Voltaire and Louisa Ulrica, Princess of Prussia

'Divine Ulrique': Voltaire and Louisa Ulrica,
Princess of Prussia and Queen of Sweden (1751-1771)
Marc Serge Rivière
That Voltaire adopted a paradoxical stance towards women, as he did on
so many other issues, has been argued most convincingly by D. J. Adams
in his excellent study, La Femme dans les contes et les romans de Voltaire:
'Voltaire exprimait son mépris ou son adoration selon son opinion de la
dame en question, et non pas selon le genre qu'il employait.'1 In some of
his more private statements either made in his correspondence to
members of his inner circle, or confined to his notebooks, Voltaire is far
from complimentary about women. Their frivolity, which is repeatedly
stressed in the Contes,1 is commented upon thus in the notebooks: 'Les
femmes ressemblent aux girouettes : elles se fixent quand elles se
rouillent.'3 Yet, in his dealings with influential women of his day, the
philosophe did not let such negative views detract from the respect and
admiration which he openly professed for his patronesses. Voltaire
flattered, and knew how to win over, duchesses and countesses, princesses
and queens, just as he did powerful men. In assessing Voltaire's dealings
with such influential women as Mme de Pompadour, Catherine II and
several German and Prussian princesses, and queens, it must be
remembered that his chief motive was to seek the patronage of those who
were in a position to promote effectively his works in their respective
countries; Jean Sareil justifiably concludes: 'Ce que Voltaire attend de
madame de Pompadour, comme de tous les grands qu'il fréquente, c'est
de favoriser ses ouvrages et de le protéger contre ses ennemis [...]. Pour
prix de ses services, il est prêt à chanter les mérites de la maîtresse et les
victoires du monarque. Son attitude est très claire.'4
1.
2.
3.
4.
Adams, David J., La Femme dans les romans et les contes de Voltaire (Paris,
Nizet, 1974) p. 30.
Ibid., p. 298.
Voltaire, Notebooks, in Besterman, Theodore (éd.), Complete Works of Voltaire
(Geneva, Institut et Musée Voltaire, 1968, 2 vols) vol. 82, p. 414.
Sareil, Jean, Voltaire et les grands (Geneva, Droz, 1978) p. 107.
UFrS 3 (2003)
42
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Voltaire's relationship with Louisa Ulrica, Princess of Prussia and
Queen of Sweden, sheds considerable light on his personality and his
ability to orchestrate a promotional campaign in Europe. Voltaire knew
her, first, as the young and engaging sister of Frederick II in 1743, and
became infatuated with her before she married the heir to the Swedish
throne in 1744 and left Berlin for Stockholm. In what follows, it will be
seen that the language used by Voltaire to address the beautiful young
woman underwent a radical change, when Louisa Ulrica became Crown
Princess in 1744 and Queen of Sweden in 1751. It was then that the
writer embarked on his customary quest for yet another royal patron.
Voltaire, 'vaniteux', 'courtisan' and 'ambitieux', can be observed at
different times in his correspondence with Louisa Ulrica. A parallel with
Catherine II of Russia will be drawn to this effect, while the reactions of
the Queen and Empress to the most celebrated writer of his generation
will be shown to be representative of many aristocratic women readers
in Europe. Finally, a consideration of several madrigals addressed to
Louisa Ulrica will reveal Voltaire's mastery of the art of flattery and his
taste as an 'honnête homme' that controlled the liberties he took,
keeping him within the confines of propriety and acceptable behaviour.
Although occasional references to this close relationship crop up in
general biographies of Voltaire and in monographs on Voltaire and
Frederick H, to my knowledge, this long-standing, and developing,
'double-act' has not been the subject of an in-depth examination to date.
Louisa Ulrica was born on 24 June 1720, the tenth child of
Frederick William I (1688-1740), King of Prussia and Sophia
Dorothea of Hanover (1687-1757), whom he married on 28 November
1706. She was eight years younger than her eldest brother, and heir to
the throne, Frederick, later Frederick II (1712-1786). Her odier
brothers were: Augustus William, Prince of Prussia (1722-1758), her
favourite brother with whom she corresponded at length from 1729
until his untimely death from a brain fever in 1758; Frederick Henry
Ludwig (1726-1802) who was very fond of her and visited her in
Stockholm in 1771; and Augustus Ferdinand (1730-1813) who was 14
when Louisa Ulrica left Berlin in 1744 for Sweden and who never
failed to write to her over the years, as testified by a lengthy
correspondence that exists in the Riksarkivet in Stockholm.5 Louisa
5.
See, for example, Stafsundsarchivet, Riksarkivet, Stockholm, 'Louisa Ulrika,
Koncept Copior', no. 30. See also Arnheim, Fritz von, Luise Ulrike die
Schwedische Schwester Friedrichs des Grossen (Gotha, Perthes, 1909,2 vols.).
