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rheinsbergDr. Carl von Weber's "Aus vier Jahrhunderten: Mitteilungen aus dem Hauipt-Staatsarchiv zu Dresden", Leipzig 1857 contains a detailed writing up of the utterly bonkers Clement (or Klement) affair. Weber, being a mid 19th century fellow, doesn't yet have acccess to the Secret Prussian State Archive, but he does have access to the Saxon one, which offers plenty of material on one of the 18th century's most successful con men.
Here, he is Johann Michael von Klement, - the Prussian archive, btw, lists him as a non-noble, without a "von", - born June 7th, 1689, in Neusohl, Hungary. Also Weber quotes from his letters, and the letters referring to him, at length untranslated in the original French, just to make my life harder. :( Wilhelmine, child of a Klement-believing father and a snob, considers he might have had Philippe d'Orleans or the King of Denmark as an illegtimate Dad, but no such thing, Dad was Martin von Klement, Judge in the Neusohl district, according to the man himself. Weber says a letter from Klement's mother, Catharina (born von Petrarsch) in Hungarian still exists, the only document of hers that does, dated December 12th 1718, and she signs herself Szmernyik Anna.(Incorrectly, says Weber, and that the content just contains maternal gushing.) Other than Hungarian, Klement was fluent in German, French and Latin, and had studied at Halle and Frankfurt an der Oder. Again according to himself, which is always a problem if you've been exposed as an international conman. Again according to himself, he then became aide de campe and gentleman of the chamber to Prince Racoczky, he who fought the Austrians until 1711 for Hungarian independence. According to Klement, he was involved in supersecret negotations between R. and the French who wanted R. as a mediator between them and the Prussians, whom they wanted as their ally.(Reminder: this is when everyone is busy fighting old Louis XIV in the War of the Spanish Succession. Louis looking for allies among the Hungarians against his enemy the Austrians and trying to woo the Prussians away isn't implausiblel, and way more likely than later claims of Klement's. The supposed French offer to the Prussians otoh, is nothing short of sensational in the documented quoted, and now translated via google and me:
That after such a approach, the King of France will recognize the one of Prussia as a mediator of the peace and will pay him, first one million ECU and ECU 200 000 per months, to maintain 50,000 men, who would put fear into everyone, provided all - times, that the King of Prussia consenting that the Confederation of Hungary, after declaring their throne vacant and after electing for King the Crown Prince of Prussia, depending on that the latter, under the pretext of a voluntary escape from the court of his father, accepted the crown of Hungary, in which France intends to maintain it, concluding to this effect a separate treaty with the Confederation of Hungary and in supporting it with large subsidies.
The Crown Prince who's supposed to pretend to escape so he can become King of Hungary is FW, guys. According to Klement and Weber, a lot of French money went from Louis to F1's ministers Ilgen and Wartenberg to promote this scheme in Prussia, and at last the Prussians said okay, they'll go for it provided the throne of Hungary is declared vacant. Unfortunately Racoczky didn't manage to beat Prince Eugene, which meant the throne of Hungary remained in Habsburg possession. Weber admits there's no reason to accept all of this just because Klement said it happened but considers it at least possible some truth is in it because later Eugene, no fool, hired Klement believing he really had been Racoczky's right hand man and could deliver the spy goods. Given how the rest of Klement's life went, I'm not sure I follow his logic here.
Anyway, Klement sees which way the wind is blowing and shows up in Vienna in 1715 with lots of Racoczky's papers including those letters between Prussia, R and France. Klement gets an amnesty (as a now former Hungarian rebel, he needs one), a new job, and changes his religion from Prostant to Catholic, and now works in Eugene's chancellery until 1717. Quite why he quiit or was fired, Weber's sources aren't sure. Some say Klement didn't feel appreciated enough, Klement said to Saxon minister Flemming, his next boss, that Eugene totally didn't want want to fire him but had to but gave him a warning so Klement had a head start. Eugene himself, when asked somewhat too late by Flemming what the hell was up with Klement, wrote that ",, que c'étoit un homme adroit et que c'étoit dommage qu'il se fut tourné en mal", which means he must have considered him at least competent at something. Weber thinks Eugene might have gotten disillusioned as to Klement's relationship with the truth but considered him still as a potentially useful spy and thus didn't cut off all relations to him all at once.
