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thewhumpcaretaker · 8 days ago

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⚜ 𝕋𝕙𝕠𝕤𝕖 𝕎𝕙𝕠 ℍ𝕒𝕧𝕖 𝕊𝕠𝕞𝕖𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕥𝕠 𝕃𝕚𝕧𝕖 𝔽𝕠𝕣 - ℂ𝕙. 𝕏𝕍𝕀𝕀𝕀: 𝕋𝕙𝕖 ℍ𝕖𝕒𝕣𝕥 𝕠𝕗 ℙ𝕠𝕨𝕖𝕣 ⚜

*✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ ✧.*★ Thank you to @kavalyera for beta reading this entire thing since LAST SUMMER oh my lord, that's a long time! You're a hero!!

Summary: Vincent and Chidi vow to spend their lives together.

Author's Note: This is the end of the road. If you've read this entire thing, thank you SO much! It means the world to me. At over 50k, this is the longest work I've ever written. If you feel inclined to comment, I would love to know your thoughts about any part of this book. That includes constructive criticism, because I want to keep writing and improving. Alright, enjoy the last chapter!!

TW: smut (anal)

Across France, and in fact portions of Belgium and the Netherlands, thorny stems twined their jagged way upward to scratch the sky. The barren, skeletal fields served as harbinger of a power that was rippling silently across the globe. Because Vincent de Gramont had bought up all the roses, and he was in the most unstoppable of moods.

Things were changing in the High Table. The loyalty inspired by Vincent’s generosity led other seat holders to follow suit. They had little choice. Harsh treatment would simply send underlings running into the arms of Vincent’s protection at the first chance. It was a true Golden Age. Business had never boomed more…and never with such a small headcount. The Table was shrinking as its earnings grew – a sure recipe for profit. “We will not surround ourselves with enemies waiting to betray.” This was the Marquis’ continual repetition. Disloyal parties were, for the first time, encouraged to see themselves out…or else disappear by more forceful means.

Of course, there was still bloodshed aplenty. “Protection” for the loyalists was, after all, far from a pacifistic service. And those roses coated the façade of the Basilica Sacre-Ceour de Marmonte so thickly that it might, to the passing planes, have looked drenched in blood. Flowers spiraled upward around the columns, poured from the windows, and even crisscrossed the dome with a lattice of garlands. But that was nothing to the interior. The petals formed a red and white wading pool two inches deep, all the way up to the altar.

“J'ai toujours pensé que quelque chose d'important m'arriverait ici [I always thought something important would happen to me here],” Vincent had told Chidi when they toured the site back in March. “Peut-être que je ferais baptiser un héritier ici, par exemple. Mais c’est drôle… Je n’ai même pas pensé à un mariage. [Maybe I would have an heir baptized here, for instance. But it’s funny…I didn’t even consider a wedding.]”

What would little Vincent say if he could see the grown man now? Before Chidi, Vincent had never given much thought of any kind to his wedding, aside from the fact that he didn’t plan to have one. An heir didn’t necessitate a spouse, after all. The High Table might have its traditions, but any concern for birthing out of wedlock had long died out. So, best not to tie himself so closely with any social climber who could try to weasel their way into his political life – or worse, his personal life. No, his “wedding” was always supposed to be his coronation. He would marry his work, his power.

The gold of the High Table insignia glinted in double as Vincent set his ring beside Chidi’s on the ringbearer’s silk pillow. Only one man could possibly wear that ring without threatening the life Vincent had built for himself. The fact that even one such man existed was a miracle worthy of the Sacre-Ceour.

He checked his appearance one last time. An immaculate white suit braced him at the neck and wrists, swept down his front in a delicious swathe of silk and velvet, and framed a golden tie. A crown of white roses and golden laurels rested on his sleek hair without disturbing it. He really had succeeded in outdoing the coronation. I am going to give Chidi a husband who looks like this, thought Vincent, and felt so overcome he had to look away.

It was nothing to the sight of Chidi himself.

One is allowed to cry at one’s own wedding. Vincent told himself this, but it didn’t help. He went down the aisle nervous, embarrassed, shaking slightly at the pressure that physically ached inside his chest, trying and failing to keep his joy trapped at the back of his throat when it was too immense for his entire body to contain.

No, the only thing that helped was the sight of Chidi crying openly for him. That little figure at the end of the aisle, small despite his strength, an anchoring, cool shadow in his black tuxedo amongst profusions of white and gold. An oasis. He smiled at Vincent with tears streaming down his face and without the smallest hint of reserve, and held out a hand to him. And then the Marquis was not ashamed.

It was a lengthy ceremony, filled with every manner of pomp, poetry, and organ music that would fit into it. It might as well have been designed to torture the guests’ patience, which was perhaps a fitting beginning to the marriage of two such ruthless individuals. Mo, seated in the front row and visible to Vincent, drifted off to sleep at certain points. Even Gianna’s eyes glazed over in a sure sign that her attention had turned back to plotting. But the final vows were simple, historied words, which pleased Vincent greatly to repeat.

“Moi, Vincent, je te prend, Chidi, pour être mon mari, pour avoir et tenir de ce jour vers l'avant, pour meilleur ou pour le pire, pour la prospérité et la pauvreté, dans la maladie et dans la santé, pour aimer et chérir; jusqu'à la mort nous sépare. [I, Vincent, take you, Chidi, to be my husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; till death separates us.]”

But there were private vows to make as well, and he saved those for the penthouse of the Paris Continental.

Just like the church, it overflowed with rose petals. But Vincent’s feet never disturbed them. Chidi carried him over the threshold. He needed it. A day of standing at attention, followed by dancing, had left him exhausted despite the euphoria. He sprawled over the luxurious duvet, one cheek nestling appreciatively into a pillow. “Espèce d'ange ignoble, Chidi. Tu m'as fait mal au visage à force de sourire. [You dastardly angel, Chidi. You’ve made my face hurt from smiling.]”

Chidi’s lips brushed the dimple at the other side of that smile and it deepened in response despite the soreness. “Comment puis-je me rattraper, hmm? [How can I make it up to you, hmm?]”

He rolled onto his back to pull Chidi into a proper kiss (by the tie of course) before responding. “Fermez les rideaux. [Close the curtains.]”

Vincent watched him moving, still gloved like a butler, letting slip the tasseled ropes to block out the sunset and the many eyes peopling the borderless kingdom of the High Table. As tired muscles sank into the bedding, he felt strange, subtle heaviness tugging at him too. The buzz of champagne from the reception sparkled down to nothing.

Then there was only darkness and candlelight. An intimate world that no one else would ever understand.

Chidi turned back to him, but did not move. Their eyes simply locked in silent contemplation. The dark fire of an animalistic obedience, staring straight into…what? What did Chidi see in him then, drained by a day’s exertion, and open right down to the soul?

The tiny spark of his own reflection looked glowing in Chidi’s pupils.

