Full Download Test Bank For Fundamentals of Investing 14th by Smart PDF Full Chapter
Full Download Test Bank For Fundamentals of Investing 14th by Smart PDF Full Chapter
Full Download Test Bank For Fundamentals of Investing 14th by Smart PDF Full Chapter
5) Most sources of investment information are in print format, expensive, and difficult to
access.
Answer: FALSE
Learning Outcome: F-12 Discuss the implications of systematic risk in financial markets and its
role in shaping investment choices
AACSB: Analytical thinking
Question Status: Previous Edition
Learning Goal: Learning Goal 1
2
Copyright © 2020 Pearson Education, Inc.
6) Which of the following is NOT an investment as defined in the text?
A) a certificate of deposit issued by a bank
B) a new automobile
C) a United States Saving Bond
D) a mutual fund held in a retirement account
Answer: B
Learning Outcome: F-12 Discuss the implications of systematic risk in financial markets and its
role in shaping investment choices
AACSB: Analytical thinking
Question Status: Previous Edition
Learning Goal: Learning Goal 1
8) An exchange traded fund that invests in the stocks of large corporations is an example of
A) direct investment.
B) indirect investment.
C) derivative investment.
D) tangible investment.
Answer: B
Learning Outcome: F-12 Discuss the implications of systematic risk in financial markets and its
role in shaping investment choices
AACSB: Analytical thinking
Question Status: Previous Edition
Learning Goal: Learning Goal 1
3
Copyright © 2020 Pearson Education, Inc.
10) Which of the following has increased in recent years?
A) direct ownership of stock by individual investors
B) the percentage of domestic stocks held in typical portfolios
C) institutional ownership of common stocks
D) indirect ownership of stocks through mutual funds and ETFs.
Answer: D
Learning Outcome: F-12 Discuss the implications of systematic risk in financial markets and its
role in shaping investment choices
AACSB: Analytical thinking
Question Status: New Question
Learning Goal: Learning Goal 1
1) Institutional investors manage money for businesses and nonprofit organizations, but not for
individuals.
Answer: FALSE
Learning Outcome: F-01 Describe the different financial markets and the role of the financial
managers
AACSB: Application of knowledge
Question Status: Previous Edition
Learning Goal: Learning Goal 2
2) Institutional investors are individuals who invest indirectly through financial institutions.
Answer: FALSE
Learning Outcome: F-01 Describe the different financial markets and the role of the financial
managers
AACSB: Application of knowledge
Question Status: Previous Edition
Learning Goal: Learning Goal 2
4
Copyright © 2020 Pearson Education, Inc.
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institutions, and they exalted Ferdinand to the sky as a patron and
protector of the altars, whilst they circulated exaggerated stories with
regard to those in power, and his mother was the chief object of
these attacks.
When Queen Maria Luisa found the love which the people had
formerly professed for her and her husband was now turned into
hatred, she said that “Madrid was a place for good Princes and bad
Kings.”
Napoleon soon intercepted another letter from Ferdinand’s wife,
Maria Antonia, to the Queen of Naples, and he sent it to Carlos IV. to
show what dreadful reports she gave of her father and mother-in-law,
and how she not only spoke against France with the bitterness of
hatred, but she offered to work with all her might to break the
alliance of the Spanish Cabinet with the Emperor of the French.
The King, seeing the false position in which he was placed by the
imprudence of his daughter-in-law, begged his wife to take the letter
to the Princess of Asturias, and to conjure her to be more careful in
the future.
The Queen seems to have been as conciliatory as possible in the
interview, but Maria Antonia would not listen to her mother-in-law,
and behaved in such an arrogant fashion that Ferdinand himself had
to call her to reason.
The dissensions continued at Court, and Ferdinand one day
asked Godoy, the Prince of the Peace, what might be the destination
of the combined fleets. Fearing that the Prince’s Italian wife would
betray such an important State secret, Godoy purposely gave an
equivocal reply, saying that the squadron at Toulon would go towards
Egypt, and that the others would wait for an opportunity of falling
upon Ireland.