Anyway, Klement next goes to Saxony under the alias of "Kleeberg" where he visits an old pal, the painter Mayockii, who introduces him to Saxony's most powerful minister, Flemming. While Flemming much later told FW HE saw through Klement at once, evidence shows otherwise. Back then, the Saxons were trying to marry their Kurprinz with an Archduchess (as in, one of Joseph I's daughters) in order to have a shot at the Imperial Throne and the Habsburg heritage, betting on MT's Dad not producing any more sons. So they were very eager to have a confidential source in Vienna. Klement promised he had such a person at his disposal and with enough money, he could get all kind of inside reports for them. What he actually did was using a Viennese gossip newsletter edited by a Countess von Schönkirch and furthered the information within to Flemming claiming this was directly from one of his former colleagues in Eugene's office. These Klement-forged secret reports still were available in the Saxon archives when Weber was writing, including one on all the differences between brothers Joseph and Charles, claiming that the plan had been to make Prince Eugene one the Spanish throne once Charles failed at getting/keeping it, and that Eugene once this secret plan emerged had a twelve hours meeting with Charles assuring him he didn't want the Spanish throne and offering to withdraw from all his offices, which ended with Charles urging him to stay. Given that the Spanish throne was well occupied by Philip the future frog, one wonders how Flemming could have bought the tale, but he literally bought it, along with other tales - a plan to marry Eugene to one of the archduchesses foiled!
(lj user="mildred_of_midgard">: Huuhh. So there was definitely talk of sending Eugene to the Spanish front as a *general*, which Eugene did not want, but king??? Neither the Habsburgs nor the Bourbons would have stood for this!)
The one who finally smelled a rat was, of all the people, not Flemming but August the Strong, who thought this actually did not sound much like the Eugene he'd met a couple of times. Klement, no fool, sensed it was time to get out of Saxony and told Flemming Eugene totally wanted him back and was willing to pay so Klement would spy for him in the Netherlands, and he was willing to do his bit for the Saxon cause while doing so, since he would of stop in Berlin en route, and wasn't there trouble with the Prussians? There was trouble with the Prussians, and Manteuffel had just switched from being envoy in Berln to being cabinet minister in Saxony, so was no longer available to soothe it. Flemming gives Klement a letter of reccommendation to Prussian minsiter Ilgen and some wine from his own cellar along with 600 Taler travellingl money, and Klement moves on to his next mark.
He stil tries to squeeze more money out of Flemming, though, claiming to have found a secret source in FW's chancellery. One of the reports he sent to Flemming has this bit: To look at state business superficially, one would judge the King of Prussia to be in an awe-inspiring state, I would even believe this to be the case if one looked at the hearts of his ministers, of his subjects. and soldiers; but his ways of interacting with the ministers ensure their hate, and they wish for his death or some great misfortune.
In short, Klement could deliver lots of ministers as spies since they all resented FW that much, who specialized in humiliating people and parce qu'il ne sait suivre que l'humeur brusque et cruel du Prince de Dessau etc.. This letter was going to spell doom for Klement in the long run, since Flemming would produce it once the bonkers climax of our conman's career had happened.