“Viens à moi, mon mari. [Come to me, my husband.]” My husband. My husband.

He moved to the beside without hesitation, stripped without needing to be told. Muscles unsheathed like weapons ready and at his disposal, cock already standing at attention. Backlit by dancing candlelight, he was a pet monster trimmed in gold. Vincent swallowed dry against sheer lust and a deeper, more profound trembling. Do I really deserve this new life? How can I possibly deserve it? How can I make him proud?

As always, the longing was immediately recognized. Chidi’s leg slung over him, a hand took up his own, almost automatically, and he kissed him slow…patient…attentive. A separate kiss for each lip. A long, lingering press.

Vincent fumbled out of it fuzzy. Floating. Needy.

“Chidi, j'ai encore un vœu à te demander. [Chidi, I have one more vow to ask of you.]” His words came out too soft in the silent room.

“Rien. [Anything.]” Chidi’s hands were at his belt now, and then his shoes... Tender but methodical in the removal of all possible barriers between them. He’d meant to answer but was having some trouble focusing. “Qu'est-ce que ce sera, maître? [What will it be, master?]” He kept brushing his fingers over things… A casual touch at the pelvis arched Vincent’s back and stole his breath. What was he going to ask for again? How could it even be put into words?

“Ahh… je vais te le dire mais… fais-moi l'amour. [Ahh…I’ll tell you but…make love to me.]” It wasn’t a command this time. It had lost its edge and rounded out into a plea. His husband exhaled through his teeth and kissed him harder.

He started to roll over while Chidi went for the lube. But Chidi took liberties with him, pushed him back down firmly with one shoulder. “Puis-je te regarder dans les yeux cette fois ? Je veux tout voir. Comme tu apprécies ce moment… C’est un spectacle trop beau pour le manquer. [May I look into your eyes this time? I want to see everything. How much you enjoy this moment… It’s too beautiful a sight to miss.]”

Vincent’s cheeks were now burning with heat as well as sore. But the joy of watching Chidi come undone over him…that did sound too beautiful to miss. “Oui.” He lay back and let himself go pliant into that fuzzy, floating space, breath catching with a kind of delicious gratitude as he felt himself breached and then worked upon in rhythm.

It was a slow, loving preparation. “Vous méritez que tout se sente bien, parfait et indolore. Rien que du plaisir. [You deserve to have everything feel good and perfect and painless. Nothing but pleasure.]” But the wave of affection Vincent felt in answer only made it harder to wait. The slide of Chidi’s fingers began to feel as torturously interminable as the wedding. A whine escaped him even through teeth clamped together, and Chidi’s free hand caressed his forehead in answer. Even the metal of his new ring had gone warm with their incandescent heat. “Tu es si bon et patient. Je suis presque avec toi, mon amour. Notre mariage sera consommé pour toujours. Et rien ne t'éloignera jamais de moi. [You’re so good and patient. I’m almost with you, my love. Our marriage will be consummated forever. And nothing will ever take you away from me.]”

Vincent writhed, gasping. “Oui, s'il te plaît, s'il te plaît, je le veux maintenant… [Yes, please, please, I want it now…]” The moment of withdrawal sped his pulse to a frantic pace in anticipation. And then they were one person. His muscles clenched to embrace the delicious burn, barely detectable under the ecstasy flooding every nerve. Their legs locked around each other and their arms entwined. He seemed to be making strangled, undignified noises and could not possibly have cared less. Chidi must have liked the look of him. Before long, his eyes were glazed over with that wild, protective, devouring look. Vincent knew that look by now. He was close.

Through the haze of pure sex, Chidi’s voice came to him, strained with pleasure but still asking how further to serve. “What should I vow to you, Vincent?”

Collecting himself, he let a finger trace the undulations of his lover’s bare, glistening chest until it found that steady yet urgent beat. “Jure-moi… [Swear to me…]” he began, breathy, “que tu ne laisseras pas le pouvoir me rendre sans cœur. Je – [that you will not let power make me heartless. I – ]“ (and here an appreciative thrust cut him off for a moment) “- Je veux toujours ressentir ça [- I always want to feel this way.]” Had he really said that? It sounded like someone else saying it. So timid and high and sweet.

Chidi didn’t break pace. “Je jure de ne pas vous laisser seul avec le pouvoir, maître. Quand cela vous pèsera trop lourd, je le retirerai de vos épaules et je vous rappellerai ce dont vous avez besoin. [I vow that I will not let you be alone with power, master. When it weighs too heavy on you, I will take it from your shoulders and remind you what it is to need.]” Only then, he went agonizingly still. Vincent’s thighs twitched in hungry protest. He felt his nails dig into Chidi’s forearm in a wordless demand even before he could bring himself to speak.

“Et – ah – quand tu m'as comme ça ? Quand j'ai besoin de toi ? [And – ah - when you have me that way? When I need you?]”

“Je te comblerai, je te remplirai, je te sauverai et je te servirai. Mari ou pas, tu seras toujours mon maître. [I will fulfill you, and fill you, and rescue you, and serve you. Husband or not, you will always be my master.]” Again, he moved his hips like a piston, and Vincent’s heart and his whole body contracted with the greatest thrill he had ever known. For the second time that day, Chidi carried him over the threshold, and he cried out softly into the dark, intimate bliss that swallowed the world. His husband followed.

Chidi collapsed onto his chest, arms diving under his back to hold him tightly and let the aftershocks echo against his rock-solid embrace. How many times had they said it that day?

“Je te’aime.”

All was quiet and at peace. Vincent petted along the back of his neck, along his shoulders, feeling his sleepy warmth. Relaxed like this, Chidi became a blanket that he wanted to cuddle up under until the end of time. Gratitude swelled through him as he curled even deeper into the shelter of Chidi’s body. “Veux-tu aussi demander un autre vœu, mon amour ? [Do you want to ask for another vow too, love?]”

His chest rumbled through Vincent’s with a thoughtful sound. Finally, “Non. Tu ne pourrais faire aucun vœu qui m’aiderait à me sentir plus enclin à te servir que je ne le fais déjà. [No. There’s no vow you could make that would help me feel any more inclined to serve you than I already do.]” He turned his face into Vincent’s neck and kissed it. “Et il n’y a aucun vœu que tu puisses rompre qui me ferait moins t’aimer. [And there’s no vow you could ever break that would make me love you any less.]”

End Note: If I were to continue this series any further (which I don't plan to do), it would follow Vincent and Chidi's experiences with raising children in the High Table, while looking back on their own childhoods. Vincent would explore what really happened to his mother, and Chidi would dig into his own family history. Both Vincent and Chidi would wrestle with whether they'll be good parents and how to break cycles of generational trauma. They'll make some mistakes but I think they can do it <3

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Image Sources: One | Two (I merged this with my own screenshot to expand the edges, which is lower resolution but I think it looks okay?)