Maria Antonia lost no time in reporting the news to her mother,
and, consequently, Nelson was manœuvring in those seas whilst the
Spanish and French ships set sail for America. So the Englishman
lost many days waiting off Malta in his belief of the news he had
received from Naples. It was thus that Godoy checkmated the plan
of the Princess of Asturias to aid the English against France, which
was as much the foe of Naples as it was the ally of Spain.
The fact of Ferdinand’s wife manœuvring against Napoleon made
her very unpopular at Court, and, although she was a model of
industry and virtue, Godoy was naturally opposed to one who
supported Ferdinand in his hatred of himself, whilst Escoiquiz
regarded her as an invaluable tool for his designs against the
French, and thus the palace was at this time a perfect hotbed of
intrigue.
It was said that the two miscarriages of the Princess of Asturias
were due to treatment to which she was subjected by the
arrangement of the Queen or the Prince of the Peace, or by the
concert of both.
The premature death of his wife was indeed an unfortunate thing
for the Prince of Asturias, for, as she said a short time before her
departure, she regretted she was about to leave him, as she
believed that, had she lived, she would have influenced him very
wisely. Report also attributed this death to the machinations of the
Queen and her favourite, albeit it was known that she died from an
attack of phthisis.
Some time after the Princess’s death, the Prince of Asturias, who
had subsequently learnt that Godoy had deceived him in his report
as to the destination of the French forces on an important occasion,
said to the favourite:
“But to be frank, Manuel, you were either deceived yourself or
you deceived me. You told me that the French fleet at Toulon was
going to Egypt.”
“It is true, señor, but there was a change in affairs, and so the
plan was changed.”
“No,” returned Ferdinand, “because the fleet went off at the first
start to the ocean——”
“You will recollect,” said la Paz, “it started twice, because the first
time Nelson got news beforehand of it, and so it had to return to the
port and take a very decided direction the second time.”
“No,” returned Ferdinand in a rage, “neither the expedition to
Egypt nor the attack on Ireland were truly arranged. You take a
pleasure in telling me a tissue of lies. It is quite evident that you
regard me as a mere cipher in the palace, and you treat me worse
than a porter. The heir-apparent is the representative of the
Sovereign, and deserves equal respect. Would you have dared to
deceive my father like that?”
“When you are King,” returned Godoy, restraining his wrath with
difficulty, “you will yourself justify similar conduct in your Ministers.
But I have long wished to resign my office, and if Your Highness will
add your request to mine in the matter it will not be difficult to
succeed.”
“Yes,” returned Ferdinand, with a malicious smile, “you want to
compromise me like that. Is it not so?” And he turned his back on the
Minister and left him.
Such was the open state of enmity between Godoy and
Ferdinand in the royal palace, and the Prince’s hatred of the
favourite was, if possible, equalled by that of the people.
The King, who was nothing but a tool in his wife’s hands, joined
his consort in overwhelming the man with honours, until he was
finally given the post of High Admiral of Spain and the Indias,
coupled with the title of Highness.
The event was celebrated by all the united bands of Madrid, and,
as Ferdinand had perforce to assist at the festivities with his parents,
he whispered to his brother Carlos that he considered such honours
as a personal insult to himself; “for,” he added, “this vassal of mine is
usurping the love and enthusiasm of the people. I am nothing in the
State, and he is omnipotent. My position is insufferable.”
“Don’t trouble yourself,” returned the Infante. “The more they
give, the sooner they will take it away.”
The eyes of both father and son were now turned to Napoleon as
the arbiter in their dissensions, and so Spain slipped gradually into
the power of the great French commander.
