Austria as it is (recenze)
Austria as it is; or, Sketches of continental courts. By an Eye-witness. 8vo, pp. 228. London: Hurst, Chance and Co. 1828
The Museum of foreign literature, science and art. v.12 1828 Jan-Apr. №. 69 p. 395–407, zdroj➚
Překlad se vám otevře v nové záložce.
Upozorňujeme, že možnosti automatického překladače jsou omezené!
There is, perhaps, no part of Europe, with the domestic and every-day life of which we are so little acquainted, as Austria. Travellers, particularly those of our own country, who have visited that empire, have found themselves generally so uncomfortable there, in consequence of the actual, or apprehended, interference of the police, and of their well-founded fears of being perpetually surrounded by spies, that they have usually been disposed to quit such disagreeable quarters with all convenient speed. A very short residence at Vienna, would teach them, that to commit any memoranda on the state of the country, or concerning its government, or its inhabitants, to writing, would be a task of some danger, even if it were not attended with difficulties, that to a foreigner are almost insurmountable. For such a person to make inquiries upon the most common subjects of political interest, would be only to attract the more marked attention of the police. Even if he have numerous letters of introduction to private individuals, he is permitted to see but the external features of society; and generally speaking, he can do little more than visit the theatres and public buildings, and repeat from catalogues and guide-books, the same dull details which had already abundantly wearied the public ear.
The work before us, however, bears all the tokens of having been written by an Austrian, or at least by a person who is intimately conversant with the whole fabric of society in that country. We imagine that he must have been educated in England, or that he has been here a sufficient length of time to enable him, not only to think, but to write, like a John Bull. We do not mean as to his style, which frequently betrays an alien hand; but as to the freedom, and the unprejudiced intelligence, with which he delivers his remarks on every subject.
Nothing can less resemble the usually grave and pondrous manner of German tourists, than the sketches contained in this volume. They are full of materials, always interesting, and sometimes wholly new; they touch chiefly on those topics, upon which a stranger would most wish to obtain information; and they unquestionably afford the clearest and most animated picture of Austrian life, which we have yet seen. They present us with several anecdotes of the royal family, and of the Austrian, Bohemian, and Hungarian nobles; but they do not stop with the higher circles. They introduce the reader to the middle and lower classes of the community, and place them before him in a strong light, not decked out in their holiday robes, but in their plainest and homeliest attire.
The impression which this work leaves upon the mind, as to the character of the great mass of the people of Austria, is decidedly favourable to them. Attached to their sovereign on account of his personal dispositions and merits, they are a frugal and industrious race, and only want education and knowledge to teach them to shake off the yoke of an absolute monarch. That yoke the Austrians do not severely feel at present, as Francis is popular amongst them, and he has done every thing that an autocrat can do to conciliate the affection of his people. But when he ceases to reign, it will entirely depend on the character of his successor, whether they will submit to be taxed without even the formality of asking their consent. There is not a more complete system of tyranny established in any part of the world, than that which prevails in Austria. The emperor is the centre, round which every part of that system moves, and towards which it tends; and if ever that centre lose even a particle of its attraction, the whole machine will necessarily get out of order, and finally fall asunder.
The Austrians, however, properly so called, are far behind the Bohemians, and still farther removed from the Hungarians, in all that concerns the influence of public opinion, and the growth of public spirit. The latter, particularly, seem to be advancing with rapid strides towards the era of their regeneration. For some time their representatives have been on bad terms with the emperor; complaints of their turbulence have escaped his lips, though uttered in calm, cautious, and polished phrases. They, on their parts, have evinced a national spirit, which, though it has not yet flamed out in all its fervour, has given indications of it existence, and of its vigour, that are not to be mistaken. Let us hear our author on this subject.
“Francis was never a favourite with this lofty nation of noblemen. His plainness and common manner, so much admired among his German subjects, and so well calculated to make them forget taxes and oppression, they do not hesitate to call vulgarity. With a growing discontent, since the reign of Joseph the Second, they watched over their rights, joined but coldly in the wars of Austria, and were even, during the eventful period of 1809, with difficulty prevailed upon to furnish more troops than their stipulated contingent. Though they refused the offer of Napoleon to choose a king of their own, yet to see their king subservient, as Francis showed himself to Napoleon, and then to act so perfidious a part, mortified them exceedingly. During the time of the wars, and while the emperor was guided by the counsels and influence of their nobility, they overlooked the encroachments attempted at different times, and even the suspension of the sittings of their Diet. Repeated petitions were presented, yet they never complained loudly. Things have, however, changed, and assumed a rather serious aspect, since Metternich was placed at the head of affairs. Repeated encroachments on their constitution, and, above all, the engrossing of the sole power, formerly possessed by the whole body of the aristocracy, by their sovereign, roused the indignation of this nation, in a manner which alarmed even the phlegm of his majesty. Francis himself is little fond of his lofty Hungarians, with whom his broad and short way, “I will,” would not do; and though he flattered them, apparently in every manner he could, yet he did every thing in his power to retaliate on them for their indifference and stubborn neglect of his imperial dignity. They are excluded from trade with the rest of the empire, and considered, in fact, as strangers.