Wedding Vows Source

#Is it technically Valentine's Day yet? Not for me but it is in some places and I'm impatient #hopelesslydevoted #john wick fanfic #john wick #chidi x marquis #chidi jw #marquis de gramont #wickblr #marquis de gramont whumpee #chidi caretaker #whump fic #assassin whump #ao3 crosspost

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josefavomjaaga · 8 months ago

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First Restauration newspaper gossip – the Marmont edition

Some more snippets from 1814 German newspapers:

Allgemeine Zeitung, 16 June 1814:

There is talk of the appointment of three new marshals, and M. Viomesnil, M. Coigny and M. Nansouty are believed to have been designated. On the other hand, it is said to be true that General Grouchy had asked for his dismissal. But after everything was settled, he showed himself at court, and is said to have taken the liberty of insulting Marshal Marmont in the presence of the Duke of Berry in a parlour adjoining the King's flats, whereupon he was ordered to leave Paris the next day.

Allgemeine Zeitung, 28 June 1814

General Grouchy, who was ordered to leave Paris following his quarrel with Marshal Marmont, has returned; the King has deigned to excuse what he considers to be the temperamental outbursts of an excellent warrior.

Bayreuther Zeitung, 8 July 1814

A private message from Mainz, that cannot be verified, says that there was a tumultuous event in Paris on 30 June and that Marshal Marmont was stabbed to death by Marshal Oudinot.

Bayreuther Zeitung, 9 July 1814

The rumour from Mainz of tumultuous events in Paris on 30 June and of the assassination of Marshal Marmont was not confirmed. Until 2 July, the Paris papers did not report any event that could have given rise to this rumour.

Berlinische Nachrichten von Staats- und gelehrten Sachen, 19 July 1814

Marmont is particularly the object of the censure of the discontented because, instead of putting Paris, which his defeated and shattered corps could not cover, at the mercy of extreme danger, he preferred to capitulate.

Baierische National-Zeitung, 30 July 1814

Marmont, who saved the ruins of his defeated army by a capitulation, the life of a punishable and still dangerous tyrant by a stroke of the pen, and Paris itself from destruction by ceasing to defend it when it could no longer be defended, without provoking and exposing the aggressors; this Marmont is at present universally hated by those citizens whose houses, wives and daughters owe their existence and honour to his prudence. The most daring of Bonaparte's followers accuse him of treachery, because he took the only means to save their idol. The armies, which he rescued with honour from a succession of unequal battles and unavoidable misfortunes, accuse him daily in the cafés of having disgraced the French arms.

And as a bonus: Louise Soult

Allgemeine Zeitung, 16 June 1814

It is said that the other day, when Mme la Maréchale Soult presented herself at court, she was allowed to enter before many of the ladies of old nobility, who were very offended by this.

#napoleon's marshals #first restauration #basically a series of contemporary shitposts

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aedislumen · 9 months ago

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The relationship between Barras, Carnot and Bonaparte related to the 18th Fructidor coup according to Lavalette

At the period I am now speaking of, Barras was the most violent of the three members of the Directory who wished for an alteration in the councils. His hatred of Carnot was so strong that, a few days before the 18th Fructidor, one of his confidants, to whom I made the observation that Carnot would undoubtedly find means of escaping from persecution, answered, "We will kill him." He had continually in his mouth the most insulting expressions against those whom he suspected of being Royalists. On the other hand, how is it possible to reconcile that hatred of the Bourbons and their friends with the revelations published by Fauche Borel since the Restoration, and which Barras never denied. The above-mentioned agent of Louis XVIII has asserted that the Director had consented to the plan of the Count of Lille to bring about a Royalist revolution ; that a formal pardon had been sent to him, and an amnesty for his vote in the trial of the late King ; finally, that several millions had been promised him to make up for the loss of his rank as Director. If the assertion of Fauche Borel be true, the animosity of Barras against the Royalist party can only be explained by the impossibility in which he found himself of accomplishing his promises, or by his grief at being obliged to share glory and the profit of a Restoration with persons whom he detested, and whose reputation and talents would offer the King better pledges than he could present. The conduct of Napoleon in regard to Barras, during his reign, may also be explained by the knowledge he had acquired of his treason.

— Memoirs of Count Lavalette, 1894, p. 132 - 133

Given that these are memoirs, their reliability must be taken with caution. I found these revelations extremely interesting nonetheless.

A few pages later Lavalette also mention that while in Geneva Bonaparte secretly sent notice to Carnot to leave the town - he was hiding there - as soon as possible:

Bonaparte crossed Switzerland, and went to Rastadt : his travelling companions were Generals Marmont, Duroc, myself, his secretary Bourrienne, and Ivan his physician. The only place at which he stopped was Geneva, where the Directory was already beginning, by underhand manoeuvres, to augment the number of its adherents, who were one day to effect the union of that Republic with France. Carnot had sought refuge in that city, and General Bonaparte privately sent him advice to leave it as soon as possible, so as to prevent a persecution he was not able to prevent.

— Memoirs of Count Lavalette, 1894, p. 148

Such a pity there's no official source for all of this. Carnot doesn't mention anything of the sort in his Réponse à Bailleul about the current and following events of 18th Fructidor. I guess that if what Lavalette said right, Carnot didn't say anything not to give Napoléon any more troubles.

#i fell into the 18th Fructidor coup gossip rabbit hole #18 fructidor #directory #frev #barras #lazare carnot #napoleon bonaparte #lavalette

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natlacentral · 1 year ago

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‘Last Airbender’ Star Dallas Liu Celebrates Renewal, Increased Opportunities for Asian and Indigenous Actors

The cast and crew of “Avatar: The Last Airbender” are still waiting to hear what their creative team has in store for Seasons 2 and 3.

“We have no idea,” Dallas Liu, who stars as Prince Zuko in Netflix‘s live-action adaptation of the Nickelodeon animated series of the same name, told me Wednesday night at Vanity Fair and Instagram’s pre-Oscars party, Vanities: A Night for Young Hollywood, at Bar Marmont. “We have literally zero details. I was hoping for something, but Netflix is staying pretty tight-lipped about it right now.”

They haven’t even been told when production will resume.

Even so, Liu is excited, specially because more seasons means more representation. “The Asian and the Indigenous community have so many talented actors and actress,” he said. “I feel like we could go in any direction that we’d like.”

Earlier on Wednesday, Netflix announced the series was renewed for two more seasons. Liu recalled the cast being told the good news during a Zoom call. “Basically, they told us, ‘We need you to be on a Zoom call because we have some post-launch things we’d like for you to do,’ but then I saw there like 50 people on the call,” he said.

Star Daniel Dae Kim initially pranked the young actors by saying on the call that the streamer wasn’t “able to announce a Season 2 for our show.” But then he said, “They are able to announce a Season 2 and 3.”

The cast also includes Gordon Cormier, Ian Ousley and Kiawentiio. Netflix released a video of the Zoom call on YouTube. It has more than 441,000 views as of Thursday morning.

