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Godefroy was once again at his desk surrounded by his high ranking officers discussing plans for continued suppression of Algeria when a runner burst into the room.
"General sir!", he pants trying to catch his breath, "the government has collapsed, a Republican has been proclaimed."
Godefroy looks around completely flabbergasted.
"The King is gone? Whos in charge now? What happened?!"
"I've been told that the government is run by some shadowy provisional council. There are rumours they plan to hold elections soon, but it is hard to say."
"Well, I think it best for us to continue our job and suppress Algeria until the government asks otherwise. It would be bad for France to resist the new government if they plan on returning France back to normal. Go, tell the men the news especially those from Paris. They may want to get writing back to their loved ones to see if they survived the chaos."
"Yessir!"
With that the runner left to go to the barracks and tell the men the news.
The remaining men in the room went into whispers and hushed discussion while Godefroy pulled out maps. Having dozens of maps on his desk it took sometime to get the correct one.
"Now where were we men? Ah yes, tentative planning for War Plan Sunset." Godefroy starts placing wooden blocks on the map of Algeria.
"The idea is that if the enemy attacks like this" he takes his rake and moves some blocks east ward on the map, "then we will be able to outflank them by moving closer to this depression. Does everyone see my line of thinking?"
The meeting continued like that for the next two hours.
"General sir!", he pants trying to catch his breath, "the government has collapsed, a Republican has been proclaimed."
Godefroy looks around completely flabbergasted.
"The King is gone? Whos in charge now? What happened?!"
"I've been told that the government is run by some shadowy provisional council. There are rumours they plan to hold elections soon, but it is hard to say."
"Well, I think it best for us to continue our job and suppress Algeria until the government asks otherwise. It would be bad for France to resist the new government if they plan on returning France back to normal. Go, tell the men the news especially those from Paris. They may want to get writing back to their loved ones to see if they survived the chaos."
"Yessir!"
With that the runner left to go to the barracks and tell the men the news.
The remaining men in the room went into whispers and hushed discussion while Godefroy pulled out maps. Having dozens of maps on his desk it took sometime to get the correct one.
"Now where were we men? Ah yes, tentative planning for War Plan Sunset." Godefroy starts placing wooden blocks on the map of Algeria.
"The idea is that if the enemy attacks like this" he takes his rake and moves some blocks east ward on the map, "then we will be able to outflank them by moving closer to this depression. Does everyone see my line of thinking?"
The meeting continued like that for the next two hours.
((@Jackbollda ))
Letter from the Princesse d’Armentières
To Monsieur Charles-Jacques Barante
My dearest Monsieur Barante,
It is with a laden heart that I have been apprised of your unjust banishment. The tragic events of the last few hours have upended a Kingdom we known and cast the future of France in uncertainty. Why should our country be parted from a gifted and devoted statesmen such as yourself is beyond my understanding of the complex political realities at work.
I shall miss your presence at my salon and the warmth of your conversation. Rest assured that I shall keep fond memory of you. I have heard it said that you might seek refuge in Madrid. Should that be the case, do not hesitate to call on my son, Louis d’Armentières, currently posted at the Ambassade by your delicate attention. He shall repay in kind the benevolent behavior you extended toward him.
In the hope that our path crossed again, I wish you, my dearest Charles-Jaques, safety on the roads of exile.
With affection,
Amélie d’Armentières.
Letter from the Princesse d’Armentières
To Monsieur Charles-Jacques Barante
My dearest Monsieur Barante,
It is with a laden heart that I have been apprised of your unjust banishment. The tragic events of the last few hours have upended a Kingdom we known and cast the future of France in uncertainty. Why should our country be parted from a gifted and devoted statesmen such as yourself is beyond my understanding of the complex political realities at work.
I shall miss your presence at my salon and the warmth of your conversation. Rest assured that I shall keep fond memory of you. I have heard it said that you might seek refuge in Madrid. Should that be the case, do not hesitate to call on my son, Louis d’Armentières, currently posted at the Ambassade by your delicate attention. He shall repay in kind the benevolent behavior you extended toward him.
In the hope that our path crossed again, I wish you, my dearest Charles-Jaques, safety on the roads of exile.
With affection,
Amélie d’Armentières.
