Letter 169 — CLXIX
Original French
Fontainebleau, 1er octobre 1810.
J’ai reçu ta lettre. Hortense, que j’ai vue, t’aura dit ce que je pensais; va voir ton fils, cet hiver, reviens aux eaux d’Aix l’année prochaine, ou bien reste au printemps à Navarre. Je te conseillerais d’aller à Navarre tout de suite, si je ne craignais que tu ne t’y ennuyasses. Mon opinion est que tu ne peux être, l’hiver, convenablement qu’à Milan ou à Navarre; après cela, j’approuve tout ce que tu feras; car je ne te veux gêner en rien. Adieu, mon amie. L’impératrice est grosse de quatre mois; je nomme madame de Montesquiou gouvernante des enfants de France. Sois contente, et ne te monte jamais la tête; ne doute jamais de mes sentiments.
Musean translation
Machine-assisted Musean English translated from the French of the 172 Napoleon letters selected from Tancrède Martel, ed., Œuvres littéraires de Napoléon Bonaparte, tome 1 (Albert Savine, Paris, 1888). French Wikisource contributors supplied the scan-backed transcription: https://fr.wikisource.org/wiki/Livre:Bonaparte_-_Œuvres_littéraires,_tome_1,_1888.djvu (page histories credit contributors). The transcription is CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/; this adapted text and translations are shared under the same license. Extraction removes markup and editorial notes; selected transcription repairs were checked against print images.
Fontainebleau, October 1, 1810.
I have received your letter. Hortense, whom I have seen, will have told you what I thought; go and see your son this winter, return to the waters of Aix next year, or else stay at Navarre in the spring. I would advise you to go to Navarre at once, if I did not fear that you would be bored there. My opinion is that in winter you can suitably stay only in Milan or at Navarre; beyond that, I approve of whatever you do, for I do not wish to constrain you in any way. Farewell, my friend. The Empress is four months pregnant; I am appointing Madame de Montesquiou governess of the children of France. Be content, and never let your imagination run away with you; never doubt my feelings.
Plain English translation
Independent machine-assisted Plain English translation from the 1888 Martel French edition, not a historical English translation. French Wikisource contributors supplied the scan-backed transcription: https://fr.wikisource.org/wiki/Livre:Bonaparte_-_Œuvres_littéraires,_tome_1,_1888.djvu (page histories credit contributors). The adapted transcription and translation are shared under CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/. Extraction removes markup and editorial notes and makes documented transcription repairs. French-source model review is not human specialist certification or a complete scan collation.
Fontainebleau, October 1, 1810.
I have received your letter. I saw Hortense, and she will have conveyed my thoughts: go to your son this winter, return to the waters at Aix next year, or spend the spring at Navarre. I would recommend going to Navarre immediately, were I not afraid you would find it dull. In my view, Milan or Navarre are the only places where you can suitably spend the winter; even so, I approve whatever you decide, for I do not want to put any constraint on you. Farewell, my dear. The Empress is four months pregnant; I am naming Madame de Montesquiou governess to the children of France. Be content, never let your imagination run away with you, and do not question my feelings.
About this section
Letter 169 — CLXIX is part of Letters to Josephine by Napoléon Bonaparte. This page sets the French original beside 2 direct-source translations, so any line can be checked against the source. It is part 169 of 172 in the work, which is kept in the European tradition.
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