“It was a huge moment for all of us because we had spent so much time with each other on the project,” Liu said. “After the release of the first season, the only thing we wanted was more seasons.”

The show was shot in Vancouver, but production may move to another location. “We’re going to be in a completely different setting for Season 2, so we’ll see. I’m always down for a ride.” Liu said. “I can’t wait to see what the writers have in store for us.”

#natla #atla #netflix avatar #avatar the last airbender #netflix atla #avatar netflix #atla netflix #dallas liu #vanity fair x instagram young hollywood #article #variety

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sgiandubh · 1 year ago

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Hi! I wasn’t around for the chateau marmont photo either, so I don’t know what’s already been discussed. It does kind of look like there’s more of the grass to the left (our left) of the woman in white though. Sure looks like ugly decor, but 🤷🏻‍♀️. Doesn’t change my opinion that Sam and caitriona are together, but I think some of the possible photoshops are hard to be sure of. Definitely appreciate the speculation though!

Dear Chateau Marmont Anon,

If you take five minutes of your time and read the comments thread, two veterans (@mariaae and @dillon7fan) confirmed the picture was never discussed before being posted on 'that ol blunt knife blog' (I see you and now I know there is a definite shortage of capital letters in Spain).

And then, there's you, to whom I am willing to grant the benefit of the doubt.

Work with me:

You write, and I quote you: It does kind of look like there’s more of the grass to the left (our left) of the woman in white though.

You mean, this smiling lady?

That is not grass, my dear. That is, most probably, a ficus tree (but I stand corrected, I am no expert in these).

But that is not the big problem I have with this bizarre picture, featuring outdoorsy bistrot chairs and yes, a lot of greenery.

In all honesty and fairness, here is an interesting picture of Chateau Marmont's very indoor/outdoor restaurant. The nay contest outdoor area - furniture is a perfect match and there are shrubs (happy?):

Let's suppose the pic was taken on the patio area, facing the fancy covered structure that looks like a tent. Something still does not really click and I am pretty sure there's either a problem of angle or a matter of scale.

Not being a gardener, I asked myself if there is a standard height for this kind of privacy/screening shrubs. I found something very interesting, on the site of a Californian landscape professional established since 1869 (https://pacificnurseries.com/great-hedge-screen-plants-for-privacy/) and I have to say the suggested scale matches the picture:

Let's add 2 inches to this rough estimate, upping it to 3 feet and 2 inches (96 centimeters). In the context, the two inches are negligible, because these shrubs grow rather fast and are regularly pruned.

If we assume the leg length represents about half the person's height, well... we reach a height of about 6 feet and 4 inches, which means 193 centimeters. There are scientific reasons to this ratio, by the way, but do not ask me to elaborate on it (specialized input is always a big plus):

I do not remember Tracula to be that commanding. I can, however, think of someone whose height is very close to that result.

So, in a nutshell, it's a pick your adventure scenario, Anon. Either:

a) that is a (photoshopped) grass background and the guy can bilocate better than Star Trek's Data.

b) that's a shrub and the height of that person (body?) does not match Tracula's.

In all fairness, I think that's a shrub. I have no problem acknowledging my wrongs and my limits.

I also have another question: is Tracula documented as wearing watches? I am being very honest here and could do with your feedback.

Is that proof? It's another layer of speculation. I am not megalomaniac, thank God.

It's never (never, ever) waterproof with these people.

#Anon

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p-redux · 2 years ago

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Maybe Sam is in the US bc the $ ?? It could also just be an old photo he just added to. I hope 🤞🏻 he’s still in Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 for Mum’s Day with his adorable Mum!!! That’s the guy I think Sam is 😉 Happy Friday @p-redux and as always thanks for your humor in indulging us Sam fans 🤪

Yeah, that's definitely a dollar sign. But it could be an old pic. I'm barely waking up, but someone mentioned he was in NY not LA. But then someone said whatever pic people were basing the NY sighting on is an old pic. Here's the comment that was left on one of my posts. It's in French, but it translates as "old photo...same outfit (t-shirt jacket bracelet) as Nov-Dec 2021 with Josh and his post from 05/03 at the Chinesetuxedo restaurant." Meaning Sam is not in NY.

I'm barely waking up, so I haven't had time to check anything. But the L.A. Chateau Marmont sighting I got was from yesterday. If it's true, then he would still be in L.A....unless he already took off or Mexico to join Matt Neal and his girlfriend.

Let me know if there's other info and I'll post if I get more. Off to pour me a cup of coffee and set an Anon from a couple of days ago straight on some fandom history. I love when people come to me to correct me, bitch, I was in the thick of it. I know that I know what I know. History class will begin in just a bit. 👩‍🏫

#samheughan #dollarsign #$#los angeles #newyork #losangeles #chateau marmont #mexico #mattneal #history lesson

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askgeraudduroc · 10 months ago

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Hello Marmont.

There are multiple things I want to say to man who has always been welcomed in my house, and cherished by my wife and children as a dear friend. The man, to whom Aglaé went to beg for mercy for me, having no idea that he was one that voted for my death.

I hope you got what you wanted. I hope you’re proud of yourself, because at least you would be the only one who is actually proud of you.

You became a synonym for a traitor.

And you know, you deserve it.

Sincerely, go to hell.

Ney.

@le-brave-des-braves

...Ney

I...

I will not say... The words. 'cause they wouldn't mean anythin' to you.

But... I will let you know that...

I don't.

I don't have anythin' to be proud of myself.

And... I have already been in hell.

Not throught a hell of a experience, but in actual. Hell. Real stuff. And, to be more precise, the 9th Circle.

I have been trapted, in burnin' ice, for 'round 100 years. Or more.

I even think that, the one that was also freezed out by my side the whole time was Judas Iscariot himself... Or it could be someone of his same era. I have no idea, nor i really care.

Atleast... does that makes you happy??

#it's... marmont?!

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alexstorm · 2 years ago

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And then there are the ones from LA before she was allowed into his house she had to stay at Château Marmont // I think she definitely “allowed” there early on since they filmed some parts of her music video there (desert) which was finished by mid 2019.

But looking at her Château Marmont photos, I have to say only she has the power to make that historic hotel look cheap lol

We know she was in his house before but she clearly didn't stay there for long or if at all. Only since last year she's allowed there for more than a week or two.

We had an anon here a few years ago who said (without source) that Alex has this kind of arrangement with his parents that he spends Christmas one year in Sheffield and one year they come to him to LA. I'm not entirely sure but I think those Château Marmont pics were taken in late December so this could mean he parked her at the hotel while his parents stayed at his house. Which again would prove she's not getting on with his family. We know he spent 2018 in Sheffield and 2019 in LA. Not entirely sure where he was in 2020 but we know what she did. lol

#asks

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josefavomjaaga · 2 months ago

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Eugène harrasses a lady

What better way to spend the first day of Christmas than to search for the one incident of Eugène harrassing a woman that I had once come across and then (probably due to my subconsciousness refusing to cooperate) had such trouble to remember the details of that I could barely find it again. But I won, for what it’s worth 😋. I found it again, here's the translation.