VOLTAIRE AND LOUISA ULRICA
43
Ulrica's sisters all attained prominent positions through marriage,
except Anna Amalia (1723-1787) who remained unmarried and
became Abbess of Quedlinburg in 1756; others were Wilhelmina
(1709-1758), Margravine of Bayreuth; Frederike Luise (1714-1784),
Margravine of Anspach; Phillippine Charlotte (1716-1801), Duchess
of Brunswick-Wolfenbiittel; and Sophie (1719-1765), Margravine of
Schwedt. An extensive correspondence with all her sisters confirms
Louisa Ulrica's strong sense of the family and her deep affection for all
its members.6
It is unlikely that Voltaire became acquainted with Frederick's
sisters and brothers during his ten-day visit to Berlin in 1740. On the
other hand, he became a great favourite of theirs in 1743, and even
more so during his longer sojourn in Prussia from 1750 to 1753.
Wilhelmina, Ulrica and Amalia all shared Frederick's love of French
classical tragedy and music. Like their mother, they remained constant
in their devotion to Racine's and Voltaire's theatre. When the dramatist
arrived in Berlin in August 1743 and in July 1750 at Frederick's
invitation, the Prussian princesses hailed him as a worthy successor to
Racine. None more so than Amalia who, in early 1750, was actively
involved in staging both Voltaire's and Racine's tragedies. Voltaire's
play Rome Sauvée, not yet in the repertoire of the Comédie française,
was performed at her residence. On 5 January 1751, Voltaire was
invited to take the part of Lusignan in a private performance of his
tragedy Zaïre.1 The residence of Sophia Dorothea, at Monbijou, was
another favourite meeting place for devotees of Racine's and Voltaire's
tragedies.8 René Pomeau wonders in De la cour au jardin if, out of
deference to Amalia, Voltaire did not choose to give the Princess' name
to his protagonist in the revised version of his play, Adélaïde Du
6.
7.
8.
This correspondence has been consulted at the Geheimes Staatsarchiv
PreuBicher Kulturbesitz, Berlin, and at the Riksarkivet, Stockholm. There is
also a considerable corpus in the Archives du Ministère des Affaires Etrangères
(hereafter MAE), Paris, dossiers 'Prusse' and Suède'.
Voltaire, Correspondence and Related Documents, in Besterman, Theodore
(éd.), Complete Works of Voltaire (Geneva, Institut et Musée Voltaire, 1968-77)
vols 85-135. AU references will be inserted into the text and indicated by (Best.
D). The orthography and punctuation of Voltaire have been faithfully
reproduced, as in the Besterman edition.
See Pomeau, René et al., Voltaire en son temps (Oxford, The Voltaire
Foundation/Paris, Fayard, 1985-1995) vol. 1, p. 639.
44
RIVIERE
Guesclin (1733), published in 1752 under the title Amélie ou le duc de
Foix.9 As early as 1743, Voltaire cast his spell on the Queen Mother and
Princesses Amalia and Louisa Ulrica during private dinners and
readings from his plays at Monbijou; Count Otto Christoph von
Podewils reported on 10 September 1743 that Voltaire had treated his
exclusive audience to 'deux actes d'une tragédie, qu'il compose
actuellement et dont la lecture a arraché des larmes à tous les assistants'
(Best. D2837).
The poet and the Princess
There is no evidence that Voltaire's infatuation with Louisa Ulrica
dated from his all too brief visit to Rheinsberg and Berlin in November
1740. Nor are there any indications in his surviving correspondence
that they were on writing terms at this stage. On the other hand, the
year 1743 marked the birth and blossoming of their friendship. The
adventures of Voltaire 'apprenti diplomate', who volunteered to go to
Prussia to establish a rapprochement between France and Frederick H,
are well-documented.10 Voltaire was feted by Frederick and other
members of the royal family during this visit that lasted from 30 August
until 12 October." He certainly took his diplomatic mission seriously,
remarking: 'Au milieu des fêtes, des opéras, des soupers, ma
négociation secrète avançait.'12 Thomas Carlyle13 and Christiane
Mervaud14 have both commented on the 'glorious reception' accorded
to Voltaire who endeavoured to cast his magic spell on Frederick, his
siblings and their inner circles. Lapping up the attention, Voltaire
neglected poor Emilie du Châtelet who received no news for a
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
Ibid.
See Pomeau, René et al., op. cit., vol. I, pp. 423-37; Mervaud, Christiane,
Voltaire et Frédéric II. Une dramaturgie des lumières, 1736-1778, in Studies on
Voltaire and the Eighteenth Century, vol. 234 (Oxford, The Voltaire
Foundation, 1985) pp. 135-56; Bellugou, Henri, Voltaire et Frédéric II au
temps de la Marquise du Châtelet: Un trio singulier (Paris, Rivière, 1962)
pp. 123-53; Sareil, op. cit., pp. 55-80.