Public letter from the Princesse of Armentières to the members of the Provisional Council
Esteemed members of the Provisional Council,
It is with the heavy heart of a mourner that I put the quill to the parchment to beseech you to show the highest honours to the mortal remains of our late king, my beloved uncle, Philippe VII, who has been all his life a most devoted servant to the cause of France.
While in the very minutes following his passing, his earthly demise was taken as a pretext by some to enact political change, the prestige of France and the proper respect due to his regal majesty demands that funeral rites be observed with dignity.
As a grieving niece, I humbly request an act of kindness and benevolence from your provisional government. Millions of Frenchmen live in great respect of him during his life and would wish to pay their ultimate respect at the occasion of his passing.
It is my dearest hope that decency and respect will overcome the animosity bred by fire and blood.
Amélie Constance Félicité d’Armentières
Princesse of Armentières
Esteemed members of the Provisional Council,
It is with the heavy heart of a mourner that I put the quill to the parchment to beseech you to show the highest honours to the mortal remains of our late king, my beloved uncle, Philippe VII, who has been all his life a most devoted servant to the cause of France.
While in the very minutes following his passing, his earthly demise was taken as a pretext by some to enact political change, the prestige of France and the proper respect due to his regal majesty demands that funeral rites be observed with dignity.
As a grieving niece, I humbly request an act of kindness and benevolence from your provisional government. Millions of Frenchmen live in great respect of him during his life and would wish to pay their ultimate respect at the occasion of his passing.
It is my dearest hope that decency and respect will overcome the animosity bred by fire and blood.
Amélie Constance Félicité d’Armentières
Princesse of Armentières
Teatime at Houghton
As part of his afternoon routine the Prince reviewed an assortment of commercial ledgers and agricultural reports along with newspapers and correspondence. It was with deepening concern that the Prince received records from the bailiffs of his French estates cataloguing the distress into which some of the properties had fallen on account of adverse weather, recent flooding, and peculiar maladies which had blighted the crops. A series of poor harvests were reflected in the Prince’s balance books, which showed that three of the smaller estates in Haute-Garonne were operating à perte. Although revenue from the Prince’s investment in the Peninsular & Orient Steam Navigation Company, which had seen its profitability soar in the wake of the opening of ports in China, were used to offset losses in agriculture, the Prince’s thoughts were not of ledgers but of the hardship that was undoubtedly endured by the métayers (trans.tenant farmers) on his estates.
Although the bond between peasant and lord has, in the wake of the Revolution, been irreparably severed, the Prince de Polignac, still motivated by a sense of noblesse oblige, felt that he was responsible for ensuring the welfare of those who laboured on his estates. This sense of an ancienne tradition was compounded when the Prince de Polignac read a pamphlet, a copy of which had been enclosed amongst his afternoon papers, by a certain M. Disney, who expounded the need for the eradication of poverty. “L’abolition de la pauvreté a été et doit continuer d’être la fonction principale de la civilisation,” Polignac said aloud as he read the pamphlet.
The Prince de Polignac considered the peculiarities of his position. In France, he was a prominent landowner, from an ancient line of noble proprietors, whereas in Great Britain, where his commercial interests aligned closely with the mercantile class, he had come to be regarded amongst the shipping magnates. The protracted debate in Westminster over the controversial Corn Laws had brought to the fore the Prince’s conflit d’intérêts.
French tariffs protected agricultural producers from foreign competition, inflating cereal prices and increasing profitability. Laissez-faire polices, in contrast, provided great benefit to the merchant marine, which derived great profit from trade. Advocates for the former – that is, of protectionism – advanced the notion of a paternal state guarding its subjects from the vagaries of life. Proponents of the latter – that is, of laissez-faire – placed great stock in the vaunted ideas of freedom and choice. The Prince de Polignac found both lacking. Recognizing his distinct and divergent business interests in France and Great Britain, his mind first turned to that old adage: À Rome, fais comme les Romains, but was dedicedly unconvinced that enterprise should be absent of any moral foundation other than the pursuit of wealth. “L’abolition de la pauvreté a été et doit continuer d’être la fonction principale de la civilisation,” the Prince repeated to himself.