For context: Countess Ludovica "Lulu" von Thürheim (1788 – 1864) belonged to a family of minor nobility in the Austrian Netherlands (today’s Belgium) with however some good connections to Austrian aristocracy. The French Revolution had forced her father to flee to the Austrian mainlands, which explains in itself why Lulu and all her family were no friends of the French. Lulu seems to have kept a diary from an early age on, and those diaries are the basis for the later publication entitled "Lebenserinnerungen" that however, according to her own wish, only happened 50 years after her death (well, almost fifty), in 1913. The first volume covers the years up to 1812. The original diaries have however undergone some heavy editing, first by the author herself in the 1840s, then by the publisher Philipp von Blittersdorf. It’s not always clear where the original diaries end and the later comment begins. I’ve come across a passage that seemed to come from the diary, yet referenced the memoirs of Marmont only published in the 1850s.

In 1809, during the Fifth coalition war, the Thürheim family lived in Klagenfurt and in late May witnessed the passage of the Army of Italy, under Eugène’s command, on its way to Vienna to support Napoleon after the defeat at Aspern-Essling. Lulu’s sister Isabella was married since 1807 to one count Goëß, who had been sent to Northern Italy by Archduke Johann on a special mission (inciting the inhabitants to riot against the French, which was labelled as espionage) and had been captured by the French in Padua. The Thürheims learned the details about this from archduke Johann himself who passed through Klagenfurt on his hasty retreat from the Italians pursuing him. Only two days later, the French were there, and a certain general Grouchy, (described by Lulu as seemingly "an evil man [...] despite his outward politeness") was briefly quartered for a night in the Thürheim’s house before the army moved on:

23 May: General Grouchy advised my sister to visit the Viceroy and ask him to exchange her husband. Beauharnais received her at first with the haughty air of a true parvenu. He was very harsh towards Count Goëß, calling him ‘un colporteur de libelles infames’. Then he continued: ‘Your husband must be treated as a prisoner of the state and I myself do not understand why he was not immediately executed. - But if I had known you before, Countess,’ he interjected cynically, ’I would have felt obliged to serve you in any way I could. But now everything rests in the hands of the great Napoleon. The Emperor is stern and will not allow himself to be insulted without punishment, and I fear the worst for Count Goëß. My personal wish, however, is to be of service to you. I pity you, it must be difficult to live as a widow so young and so beautiful for so long.’ A torrent of gallant phrases followed, until my sister began to weep bitterly. Only now did Beauharnais stop his silly importunity and poor Isabelle was able to withdraw. What a difference between this conversation and the one with Archduke Johann two days ago!

Isabelle told me that Beauharnais has a nice figure, beautiful eyes and false teeth. He is a bit high-backed, but nevertheless well-grown. His manners are by no means distinguished and his eyes have a false [i.e., deceitful] gaze.

Isabelle then went to General Charpentier, who received her with the perfect politeness of a man ‘de l'ancien regime’ and gave her the best hopes for her husband. The viceroy liked to frighten people, he said with a smile. - Nevertheless, we learnt much later that Napoleon was very angry with Goëß and really intended to have him shot.

The story briefly picks up some time later, in late July (? the chronology is not always clear to me), as Eugène, despite not having gotten any … favours from Isabelle, apparently still had talked to Napoleon about the fate of count Goëß.

Our stay in Vienna was not to last long. Through the mediation of Eugene Beauharnais, my sister finally obtained the exchange of her husband for some French general. Despite the service the viceroy rendered her, Isabella found him even less comme il faut at her audience than at the first interview. He told her a thousand absurdities, asked her if she loved her husband, and behaved as indecorously as in bad taste.

Which are indeed rather unusual accusations towards Eugène. But hey, here we go.

Eugène’s correspondence is understandably silent about this meeting. The only thing I can confirm is that either the date Lulu gives in her diary must be wrong (she may only have found the time to write the entry on the 23rd while things had happened earlier), or that Isabelle must have followed the marching army of Italy, which I doubt. Eugène had passed through Klagenfurt already on the 21st and on the 23rd was already 50 kms away.

Eugène to Auguste, Klagenfurt, 21 May 1809

Here I am at Klagenfurth with part of the army, my good Auguste, and already, four leagues further on, on the Marburg side, I have my light troops. We will probably march for seven or eight days without finding the enemy, because they are withdrawing in all haste, and I will manoeuvre to get closer to the Emperor. I was unable to write to you yesterday, as I worked a lot and slept very little; but I had Bataille write to Madame de Wurmbs. I receive your lovely little letters every day, and I hope you are thinking how much I enjoy them. It has rained excessively today, and I have no means of changing my clothes, as all my carriages are two days behind me, and I don't think they will join me until tomorrow; I am like a little Saint John, with only one garment on my body, as I have lost my topcoat. Those devilish bridges broken by the enemy have caused us a lot of trouble.

Eugène to Auguste, Sankt Veit, 22 May 1809

I am only writing you a word from here, my dear Auguste. I am in a hurry to get to the right of the Emperor with as many men as possible; you will see from the date of this letter the route I am taking; but I don't want anyone to know about it in Milan for a few days yet. So during the day I'll be putting in one or two articles from Klagenfurth, and yet in four days I'll be in Leoben.

Eugène to Napoleon, Friesach, 23 May 1809

Sire, I have the honour of reporting to Your Majesty that I am sending him, by the direct route from here to Vienna, my aide-de-camp, Captain Bataille, who will have an individual from Vienna protected by our posts, who has given an assurance, for his part, that he will have my aide-de-camp pass through, supposing that he should come across enemy posts. I did not wish, for greater safety, to give a dispatch to my aide-de-camp: but I have charged him with giving Your Majesty an account of everything that has happened in his army of Italy since I had the honour of writing to him. [...]

Well, giving dispatches to Bataille apparently was not even safe in peace times, so…

There’s also a very detailled letter by Eugène to Napoleon about Count Goëß and his seized papers, in which Eugène does try to downplay the effect the count’s actions had within the kingdom. It is from 27 May.

Lulu von Thürheim's "Lebenserinnerungen" can be found online:

Volume 1

Volume 2

Volume 3

Volume 4

#napoleon's family #eugene de beauharnais #napoleonic era #Fifth coalition war #lulu von thürheim #count goeß #Austria 1809 #army of italy

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losnoventa90 · 3 years ago

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In My Own Private Idaho, River Phoenix and Keanu Reeves portray a pair of teenage prostitutes, each more victim than vulture. Phoenix is a narcoleptic, Mike, who dozes off at dangerously inopportune moments as he searches endlessly for his long-lost mother; Reeves is a blue-blooded runaway, Scott, who turns tricks as an act of rebellion against his father. “Idaho is the story of a rich boy who falls of the hill and a kid on the street,” says writer-director, Gus Van Sant. “I saw a bit of the hill in Keanu’s personality and a bit of the street in River’s. They played out those extensions of themselves.”