Now, looking for his next mark, Klement used a friend of his painter pal's, one Lehmann, to spread the news that he was Eugene's super secret agent, that an Austria/Prussia rapprochment was wanted but the Prussian envoy in Vienna, one of the Schwerin family, could no longer be used for such a thing, since his wife was argueing with Eugene's mistress. (Klement: providing Eugene with a heterosexual reputation!) This was a relatively harmless tale, but when Lehmann offered the Court Preacher Mylious or Bishop Jablonski as an intermediary so that Klement could spread this happy news, Klement went one better and said that if there wasn't going to be an Austria/Prussia approchement, Team Vienna had an attack on Prussia in mind, complete with kidnapping FW and his treasury. There was even an insulting letter from Eugene at hand saying FW was "a little King" whom one could "crush in two to three months". Lehmann, as a Prussian patriot, now considered it his duty to report such a horrible plan to the highest authority, knew that FW was best approachable at Wusterhausen, and Klement gets his personal no witness audience with FW in September 1718 at Wusterhausen. By this time, the tale of the conspiracy had grown. Not only was the "FW replaced by Fritz, who gets raised as a Catholic" detail added, but also Klement said the whole dastardly plan had been Flemming's idea (who suggested it to Eugene), no one hated FW as much as Fleming, he, KLement, had been in the room when the scheme was formed, and so had been that other dastardly Saxon, Manteuffel.
The Manteuffel part was to have consequences not so miuch for Manteuffel, but for his mistress, Frau von Baspiel, who did write him secret letters after all, and who was busted on that occasion. (Also her husband lost his job with FW.) Meanwhile, Klement, evidently inspired by his personal encounters with FW, kept adding details - Eugene had even gotten the Hannover okay for this dastardly plan. FW is thunderstruck. Also Klement is his man now. According to Pöllnitz, Klement is smart enough to decline the 1200 Taler the King offers him immediately saying he hasn't earned them yet, but according to Saxon Legationssekretär Wlhelmi, Klement received 7000 Taler from FW and another 2000 later, and also, he changed faiths again (this time to Reformed Protestant).
I should add here that unlike the editor of the FW/Old Dessauer letters, Weber uses Pöllnitz on the bonkers Klement affair as a reliable source, and thus includes the bit with the dramatic scene where Old Dessauer confronts a deeply paranoid FW who has taken to sleeping with his pistols under his bed and lies down his sword in front of him. FW now trusts Old Dessauer, at least, and tells him the whole sordid tale. Old Dessauer thinks it's all rubbish and advises to at least ask Flemming and Eugene for a comment. For now, though, FW completely trusts Klement who produces lots of Eugene letters to go with his claims. The amazing thing is that Klement had the opportunity to make a quick getaway - he even was outside of Prussia on a trip - but didn't take it, so was arrested on December 4th 1718. (Here we get a physical description by the arresting officers who bring hin to Spandau - "the black and brown fat gentleman in an Hungarian furcoat". Klement gets interrogated, but in a friendly way, FW even sends him food on silver plates from the royal kitchen. He sticks wit his story and says, in tears, that he knows he can't prove it, Eugene and Flemming will deny everything but he, Klement, did it for FW and the Protestant Faith! FW is wavering but wants to believe him. On December 9th, no one is allowed to get in and out of Berlin anymore, it's hunt the traitor time. (One of the people busted on this occasion: the secretary of Katte's grandpa Wartensleben, Bube, who borrows the clothing of a female "moor" to escape in disguise, but is controlled and outed.
(BTW, the female mooor who whose clothes Bube the secretary borrowed is referred to by Weber as "die Mohrin der Markgräfin Philippine" - I didn't have time to look it up, but is Philippine Mrs. Wartensleben or are we talking about one of the Schwedt wives?mildred_of_midgard: The latter, apparently. I can't find a wife named Philippine or Philippe, but the late Margrave at this date was Philip. Wilhelmine calls his wife the "margravine Philippe" or "margravine Philippine" (depending on your translation, I really don't have time to check out the French). Is it possible that she and Weber are doing the equivalent of "the Princess Heinrich"? I.e. it's actually Philip's widow Johanna Charlotte?)