The Death of the Duc d'Orléans
The Prince de Polignac had just begun eating a petite madeleine, a variety of sponge cake which had been the Prince’s favourite since childhood. Inserting the remaining half of the tea cake into his mouth, the Prince began reading the note, which conveyed the news of the death of the Duc d’Orléans.
Upon reading the message, Polignac instructed his butler to arrange for a black suit to be laid out for him; despite his differences with the late Duc d’Orléans, the Prince de Polignac would ensure that he was properly attired in the customary black of mourning, at least for a day. As the butler left the Prince’s study to carry out his instructions, Polignac could not bring himself to adopt the dour disposition which ought to accompany a mourner. “The Usurper has snuffed it,” the Prince permitted himself to make such an uncharitable remark in memory of his own late father, who had referred to Louis-Philippe as l’Usurpateur. The Prince de Polignac then set himself to the task of writing messages of condolence to the relatives of the late Duc d’Orléans.
MADAME – It is on the sad occurrence of the death of your uncle, the Duc d’Orleans, that I am given occasion to write to you with an expression of my condolences. I know that little can be said to console the bereaved in this moment of loss and that less still can be done from distant shores to comfort those who grieve the passing of Louis-Philippe. Where words and deeds may be found lacking, thoughts and prayers may yet convey my deep sympathies to you and your family in this trying time.
The sincerity of my sentiments are in no way diminished by the differences of opinion between the Houses of Polignac and Orléans. Indeed, only days prior to the unhappy news I had written to the Duc d’Orléans with a view to effect a reconciliation of positions. Notwithstanding our divergent stances on La Succession, Louis-Philippe, Prince du Sang, was a man worthy of high acclaim. Known well, Madame, that mes pensées et mes prières vont à ses proches dans cette douloureuse épreuve.
PUBLIC RESPONSE OF THE PROVISIONAL COUNCIL
On behalf of the French Republic,
DEFLANDRE.
A Decree from the Ministry of Finance
In order to stabilize the financial system of France, which was so incompetently handled by the previous government, and to ensure that lines of credit remain open to the government of the French Republic the Ministry of Finance shall be taking the following actions:
I. The Bank of France shall be placed under complete oversight of the government of the French Republic through the Ministry of Finance.
II. The Bank of France shall be granted the sole pecuniary powers of the government of the French Republic, including the exclusive power to print money and mint coinage among others. No other bank within the territory of the French Republic shall be permitted to print money or mint coinage.
III. The structure of the Bank of France, including its leadership and all lower positions of power, shall be explicitly outlined to ensure that it works on behalf of the will of the French Republic. In addition, all members of the leadership of the Bank of France work at the pleasure of the Provisional Council and can be dismissed at any time by a majority vote of the Council for due cause.
II. The Bank of France shall be granted the sole pecuniary powers of the government of the French Republic, including the exclusive power to print money and mint coinage among others. No other bank within the territory of the French Republic shall be permitted to print money or mint coinage.
III. The structure of the Bank of France, including its leadership and all lower positions of power, shall be explicitly outlined to ensure that it works on behalf of the will of the French Republic. In addition, all members of the leadership of the Bank of France work at the pleasure of the Provisional Council and can be dismissed at any time by a majority vote of the Council for due cause.
Passed by the Provisional Council of the French Republic by the following vote:
6 For (Gillet, Deflandre, Arago, Saint-Georges, Clement, Disney)
0 Against
1 Abstention (Nadeau)
~ Reynaud Gillet, Chairman of the Provisional Council and Minister of Finance6 For (Gillet, Deflandre, Arago, Saint-Georges, Clement, Disney)
0 Against
1 Abstention (Nadeau)
Hôtel de Lassay, Paris, 1850
The Princess of Armentières was wearing a tricolour dress which was now; it was said, very much in fashion. Luckily for her, natural charm and good looks meant she could pull of almost any garb without looking ridicule. Walking around the Petit Salon, as usual, gleaming with gold, she was discussing with Madame de Maintenon, her maîtresse de cérémonies.
Armentières: “My dearest Alice, I believe it is time we resume with our usual programmation.”
Maintenon: “So soon Madame? Really?”