Reeves is the first to arrive for dinner at Suite 55 in the Chateau Marmont on Sunset Boulevard. He looks a bit dazed from a run-in with the paparazzi at a Hollywood screening. “I just stopped on my bike to ask the guard, like, what movie was playing,” he says. “And suddenly all of the guys around me are yelling ‘Keanu, look up!'” Did he? “No way, man. I beat it out of there. It was weird.” He grins, and then offers to grate some Parmesan cheese for the pasta, first asking what side of the grater to use. Soon Phoenix shows up. Immediately, he’s at Reeves’s side in the kitchen, peeling garlic. Within minutes, though, the two escape to the balcony. Phoenix lights up a Camel. He cocks an eyebrow: “Doesn’t figure, huh?” Then he exhales. “I know. I should quit.”

Suddenly he and Reeves are off, excitedly exploring the possibility of doing Shakespeare together. They stand nose to nose—Phoenix newly bleached blond as part of his bid to play the young Andy Warhol in a future Van Sant biopic, Reeves dark-haired and tanned—like positive and negative images of each other. They sustain their banter throughout the meal, as one interrupts the other, but only to complete his thought.

GINI SIKES: Keanu, you’ve said you accepted a part in Idaho first, hoping River would do the film too.

KEANU REEVES: No. We were always together.

RIVER PHOENIX: He was lying. We were doing I Love You to Death, and we both got the Idaho script. We were driving in a car on Santa Monica Boulevard, probably on the way to a club, and were talking really fast about the whole idea. We were excited. It could have been like a bad dream—a dream that never follows through because no one commits, but we just forced ourselves into it. We said “OK, I’ll do it if you do it. I won’t do it if you don’t.” We shook hands. That was it.

PAIGE POWELL: River, what were the challenges you face from portraying a character who suffers from narcolepsy? When I first saw your narcoleptic attacks on film, for one tenth of a second they could have been perceived as comic. Then they seemed painful. It’s clear that they come out of nowhere. How’d you know to do that?

PHOENIX: Mainly from Gus’ descriptions of what Jake would do. Jake was a narcoleptic in Portland who worked with me. I spent a lot of time talking to him about why narcolepsy happens. I understood it completely from the medical and scientific standpoint, though they don’t know exactly what it is. But when I was with Jake he never had a narcoleptic attack in front of me. After I’d done a few of the fits, Gus said they were exactly the way Jake had them.

REEVES: Do you think this film will cause narcolepsy? I mean, should parents watch out for their children?

PHOENIX: I would definitely stress that viewers should be very aware of the catching nature of narcolepsy.

REEVES: Should viewers wear special glasses?

PHOENIX: It’s like the eclipse. If you look at it too long, you might get it.

POWELL: While we’re on the subject of research, did the two of you hang out with the street kids in Portland?

PHOENIX: Totally.

REEVES: Yeah, a little bit.

SIKES: Were there ever times that you felt that asking street hustlers for information was somehow exploiting them?

PHOENIX: I think they were flattered that their story would be told.

REEVES: No, man. I don’t feel that this story is a contemporary tale of the street. It’s not current in the places or language. The only way this story is contemporary is in a larger sense, in its emotions and perhaps what goes on inside of some people…

POWELL: Aren’t emotions timeless?

REEVES: Exactly. But I’m talking about how they’re manifested in language, or, you know, in anything that people are doing. I’m just saying this film is not representative of the street scene in Portland.

PHOENIX: That’s very true. If a kid from Portland saw this movie, he wouldn’t think it was Portland street life. But it’s our responsibility to go as deep as we can and to explore all the directions that might even be suggested in a script. Just so we have all the bases covered. Our research was extracurricular, it wasn’t necessarily needed. SIKES: Describe how you went about researching the lifestyle of street hustlers.

PHOENIX: I entered it through friends of Gus’ who were already on the street, Scott and Gary. Gary died in a car wreck recently, from what I heard; God bless his soul. Being anonymous also helped us, I think.

SIKES: They had no idea you two were actors researching a role?

PHOENIX: No, no. It was all in character. We were just hangin’. If anything, they thought, This is another cat who’s trying to take my spot on the street. There was maybe a little curiosity, but never any animosity or jealousy. Because it’s a brotherhood on the street, man. You all watch for each other’s backs. Because no one wants to see anyone get stabbed.

SIKES: So nothing was set up?

PHOENIX: Some street kids came over to Gus’ house, and we met different people at different places. It was staged, in that sense. But the actual street stuff was just us, working on our own time. Like guerrillas [laughs]. It was very sensational for us. I though our main problem was to find out if we could be the real guys. Gus’ choice was to use real street guys or us, so Keanu and I felt a great burden. We wanted to believe in this script and work out the problems.

SIKES: Both of you are very popular among adolescents. In particular, teenagers seem to relate to you, Keanu, because of your Bill and Ted persona. Was there any concern in your camp, say from your agent or manager, that playing a male prostitute would hurt your “image”?

REEVES: Hurt my image? Who am I—a politician? [laughs softly] No. I’m an actor. That wasn’t a problem. But shooting was a very intense experience. I had just finished Point Break and was still into my character. I felt a bit of anxiety about Idaho. I was overwhelmed at what I had to do—it was like, Oh, no! Can I do this? I was afraid. But Gus and River made me fit in. Said, Let’s do one bitchin’ movie. I don’t know about you, River, man—but I was introduced to so many elements through the guy I was playing. Real people. My imagination. Gus’ interpretation. Shakespeare. It was rich! And it was just bottomless, man. You could go as far as you could go, you know?

SIKES: I remember reading an interview with Robert Downey Jr. after Less Than Zero, where he said he was afraid people would harass him because of his character. Has anyone reacted strongly to your rules?

PHOENIX. Fuck them. That’s all I can say. A big capital F, a U-C-K, and THEM. T-H-E-M.

REEVES: Get a clue, man.

SIKES: So you haven’t had any negative—

REEVES: No. I get negative shit all the time. I don’t care.

PHOENIX: Do you think anyone would have taken this script ten years ago?

REEVES: Porno stars, maybe. Like maybe one of Warhol’s crowd.

PHOENIX: Joe Dallesandro?

REEVES: Possibly one of those cats. SIKES: One of your co-stars is a Warhol actor—Udo Kier, from Dracula and Frankenstein. Which brings me to a prurient question…

REEVES: It’s your job!

SIKES: How comfortable were you guys filming your three-way sex scene with Udo?

PHOENIX: Well, I really didn’t help matters. While we were doing our scene I said, “Just think, Keanu. Five hundred million of your fans will be watching this one day.” Like a stupid idiot. I made him feel completely self-conscious. But Keanu rose above it. Gus scolded me endlessly the night after.