And as mentioned, Frau von Baspiel's correspondence with Manteuffel and Flemming gets uncovered. There is nothing in it about a kidnapping/murder scheme, but it does prove she was reporting on FW for the Saxons. Her imprisonment lasts until January7th 1719 in Spandau, then FW lets her go but banishes her from Berlin. (Fritz, as a favor to his mother, will not only call her back but make her the governess of his youngest sisters.)
Saxon Legationssekretär Wilhelmi also gets strip searched in his own living quarters against all diplomatic conventions. FW writes to August that August can't blame him for this since an assassinaton/kidnapping attempt was planned! He knows it has been!
August: WTF?!?
Meanwhile, Knyphausen has arrived in Vienna to ask for a statement from Eugene. Eugene is also WTF? about this and says so in a letter. Also, while there have been all kinds of briberies and correspondance uncovered during all the arrests in Berlin, none of it has anything to do with Klement's stories, and FW is getting more and more angry that his people can't produce any proof for the obviously TRUE story. Klement now changes his statements and claims that anything Eugene related is a lie, but it totally wasn't his idea, it was Flemming's, to mess up Austria/Prussia relations. Then he caves and admits he made everything up himself. FW doesn't believe it. FW thinks this is just because Klement was threatened with torture. Now he wants to get his hands on Lehmann, Klement's first Prussian contact, and advertises that Lehmann should turn himself in, he, FW, just wants to know the truth about all those evil schemes against him. (Secret orders to Kasch: if Lehmann doesn't report to the aiuthorities, he's to be arrested no matter how expensive tht gets.) Lehmann, unfortunately, is by now in Dresden, and really des not want to return to Berlin to talk with FW. He gets arrested by FW's people. Unlike the Frankfurt/Voltaire case, this does not end in the local authorities caving. Manteuffel, who is not a litte worried about his mistress and generally pissed off at FW, makes the suggestion that if Lehmann isn't handed back to the Saxon authorities, one could keep Kasch here in Saxony. End result: Lehmann stays in Saxony, albeit under arrest on the Königsstein till the whole matter is cleared up. (Weber says the conditions for Lelhmann in Königstein were so lenient that he even was allowed "the enjoyment of free love".)
Next we get a lot of mutually insulted letters between Vienna, Berlin and Dresden on a general note of "how dare you?" Some personal letters between August and FW soothe some feelings until FW caves in March 1719 and provides the requested declaration of honor for Flemming and Manteuffel, the phrasing of which from another man would be called ambigous: „ Je veux bien déclarer que je ne garde aucune rancune contre ces ministres , mes que je pour eux toute l'estime que leur bonnes qualites le meritent."
Meanwhile, poor Legationssekretär Wilhelmi wants to get out of Prussia toute suite after his rough treatment, and doesn't feel better about FW's intentions when a soldier named "Simson" shows up at 7 pm in the evening and announces he's watching Wilhelmi on FW's behalf day and night. Wilhelmi needs a hero to rescue him! Enter Suhm. Suhm, who won't be official Saxon envoy until the next year, at last achieves the permission for Wilhelmi to do as he pleases once he's paid his outstanding debts in Berlin. Except that Dresden and Vienna have demanded Wilhelmi should now be present at Klement's trial as observer. (On the bright side, this means we have Wilhelmi's reports in the Saxon archive. At least we had them, no idea whether they survived WWII.) Since FW stll wants to believe in Klement's original story, Dresden now provides that letter from Klement to Flemming about how FW's ministers really feel about him. FW is stunned. (Again.) This from his friend Klement! He's off to Spandau to confront Klement with this letter. Klement admits to having written it. FW no longer is against the death penalty for Klement.
Unfortunately for Lehmann, his presence at the trial was required, and this new spirit of Saxon/Prussian unity meant he was extradited. Testifying against Klement didn't mean he wasn't accused of participating in the scheme himself by Prussian law. They were both condemned to be pinched twice with hot iron at different places in the city. Then Lehmann was beheaded, and Klement was hanged. The pamphlet about his execution has him say that while he regrets having caused trouble between monarchs with his lies, he did it all for the Protestant faith and FW. FW says if only Klement had been an honest fellow, he'd have prized none more, and supposedly keeps his picture.
cahn: Was Klement a tall man?