Mervaud, op. cit., p. 142.
Voltaire, Mémoires, in Œuvres complètes, Moland, Louis (éd.), (Paris, Garnier,
1877-1885) vol. 1, p. 31. Hereafter: M.
Carlyle, Thomas, History of Friedrich II of Prussia (London, Chapman & Hall,
n.d.) vol. n, part n, p. 79.
Mervaud, op. cit., p. 144.
VOLTAIRE AND LOUISA ULRICA
45
fortnight, until a short note of four lines reached her on 28 September
1743 (Best. D2843).15 On 31 August, the day after his arrival, Voltaire
dined at Monbijou, and again on 5 September.16 On 22 October 1743,
Emilie complained bitterly to Comte d'Argental: 'Il est ivre
absolument [...], il est fou des courettes d'Allemagne' (Best. D2870).
The English Ambassador to Berlin wrote to Carteret: 'On ne parle que
de Voltaire. Il lit des tragédies aux deux reines et aux princesses jusqu'à
les faire fondre en larmes, il dépasse le roi lui-même en verve satirique
et en saillies extravagantes.'17 Prussian aristocratie circles being less
stiff and snobbish than their French counterparts, responded
enthusiastically to Voltaire's wit and marivaudage.1* Although intent on
impressing his new acquaintances, Voltaire remained conscious of the
fine line between flattery and familiarity; a constant feature of his taste
has been described by Sareil as 'une connaissance profonde des
convenances du monde, pour savoir à quelles limites s'arrêter', and
'côtoyer le mauvais goût sans jamais y tomber, grâce à une forme
impeccable.'19
Voltaire's early interaction in 1743 with Louisa Ulrica, then
unmarried at twenty-three, is a case in point. He was already on
familiar terms with the Princess by the time he set out with Frederick
for Bayreuth in early September. The King's motives for the trip were
purely political; under the guise of a friendly visit to his sisters of
Bayreuth and Anspach, Frederick was intent on rallying support from
Princes of the Empire against his current and future enemies.20 Leaving
Sans Souci on 10 September 1743, Frederick and Voltaire arrived at
Bayreuth two days later; from there, the King went to Nuremberg,
Anspach, before returning to Bayreuth on 21st, only to set out the next
day for Potsdam via Leipzig. Thus, Voltaire and Frederick were
together four to five days; left to his own devices, the philosophe was
free to enjoy the atmosphere of Wilhelmina's 'charmed circle', in
Carlyle's words.21 He found there, according to Pomeau, 'un véritable
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
Voltaire en son temps, vol. I, p. 432.
Mervaud, op. cit., pp. 144-5.
Quoted by Sareil, op. cit., p. 70, note 33.
Orieux, Jean, Voltaire ou la royauté de l'esprit (Paris, Flammarion, 1966)
p. 283.
Sareil, op. cit., p. 136 and p. 141.
Mervaud, op. cit., p. 151.
Carlyle, op. cit., vol. H, part II, p. 85.
46
RIVIERE
paradis : le luxe, l'esprit, la musique'.22 Louisa Ulrica, at the time, was
visiting Wilhelmina's residence, and during Voltaire's sojourn of
fifteen days, a degree of platonic intimacy developed. This relationship
has been the subject of some debate and needs to be revisited here.
Pomeau argues that, during this interlude, Voltaire overreached
himself: 'Le poète se trouve à l'aise à tel point qu'il oublie parfaitement
ses origines et se permet de rimer le fameux madrigal à la princesse
Ulrique.'23 To the madrigal we shall return presently. Did it amount to
'presque un certificat amoureux', in Bellugou's words?24 Was Voltaire,
as Orieux claims, 'd'une familiarité inconcevable',25 and in Bellugou's
estimation, 'un aristocrate-parvenu', 'le soupirant de la Princesse'?26
Enjoying female company in a more relaxed atmosphere, matched
only by that of Rheinsberg and Monbijou, and unlike that of the
androcentric world of Sans Souci, Voltaire was tempted to give free
rein to his sparkling wit and poetic talent. He wasted no time in drafting
a madrigal to Louisa Ulrica:
Souvent un peu de vérité
Se mêle au plus grossier mensonge:
Cette nuit, dans l'erreur d'un songe,
Au rang des rois j'étais monté.
Je vous aimais, princesse, et j'osais vous le dire!
