInister of Foreign Affairs entered the church, now filled with people. The vicar bishop was going to sermon - so believers from all nearby villages and towns came. After the solemn mass and everybody receiving Communion and being annointed with the holy oil, the bishop pointed at the Duke noting that he wishes to say a view words. The Duke of Alba looked at the parishers, kissed the ring of the bishop and then spoke up.
- My brothers in Christ, good Spaniards.. - as he said that, the crowd murmured in a content way. They clearly liked it that such a high and mighty peer of the realm called them brothers. And Don Esteban continued. -
I very pleased to be here, among fresh air and good and pious people. And I believe His Catholic Majesty, if He was here, would say to as well. For Our Sovereign works days and nights for the good of the common men like yourself, giving away His health to act as your shepherd, set by God. He has many times asked me about the well-being of the people of this region, worried whether you have everything you want. He has given you lands, he has given your various new privileges - and all of it because He loves you as a father loves his children... For twenty minutes or so the Duke talked about the kindness and the benevolence of the King, that happiness and prosperity would come to his people through him and that without the King Spain would have perished. The peasants nodded in agreement, whispered and, from times to times, crossed themselves, clearly seeing it as an appropriate gesture when such high talks take place. Gradually the aristocrat moved to another topic - the enemies of Spain and the de Costa affair. He loved the fact that this fucker was caught so much that a smile again appeared on his lips. -
But there are people that wish to see the destruction of both Faith and Throne. They are not men of the people. They do not know how you live, they dont care about you. Remember the French revolution - it was done by rebellious lawyers, merchants, all kinds of half-educated renegades, not the common worker. They want to remove your traditional defender, the King, and put you under authority of a dictatorial assembly where the voices would be bought and sold by the lords of the purse. They want to destroy the Holy Church and put it under the thumb of Jews and masons, the servants of Devil. The freedom they profess is the freedom of daughters of Spain to become prostitutes, of the authority of family being torn into pieces, of morality being replaced by whims and vice... For a few minutes the Duke of Alba emphasized on that, with small addendums from the Bishop who reminded the people about the Divine Right of the Kings, the sacred nature of His authority and justice and about the latest message of the Pope regarding republicans and the neccessity to reject these that wish to corrupt them with false ideas. Then Don Esteban made the next point.
- Remember the age of French oppression, when you, the common people fought for your King, against the invaders in guerillas - and what did the liberals do then? They put on the round hats, selling you out to the invaders and licking the arse of Joseph Bonaparte, The blood of their compatriots tasted like wine to them then! The people were already pretty riled up, they were shaking their fists. Many of them have lost fathers, uncles, brothers during the years of the occupation - and the idea that somebody was profiteering during the time was very disgusting to them. Catching this mood, the Duke of Alba continued. -
The liberals have always valued foreign nonsense such as "constitutions" above the real interests of the country. It was because of that that we have lost our overseas possessions. Remember the Riego rebellion? It was because of it we could not return many of these lands! And imagine how better all of you would live, how lower would the taxes have been, if we still received vast shipments of gold, silver, cocoa from our colonies! But the liberals like Costa or Riego do not care about that - they have enough means. They want to sit high and mighty in the parliaments, this is all... Then he discussed the person of Miguel de Costa himself, with much snideness in his voice.
- The man who has recently conspired to ovethrow His Majesty, has demonstrated to us how fickle and low the Jacobins are. He was a member of the "government" of the pretender, Isabella - which, dear compatriots, was in fact just a gang hired by the foreign forces. Then, after His Catholic Majesty returned His throne, he cowardly started cursing his former masters and declaring his eternal loyalty to the King. Then, mercifully pardoned by Our Sovereign, he posed as a law-abiding subject, in fact treacherously plotting with the rebels and conspiring against the Throne. Such crooks are the basis of the liberal movement - without them it would have simply ceased to exist, since it is fully based on deception and greed... The speech of the Duke of Alba was finished with some practical advise. -
If you ever meet one of these enemies of God, Throne and people - inform on them and you would be rewarded greatly. Come to your police officer, to your alcalde, even to your priest. This a duty of any good subject...