Armentières: “Well, are we to se mourir d’ennui? Moreover, this new provisional government is made of men. We know men. They drink, they eat, they brag and they love to have their ego flattered.”
Maintenon: “I am afraid our usual guests are rather indisposed.”
Armentières: “Well, let’s invite the Duchess of Ligny!”
Maintenon: “She has left for her country estate”.
Armentières: “The Countess of Soisson then!”
Maintenon: “Her husband died on Place de la Concorde. She is indisposed.”
Armentières: “Oh, dear. How about Monsieur Gagnon?”
Maintenon: “Exiled.”
Armentières: “Inconvenient. How about Madame de Saint-Jacques?
Maintenon: “Dead, her carriage was caught by rioters.”
Armentières: “Terrible. I know! Bon-Marie Jeannot de Moncey!”
Maintenon : « Exiled to some remote island. »
Armentières: “It appears we are in need of new friends.
The Princess of Armentières was wearing a tricolour dress which was now; it was said, very much in fashion. Luckily for her, natural charm and good looks meant she could pull of almost any garb without looking ridicule. Walking around the Petit Salon, as usual, gleaming with gold, she was discussing with Madame de Maintenon, her maîtresse de cérémonies.
Armentières: “My dearest Alice, I believe it is time we resume with our usual programmation.”
Maintenon: “So soon Madame? Really?”
Armentières: “Well, are we to se mourir d’ennui? Moreover, this new provisional government is made of men. We know men. They drink, they eat, they brag and they love to have their ego flattered.”
Maintenon: “I am afraid our usual guests are rather indisposed.”
Armentières: “Well, let’s invite the Duchess of Ligny!”
Maintenon: “She has left for her country estate”.
Armentières: “The Countess of Soisson then!”
Maintenon: “Her husband died on Place de la Concorde. She is indisposed.”
Armentières: “Oh, dear. How about Monsieur Gagnon?”
Maintenon: “Exiled.”
Armentières: “Inconvenient. How about Madame de Saint-Jacques?
Maintenon: “Dead, her carriage was caught by rioters.”
Armentières: “Terrible. I know! Bon-Marie Jeannot de Moncey!”
Maintenon : « Exiled to some remote island. »
Armentières: “It appears we are in need of new friends.
Doubs
1850
They let his business go. They let him go. There would be no nationalization, no charges, no nothing. Alexandre was given an amnesty.
He had lived an immense political life these past twenty years. He was made a Baron before the age of thirty, and was made Minister of Finance before the age of forty, a position he would hold for over fourteen years. We was almost made Prime Minister, a situation he regrets botching to this day. Yet, here he was. He started his path as a banker, and now he finished it as a banker.
He wasn't retiring from public life, no, that is not the way of the wealthy in this world. Instead, he was just going to distance himself from politics. He would instead devote his life to his company, his work, and his family. He wasn't going to ignore the political situation, but he wasnt going to actively engage himself in it as compared to the last twenty years. Indeed, government life had caused grey hairs to appear much earlier than expected.
When he arrived home at the Chateau de Descombes, an estate that his family had before they were made nobility, he was greeted by two small boys running towards him. Robert and Nathanaël, his now eight year old twin sons. He embraced both of them, for his career had made traveling home difficult regardless of how often he tried to. He then looked up and saw the approaching red-headed woman.
"I am home, Katerin." he said. "I am home..."
1850
They let his business go. They let him go. There would be no nationalization, no charges, no nothing. Alexandre was given an amnesty.
He had lived an immense political life these past twenty years. He was made a Baron before the age of thirty, and was made Minister of Finance before the age of forty, a position he would hold for over fourteen years. We was almost made Prime Minister, a situation he regrets botching to this day. Yet, here he was. He started his path as a banker, and now he finished it as a banker.
He wasn't retiring from public life, no, that is not the way of the wealthy in this world. Instead, he was just going to distance himself from politics. He would instead devote his life to his company, his work, and his family. He wasn't going to ignore the political situation, but he wasnt going to actively engage himself in it as compared to the last twenty years. Indeed, government life had caused grey hairs to appear much earlier than expected.
When he arrived home at the Chateau de Descombes, an estate that his family had before they were made nobility, he was greeted by two small boys running towards him. Robert and Nathanaël, his now eight year old twin sons. He embraced both of them, for his career had made traveling home difficult regardless of how often he tried to. He then looked up and saw the approaching red-headed woman.
