Eastern Question and a Suppressed Chapter of History

Excerpt from The Eastern Question and a Suppressed Chapter of History: Napoleon III and the Kingdom of Roumania Mr. Weld has devoted much time and study to unveiling the mysteries which have surrounded the creation of Roumania, and which have attended Eastern diplomacy in all the recent history of that State. Mr. Weld has found, as any student finds who attempts the difficult studies attending the history of the Second Empire, that the part taken by Napoleon III. in the making of that history has been construed in different ways according as men hated Napoleon or as they flattered him. As one of his French authorities says, "Napoleon's history has passed through the double criticism of hate and love." From sources not largely studied, even in Europe, - not studied at all, one might say, in America, - Mr. Weld has constructed an intelligible history of the diplomacy, the intrigue, the failures, and final success which have attended the history of Roumania since that name was given to the provinces which were united in the new-born kingdom. As has been aptly remarked by Professor John Fiske in reference to this study, Mr. Weld has reproduced a lost passage in history. It will be seen that at the meeting at Osborne, in 1857, of the sovereigns of France and of England, a meeting interesting at the time, and celebrated since, the first important step was taken which led forward to the establishment of the new kingdom. Prince Albert, however, opposed any immediate action; and the plan of Napoleon III. was for the moment delayed. The determination of the people of Wallachia was strongly in favor of such union. The people of Moldavia, if they wanted it, were not at first permitted to express themselves. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.