When they left the Church, the Duke of Alba wiped sweat off his forehead. He was tired. He served as the Foreign Secretary for the last twelve years - a long period. And among all the intrigues and calamities of the diplomacy he still had to deal with internal issues as well - since, being one of the more active advisors within the cabinet, he could not shoulder the responsibility. This estate he visited was only one - but he (as well as his servants and agents) was going to visit many more, as well as the major towns of Spain. He certainly needed some relaxation.
From the DUKE of ALBA to CARLOS V, by the Grace of God, King of Castile, Leon, Aragon, of the Two Sicilies, of Jerusalem, of Navarre, of Granada, of Toledo, of Valencia, of Galicia, of Majorca, of Seville, of Sardinia, of Córdoba, of Corsica, of Murcia, of Menorca, of Jaén, the Algarves, Algeciras, Gibraltar, the Canary Islands, of the East and West Indies, Islands and Mainland of the Ocean Sea; Archduke of Austria; Duke of Burgundy, Brabant, Milan and Aspurg; Count of Flanders, Tirol and Barcelona; Lord of Biscay and Molina ((Revan- Private)) ((Copy to Keinwyn))
Your Catholic Majesty,
As I am Your Foreign Secretary,, it is my solemn duty to inform You that very important choices should be made by the Crown regarding the path of foreign policies that would be walked by Spain in the decades to come.
The crumbling of the Holy Alliance is most worrisome. As You know, both United Kingdom and their former vassals, the United States of America, are not friends to us and unless we have strong and able partners among the European countries, they may cause much harm to our international objectives, such as gradually reassertaining our influence within Your rightful possesions in America. However, as I have written in my previous report to Your Catholic Majesty and the Cabinet, a potential union of the United Kingdom and France that would endanger our European interests, is even more worrisome. The French question cannot be ignored - it should be decided on, in way or another, not through issuance of notes and declarations, but through active actions in this and that regard. If my Sovereign would allow me, I would outline several approaches to the problem that the government could use.
I. First of all, the core problem within the current Holy Alliance is the conflict between Prussia and Austria, over the will of the first realm to unite all German states under its leadership. We are trusted allies of the government in Wienna - and enjoy good relationships with the House of Hohenzollern and Prussia. Therefore we may attempt to mend the Holy Alliance as it is, through mediation between the two counties. If we are to choose the approach, I would suggest calling a conference with the partiicipation of all interested parties, such as Prussia, Austria and the German princes, that would lead to a reformation of the German Confederation, as created by the Congress of Wienna in 1815. The reformation could lead to the division of powers over the confederation hat would suit both the Kaiser in Wienna and the King in Berlin better. Perhaps the restoration of certain institutions and practices of the Holy Roman Empire, a principle of the dual or successive leadership of Austria and Prussia could lead to the pacification. It may also be useful to invite Emperor Nicholas I of Russia as one of the mediators to this conference. As a neutral party and a Monarch hightly respected by both parties, his advise may be of use.
II. However, we should perfectly well understand that such attempts may be unsuccesful. Prussia may prove to be too ambitious, Austria too stubborn and the conference may be either unsuccesful or not take place at all. If another conflict happens, we would have to stay neutral or support our ally, Austria - but a conflict within the Holy Alliance would damage it even more. Therefore, it is my firm belief that, unless the ties between Austria and Prussia are mended, it may be neccessary that a new member is brought into the Holy Alliance - a member that would be able to act together with Russia, Austria and Spain. This member could be only France, Your Catholic Majesty. I do not love the Bonaparte family any much more than Your Catholic Majesty and I was never a Francophile, but I am a pragmatist. The so-called Prince President turned out to be a much more conservative leader than the Citizen King, everybody knows he covets the imperial crown - and, unless we can prevent the alliance between UK and France by war against the latter (and the European situation is not suitable for that), other methods, as listed by me in my previous report, may be used.
III. The third approach may be to continue maintaining our alliance with Austria and nurturing our relationships with Russia again, concentrating on the part of the Holy Alliance that would remain after the unification question would destroy the cooperation of two German empires, while leaving France and the German problem alone. However, it could leave us in a weakened alliance and a far more volatile situation.
I ask Your Catholic Majesty to consider these suggestions and give me the neccessary directives.