“Exports and imports are subject to the same duties as coming from a foreign country. His policy, with respect to the Greeks, who confess the same religion with, at least, 4,000,000 of Hungarians, contributed, with the fluctuating value of the depreciated currency, not a little to augment their indignation. The freedom with which they proceed in their parliamentary discussions offended his majesty more than any thing; and when he complained that they were sitting four weeks without deciding any thing, one of the magnates, Count P–––, rose and said, ‘His majesty has been seated thirty years on the throne of Hungary, and has not done any thing for us.’” — pp. 124–126.
| ⁎ | ⁎ | ⁎ | ⁎ | ⁎ | ⁎ | ⁎ |
“Francis is well aware of what is going on, and so are the principal characters; and hence the thousands of secret spies, watching, not the foreigners, but his own subjects; his repeated visits to Bohemia and Hungary; his remission of the outstanding taxes and contributions to both kingdoms; and his endeavours to secure the succession to his beloved son Archduke Francis Charles, – whom he thinks more able to master the impending storm than the Crown Prince: — but, with all his endeavours, he will not be able to lay the rising ghost. Silent, deep, but embittered, this people go on: Francis has instructed them in the art of dissimulation and treachery, and the successor of Francis will reap the fruits of it. The deep-rooted habit of obeying, a certain reverence towards his age, and, above all, the well-known omniscience of the emperor and his designs, will keep them in obedience as long as he lives, and as long as he is able to pay his spies and his army of officers: but the load of the public debt, the financial confusion, is too great, and the resources of the German hereditary dominions are too exhausted, to permit a long continuance of this system. Opposed as the Hungarians are with their whole and unexhausted strength, and only waiting for the favourable moment, they will raise the standard of opposition, and the rest will follow. The ties of honour and good faith which bound the Austrian subjects to their emperor are entirely broken, and the death of Francis will disclose scenes of which we never dreamed.” – pp. 133, 134.
The discontent that at present prevails in Hungary, is, however, in a great measure confined to the upper classes; the peasantry, who are in a state of vassalage, take as yet little, if any interest at all, in public affairs. In this respect, they differ from the peasantry of Bohemia, who are not the property of their lords, and who may sell and purchase estates, and do many other acts which are only compatible with a freehold system. They have also various judicial tribunals, which would seem powerful enough to protect them from oppression, at least, on the part of the nobles. But they are ruled, nevertheless, by such a crowd of masters, in the character of government officers, and are taxed so severely, that their freedom is worse than positive slavery. Hence, says our author, “they are slavish, insidious, treacherous! There is a gloom brooding on the countenance of the Bohemian, or, as he prefers to style himself, Czechian, which makes him unfeeling. Music is the only thing which clears up his melancholy brow. The gloomy stare of his countenance brightens; his sharp grey eyes kindle and beam with fire and sensibility; the whole man is changed.” They have a tradition that one of their early warriors lies asleep with five hundred of his followers, beneath a wild solitary mountain on the road from To- plitz to Prague, “waiting for the thunder-clap which is to rouse him and lay open the doors of his prison, from whence he will sally forth to deliver his countrymen from the yoke of the foreigners, whom they call hiemezy, intruders.” They still possess the mere shadow of their ancient constitution in their diet, which sits twice a year with great pomp, but only for the purpose of registering the amount of the taxes, and agreeing to complimentary addresses to the emperor. It is obvious, however, that even the retention of this shadow may one day prove of importance to the Bohemians; for when we want an efficient instrument, it is a great point gained to have all the materials ready to our hand, and in some measure seasoned. If we may believe our author, who appears to have been recently among the Bohemians, they are strongly disaffected towards Austria, and entertain a lively sense of their political degradation. Italy also, he thinks, sighs for her dukes, and Venice for her dukes, and even the Tyrol is far from being indifferent to the desirable blessings of a constitutional government.
But let us pass from such grave matter to lighter themes. It is a relief to turn from politics to the following cheerful picture of an Austrian village.