Certainly Ferdinand’s letter to the Emperor was frank, if it was not
self-respecting. “I wish,” he said, “to confide in you as I would in a
tender father. I am full of respect and filial love for my father,” he
continued, “for his heart is good and generous, and, as Your Majesty
knows, these very qualities are but instruments in the hands of
astute and malignant people to keep him from the truth. I implore
Your Majesty,” added the Spanish Prince, “not only to give me a
Princess of your family as a wife, but to do away with all the
difficulties which will accompany the matter.”
The French Ambassador, Beauharnais, husband of the future
Empress of the French, checkmated the Prince’s desires, for he
informed Godoy of the letter addressed to his master, and the
favourite prevented the matter from going any farther. However,
although he knew that his hopes had been defeated, Ferdinand,
schooled in the science of duplicity, caressed his mother and kissed
the hand of his father, and all in such a cheerful and pleasant way
that it was thought that he had overcome his naturally gloomy
nature. But “still waters run deep,” and Ferdinand’s hatred of his
mother’s favourite was now a consuming fire, and at the same time
that it was said that Maria Luisa was hatching a scheme for a
change in the dynasty, Ferdinand was engaged in a dreadful plot
against his parents. It was at this time that the Prince presented his
mother with a copy of his translation from the French of Vertot’s
“Revoluciones Romanas,” and the title was naturally very obnoxious
to the Sovereigns. The very word “Revolucion” struck terror in the
palace in those days, as it summoned up pictures of the execution of
Louis XVI. and Marie Antoinette, so Carlos IV. remonstrated with the
Prince on the direction taken by his literary tastes, and stopped the
sale of the work; so the book remained at the printer’s until its
translator ascended the throne of Spain.
As the King was glad to see his son occupied, he told him that, if
he really wished to cultivate his literary taste, he would advise him to
translate Cordillac’s “Étude de l’Histoire,” and when Ferdinand asked
his father what motto he would suggest for the book, Carlos promptly
returned: “Les hommes ne sont pas grands par leurs passions, mais
par leur raison.”
Thus, by the time the Court returned to the Escorial for the
autumn months, the royal parents congratulated themselves that
Ferdinand’s literary occupations had banished his misanthropic
humours; and when the Queen was told one day by the Marquesa
de Perijaa, who was out walking with her, that her son passed the
nights in writing, she explained to the lady that the Prince was
engaged in the translation recommended by his father, and the
information of his absorption in writing suggested no ulterior design.
However, one day Carlos IV. found a letter placed in a room in
the palace ready to meet his eye. “Urgent” was written on the cover,
and the letter had no signature. Indited evidently with a trembling
hand, it ran thus:
All efforts to discover the writer of this epistle failed, and proof of
its authorship was never found; but the writer’s object was gained,
and the King determined to investigate his son’s labours. So he
appeared one night in the Prince’s study with the excuse of asking
him to compose something to celebrate the recent successes in
America; and this he did in a tone of friendliness, as he did not really
give any credit to the anonymous accusation which had reached
him. However, Ferdinand’s confusion at his father’s visit was
suspicious, and, following the Prince’s eyes, the King saw they were
turned with anxiety to some papers on the table, and his request to
see them was met with insolence. So the Sovereign promptly had
the Prince put under arrest, with the understanding that he was not
to leave his room or speak to anybody.
As Godoy was ill in Madrid at the time, Carlos sent for Caballero,
the Minister of Grace and Justice, in post-haste, and to him was read
one of the documents he had found on Ferdinand’s table, which the
Prince had written at the dictation of Escoiquiz to present to his
father. In this paper the character of Godoy was painted in the
darkest colours, and the favourite was even accused of aspiring to
the throne by plotting the death of the King and the rest of the Royal
Family. The monarch was advised in the letter to ascertain these
facts by lying in wait and listening to the tools of Godoy during a
day’s shoot in the Pardo or in the Casa de Campo.
The King was also counselled to hold no communication with his
wife during the time of the inquiry, so as to avoid her tears and
plaints, and he was told to associate his heir with him in the
Government and to give him the command of the troops; and, finally,
His Majesty was implored by his son to keep the letter a profound
secret from his mother, as he did not wish to be exposed to her
resentment and the revenge of his enemies.