Les dieux à mon réveil ne m'ont pas tout ôté;
Je n'ai perdu que mon empire.27
'Le célèbre et contesté madrigal', as Mervaud calls it,28 is, all things
considered, little more than a badinage. Pomeau remarks: 'Voltaire sait
fort bien jusqu'où il peut aller'.29 Humour indeed played an important
part here and palliated any 'hardiesses'; the Princess was invited to
participate in a 'jeu de société', a 'plaisanterie galante', by reading
between the lines. Desnoiresterres offers the following observation:
'Ce madrigal est charmant. Est-il d'une aussi énorme inconvenance
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
Voltaire en son temps, vol. I, p. 433.
Ibid.
Bellugou, op. cit., p. 145.
Orieux, op. cit., p. 282.
Bellugou, op. cit., p. 146.
In Voltaire, Œuvres complètes, M. vol. X, pp. 528-9 and Voltaire Electronique
(Oxford, Voltaire Foundation, 1998; hereafter VE.) P28753.
Mervaud, op. cit., p. 148, note 93.
Voltaire en son temps, vol. I, p. 434.
VOLTAIRE AND LOUISA ULRICA
47
qu'on l'a prétendu ? Nous disions que Voltaire joignait à un grand tact
un grand usage du monde, et que dans ses audaces les plus extrêmes il
savait ce qu'il faisait et jusqu'où il allait.'30 The tone is respectful, albeit
playful, and the language remains tasteful; the fact that in a dreamworld, Voltaire can assume royal status and declare his love, is part of
literary conventions of préciosité. Largely because of Voltaire's 'esprit
séduisant', the Princess is unlikely to have been offended by this
private communication. Moreover, as Desnoiresterres reminds us,
'Voltaire vivait avec tous ces princes et toutes ces princesses sur le pied
de l'intimité et de l'égalité la plus parfaite.'31 In the 1740s, he was
looked upon as 'le prince des poètes', and later as 'le Roi Voltaire', who
ruled over his realm at Ferney. Hence in such literary exchanges, he
had no qualms about bantering with Frederick and with the princesses
on an equal footing.
A master at impromptu madrigals, 'not equalled in graceful
felicity even by Goethe', in Carlyle's view,32 Voltaire was generously
forgiven for his 'pointe de gaillardise' and his 'hardiesse délibérée', to
use Sareil's words.33 The measure of his success at flattery is in what he
got away with.34 For a suitable reply, the ill-equipped Louisa Ulrica
turned to her more creative brother, thereby showing that she had not
taken offence. Nor was Frederick himself shocked by the madrigal;
Pomeau comments: 'Si Frédéric un instant paraît en prendre ombrage,
c'est sans gravité.'35 Mervaud justifiably casts doubt on the theory that
Frederick was the author of the 'riposte grossière', that contained the
lines:
Un héros peut rêver qu'il a passé le Rhin,
Un marchand, qu'il a fait fortune,
Un chien, qu'il aboie à la lune!
Mais que Voltaire, en Prusse, à l'aide d'un mensonge,
S'imagine être roi pour faire le faquin,
Ma foi, c'est abuser du songe.36
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
Desnoiresterres, Gustave, Voltaire et la société au XVIII' siècle (Geneva,
Slatkine, 1967; first published: 1871-1876) vol. H, p. 405.
Ibid., p. 404.
Carlyle, op. cit., vol. II, part II, p. 87.
Sareil, op. cit., pp. 141-2.
See Baldensberger, Fernand, 'Le madrigal de Voltaire à la princesse Ulrique',
in Revue de Paris, vol. 3 (1931), p. 772.
Voltaire en son temps, vol. I, p. 434.
Mervaud, op. cit., p. 158, note 155.
48
RIVIERE
Desnoiresterres ascribed the response to Alexis Piron and claimed
that it was a pale imitation of an Italian poem.37 There is a world of
difference between 'les propos les plus libres [qui] passent sous
l'élégance du langage', which Voltaire excelled at,38 and 'grossièretés'.
Nor is it true, as Giles MacDonogh argues in an otherwise excellent
biography, that 'Frederick took a dim view' of Voltaire 'making cow's
eyes' at his sister.39 In fact, the reply to Voltaire's madrigal, drafted by
Frederick and sent on 11 October, snowed the King to be playing along,
as he developed the motif of the dream: Apollo appears to Louisa
Ulrica, accompanied by the nine sisters, and dictates the riposte that
ends with: 'Le hazard fait les Rois, la vertu fait les Dieux' {Best.
D2863). Implied here is the notion that a liaison is just as conceivable
between the poet and the Princess, as between the poet and the King.
There is no indication that the madrigal was perceived as intolerable
arrogance on Voltaire's part, and there is every likelihood that
Frederick was referring to himself in the lines:
Enfin l'illusion, une douce chimère,
Me fit passer chez vous pour Reine de Cithère. {Best. D2863)
The King himself was clearly far from snobbish in his own sexual
adventures and was not inclined to tick off Voltaire for his declaration
to his sister.