Here, he is Johann Michael von Klement, - the Prussian archive, btw, lists him as a non-noble, without a "von", - born June 7th, 1689, in Neusohl, Hungary. Also Weber quotes from his letters, and the letters referring to him, at length untranslated in the original French, just to make my life harder. :( Wilhelmine, child of a Klement-believing father and a snob, considers he might have had Philippe d'Orleans or the King of Denmark as an illegtimate Dad, but no such thing, Dad was Martin von Klement, Judge in the Neusohl district, according to the man himself. Weber says a letter from Klement's mother, Catharina (born von Petrarsch) in Hungarian still exists, the only document of hers that does, dated December 12th 1718, and she signs herself Szmernyik Anna.(Incorrectly, says Weber, and that the content just contains maternal gushing.) Other than Hungarian, Klement was fluent in German, French and Latin, and had studied at Halle and Frankfurt an der Oder. Again according to himself, which is always a problem if you've been exposed as an international conman. Again according to himself, he then became aide de campe and gentleman of the chamber to Prince Racoczky, he who fought the Austrians until 1711 for Hungarian independence. According to Klement, he was involved in supersecret negotations between R. and the French who wanted R. as a mediator between them and the Prussians, whom they wanted as their ally.(Reminder: this is when everyone is busy fighting old Louis XIV in the War of the Spanish Succession. Louis looking for allies among the Hungarians against his enemy the Austrians and trying to woo the Prussians away isn't implausiblel, and way more likely than later claims of Klement's. The supposed French offer to the Prussians otoh, is nothing short of sensational in the documented quoted, and now translated via google and me:
That after such a approach, the King of France will recognize the one of Prussia as a mediator of the peace and will pay him, first one million ECU and ECU 200 000 per months, to maintain 50,000 men, who would put fear into everyone, provided all - times, that the King of Prussia consenting that the Confederation of Hungary, after declaring their throne vacant and after electing for King the Crown Prince of Prussia, depending on that the latter, under the pretext of a voluntary escape from the court of his father, accepted the crown of Hungary, in which France intends to maintain it, concluding to this effect a separate treaty with the Confederation of Hungary and in supporting it with large subsidies.
The Crown Prince who's supposed to pretend to escape so he can become King of Hungary is FW, guys. According to Klement and Weber, a lot of French money went from Louis to F1's ministers Ilgen and Wartenberg to promote this scheme in Prussia, and at last the Prussians said okay, they'll go for it provided the throne of Hungary is declared vacant. Unfortunately Racoczky didn't manage to beat Prince Eugene, which meant the throne of Hungary remained in Habsburg possession. Weber admits there's no reason to accept all of this just because Klement said it happened but considers it at least possible some truth is in it because later Eugene, no fool, hired Klement believing he really had been Racoczky's right hand man and could deliver the spy goods. Given how the rest of Klement's life went, I'm not sure I follow his logic here.
Anyway, Klement sees which way the wind is blowing and shows up in Vienna in 1715 with lots of Racoczky's papers including those letters between Prussia, R and France. Klement gets an amnesty (as a now former Hungarian rebel, he needs one), a new job, and changes his religion from Prostant to Catholic, and now works in Eugene's chancellery until 1717. Quite why he quiit or was fired, Weber's sources aren't sure. Some say Klement didn't feel appreciated enough, Klement said to Saxon minister Flemming, his next boss, that Eugene totally didn't want want to fire him but had to but gave him a warning so Klement had a head start. Eugene himself, when asked somewhat too late by Flemming what the hell was up with Klement, wrote that ",, que c'étoit un homme adroit et que c'étoit dommage qu'il se fut tourné en mal", which means he must have considered him at least competent at something. Weber thinks Eugene might have gotten disillusioned as to Klement's relationship with the truth but considered him still as a potentially useful spy and thus didn't cut off all relations to him all at once.