In another document written to the Prince of Asturias, Escoiquiz
advised quite a different course of action, for he suggested that the
fall of Godoy should be accomplished by an appeal to the Queen
herself. Ferdinand was counselled to implore his mother on his
knees to give up the favourite, whilst supporting his appeal by an
account of the amours of the Prince of the Peace with other ladies;
and the letter concluded with the advice to avoid all thought of a
marriage with Godoy’s sister-in-law. The King had also found in his
son’s room the cipher and key of the correspondence used between
the Prince and the Archdeacon of Toledo, and these were the same
which had been used by his late daughter-in-law with the ex-Queen
of Naples.
And, lastly, among the papers there was a letter in Ferdinand’s
own handwriting, which was closed but not directed, and evidently
meant for his adviser. In this note the Prince said he would look for a
priest to put the document in his father’s hands. He said, moreover,
that he had taken St. Hermenegildo for his patron saint in the matter;
but although he had put himself under this sacred protection, it was
with no desire to accept the vocation of a martyr, and he would
therefore be very careful to ascertain what success could crown the
plot for Godoy’s overthrow before starting on it. But if the plot
succeeded, he wished the storm to fall only on the head of Sisberto
(Don Manuel Godoy) and Govinda (Queen Maria Luisa, his mother),
and Leovigildo (Carlos IV.) was to be brought over to his side with
cheers and applause.
The perusal of the papers completed, the King turned to
Caballero, saying:
“What punishment does the law impose for a son who acts like
that?”
“Señor,” was the reply, “royal clemency is out of court in this
matter; the criminal deserves death!”
“What!” cried the Queen, “have you forgotten he is my son? By
my right as his mother I will destroy these papers which would
condemn him, for he has been deceived, he has been ruined!” And
so saying, the unhappy mother flung herself into a chair, weeping
bitterly and clutching at the incriminating letters. It was thus that they
never appeared in the inquiry.
Caballero advised a frank statement of the facts to the nation, so
a royal manifesto was addressed by the King to the country,
explaining “that, albeit his son was familiar with all the principles of
Christianity indoctrinated by his paternal affection, he had favoured a
plot to dethrone him.”
The King, moreover, wrote the following letter to Napoleon:
“San Lorenzo,
“October 20, 1807.
“My Brother,
“At the time in which I was concerting means for the
destruction of our common enemy, and when I thought that the
designs of the Queen of Italy had ceased with the death of her
daughter [Ferdinand’s wife], I find that the spirit of blackest intrigue is
within the very palace. My eldest son, the heir-presumptive to the
throne, has conceived a fearful design to dethrone me and to
attempt the life of his mother. Such an atrocious crime can only be
punished by the severity of the law. That (law) which calls him to
succeed me must be revoked, for one of his brothers will be more
worthy to take his place in my heart and on the throne.
“Now I am trying to discover his accomplices, to find the thread of
the fearful misfortune, and I will not lose an instant in informing Your
Imperial Majesty of the matter, begging you to aid me with your
opinion and counsel.
“This I beg, etc.,
“Carlos.”
That day, when Ferdinand thought his father had gone hunting,
he begged his mother to come to his room or to let him go to hers.
The Queen declined to comply with these requests, but she sent
Caballero to the Prince, and, with the cowardly duplicity in which he
was an expert, Ferdinand told the Minister that the serious steps with
regard to the Queen had been suggested by his mother-in-law, the
ex-Queen Caroline, and that they had filled both him and his late
wife with horror. He added that, if the persistence of his evil
counsellor had led him to be a little weak, it must be remembered he
had resisted the seductions for four years, and that he had sought to
introduce reforms into the kingdom.
When Godoy had recovered sufficiently from his indisposition to
go to the Escorial, he appeared in the room of the disgraced Prince.
Ferdinand threw himself into the arms of the favourite against
whom he had plotted so darkly, exclaiming through his tears:
“Oh, my Manuel, I have wanted so much to see you. I have been
deceived and ruined by those rogues. You alone can get me out of
this trouble.”