"I am home, Katerin." he said. "I am home..."
(( @Somberg ))
Letter from the Princesse of Armentières to the Minister of Finances, Monsieur Reynaud Gillet
Dear Monsieur Gillet,
It is with much delight that I have learned of your late reversal of fortune, which brought you from wanted fugitive to the exalted station of Minister of Finances, a true and gallant testimony to the many qualities of the newfound Republic.
Let me assure you that I followed your péripéties with much attention, even though such few information was available as to your fate. I can certainly confide in you that I always rooted for you, the reincarnation of the provincial Robin Hood defying the authorities.
However, I am now writing to you on some important matter, regarding your decree about the stabilization of the financial system of the Republic. I am reminded by my accountant that many extant loans to the Bank of France have fallen into arrears, and that it is therefore proper for me, as a creditor to the Republic, to inquire about the payments of these sums.
A proper patriot myself, I would most willingly forgo .5% of those interests in order to show my devotion to your new government.
I humbly thank you for the time you will apply to this request,
Amélie Constance Félicité d’Armentières
Princesse d’Armentières
Letter from the Princesse of Armentières to the Minister of Finances, Monsieur Reynaud Gillet
Dear Monsieur Gillet,
It is with much delight that I have learned of your late reversal of fortune, which brought you from wanted fugitive to the exalted station of Minister of Finances, a true and gallant testimony to the many qualities of the newfound Republic.
Let me assure you that I followed your péripéties with much attention, even though such few information was available as to your fate. I can certainly confide in you that I always rooted for you, the reincarnation of the provincial Robin Hood defying the authorities.
However, I am now writing to you on some important matter, regarding your decree about the stabilization of the financial system of the Republic. I am reminded by my accountant that many extant loans to the Bank of France have fallen into arrears, and that it is therefore proper for me, as a creditor to the Republic, to inquire about the payments of these sums.
A proper patriot myself, I would most willingly forgo .5% of those interests in order to show my devotion to your new government.
I humbly thank you for the time you will apply to this request,
Amélie Constance Félicité d’Armentières
Princesse d’Armentières
((Private - @Somberg))
To Reynaud Gillet, Chairman of the Provisional Council
Monsieur,
It is my pleasure to report that I have returned from exile, voyaging from distant and foreign shores to brilliant Paris, the heart of my beloved fatherland. I come with no objective or ambition save that of serving my country and residing among my own people. This letter shall serve as notice of my peaceful, humble intent.
Please do not hesitate to call upon me, should the opportunity arise to be of service to France. I welcome your advice on the subject.
To Reynaud Gillet, Chairman of the Provisional Council
Monsieur,
It is my pleasure to report that I have returned from exile, voyaging from distant and foreign shores to brilliant Paris, the heart of my beloved fatherland. I come with no objective or ambition save that of serving my country and residing among my own people. This letter shall serve as notice of my peaceful, humble intent.
Please do not hesitate to call upon me, should the opportunity arise to be of service to France. I welcome your advice on the subject.
Best wishes,
Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte
Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte
((have to go out for 2 hours and comeback without a ministry position. At least the country hasn't collapsed. :/))
From the journal of M. Duval
In my life I have been the premiere of France, overthrown a King, and survived assassination attempts by the Ministry of Justice and anti-semite street bravos. In all this time I have learned a few things about human nature. The most recent lesson to have accumulated into fullness in my mind is this: Men are not fit to govern themselves. Each successive government of France in my lifetime has failed, not due to some particular error or mistake that could have been corrected, but by the very mechanism of the state itself. By maintaining or establishing popular institutions and then attempting to impose some constitutional order upon the people, regimes enter a slow death spiral. Either the popular institutions are left free to alter the constitution at will, creating anarchy and chaos; or the popular institutions are subverted and made stagnant by agents of a constitutional establishment.