Frederick's tolerance of Voltaire's declaration is all the more
remarkable since he was very possessive, when it came to his
unmarried sisters. Amalia became the main talking point of Berlin's
polite circles in 1744, when, during Louisa Ulrica's engagement party,
she fell for a dashing young cadet, Friedrich von Trenck, a member of
Frederick's Garde-du-Corps.40 Trenck's account of the short scandalous
love-affair, Merkwiirdige lebensgeschichte41 has been adjudged 'to be
full of holes'42, but the main facts are well-established. In his
37.
38.
39.
40.
41.
42.
Desnoiresterres, op. cit., vol. H, p. 408.
Voltaire et son temps, vol. I, p. 433.
MacDonogh, Giles, Frederick the Great (London, Weidenfeld & Nicolson,
2000) pp. 168-9.
See MacDonogh, op. cit., p. 171.
Trenck, Friedrich, Friedrich Freyhern von der Trenck, merkwiirdige
Lebensgeschichte, in translation Le Destin extraordinaire du baron de Trenck
(Paris, Pygmalion, 1986). See also Du Jeu, Emmanuel, Trenck: Un aventurier
prussien au dix-huitième siècle (Paris, Émile-Paul, 1928).
MacDonogh, op. cit., p. 171.
VOLTAIRE AND LOUISA ULRICA
49
autobiography, Trenck (1726-1794) claimed that during Ulrica's
engagement party, his 'heart first [felt] a passion of which, in the course
of my history, I shall have frequent occasion to speak. The object of my
love was one whom I can only remember at present with reverence.'43
A thief stole his watch and Trenck was consoled by the anonymous
lady: 'Her words were accompanied by a look I could not
misunderstand, and a few days afterward I thought myself the happiest
of mortals. The name, however, of this high-born lady is a secret, which
must descend with me to the grave.'44 As a result of this affair, Trenck
incurred the wrath of Frederick who treated him most unjustly:
My name and injuries will ever stain the annals of Frederick the
Great; even those who read this book will, perhaps, suppose I,
from political motives of hope or fear, have, sometimes, concealed
the truth by endeavouring to palliate his conduct.45
Critics have drawn a parallel between the opening chapter of Voltaire's
Candide and this love-affair.46 The story was well-known and would
have been circulating during Voltaire's visit to Prussia from 1750 to
1753. He would have heard of the harsh treatment meted out by the
King to Trenck in 1744; without a court martial, Frederick had him
removed and imprisoned in Glatz fortress for one year and later
incarcerated in Magdeburg fortress for six years from 1758 to 1764.
Was this the source of Baron Thunder-ten-tronckh's unceremonious
'coups de pied' directed at Candide 's 'derrière'?
Following his departure from Berlin in October 1743, Voltaire
continued to indulge in 'plaisanteries galantes'; unabashed, he praised
Louisa Ulrica for her physical beauty in a letter of December 1743: 'Ce
n'est donc pas assez d'avoir perdu le bonheur de voir et d'entendre
votre altesse royale, il faut encore que l'admiration vienne à trois cents
lieues augmenter mes regrets !' (Best. D2900) Moreover, Voltaire
boldly recalls the Queen Mother's complicity in his amours of 1743:
'Je me flatte que sa majesté la reine mère ne s'offensera pas de ma
déclaration, elle y entre pour beaucoup' (Best. D2900). Yet, Voltaire
chooses his words carefully: 'J'avoue que je suis trop amoureux de la
vertu, du véritable esprit, des beaux arts', inferring that Louisa Ulrica's
43.
44.
45.
46.
Holcroft, Thomas (éd.), The Life of Baron Frederic Trenck (Dublin,
Chamberlaine et al., 1788, 2 vols) vol. I, p. 10.
Ibid.
Ibid., p. 33.
See Du Jeu, op. cit., pp. 28-9.
50
RIVIERE
virtue and intellect first attracted him and remained uppermost in his
mind. In the same letter, he goes well beyond the limits of protocole
and propriety, by fantasising that, if he were the leader of 300,000 men,
he would kidnap, and presumably ravish, her, just as Paris had snatched
Helen of Troy. He expresses his wish to play the part of either her
'sultan' or her 'esclave', words with unmistakably sexual connotations,
which mark a departure from the literary badinages encountered
previously. Was Voltaire so head over heels in love with Louisa Ulrica
that he forgot himself? Perhaps, although he was prone to making
similar 'déclarations galantes' to other sisters of Frederick.