“The distance from Zuayra to Vienna is thirty miles on the Imperial road. The more interesting road is, however, through Ratz, Kremsk, and Potten. We took the latter. The country from Zuayra westward is almost an uninterrupted vineyard, softly rising and descending on the eminences, and now and then interrupted by an orchard or by wheat-fields in the lower grounds. There is a calm, an hilarity spread over the whole, which is reflected in the laughing countenances of the lads and maids employed in stripping the vines of their superfluous branches and leaves, to hasten the ripening of the grapes. Many as we met, all of them offered us grapes. As the forerunners of the villages are always the same wine cellars, at the distance of fifty yards. They are dug into the ground, and generally vaulted. The entrance to them is through a stone building, containing the wine-press, and a room or two for the entertainment of the proprietor and wine buyers. Wagons loading for Vienna, Bohemia, or Moravia, are waiting before the doors, and, as this trade cannot be carried on without frequent libations, we were sure of being invited at every such stand to share in them. These cellars, from forty to fifty in number, are each overshadowed by walnut trees, which guard the entrance; two banks and a table are commonly raised under them. The villages themselves bespeak a serenity and a wealth which you will not find elsewhere throughout the continent. A brook is a necessary ingredient to an Austrian village; its banks are lined with willows, horse-chestnuts, and walnuts. At some distance the houses run down in long rows. A thatched roof is as great a rarity as a tavern. The inhabitants being cultivators of the grape, prefer to take a glass, or rather a flagon, at home. The houses are from one to two stories high, covered with tiles, and provided with green shutters. On both sides, before the house, are small gardens with green or yellow painted railings, through which the passage to the house door is left open. You enter through a wicket which is in the large door. The first room is the visit room; it is generally painted, and furnished with an elegant stove, two bureaus, half a dozen chairs, and a sofa. In the midst is a large table covered with a Tyrolian carpet, on which two flagons and a number of tumblers are placed. The other rooms are furnished in a less sumptuous, but clean and substantial manner. Round the green stove, and the white shining walls, runs a row of open benches: round the ceiling, large wine glasses are seen hanging, in which the journeymen receive their daily portion of wine. Some pictures of saints, or an engraving of Maria Theresa, Joseph, or Francis, decorate the walls.” — pp. 91–93.
From the portrait of Francis we shall proceed to the original, as he is characteristically described by our author.
“The imperial burg, tinted with the grey hue of age, contrasts strangely with the splendid and modern apartments of the imperial chancelerie; but it convinces you at once of that imperial pride which prefers a stately ancient residence to a more splendid modern one. The interior is magnificent, and the pomp and taste of nearly six centuries are here blended in the different dresses and exhibitions of this splendid court. A guard of grenadiers on the left hand, with four mounted cannons, show that you are before the entrance of the Emperor's apartments. A double flight of stairs leads hence to a noble staircase from this to the first guard room, occupied by the German and Hungarian guards; the former dressed as Austrian majors of the infantry, in white coats, with red cuffs and collars, three cornered hats trimmed with gold lace. The Hungarian is the hussar dress, with their tiger-skin kalpaks glittering with gold and embroidery, without doubt the most splendid guard in the world. Their number is fifty, all of them Hungarian noblemen, who bear the rank of premier lieutenants. Their captain is Prince Esterhazy. From this dazzling apartment you enter a sort of Pensionaires, dressed in yellow and black mixture, of the old Spanish and German costume. From this you go into the common Saal, or audience room. The next apartment is that of the impedal pages, dressed in red and silver. A few steps farther will bring you to the apartment of the chamberlains, two of whom are always in waiting: they are distinguished by a gold bullion on their back and a golden key. Of the sumptuousness of this court personate, you may form an idea by the twenty-five body coachmen, fifty body footmen, and twenty-five body servants of the chambers attending his Majesty. The adjoining room is the private cabinet, a simple but costly furnished chamber, with green curtains, in which, leaning with the right land on a moderate mahogany table, there stands a figure of a middle size, but exceedingly lank, surmounted by an oblong head, with a couple of large blue eyes, apparently all openness and sincerity but for a sinister twinkling, long and hollow cheeks, which seem to have ceded all their flesh to the chin, and a pair of thick lips, expressing now and then a good humoured complacency, with his head at times nodding, and again a scowling sullenness. Let your eyes descend on a frame, most loosely hung together, legs on which there is scarcely left an ounce of flesh, boots dangling about a pair of equally ill provided feetº-and you have the descendant of nineteen emperors, and the present Sovereign of Austria.” — pp. 110 – 113.