Anyway, Klement next goes to Saxony under the alias of "Kleeberg" where he visits an old pal, the painter Mayockii, who introduces him to Saxony's most powerful minister, Flemming. While Flemming much later told FW HE saw through Klement at once, evidence shows otherwise. Back then, the Saxons were trying to marry their Kurprinz with an Archduchess (as in, one of Joseph I's daughters) in order to have a shot at the Imperial Throne and the Habsburg heritage, betting on MT's Dad not producing any more sons. So they were very eager to have a confidential source in Vienna. Klement promised he had such a person at his disposal and with enough money, he could get all kind of inside reports for them. What he actually did was using a Viennese gossip newsletter edited by a Countess von Schönkirch and furthered the information within to Flemming claiming this was directly from one of his former colleagues in Eugene's office. These Klement-forged secret reports still were available in the Saxon archives when Weber was writing, including one on all the differences between brothers Joseph and Charles, claiming that the plan had been to make Prince Eugene one the Spanish throne once Charles failed at getting/keeping it, and that Eugene once this secret plan emerged had a twelve hours meeting with Charles assuring him he didn't want the Spanish throne and offering to withdraw from all his offices, which ended with Charles urging him to stay. Given that the Spanish throne was well occupied by Philip the future frog, one wonders how Flemming could have bought the tale, but he literally bought it, along with other tales - a plan to marry Eugene to one of the archduchesses foiled!
(lj user="mildred_of_midgard">: Huuhh. So there was definitely talk of sending Eugene to the Spanish front as a *general*, which Eugene did not want, but king??? Neither the Habsburgs nor the Bourbons would have stood for this!)
The one who finally smelled a rat was, of all the people, not Flemming but August the Strong, who thought this actually did not sound much like the Eugene he'd met a couple of times. Klement, no fool, sensed it was time to get out of Saxony and told Flemming Eugene totally wanted him back and was willing to pay so Klement would spy for him in the Netherlands, and he was willing to do his bit for the Saxon cause while doing so, since he would of stop in Berlin en route, and wasn't there trouble with the Prussians? There was trouble with the Prussians, and Manteuffel had just switched from being envoy in Berln to being cabinet minister in Saxony, so was no longer available to soothe it. Flemming gives Klement a letter of reccommendation to Prussian minsiter Ilgen and some wine from his own cellar along with 600 Taler travellingl money, and Klement moves on to his next mark.
He stil tries to squeeze more money out of Flemming, though, claiming to have found a secret source in FW's chancellery. One of the reports he sent to Flemming has this bit: To look at state business superficially, one would judge the King of Prussia to be in an awe-inspiring state, I would even believe this to be the case if one looked at the hearts of his ministers, of his subjects. and soldiers; but his ways of interacting with the ministers ensure their hate, and they wish for his death or some great misfortune.
In short, Klement could deliver lots of ministers as spies since they all resented FW that much, who specialized in humiliating people and parce qu'il ne sait suivre que l'humeur brusque et cruel du Prince de Dessau etc.. This letter was going to spell doom for Klement in the long run, since Flemming would produce it once the bonkers climax of our conman's career had happened.