Any regime which attempts to offer reforms only hastens its own death, conceding to the mob is a death sentence. Ironically the new regime has hit upon a piece of the formula, incomplete but still intriguing. They have spurned popular institutions, which were so eagerly foisted in the early days of Revolution or Restoration by the previous revolutionaries of our era, and they govern by a committee. Their mistake I think was popularizing the names of that committee. Had they maintained some secrecy they would not be so easily influenced by the popular will. But doing away with popular institutions is not the only element necessary for good order and sound government, in my opinion. I have come to believe that constitutionalism itself is also a dire threat to peace and prosperity. The very order which an establishment encircles around like a serpent constrains their hand, at the very onset of their regimes they have signed their own death warrants by forbidding any sort of rapid action. Even a Bonaparte could not lead an army to victory if he had to stick to the original battle plan on pain of desertion by his men.
Therefore it can only be deduced by rational men that liberty, the state of self-possession and freedom of action that man is born into, is at fundamental odds with democracy and constitutions. That goal of constitutional democracy, ordered liberty, cannot be obtained by those means. The state exists only to secure liberty, that is the duty of civilization and therefore order, to protect that which we are provided by nature. This sole function of government cannot be achieved through popular institutions or constitutional limitations on state power. How then can man govern? How can he be governed? These are the questions men of reason must put themselves to. All moral and material progress of civilization has been for the end of enabling a Platonic society. The rapid increase of wealth and knowledge in these past few centuries are the sign Mankind is waiting for. It has finally become possible that Man, ungovernable and unable to govern, has reached the point that he is capable of creating a state that goes beyond these mortal limitations.
In my life I have been the premiere of France, overthrown a King, and survived assassination attempts by the Ministry of Justice and anti-semite street bravos. In all this time I have learned a few things about human nature. The most recent lesson to have accumulated into fullness in my mind is this: Men are not fit to govern themselves. Each successive government of France in my lifetime has failed, not due to some particular error or mistake that could have been corrected, but by the very mechanism of the state itself. By maintaining or establishing popular institutions and then attempting to impose some constitutional order upon the people, regimes enter a slow death spiral. Either the popular institutions are left free to alter the constitution at will, creating anarchy and chaos; or the popular institutions are subverted and made stagnant by agents of a constitutional establishment.
Any regime which attempts to offer reforms only hastens its own death, conceding to the mob is a death sentence. Ironically the new regime has hit upon a piece of the formula, incomplete but still intriguing. They have spurned popular institutions, which were so eagerly foisted in the early days of Revolution or Restoration by the previous revolutionaries of our era, and they govern by a committee. Their mistake I think was popularizing the names of that committee. Had they maintained some secrecy they would not be so easily influenced by the popular will. But doing away with popular institutions is not the only element necessary for good order and sound government, in my opinion. I have come to believe that constitutionalism itself is also a dire threat to peace and prosperity. The very order which an establishment encircles around like a serpent constrains their hand, at the very onset of their regimes they have signed their own death warrants by forbidding any sort of rapid action. Even a Bonaparte could not lead an army to victory if he had to stick to the original battle plan on pain of desertion by his men.
Therefore it can only be deduced by rational men that liberty, the state of self-possession and freedom of action that man is born into, is at fundamental odds with democracy and constitutions. That goal of constitutional democracy, ordered liberty, cannot be obtained by those means. The state exists only to secure liberty, that is the duty of civilization and therefore order, to protect that which we are provided by nature. This sole function of government cannot be achieved through popular institutions or constitutional limitations on state power. How then can man govern? How can he be governed? These are the questions men of reason must put themselves to. All moral and material progress of civilization has been for the end of enabling a Platonic society. The rapid increase of wealth and knowledge in these past few centuries are the sign Mankind is waiting for. It has finally become possible that Man, ungovernable and unable to govern, has reached the point that he is capable of creating a state that goes beyond these mortal limitations.
The Establishment of the Properties Commission
WHEREAS those properties held previously by the royal family now stand without custodianship;
WHEREAS those properties are now subject to violence;
WHEREAS those properties possess great cultural and economic importance;
THE following will be enacted forthwith:
I) The Provisional Council shall establish the Properties Commission, consisting of 13 persons of qualification to establish a registry of those once-royal properties.
Ia) Membership of the Properties Commission shall include a composition representative of the National Public irrespective of social status
II) The Properties Commission shall review said registry and assess the status, revenues, and other such information over its constituent contents.III) The Properties Commission shall collect the revenues and assume the responsibilities of properties of said registry.