An interesting account is given of the mode in which Francis carries on the details of his government, and manages the appointment of the 60,000 officers, who are scattered through his empire. But we must pass it over in order to make room for the following sketch of the imperial family, including that important scion, the young Napoleon.
“He (the Emperor) rises commonly at six o'clock, takes breakfast an hour afterwards, and transacts public business till one o'clock, or gives public audiences. At two o'clock he takes a ride, sometimes with his Empress, but oftener with his favourite Grand Chamberlain, the excellent Count Wobna, or his aid-de-camp, Baron Rutscherd. At four o'clock he dines, commonly on five dishes with a dessert: his beverage is water, and a liqueur tumbler filled with Tokay. After dinner he takes a peep at his plants, in the Paradise of Garth; or looks whether any of his pigeons have strayed away or have been captured, a circumstance which makes him always angry; and at six o'clock he takes coffee, made in the new Imperial Garden Pavilion by the limpress herself, who, dressed in a plain suit, delights to be cook and landlady in person. The time till supper is filled out with térzettos, which he performs on the violin with his favourite aid-de-camp, Baron K–––a, and another nobleman or prince. As father of a family, he deserves praise: there is not a more decent and respectable family in the empire than his own. Besides the higher branches of education, every member of it is obliged to learn a mechanic occupation; and the Archdukes are carpenters and cabinet-makers, and the Crown Prince himself, a weaver. Gallantries are entirely excluded: and a celebrated beauty who, from an opposite box in the Imperial theatre, had the audacity to wish his son-in-law, the Prince of S–––o, a good evening, was sent to prison, and the prince himself severely reprimanded. His second son, Francis Charles, is his favourite, a clever young man, of a prepossessing appearance. He is universally spoken of as his successor. Whether this violation of the Pragmatic Sanction, though caused by the absolute stupidity of the Crown Prince, would not be productive of even more serious consequences than the reign of the latter, we doubt very much. Hungary is absolutely against this; and this alone is an impediment which never can nor will be overcome.
“Of all the members of his family, the Duke of Reichstadt experiences the most marked tenderness. It seems as if he (the Emperor) wished to obliterate the wrong he had inflicted on the father by his double dealing. He is, indeed, an interesting youth, beautifully formed, with the countenance and the fine cut lips of his father, and the blue eyes of his mother. One cannot see this blooming youth, with his inexpressible tint of melancholy and thoughtfulness, without a deep emotion. He has not that marked plain and familiar ease of the Austrian princes, who seem to be every where at home; but his denieanour is more dignified, and noble in the extreme. Two Prussian officers arrived with us at Shoenbrunn, his residence, and wished to be introduced to him. His lord chamberlain was just refusing their indelicate demand, in rather an animadverting manner, when the Prince stept out from his apartments, and advanced towards the grand staircase before the palace, to take a ride with the governor. He stopped awhile before the two officers, his eyes fixed; describing at the same time figures on the ground. At last, casting a significant glance at them, “Des Prussiens?” demanded he; and turning gracefully aside, he went down to mount his horse.
“It is an Arabian steed, a present from his grandfather, and he strides it with a nobleness which gives the promise of as good horsemanship as that for which his father was so celebrated. We saw him some time after at the head of his escadron, who almost adore him; and he commanded with a precision and a military eye, which prognosticate a future general. He is, by virtue of an imperial decree, proprietor of the eight domains of the Grand duke of Toskana, in Bohemia, with an income of above £20,000 sterling: a greater revenue than is enjoyed by any of the imperial princes, the Archduke Charles excepted. His title is Duke of Reichstadt. He is addressed “Ever Durchlaucht,” (Votre Altesse). His rank is immediately after that of the princes of the reigning house, the Austrian family of Este and Toskana. His court establishment is the same with the Imperial princes: he has his Obersthofmeister, his Lord Chamberlain, aids-de-camp, and a corresponding inferior household. In possession, as he is, of a large fortune, his destination will depend on his talents and on his inclination. pp. 140–143.