Now, looking for his next mark, Klement used a friend of his painter pal's, one Lehmann, to spread the news that he was Eugene's super secret agent, that an Austria/Prussia rapprochment was wanted but the Prussian envoy in Vienna, one of the Schwerin family, could no longer be used for such a thing, since his wife was argueing with Eugene's mistress. (Klement: providing Eugene with a heterosexual reputation!) This was a relatively harmless tale, but when Lehmann offered the Court Preacher Mylious or Bishop Jablonski as an intermediary so that Klement could spread this happy news, Klement went one better and said that if there wasn't going to be an Austria/Prussia approchement, Team Vienna had an attack on Prussia in mind, complete with kidnapping FW and his treasury. There was even an insulting letter from Eugene at hand saying FW was "a little King" whom one could "crush in two to three months". Lehmann, as a Prussian patriot, now considered it his duty to report such a horrible plan to the highest authority, knew that FW was best approachable at Wusterhausen, and Klement gets his personal no witness audience with FW in September 1718 at Wusterhausen. By this time, the tale of the conspiracy had grown. Not only was the "FW replaced by Fritz, who gets raised as a Catholic" detail added, but also Klement said the whole dastardly plan had been Flemming's idea (who suggested it to Eugene), no one hated FW as much as Fleming, he, KLement, had been in the room when the scheme was formed, and so had been that other dastardly Saxon, Manteuffel.
The Manteuffel part was to have consequences not so miuch for Manteuffel, but for his mistress, Frau von Baspiel, who did write him secret letters after all, and who was busted on that occasion. (Also her husband lost his job with FW.) Meanwhile, Klement, evidently inspired by his personal encounters with FW, kept adding details - Eugene had even gotten the Hannover okay for this dastardly plan. FW is thunderstruck. Also Klement is his man now. According to Pöllnitz, Klement is smart enough to decline the 1200 Taler the King offers him immediately saying he hasn't earned them yet, but according to Saxon Legationssekretär Wlhelmi, Klement received 7000 Taler from FW and another 2000 later, and also, he changed faiths again (this time to Reformed Protestant).
I should add here that unlike the editor of the FW/Old Dessauer letters, Weber uses Pöllnitz on the bonkers Klement affair as a reliable source, and thus includes the bit with the dramatic scene where Old Dessauer confronts a deeply paranoid FW who has taken to sleeping with his pistols under his bed and lies down his sword in front of him. FW now trusts Old Dessauer, at least, and tells him the whole sordid tale. Old Dessauer thinks it's all rubbish and advises to at least ask Flemming and Eugene for a comment. For now, though, FW completely trusts Klement who produces lots of Eugene letters to go with his claims. The amazing thing is that Klement had the opportunity to make a quick getaway - he even was outside of Prussia on a trip - but didn't take it, so was arrested on December 4th 1718. (Here we get a physical description by the arresting officers who bring hin to Spandau - "the black and brown fat gentleman in an Hungarian furcoat". Klement gets interrogated, but in a friendly way, FW even sends him food on silver plates from the royal kitchen. He sticks wit his story and says, in tears, that he knows he can't prove it, Eugene and Flemming will deny everything but he, Klement, did it for FW and the Protestant Faith! FW is wavering but wants to believe him. On December 9th, no one is allowed to get in and out of Berlin anymore, it's hunt the traitor time. (One of the people busted on this occasion: the secretary of Katte's grandpa Wartensleben, Bube, who borrows the clothing of a female "moor" to escape in disguise, but is controlled and outed.
(BTW, the female mooor who whose clothes Bube the secretary borrowed is referred to by Weber as "die Mohrin der Markgräfin Philippine" - I didn't have time to look it up, but is Philippine Mrs. Wartensleben or are we talking about one of the Schwedt wives?
mildred_of_midgard: The latter, apparently. I can't find a wife named Philippine or Philippe, but the late Margrave at this date was Philip. Wilhelmine calls his wife the "margravine Philippe" or "margravine Philippine" (depending on your translation, I really don't have time to check out the French). Is it possible that she and Weber are doing the equivalent of "the Princess Heinrich"? I.e. it's actually Philip's widow Johanna Charlotte?) And as mentioned, Frau von Baspiel's correspondence with Manteuffel and Flemming gets uncovered. There is nothing in it about a kidnapping/murder scheme, but it does prove she was reporting on FW for the Saxons. Her imprisonment lasts until January7th 1719 in Spandau, then FW lets her go but banishes her from Berlin. (Fritz, as a favor to his mother, will not only call her back but make her the governess of his youngest sisters.)