“I have come for that purpose,” returned Godoy. “You are the son
of my King and Queen. Many a time I have held you in my arms, and
I would give you a thousand lives if I had them. And I wept,” said
Godoy, who tells this story in his “Mémoires,” “even more than the
Prince, although his tears came from his heart.”
“Yes, I am certain,” continued the Prince, “that you would not
come to see me like this if you did not intend to help me. You have
spoken with my parents? I cannot hope that they will pardon me. I
have given the names of my evil advisers. What more can I do to
show my repentance? If there is anything more I can do, only tell me,
tell me, for I will do anything in which to please my dear parents, and
you too. I beg of you to help me, for pity’s sake.”
“Señor, señor,” returned Godoy, “there is an immense distance
between this humility to a mere slave of your family and changing
your opinion of me. This I do beg of you to do; and as for the rest, I
have only come for your good.”
“May God reward you!” replied the Prince. “You are the only one
who can speak for me without any fear of compromising himself. Will
you not dictate me a letter to my parents?”
“The best words you can write,” said Godoy, “are those from your
own heart, and those I will take myself to your parents.”
The result of this advice was two letters. The first was addressed
to the King:[1]
The Prince’s plea was granted, and the King pardoned his son,
whilst ordering the inquiry to be completed against those who had
instigated the plot.
Ferdinand sought to prove his horror of the counsels of his late
tutor by showing his parents the books he had sent him, with the
passages marked which the tutor had considered most appropriate
to his situation. The works were “The Life of St. Hermenegildo,” the
poem by Morales in honour of the same saint, that of Alfonso the
Wise and those of the Prince of Viana, Louis XIII., King of France,
and his mother, Marie de Medicis.
Maria Luisa’s maternal affection, and Napoleon’s refusal to allow
the publication of any information bearing upon himself or his
Ambassador Beauharnais, took all the significance from the inquiry,
and, as the matter was thus gradually dropped, the country
exonerated the Prince of Asturias from all blame.
Ferdinand’s opposition to Godoy and his mother certainly
seemed to have been founded more upon personal aversion than
political policy, for when the favourite cooled towards the French on
finding that his designs on Portugal were not to be realized,
Ferdinand himself began to show favour to the foreigners, and this is
proved by his correspondence with Napoleon, which was published
in Le Moniteur in 1808.
CHAPTER II
THE OVERTHROW OF GODOY
1804–1808
“Luisa.”[3]
Once on the throne, Ferdinand VII. sent for the persons who had
taken part in the Escorial conspiracy. Don Miguel José de Azanza,
the ex-Viceroy of Mexico, was made Minister of the Interior instead
of Miguel Cartegano Soler, and Pedro Ceballos, who had married
Godoy’s cousin, and who had worked for the ruin of the dethroned
King, was retained in his position as Minister of Foreign Affairs by a
special royal decree.
The celebrated littérateur Gaspar Melchor de Jovellanos also
returned to Court.
But the man who was most triumphant was Ferdinand’s old tutor,
Don Juan Escoiquiz. His wish was fulfilled—he was a power at
Court, and he was decorated with the Cross of Carlos III.
Moreover, the Duke of San Carlos, spoken of by Maria Luisa in
her correspondence as the falsest of all, was made chief Mayordomo
of the palace. In fact, all who had played any part in the Escorial
affair were exalted, whereas those who had pleased Godoy by their
capacities or virtues were proscribed and persecuted. Among these
were the Duke of Almodovar, brother of the Prince de la Paz, Viguri
the Intendant, Norrega the Treasurer, Marquina the Corregidor of
Madrid, the littérateur Escala, and the Fiscal Viegas, who had
demanded penal punishment for criminals in the Escorial matter. The
property of all the above-mentioned men was confiscated, and
Godoy himself was taken from Aranjuez to the Castle of Villaviciosa.