IV) The Properties Commission shall be empowered to arbitrate the future status of properties on said registry.
IVa) Properties sold or subject to economic use shall see the revenue support the Republic.
IVb) Properties maintained shall be declared protected property of cultural value, serving as landmarks and museums.
IVb) Properties maintained shall be declared protected property of cultural value, serving as landmarks and museums.
Passed by the Provisional Council of the French Republic by the following vote:
7 For (Gillet, Deflandre, Arago, Saint-Georges, Clement, Nadeau, Disney)
0 Against
0 Abstention
Doubs
1850 ((a month after the last IC))
Robert Descombes's grave was getting old. It has been nine years since the old man passed away, nine years since Alexandre assumed control of the company. Alexandre though made sure that the company wouldn't fall. With the Republic guaranteeing the privatization of the financial sector, Descombes and Company is in a position to grow stronger than ever. Indeed, it seemed that the bank was going to survive the storm, and emerge as a lead financial institution in France, maybe even Europe. He put a flower on his father's grave.
"Excuse me, sir..." said a voice in the back. It was Damian, who traveled to take the job as Alexandre's personal secretary in Doubs.
"Yes Damian?" said Alexandre.
"There is a man here asking for you..." said Damian
"They better have a good reason to..."
"He says he will pay 50,000 francs for you to write a letter..."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
"What kind of nonsense is this?" said Alexandre storming into the guest hall. "What kind of man wants to pay 50,000 francs for a simple letter?" As he walked in, he saw a man looking out the window. He turned when Alexandre walked in. He had black hair, and wore a black suit. He had a clean-shaven face. He looked like he was in his late twenties.
"Monsieur Descombes" said the man. His language had a noticeable English accent. "I am glad you came..."
"You are joking about the francs are you?" said Alexandre.
"No monsieur I am not. The man I want to write the letter to probably has forgotten I existed, and as such, I need someone of note to write to him."
"This a long-time friend, someone you fought in Algeria with?" asked Alexandre?
"No, it is my half-brother, the son of the Prince of Conde..."
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
A Letter to the Comte de la Marche ((@Sneakyflaps))
Your Grace...
I am not really sure how to word this to you, monsieur, but recently a man showed up on my steps. This man claims to be Joseph Antoine Barrande, the Comte de L'Isle Jourdain, your "half-brother" according to him. Frankly, I am uncertain if he is speaking the truth or he is just some mad man, but he demonstrated he had the wealth of the L'Isle Jourdain family (something he claimed is more of a bane to his existence then a benefit, I do not know why). He has asked me to write to you asking to come to Doubs, for "our mother would want us to be reunited in these trying times". I do ask that you attend if you are available, or at least give him a location for him to meet you at...
-Alexandre Descombes, "Baron" Descombes
1850 ((a month after the last IC))
Robert Descombes's grave was getting old. It has been nine years since the old man passed away, nine years since Alexandre assumed control of the company. Alexandre though made sure that the company wouldn't fall. With the Republic guaranteeing the privatization of the financial sector, Descombes and Company is in a position to grow stronger than ever. Indeed, it seemed that the bank was going to survive the storm, and emerge as a lead financial institution in France, maybe even Europe. He put a flower on his father's grave.
"Excuse me, sir..." said a voice in the back. It was Damian, who traveled to take the job as Alexandre's personal secretary in Doubs.
"Yes Damian?" said Alexandre.
"There is a man here asking for you..." said Damian
"They better have a good reason to..."
"He says he will pay 50,000 francs for you to write a letter..."
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"What kind of nonsense is this?" said Alexandre storming into the guest hall. "What kind of man wants to pay 50,000 francs for a simple letter?" As he walked in, he saw a man looking out the window. He turned when Alexandre walked in. He had black hair, and wore a black suit. He had a clean-shaven face. He looked like he was in his late twenties.
"Monsieur Descombes" said the man. His language had a noticeable English accent. "I am glad you came..."
"You are joking about the francs are you?" said Alexandre.
"No monsieur I am not. The man I want to write the letter to probably has forgotten I existed, and as such, I need someone of note to write to him."