All this was happening after the Swedish Diet had decided in 1743
that Princess Louisa Ulrica was a suitable match for the heir to the
throne, Adolf Frederick. When they made preliminary enquiries
through the Swedish Ambassador to Berlin, Baron von Rudenschôld,
the King of Prussia allegedly remarked that his younger sister, Amalia,
would make a more suitable consort, for Princess Louisa Ulrica had a
haughty and domineering nature and would be ill-at-ease in a
monarchy with such limited authority as was the case in Sweden.47 It is
said that Amalia, who remained unmarried, was deeply hurt by this
preference for her elder sister and was cool towards her48, but there is
no evidence to support this claim, since the two sisters exchanged
friendly letters for well over thirty years. In 1743, Voltaire persisted
with 'galanteries', addressed to Louisa Ulrica and Amalia:
Si Paris venait sur la terre
Pour juger entre vos beaux yeux,
Il couperait la pomme en deux,
Et ne produirait pas de guerre.49
Elsewhere, faced with a similar dilemma, he explained that he could
not possibly choose between Amalia, Ulrica and Wilhelmina:
Pardon, charmante Ulrique ; pardon, belle Amélie ;
J'ai cru n'aimer que vous le reste de ma vie,
Et ne servir que sous vos lois ;
Mais enfin j'entends et je vois
47.
48.
49.
Heidenstam, Cari Gustav Verner von, Une sœur du Grand Frédéric, LouiseUlrique, reine de Suède (Paris, Pion, 1897) p. 22 — my translation.
Ibid.
'Aux princesses Ulrique et Amélie' (1743), M. vol. XI, p. 549.
VOLTAIRE AND LOUISA ULRICA
51
Cette adorable Sœur dont l'Amour suit les traces,
Ah, ce n'est pas outrager les Trois Grâces,
Que de les aimer toutes trois.50
These lines do not differ markedly in tone and language from the
controversial madrigal addressed to Louisa Ulrica, 'Souvent un peu de
vérité... ' All three poems remain firmly anchored in the conventions of
'poésies galantes'. Would any of the princesses have been offended by
these compliments? Not so, for Voltaire's reputation as an 'honnête
homme' and as 'le poète des femmes' preceded him wherever he went.51
He was easily forgiven for what Peyrefitte has described as a
'marivaudage royal [qui] ressemblait toujours à celui de l'hôtel de
Rambouillet'.52 Upon receipt of a new portrait of Louisa Ulrica sent by
Frederick, Voltaire wrote back on 7 January [1744], some time after the
Princess had been chosen as the future Queen of Sweden:
Il est fort insolent de baiser sans scrupule
De votre auguste sœur les modestes appas ;
Mais les voir, les tenir, et ne les baiser pas,
Cela serait tropridicule.(Best. D2910)
Orieux astutely concludes: 'Tout est sauvé par le ton, l'esprit et les
manières de Voltaire.'53
On his way back to Emilie, who waited impatiently in Brussels,
Voltaire dallied further at the residence of yet another sister of
Frederick's, Charlotte of Brunswick.54 From 'un f.... village près de
Brunsvick', he imparted on 14 October to Baron Dietricht von
Keyserlingk:
Je continuais mon voyage
Dans la ville d'Otto Guérie,
Rêvant à la divine Ulric,
Baisant quelquefois son image,
Et celle du grand Frédéric. (Best. D2864)
50.
51.
52.
53.
54.
'Aux princesses Ulrique, Amélie et Wilhelmina' (1743) M. vol. X, p. 549.
See Rivière, Marc Serge, 'Voltaire, Women and Reception: Racine in the
Eighteenth Century', in Caldicott, Edric and Conroy, Derval (eds.), Racine: The
Power and the Pleasure (Dublin, University College Dublin Press, 2001),
pp. 135-54.
Peyrefitte, Roger, Voltaire et Frédéric II (Paris, Michel, 1992) vol. n, p. 187.
Orieux, op. cit., p. 282.
Voltaire en son temps, vol. I, p. 435.
52
RIVIERE
Here, as elsewhere, the images of Frederick and Louisa Ulrica merge
in Voltaire's world of make-believe. He was fully conscious of the fact
that, if ever he fell out with Frederick, the princesses would be useful
allies in regaining access to his influential patron. To Queen Sophia
Dorothea, Voltaire expressed his gratitude for the snuff-box and
precious portraits she had sent, but he knew how to flatter her:
J'admire et j'aime cet ouvrage,
Mais ces portraits sont pour moi sans valeur ;
Je ne voulais que votre image,
Je la connais ; car elle est dans mon cœur.55
Thus, during and immediately after the 1743 visit, a great deal of
intimacy, though not sexual, seems to have existed between Louisa
Ulrica and Voltaire, and between four of Frederick's sisters and the
poet. Far from being irritated by Voltaire's familiarity with his sisters,
Frederick mischievously prolonged the game by describing his
protégé, on 7 April 1744, as 'l'amant de la cuisinière de Valori [the
French Ambassador to Berlin], de madame du Châtelet et de ma sœur'
(Best. D2953). Desnoiresterres comments: 'Comme on le voit, c'est le
même système de plaisanterie, le même badinage qui va son train.'56
Other Prussian acquaintances shared in the joke or were privy to
Voltaire's flirtations; he confided in Count von Podewills: 'Souffrez
que je vous fasse le confident de la petite affaire réglée entre la
princesse Ulric et moy.'S7 He also revealed that he knew the author of
the letter of 11 October 1743 (Best. D2863) to have been Frederick,
thereby intimating that either the King had given his approval, or he did
not take the interlude seriously.