The government was practically in the hands of the Dukes of
Infantado and San Carlos and the Councillor Escoiquiz. The opinions
and character of the latter are well known. He was utterly
disingenuous, and he was expert in the science of intrigue, which
had played such a part in the antechamber of the palace. But for
really ruling the affairs of a kingdom he was quite incompetent, and
was only conspicuous for his want of knowledge and his mean spirit.
Apart from his artifice in conspiracies, the character of this
Archdeacon of Alcaraz was seen in the pamphlet he published in
defence of the Inquisition. San Carlos shamefully maligned Maria
Luisa and the Prince de la Paz, albeit he was proud of being related
to the favourite. Infantado was destitute of any consistency in
government except when it savoured of persecution and oppression.
The three statesmen were united in one desire, and that was the
marriage of Ferdinand with one of the Bonaparte family; and they all
shared the people’s joy at the entrance of Murat, Grand Duke of
Berg, in Madrid on March 23. The townsfolk were mad with delight,
for they regarded the French as supporters of their idol Ferdinand,
and sharers of their joy in the state entry of the young King into the
capital.
The function was indeed a brilliant sight, and the Sovereign,
crowned with the rich diadem of the two worlds, roused so much
enthusiasm that it took him six hours to pass from the Gate of Atocha
to the palace. The roar of the cannon, the peal of the bells, the
clamour of the cheers, were indeed deafening, and the men laid
down their cloaks for the King to pass over, and the women waved
their pocket-handkerchiefs.
The Grand Duke of Berg unfortunately gave rein to his pride, and
wounded the Spaniards in their tenderest sensibility by sending
French troops to line part of the route of the royal entry, leaving his
house in the Buen Retiro for that of the Prince de la Paz, and taking
possession of the Casa de Campo.
Napoleon himself regretted this conduct, and we find him saying
in the “Memorial of St. Helena,” published in 1826:
“The plan more worthy of me, and the safest, would have been a
sort of mediation, like that of Switzerland. I ought to have given a
liberal constitution to the Spanish nation, and seen that Ferdinand
put it in practice. If that had been done in good faith, and if Spain had
prospered with our new customs, France would have gained a close
ally, and a truly formidable increase to its power. If Ferdinand, on the
contrary, failed in his new duties, the Spaniards themselves would
soon have come to beg for another King.”
Murat, with his misleading pictures of a country which he did not
know, tickled the conqueror’s ambition, and this resulted in Napoleon
writing to his brother Louis, who was then in Holland:
“Being concerned that I shall have no solid peace with England
without giving a great impulsion to the Continent, I have decided to
put a French Prince on the throne of Spain.”[5]
[5] “Des Documents Historiques publiés par Louis Bonaparte,”
Paris, 1820.
Murat’s power was mainly due to the reports which had reached
Spain of his great feats of arms, and the priests had admired
Napoleon as the restorer of the churches in France; but Murat had
not counted on the revulsion of feeling which ensued when the
Spaniards found that the soldiers of their ally were impregnated with
the doctrines of Voltaire and Rousseau, and as the imprudence of
the French fanned the flame of suspicion it gradually worked up to a
fire of fanaticism.
But the Emperor was quite firm in the idea of his imperial hand
wielding the Spanish sceptre, so he sent for Izquierdo, and asked
him if the Spaniards would not be glad to have him as their
Sovereign.
“Very,” returned Izquierdo, “if Your Majesty will first renounce the
diadem of France.”
Bonaparte did not feel flattered at the Spaniard’s reply, but,
anxious to set the affairs straight in the Peninsula, he left Paris for
Bordeaux on April 2.
In the meanwhile Maria Luisa and her husband had been highly
pleased at the arrival of Murat at the Court. The unhappy Sovereigns
had been treated with the greatest disrespect by their son since his
accession to the throne. They were told to go to Badajoz, in spite of
their protestations of the unsuitability of the climate to their ailments.