"This a long-time friend, someone you fought in Algeria with?" asked Alexandre?
"No, it is my half-brother, the son of the Prince of Conde..."
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A Letter to the Comte de la Marche ((@Sneakyflaps))
Your Grace...
I am not really sure how to word this to you, monsieur, but recently a man showed up on my steps. This man claims to be Joseph Antoine Barrande, the Comte de L'Isle Jourdain, your "half-brother" according to him. Frankly, I am uncertain if he is speaking the truth or he is just some mad man, but he demonstrated he had the wealth of the L'Isle Jourdain family (something he claimed is more of a bane to his existence then a benefit, I do not know why). He has asked me to write to you asking to come to Doubs, for "our mother would want us to be reunited in these trying times". I do ask that you attend if you are available, or at least give him a location for him to meet you at...
-Alexandre Descombes, "Baron" Descombes
La Presse
Has France fallen so low? And alternatively, can someone tell us who is running this government?
Has France fallen so low? And alternatively, can someone tell us who is running this government?
By Auguste de la Pléiade
Following the announcement of the new provisional government, one can only pray that the current cabinet is indeed temporary, for it lacks both in experience and in gravitas. While it is one thing to agitate for change and to take to the street, the handling of the affairs of a major power in the Concert of Europe requires different skills than rabble-rousing.
Let us begin by our Minister of Foreign Affairs, who is, by all account, a novice deputy from Flanders who might have had experience in trade but has never produced any literature about the concert of nations nor showed the diplomatic skills needed to preserve France from rapacious nations who now sees her weakened, devoid of her protector. A suggestion for the government: the current Minister of Navy, Félix Roger de Disney, has been in America. He is eminently qualified.
What is there to say about our Minister of Finances. In their zeal to avoid anybody with financial experience, they have turned to an obscure junior deputy whose main achievement has been to violate the law and escape the authorities with his head on his shoulder. He shall certainly be perfect to counter the escape of capital, if he can find some dusty old tomes laying around to brush up his financial credentials.
Much joy is to be found in the handling of naval affairs by Félix Roger Disney, who has actually been on a boat, survived the trip, and displayed great skill in business acumen in his joint venture with Baron Descombes. We wish him well, for he seems to be the most qualified of the seven dwarves now leading us.
Maybe one question remain, to which, seven answers will be heard. Who exactly, is in charge now?
Motion to Revert to Old Ambassadorial Styles
Failed by the Provisional Council of the French Republic by the following vote:
1 For (Clement)
6 Against (Gillet, Deflandre, Arago, Saint-Georges, Nadeau, Disney)
0 Abstentions
Motion to Ban All Usage of Aristocratic Titles
Failed by the Provisional Council of the French Republic by the following vote:
1 For (Nadeau)
6 Against (Gillet, Deflandre, Arago, Saint-Georges, Clement, Disney)
0 Abstentions
I. Aristocratic titles shall no longer be officially recognized.
6 For (Clement, Deflandre, Gillet, Arago, Saint-Georges, Disney)
1 Against (Nadeau)
0 Abstention
Failed by the Provisional Council of the French Republic by the following vote:
1 For (Clement)
6 Against (Gillet, Deflandre, Arago, Saint-Georges, Nadeau, Disney)
0 Abstentions
Motion to Ban All Usage of Aristocratic Titles
Failed by the Provisional Council of the French Republic by the following vote:
1 For (Nadeau)
6 Against (Gillet, Deflandre, Arago, Saint-Georges, Clement, Disney)
0 Abstentions
. . .
Decree of the Provisional Council of the French Republic
(Regarding Aristocratic Titles)
(Regarding Aristocratic Titles)
I. Aristocratic titles shall no longer be officially recognized.
a. To this extent, all government documents shall use a format which does not accommodate the inclusion of titles.
b. Individuals will be permitted to use historical titular designations in informal circumstances.
Passed by the Provisional Council of the French Republic by the following vote:b. Individuals will be permitted to use historical titular designations in informal circumstances.
i. The usage of such titles, however, shall not be recognized in the context of legal documents.
6 For (Clement, Deflandre, Gillet, Arago, Saint-Georges, Disney)
1 Against (Nadeau)
0 Abstention