REEVES: Did he really?

PHOENIX: Yeah. He scolded the shit out of me. I almost cried. That was terrible of me. I was just trying to break the ice. You know, I thought it was humorous—I was trying to save Keanu from being freeze-framed by twelve-year-olds at home!

REEVES: Thanks, brother.

PHOENIX: Later on, Keanu was filmed naked with the beautiful Chiara [Caselli, who plays Scott’s Italian girlfriend, Carmella]. That scene was really a drag. He was having a great time with this girl, but it was freezing cold and they were dying. So I think they were more worried about the temperature than the nudity. That took five hours.

SIKES: The scene with Udo must have been easier simply because you two were already good friends. How did you meet?

PHOENIX: Actually, I met Keanu through my ex-girlfriend Martha [Plimpton] while they were doing Parenthood—they were sucking face regularly. My brother, Joaquin [Phoenix], otherwise known as Leaf, was also in it. So, Leaf and Martha were his buddies before I was even a friend of his. Then I met up with him on I Love You to Death. And I liked the guy. I wanted to work with him. He’s like my older brother. But shorter.

POWELL: Keanu, Scott is a rich kid who wallows in the gutters to rebel against his father, who’s the mayor of Portland. Gus based Scott on Prince Hal in Shakespeare’s Henry IV plays…

REEVES: Yeah, but in the Shakespeare world, Prince Hal turned out to be a good king. To avoid eternal strife he gets into these wars. All the dukes and lords were pretty happy because men were going off to die for a noble cause and people were being fed. But in Idaho, Scott is not connected to the people. He’s got his own agenda. He just dogs everybody and goes his own way. So he doesn’t have, like, the noble aspect. In the end, his father was perhaps very compassionate and concerned. Perhaps that’s what makes it a modern tale.

SIKES: Were you concerned at all that Mike speaks in street vernacular throughout the film, whereas Scott goes in and out of Shakespearean verse? Did you think your switch in speech might seem jarring, Keanu?

REEVES: The Shakespeare stuff was an aspect of the script. Gus said it was something to do and think about it. So that was my game. I wasn’t worried. It just seemed challenging and interesting to me.

PHOENIX: I was afraid of it not working.

REEVES: For me?

PHOENIX: No, for the entire film. I felt we needed to be very clear on how we set up the transition scenes between the mock Shakespeare stuff and the docu-drama stuff. There needed to be stepping stones to those scenes—so it wouldn’t be like jumping from black to white to Technicolor. It was important to organize our thoughts and to support Gus stylistically.

REEVES: I wasn’t aware of all the different styles going on in the film initially, though. You were looking through the camera a lot more than me.

POWELL: The thing I like so much about Gus and his work is his compassion. Mala Noche just ripped my heart out. In My Own Private Idaho, he’s dealing with the search from home and family. Was that theme important to you in deciding to do this film?

REEVES: Oh, not for me.

PHOENIX: I have really strong feelings about the search for home and mother. I thought it was very, very touching. You just knew that someone who could come up with this premise would have something to back it with in terms of knowledge and experience. Which Gus has.

POWELL: What was it like working with Gus as a person—living in his house, on location, and so on?

PHOENIX: Gus just has those qualities that we all need to get back. Open eyes, open ears, a kid’s stream of consciousness. You know, the things kids do—like putting their fingers up strange pipings in the house or acting all soft because they’ve screwed up and Mom’s mad at them. That’s Gus. Just being a kid. He was very collaborative, completely wide open. It was like a family operation—co-op style.

SIKES: How did you two manage on the set?

PHOENIX: Every morning, Matt [Ebert, production assistant] woke us up by singing show tunes. He’d drag us by our ears down the van.

REEVES: No, man. I was always there, prompt and ready.

PHOENIX: But he had to drag me by the ear down to the van. I’m very stubborn about getting up in the morning.

REEVES: Yeah, man. But I knew that Matt would grab me by the ear, too, so I’d just hang out.

PHOENIX: Yeah, Keanu would wait downstairs with his script in hand, ready to get I the van, and I would be upstairs fumbling for my clothes, although I usually sleep with my clothes on. POWELL: Gus was pretty spontaneous about what scenes you shot each day, wasn’t he?

PHOENIX: I have no clue. I don’t know what he fuckin’ decided to shoot what or where or when or why, man.

POWELL: Well, when you woke up in the morning didn’t you know what scene you were going to shoot?

REEVES: Generally, yeah. I’m sure that was other people telling Gus, “You need to know what you’re going to do tomorrow.” I don’t know if that was necessarily his personal impetus, but I think the machine was asking him what we were going to do so that we could be ready.

POWELL: The movie starts in Portland, moves to Idaho, then to Italy. While filming sequentially, did anything develop that you couldn’t have anticipated at the beginning?

PHOENIX: The campfire scene was definitely a combination of Keanu and me working together off-set, fucking around with improv, talking about our characters. Getting deeper into it, we discovered a lot about our relationship within the film, and by the time we were ready to shoot the last scene in the States, we had enough insight to go a hell of a lot deeper than the script every told us it would.

SIKES: That’s the scene where Mike tells Scott that he loves him.

PHOENIX: There was a lot of deep love [in the film]. You don’t know until you see the dailies whether it comes across or not. But because we shot in sequence, we were watching the film unfold before us, and when that scene cam around we could just, like, ad-lib it.

POWELL: That campfire scene is very similar to the one you did in Stand by Me—

PHOENIX: The confession scene. It’s also similar to a scene in Running on Empty. Gus did see both movies, so maybe he sampled them. POWELL: When I visited the set in Italy, I noticed that you were both always really sweet. You’d have gone without sleep and be really tired; yet you were always considerate to the hotel clerks, limo drivers. Everyone.

PHOENIX: Oh, yeah. We’re great guys. We are really wonderful people. I think Keanu and I are the nicest guys on the planet—with the exception of George Bush and Ronald Reagan.

REEVES: They are the sweetest guys. They’re good to their clan. We should say thank you now that we have the opportunity. “Thanks, guys!”

PHOENIX: [laughs] I’m sorry. You gave us a compliment.

POWELL: O.K. But it’s true—you did seem to demonstrate a genuine consideration for anyone you worked with on the set.

PHOENIX: But, seriously, we know what it’s like to be on the bottom. The Lord Jesus Christ has given us a chance to be on top. So we’re not going to abuse it. We’re going to be very thankful for it and gracious about the luck that we had in our positions. We’re very lucky young men. We do what we want, we get to be creative and make money.

REEVES: Right on, brother. Right on.

SIKES: So what else are you guys doing now?

PHOENIX: I want to buy a 16mm camera. I’m not committed to the idea of being a filmmaker, but I’d like to try some shorts. I really like documentaries. And I want to drive through the mountains where I used to live when I was doing this TV series [Seven Brides for Seven Brothers] when I was twelve. I’m going with my girlfriend.