They were full of fears that the people’s rage would lead any
moment to the death of their idolized Godoy. Misfortune seemed
imminent at any moment, and poor Charles, with his rheumatic
pains, and unable even to count upon his royal income, was in a sad
state of depression when the news of Murat’s installation in the
palatial abode of the fallen favourite inspired them with hope.
Neither the Grand Duke of Berg nor the Ambassador
Beauharnais had recognized the son as King, although all the rest of
the diplomatic corps had done so; so, encouraged by this fact, they
wrote to Murat through the medium of their daughter, the Queen of
Etruria. The perusal of this correspondence gives an idea of the
humiliation of Charles IV. and his Queen, for, as the Duke of Rovigo
says:
“The letters of the royal parents show their consternation and
depression, and the violence must have been very great for them to
be in fear of their lives, and to implore a retreat which would suit their
health, and where they could spend the rest of their days in safety.”[6]
[6] “Mémoires du Duc de Rovigo.”
The picture of her son drawn by the Queen is worthy of the study
of the historian; for the remarks scattered through the various letters
run thus:
“From Ferdinand we have nothing to expect but misery and
persecution. He has formed this conspiracy to dethrone the King his
father; he has no character whatever, much less that of sincerity; he
is false and cruel; his ambition is limitless, and he does not treat his
father and mother like parents. Nothing affects him. He is unfeeling,
and not inclined to clemency; he promises, but he never fulfils his
promises; he does not care for the Grand Duke or the Emperor; he
only cares for despotism; he has a very bad heart; he has never
professed affection either for his father or for me; his councillors are
bloodthirsty, and love to do harm to everybody, not excepting the
father and mother.”
These remarks of the Queen-mother are supported by that of the
father, who said in his letter to Napoleon that “he found himself in the
necessity of choosing between life and death.”
And it was in this state of affairs that Maria Luisa commenced her
correspondence with the Duke of Berg by the following note, sent
through her daughter, the Queen of Etruria:
“Sir, my Brother,
“My mother sends me the enclosed letter for me to forward
to you to keep. Do us the kindness, dear sir, not to abandon us. All
our hopes are in you. Give me the comfort of your going to see my
parents. Reply something to cheer me, and do not forget a friend
who loves you from her heart.
“Maria Luisa.
“P.S.—I am ill in bed with a touch of fever, which prevents my
leaving my room.”
Murat then sent General Monthion, the head of the royal staff, to
Aranjuez to ascertain the truth about the King’s abdication, and it
was then that Charles sent his letter and protest to Napoleon.
In handing the letter to the French General, the King said:
“My position is of the saddest. They have taken off the Prince de
la Paz, and will, I believe, kill him.”
“Sire, my Brother,
“You will doubtless have heard with regret of the events at
Aranjuez and their results, and you will not view with indifference a
King forced to renounce his crown and put himself in the hands of
the great monarch, his ally, whilst placing himself entirely at the
disposition of the only person who can afford felicity to himself, his
family, and his faithful vassals.
“I have only abdicated in favour of my son by force of
circumstances, when the clash of arms and the clamours of an
insurrected garrison made me know what it was to choose between
life and death, and my death would have been followed by that of the
Queen.
“I was forced to abdicate, but I was reassured by my complete
confidence in the magnanimity and genius of the great man who has
always shown himself my friend. I determined to conform to
whatever the same great man may demand of us—myself, the
Queen, and the Prince de la Paz.
“I therefore address to Your Imperial Majesty a protest against the
events of Aranjuez and against my abdication. I throw myself entirely
upon the heart and friendship of Your Majesty, trusting that God will
keep you in His safe and worthy keeping.
“I am, Your Imperial Majesty’s
“Most affectionate Brother and Friend,
“Charles.”
“Sir, my Brother,
“I have just seen your esteemed commander, who has
given me your letter, by which I regret to find that my father and
mother have not had the pleasure of seeing you, although they wish
it so much, as all their hope is placed in you, who they trust will
restore them tranquillity.