'Reine auguste, Reine chérie ' (Best. D4554)
Suddenly, in 1744, the tone of the correspondence between Voltaire and
Louisa Ulrica changed markedly, and for a very good reason. On 4 July
1743, the Swedish Estates had ratified the 'Act for the election of Adolf
Frederick of Holstein as heir to the throne of Sweden'.58 Soon after, a
55.
56.
57.
58.
'Vers que M. de Voltaire a faits sur la tabatière que Sa Majesté la Reine-Mère
lui a donnée' (1743), Mangold, William (éd.), Voltairiana inedita (Berlin,
Wiegandt und Grieben, 1901) p. 43.
Desnoiresterres, op. cit., vol. n, p. 409.
Quoted by Bellugou, op. cit., p. 146.
Archives du Ministère des Affaires Etrangères, Paris, 'Suède', 2, f. 253.
Hereafter: (MAE, S).
VOLTAIRE AND LOUISA ULRICA
53
delegation, led by the erudite Carl Tessin, who was ChanceryPresident, arrived in Berlin to ask for Louisa Ulrica's hand. The
eloquent Tessin won over the heart of the Princess and impressed the
Berlin court.59 It is important to reiterate here that the flirtations of
Bayreuth took place after Louisa Ulrica had been spoken for. The
Princess' marriage to Duke Adolf Frederick of Holstein-Gottorp, heir
to the Swedish throne, was duly celebrated in Berlin in July 1744, a day
marked by a new opera and many festivities.
Having heard of the impending marriage at the start of 1744,
Voltaire was quick to show greater deference to the future Crown
Princess. No longer were 'plaisanteries galantes' in order; instead, as
with Catherine U in the 1760s, Voltaire attempted to foster a mutually
beneficial relationship with a new patroness. On 1 May 1744, he
addressed a much more respectful poem to Louisa Ulrica:
Le prélat de Lubec sur le trône élevé
Vivra donc comme j'ay rêvé. (Best. D2966)
Here, too, the leitmotiv of the dream recurs, and there is more than a
hint of physical jealousy on Voltaire's part, but he dares not be too
familiar with a future queen: 'L fera sans doute moins froid, madame,
à Stockolm, quand vous y régnerez, et alors je viendray faire ma cour
à votre majesté' (Best. D2966). From that moment onwards, Frederick
and Louisa Ulrica no longer vied for Voltaire's love, but for his
reverence; they were perceived by him as philosophers on the throne
and as protectors of the arts, even though Frederick disappointed
Voltaire by his aggressive campaigns in Silesia: 'Vous ferez en Suede
ce que Le Roy votre frère fait à Berlin, vous ferez naître les beaux arts'
(Best. D2966).
Not unexpectedly, Voltaire became more guarded in poems
composed for the Crown Princess; in 1744, he sent the following lines:
Princesse, qui donnez la loi
A mon cœur, comme à mon génie
Je vois avec respect, je baise avec folie
Votre portrait, que je reçois [.. -].60
Voltaire's past infatuation is more subtly evoked, as Louisa Ulrica
remains 'ma divine princesse'. However, the focus is now firmly on the
59.
60.
Heidenstam, op. cit., p. 46.
'Vers [à la princesse Louisa Ulrique]', in Mangold, William (éd.), Voltairiana
inedita, p. 46; V.E. P28752.
54
RIVIERE
'profonde sagesse' of the 'Pallas of the North'. On her arrival in
Stockholm, the new Crown Princess won the hearts of her new subjects
and further pleased them by giving birth to a prince, the future Gustav
HI, thereby guaranteeing the stability of the monarchy. On 5 May 1745,
Voltaire reported to Louisa Ulrica his meeting with the architect Carl
Hârleman who had conveyed her regards, thereby rekindling his old
'attachement' (Best. D3110). He also harboured the hope that he would
be invited to Stockholm as royal historiographer, or writer in residence:
'Il dit qu'il n'y a plus de glaces dans le nord, et que je n'y trouveray
que des Zéphirs si jamais je peux aller faire ma cour à votre altesse
Royale' (Best. D3110).