Saxon Legationssekretär Wilhelmi also gets strip searched in his own living quarters against all diplomatic conventions. FW writes to August that August can't blame him for this since an assassinaton/kidnapping attempt was planned! He knows it has been!
August: WTF?!?
Meanwhile, Knyphausen has arrived in Vienna to ask for a statement from Eugene. Eugene is also WTF? about this and says so in a letter. Also, while there have been all kinds of briberies and correspondance uncovered during all the arrests in Berlin, none of it has anything to do with Klement's stories, and FW is getting more and more angry that his people can't produce any proof for the obviously TRUE story. Klement now changes his statements and claims that anything Eugene related is a lie, but it totally wasn't his idea, it was Flemming's, to mess up Austria/Prussia relations. Then he caves and admits he made everything up himself. FW doesn't believe it. FW thinks this is just because Klement was threatened with torture. Now he wants to get his hands on Lehmann, Klement's first Prussian contact, and advertises that Lehmann should turn himself in, he, FW, just wants to know the truth about all those evil schemes against him. (Secret orders to Kasch: if Lehmann doesn't report to the aiuthorities, he's to be arrested no matter how expensive tht gets.) Lehmann, unfortunately, is by now in Dresden, and really des not want to return to Berlin to talk with FW. He gets arrested by FW's people. Unlike the Frankfurt/Voltaire case, this does not end in the local authorities caving. Manteuffel, who is not a litte worried about his mistress and generally pissed off at FW, makes the suggestion that if Lehmann isn't handed back to the Saxon authorities, one could keep Kasch here in Saxony. End result: Lehmann stays in Saxony, albeit under arrest on the Königsstein till the whole matter is cleared up. (Weber says the conditions for Lelhmann in Königstein were so lenient that he even was allowed "the enjoyment of free love".)
Next we get a lot of mutually insulted letters between Vienna, Berlin and Dresden on a general note of "how dare you?" Some personal letters between August and FW soothe some feelings until FW caves in March 1719 and provides the requested declaration of honor for Flemming and Manteuffel, the phrasing of which from another man would be called ambigous: „ Je veux bien déclarer que je ne garde aucune rancune contre ces ministres , mes que je pour eux toute l'estime que leur bonnes qualites le meritent."
Meanwhile, poor Legationssekretär Wilhelmi wants to get out of Prussia toute suite after his rough treatment, and doesn't feel better about FW's intentions when a soldier named "Simson" shows up at 7 pm in the evening and announces he's watching Wilhelmi on FW's behalf day and night. Wilhelmi needs a hero to rescue him! Enter Suhm. Suhm, who won't be official Saxon envoy until the next year, at last achieves the permission for Wilhelmi to do as he pleases once he's paid his outstanding debts in Berlin. Except that Dresden and Vienna have demanded Wilhelmi should now be present at Klement's trial as observer. (On the bright side, this means we have Wilhelmi's reports in the Saxon archive. At least we had them, no idea whether they survived WWII.) Since FW stll wants to believe in Klement's original story, Dresden now provides that letter from Klement to Flemming about how FW's ministers really feel about him. FW is stunned. (Again.) This from his friend Klement! He's off to Spandau to confront Klement with this letter. Klement admits to having written it. FW no longer is against the death penalty for Klement.
Unfortunately for Lehmann, his presence at the trial was required, and this new spirit of Saxon/Prussian unity meant he was extradited. Testifying against Klement didn't mean he wasn't accused of participating in the scheme himself by Prussian law. They were both condemned to be pinched twice with hot iron at different places in the city. Then Lehmann was beheaded, and Klement was hanged. The pamphlet about his execution has him say that while he regrets having caused trouble between monarchs with his lies, he did it all for the Protestant faith and FW. FW says if only Klement had been an honest fellow, he'd have prized none more, and supposedly keeps his picture.
cahn: Was Klement a tall man?
no subject
Date: 2022-12-02 06:19 am (UTC)Fassmann: No.