This letter is part of a series where we translate the letters of Hortense de Beauharnais Bonaparte, Napoleon’s stepdaughter and sister in law, to her brother Eugene.
This letter is written after the big scene where Napoleon told Hortense she hadn’t been brave enough about the death of her son or good enough to her other son. While Hortense doesn’t blame or criticize Napoleon directly, her shattered state is all too evident here.
I always wonder what role intriguers played in the increasing fissions that arose between Napoleon and the Beauharnais family (Josephine, Hortense and Eugene). All three were genuinely devoted to Napoleon, yet Napoleon reported that he always had many people in his ear telling him that they were users.
Hortense writes:
[Saint-Cloud], this 1st of September [1807].
I arrived in Saint-Cloud, my dear Eugène, quite healthy, but very distressed; all these places retraced to me so much of everything that I lost! What an emotion I felt when I saw the Emperor, the Empress, and my poor child!
Only you were missing, my dear Eugène, so that the meeting of all the people I love would still have made me feel okay.
The Emperor is always good to me; I take great pains to take it upon myself to control myself so as not to annoy him with my depression, but I admit that know I am not in command of it.
What makes it worse is that I'm sadder still thinking that I won't see you anytime soon!
The Emperor sometimes talks about bringing you here laughing, but then he talks about his trip to Italy. I do not know what to think. It saddens me, my dear Eugène, because you know how happy I would be to see you and my sister.
I kiss you both tenderly,
HORTENSE.
…
Cette lettre fait partie d’une série où nous traduisons les lettres de Hortense de Beauharnais Bonaparte, belle-fille et belle-sœur de Napoléon, à son frère Eugène.
Cette lettre est écrite après la grande scène où Napoléon a dit à Hortense qu'elle n'avait pas été assez courageuse à propos de la mort de son fils ou assez bonne pour son autre fils.
Bien que Hortense ne blâme ni ne critique directement Napoléon, son état brisé est trop évident ici.
Je me demande toujours quel rôle les intrigants ont joué dans les fissions croissantes entre Napoléon et la famille Beauharnais (Joséphine, Hortense et Eugène). Tous les trois étaient véritablement dévoués à Napoléon, mais Napoléon a rapporté qu'il avait toujours beaucoup de gens à l'oreille lui disant qu'ils étaient des utilisateurs.