Our author gives some interesting particulars of the life of Prince Metternich, and comments with great, though just severity, upon his political character. He describes that wily diplomatist, as the most “dangerous enemy to human freedom” that has ever existed; as a very indifferent lawyer, and “an absolute idiot in financial matters.” “A self-possession,” he adds, “under the most trying and harassing circumstances; a sure and fine tact in judging characters; an ease in gliding into the secrets and the confidence of his superiors; and, above all, an inimitable grace of lying, as they say, with an assurance which it is not in the power of any human being to disconcert, are his principal characteristics.” His late paper, addressed to the Austrian Minister at the Porte, fully bears out the latter part of this description; as to the other features of it, they are easily recognised, as belonging to the most finished intriguer in Europe, It is a remarkable inconsistency in the life of this individual, that all his policy is intimately connected with that cold and unbending haughtiness, which so strongly characterises the imperial family, and the nobility of Austria; and yet, that only “one little month” since, he should have married — an opera dancer!
But let us not be unjust to the “Corinthian pillars” of that proud empire. The following account of their general habits place them in a very amiable point of view.
“You will find, in the circles of the nobility, an union of every thing delightful, with the stateliness and solidity which blend ancient grandeur with modern taste. The picture of Austrian high life is less dazzling than the French, but it is more solid. There is less extravagance, less variety than in Paris, but infinitely more reality. It is this steadiness which has preserved their wealth, even through centuries, little impaired by the late disasters; while the French nobility and that of the German states, are generally more or less impoverished.
“The French is still the favourite language, not so much from an indifference to, or scorn of, the native German, Hungarian, or Bohemian languages, as from the necessity that is felt to speak a tongue which is not understood by their servants; and does not expose then to the danger of every word being betrayed to the secret police.
“French manners have, however, lost much of their universal sway, though a tinge of them is still visible throughout Vienna society.
“The children of the Austrian nobility are almost universally educated at home. Each family has at least one tutor, generally a lawyer or a divine, who has gone through the course of his studies. This gentleman superintends the education of the young members of the family. While the young ladies take their lessons in religion, writing, drawing, music, or dancing, the youths go through their Latin, or other lessons, under the superintendence of this tutor. or of competent masters, who are sometimes public professors. After the lapse of six months, the youths are publicly examined by the professors of the government, and advanced into a higher class. Even the philosophical course is frequently completed at home in this manner. Though these tutors cannot impart what they have not themselves acquired, yet as they are generally men of learning, and their fortune depends entirely on the progress of their pupils, young noblemen who are not condemned to the mere learning of their lessons by memory, and who have a free literary range, become more thoroughly instructed than the other classes.
“A solid family of the high nobility will rise early, – between six and eight o'clock – if a ball or a party of the preceding night has not encroached on the morning. A cup or two of coffee, with a small white roll (semmel), is the usual breakfast which is taken en famille, with the exception of the youths, who breakfast and dine separately with their tutors. The subsequent hours are dedicated to business. The lord is engaged with his privy or court-counsellor, or director of his domains, in the current business, which takes from two to three hours: the reading of English, French and German newspapers. The lady is all the while busy in her apartments with the supreme regulations of the household; reading, writing, drawing, and dressing. At twelve o'clock the visiting hours begin. The lady either pays or receives visits, in which, however, her husband seldom participates. Their apartments are generally separate. As they keep separate carriages, the lady takes her ride at two o'clock, either in the company of her husband, or of her lady companion, in the Augarten, the Prater, or on the Glacis. At three o’clock dinner is served, attended by the whole family, except the youths, who are only permitted to join them on a Sunday, with their tutor.” — pp. 171-173.
| ⁎ | ⁎ | ⁎ | ⁎ | ⁎ | ⁎ | ⁎ |
“Nothing, however, is more delightful than an evening party in a private circle. You assemble for this occasion immediately after tea, which is regularly taken at six o'clock. Some refreshments, such as pine-apples, grapes, &c. are handed round. The whist, quadrille, ombre tables, are arranged, and the company sit down to play. During the play a band performs tunes of Mozart’s, Weber's, and Rossini’s operas; and if there are daughters in the family, whom their friends are coming to see, a dance is arranged before you are aware. There is in every house not only the music-master, but at least two or three servants, who are excellent performers. Their rooms not being carpeted, but parquetted and polished with wax, are at any time ready for this occasion. It is in these evening parties, that the amiable and fascinating character of the high classes of the Austrian empire shines out in all its charms. The sans géné, the modesty, the true nobleness and simplicity which develop themselves in these circles and occasional dances, show that these people are more fitted than any other to enjoy the pleasures of life. They give happiness to their guests, and try to make every one round them happy too.” — pp. 182, 183.
From these extracts, which we might have lengthened had our space permitted, the novel and interesting character of this little work will have been fully appreciated by the reader. Should it reach a second edition, as we imagine it will, we would recommend a careful revision of the text. It abounds with grammatical errors, and foreign idioms, which ought never to have been permitted to pass through the press.