REEVES: Every moment is precious. I’m trying to travel. I want to go to Paris. It’s probably just a pipe dream. I’d like to read some books. Take some voice lessons.

SIKES: To do more Shakespeare, perhaps?

REEVES: Um, who knows? I really would like to do Shakespeare with River. I think we’d have a hoot. We could do A Midsummer Night’s Dream or Romeo and Juliet.

PHOENIX: I’ll be Juliet.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Released to promote the Gus Van Sant movie 'My Own Private Idaho', this issue of Warhol's Interview magazine includes an interview with Keanu Reeves and the late iconic actor River Phoenix.

The interview was held at the Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles over a dinner shared by the pair, discussing things such as their position and influence on the world, and their daily routines.

The accompanying images are a thing of beauty - shot by renowned photographer Bruce Weber around the hotel with friends, capturing the pair fully in their prime.

#Interview magazine #Interview #River Phoenix #Keanu Reeves #my own private idaho #1993 #Gus Van Sant #Chateau Marmont #Los Angeles

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le-brave-des-braves · 5 months ago

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Ney entered the room, this time seeming truly inhumane. His wings, although folded, didn't disappear and his eyes remained more gold than blue. This was so much to handle - the encounter with Marmont, who could escape despite his "angelic" powers. Then, there was the hellfire consuming Duroc's house. And now, this? He and Eugène were not especially close, yet he counted him among the few he could call a friend. And now, he is gone. What does THAT even mean, they are ALL fucking gone, they are done, down, flat, on the wrong side of the grass, counting worms or whatever way you wish to express that they are all fucking dead already... They can't die again, right?

Bessières...

It is unclear who he is referring to, and he isn't sure either.

I just... Damn, I'm sorry. I mean it.

The Void is reaching out and as Montebello said, it has claimed Marmont already - I guess it is his nature to join the side he considers stronger. But he is different now. He has powers of sorts - he escaped me and then set Duroc's house ablaze.

I... I shall provide accommodation for him and his family. I will return as soon as I am done.

He needs to get out. He must do something, he can't take any more standing and grieving, he feels the rage, the urge to fight or at least to create. He desperately wants to do something that wouldn't mean a disaster.

@your-dandy-king @armagnac-army @murillo-enthusiast @bayard-de-la-garde @the-adventures-of-lydia-brown @askgeraudduroc

Points of Divergence

( 1, 2, 3 )

A somewhat unusual parade of personages arrives in the encampment of Marshal Soult of the Army of the Beyond.

One of the Bessieres is leading a pony, with a bedraggled Duroc straddling his back. There's a few salvaged items in saddle bags that were dug out of the house's remains, plus a calico kitten. Bessieres carries their daughter's egg in a backpack slung over his shoulder. His eyes are distant, his expression grim. Underneath that surface, though, his thoughts are roiling, and he's coming to a decision on what to do next.

Or at least, soon. He needs rest. He's fucking exhausted from today, but he's not showing that weakness to anyone.

"Papa!" he hears Helene yell happily, as she runs up to him and grabs his legs. He picks her up and tickles her, smiling, but not quite feeling it. He's too numb. How am I going to tell Helene about everything that has happened?

Soult may or may not have had advance notice of their arrival, but it's been a walk from Duroc's domain to Soult's, possibly with Ney, Saint-Chamans, Lannes, and Lydia all in tow.

@murillo-enthusiast @armagnac-army @the-adventures-of-lydia-brown @le-brave-des-braves @askgeraudduroc

#thread: points of divergence #Mourning for Eugène

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northernmariette · 3 years ago

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Part 4: Army life for the Napoleonic infantryman morphing into...

... the battle of Ulm.

This is my fourth and last translated post drawn from an article in the September 2019 issue of Historia magazine, This the same magazine from which I posted eight biographical sketches of Marshals recently. I was inspired to do this by @history-and-arts‘s recent participation in a re-enactment of the battle of Waterloo.

The article is specific to the battle of Ulm, but parts of it described aspects of army life applicable throughout the Napoleonic era.

For the two years preceding this battle, Napoleon had been involved in preparing an invasion of Britain, and had stationed seven army corps along the northern coasts of France and the Flemish coast, Bernadotte holding the easternmost position in Holland, and Augereau the westernmost at Brest. This final post will concern the seven army corps marching to Ulm, and some information regarding the battle itself.

One bit of preliminary information: when historians refer to Boulogne, they don’t mean just the city of Boulogne itself, but the entire seven army corps along the coast facing England. The distance between these corps’ encampments and Boulogne itself, where Napoleon had his headquarters, could be hundreds of kilometres.

The Magnificent Seven (no, not the movie)

Each corps, commanded by a marshal and comprising the different branches of the army - namely the infantry, the cavalry, artillery, and engineers -, followed a separate route in order to speed up movement and facilitate provisioning of supplies. The marches were organized by divisions, each spaced one day apart. Despite these precautions, the marching columns spread over long distances.

From Boulogne to Ulm

August 1805: Napoleon was planning to land in England when Austria's declaration of war caught him by surprise. A third coalition, including Russia, had arisen against him. Without delay, he had to turn his army around and rush to Germany. In order to prevent his enemies from joining forces and outnumbering him, he had to crush the Austrians. The Grande Armee departed from Boulogne on 29 August 1805 and moved in what Napoleon called "seven torrents", covering almost 40 km per day and reaching the Rhine on 25 September. Less than a fortnight later, on 7 October, it crossed the Danube. As a result of the speed of its progress, Napoleon's army trapped the Austrians inside the stronghold of Ulm and forced them to capitulate on 17 October.

This last part of the article is accompanied by a map showing the position of the army corps on September 25, as well as their individual paths to Ulm. In a rough north-north-east line, starting from the south and going north, we have Murat, Lannes, Ney, Soult, Davout, Marmont, and Bernadotte. The seventh “magnificent”, Augereau, is missing. Murat’s path is shown as an assemblage of curlicued arrows, as he was ordered by Napoleon to feign an attack so as to distract the Austrians. To the north, Marmont and Bernadotte seem to have crossed paths at some point, Marmont’s corps taking the northernmost position.

My copy of David G. Chandler’s The Illustrated Napoleon has a similar map on page 44. It includes some differences and additional information. Murat’s movements are shown with similar curlicues, but Marmont’s and Bernadotte’s armies apparently merged in Wurzburg, about 80 miles from Ulm. Augereau’s corps is at least 100 miles away, not surprising since it had the longest distance to travel. Wrede and Deroi are shown fighting with the French at the head of Bavarian troops. I know that Deroi died in batttle, but I’m not sure if it happened at Ulm. Be it as it may, there is a painting showing Deroi being carried off a field of battle.

#napoleon #napoleonic history.#napoleonic wars #battle of ulm

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