I also would like to ponder upon the Portuguese situation. The spread of constitutionalism within this country may prove counterproductive to us, since it is a bordering Realm, the ruler of which shares the ideology that is in many ways similar to ours and it is within our sphere of influence. Perhaps (unless we would plan some massive military expedition for the years to come) we could write to Him and ask whether He has granted the statute upon His free wil or whether it was forced upon Him by the radicals? In the latter situation, we could assist King MIguel with military might to restore His absolute rule, as set by the Creator himself. As Your Catholic Majesty knows, the radicals are much less disorderly and noisy, when they are hanging from the lampposts, not chattering in assemblies.
I also would like to congratulate Your Catholic Majesty on your victory over the the liberal plot of the vile Miguel de Costa. His fate should be example to all traitors who dare to rise against Your authority and Your justice. I must note that the conspiracy was discovered due to the continued efforts of His Eminence, the Archbishop of Toledo, who did not only, in most dire times, provided Your Catholic Majesty with the spiritual guidance and the support of the Holy Church, but for many years tirelessly fought againt the Jacobin threat. I believe that such a worthy man should be rewarded. I would humbly suggest that he is granted a noble title (as it happened to Cardinals Richelieu and Mazarine, who were similarly both men of cloth and loyal ministers to ther Kings), that would glorify his name and may be passed to one of his nephews or other relatives, upon his choice. It may be always of use to ask the Pontiff to grant this zealous prince of Church the hat of the cardinal.
Your obedient servant,
Esteban Alonso Fitz-James Stuart y Silva,
Duke of Alba
From the DUKE of ALBA to the ARCHBISHOP OF TOLEDO (Private - Luftwafer)
Your Eminence,
I express my congratulation upon your recent successes as the Undersecretary within the Ministry of Grace and Justice. Your loyal service to Our Catholic Majesty at on of the most difficult fronts, a front of the crusade against Jacobinism, is of great importance. Good advisors like yourself defend the Throne of our King - and this is why they are hated by various enemies of the Crown, either guised or open. However all men of order, faith and good intentions would stay by your side.
Thanks God that the dastardly plans of de Costa has been revealed. I hope that we would be able to prevent any other actions of his group by keeping his relatives and associates under strict surveillance.
However, I wanted to mention the following: it is important for us to demonstrate the people the benevolence of the government, the sins and malicious nature of the liberals, the errors of their ways. Perhaps certain charity events (interwoven with propaganda) sponsored by the Church would assist us in that? I also believe that matters of patriotic education of our youth should be considered - too often young and rash people are influenced by mentors of bad principles and low sensibility. If the righteous ways were taught to them from their childhood, many a radical would not have been created. I believe this matter is in many ways under the auspices of Your Eminence (for who can educated our chlldren better than the servants of God?), therefore, wonder if you be interested to meet and discuss the matter.
I ask for your blessings and that you would pray for my family,
Yours sincerely,
ALBA
From the DUKE of ALBA to the SLC members (Private - SLC)
Dear sirs,
Our way of thought is popular, we have the support of the much of the nobility, officers, of people of all ranks and titles. However recently we have only rarely met - and it is clear that without proper organization, it may be hard for us, as conscious and loyal subjects, to defend the Throne and the Imperial ideal, from radicalism, jacobinism, pacifism et cetera. We have already seen that much weaker malicious groups were able to cause much harm due to having clear leadership and organization - and we need to be similarly alert to oppose the threats coming from them.
Therefore wonder about the following.
Our country, thanks to God, does not have political parties or such nonsense, but we perfectly well now that it has clubs and gentlemen societies. Should we would ask our Sovereign to allow us to establish the Español Real Imperial Club (the Royal Spanish Imperial Club)? Its aim сould be to allow its members to meet privately and discreetely, without breaking the legislation regarding public meetings, and discuss matters of preservation of Spanish imperial and monarchical heritage, its legacy, its culture. Its objective would be one of research and exchange of opinions regarding issues dear to all of us among members. His Majesty could become the Honorary President, while the President and secretaries would be chosen from among the members.
I wonder what all of you think about this idea. Would it be of use or it is better to keep the grouping as it is?
Best regards,
ALBA