This ambitious plan was inspired by the precedent of Queen
Christina's patronage of Descartes, whom she attracted to Stockholm
before her abdication from the throne. Christina's commitment to
philosophy was to be applauded by Voltaire in Le Siècle de Louis XIV:
'On admira en elle une jeune reine qui à vingt-sept ans avait renoncé à
la souveraineté dont elle était digne, pour vivre libre et tranquille.'61 But
he also reminded readers in 1751 that she was guilty of the murder of
her equerry: 'Ce n'était pas une reine qui punissait un sujet, c'était une
femme qui terminait une galanterie par un meurtre.'62 In 1744, the
parallel with Christina was intended as the greatest compliment to
Louisa Ulrica. Thus, reverting to the dream motif, he narrated how
Christina appeared to him and enquired about Louisa Ulrica's
reputation; Voltaire deemed the two queens to be on a par in terms of
wisdom, but he flattered Louisa Ulrica by placing her on an even higher
pedestal: 'Je luy dis que votre altesse Royale étoit à Stockholm comme
à Berlin, les délices, l'espérance et la gloire de l'Etat' (Best. D3110).
There is more than a Uttle nostalgia, as the poet evokes their former
intimacy and refers to the earlier dream of 1743 (Best. D2863): 'On me
dira peut-être pas, Madame, que je rêve toujours en parlant a votre
altesse Royale et que mon second rêve ne vaut pas le premier' (Best.
D3110).
Although after Louisa Ulrica's wedding, the 'langage galant'
resurfaces occasionally, the tone is altogether much more respectful.
The Crown Princess, herself, had not entirely forgotten Voltaire's
'charmes séducteurs'; in her letter of 1749, she praises the 'vers
galants' and 'esprit' de 'notre Apollon':
61.
62.
Voltaire, Œuvres historiques, Pomeau, René (éd.), (Paris, Gamier, 1957) p. 677.
Ibid., p. 678.
VOLTAIRE AND LOUISA ULRICA
55
Il séduit l'âme, étonne, et tandis qu'on admire,
Le cœur est dans défense, et la raison s'endort. (Best. D3953)
Soon, however, Louisa Ulrica's reason regains control and she resumes
the role of the patroness, thanking Voltaire for his tragedy Sémiramis
and applauding the Discours sur la tragédie ancienne et moderne that
served as preface (Best. D3953).63
The tone of Voltaire's letters became even more formal, if not
obsequious, following Adolf Friederick's accession to the Swedish
throne on 6 April 1751. On that day, Frederick, the experienced
politician, offered sound advice to his sister, urging her to unify her
divided nation: 'You understand, better than I could explain to you, the
need to unify as far possible all parties. There is no doubt this will be
the best way to ensure that the crowns, just placed on your heads,
remain firmly there'.64 In a more personal tribute to the new queen,
Voltaire reverted to the parallel with Christina:
Christine par l'esprit, Gustave par le cœur,
Régnez, embélissez, affermissez le trône. (Best. D4447)
Presenting himself as an 'ancien serviteur', Voltaire adopted a humbler
tone than in the past, for in the new queen, he saw a future patroness
who would promote his writings throughout her realm. Accordingly,
his eulogy was accompanied by a rare copy, corrected in his hand, of
the 1748 Dresden edition of his works in nine volumes.65 To underline
the value of the offering, he added that the only other copy, thus
corrected, had been presented to Frederick (Best. D4447). Thus, were
the 'Apollo of Prussia' and the 'Pallas of Sweden' placed on the same
pedestal and treated as demi-gods to be worshipped from afar.
In her reply, Louisa Ulrica played the part of the patroness and
urged Voltaire to send his new productions; she also dangled in front of
him the carrot of monetary recompense by alluding to Christina's
generosity towards Descartes: 'Je désirerois de pouvoir attirer comme
63.
64.
65.
André Magnan has argued that this letter dates, in fact, from 1750 and is by
Wilhelmina (Dossier Voltaire en Prusse, in Studies on Voltaire, 244 (1986),
p. 147). The fact that Sémiramis is to be found in die Drottningholm Library
Catalogue proves that Louisa Ulrica did receive it from Voltaire and that she is
the author of this letter. See Kungliga Biblioteket, Catalogue Manuscript U231,
f. 59.
MAE, S 31, f. 131 — my translation.
Usually referred to in Voltaire Studies as W48D. Kungliga Biblioteket,
Manuscript U236, no. 934: 'Œuvres de Voltaire. Dresde, 1748. Edition rare.'
56
RIVIERE
elle [Christina] les beaux Esprits à ma Cour' (Best. D4528). The pattern
was set; on 9 February 1752, Voltaire presented the Queen with the first
edition of Le Siècle de Louis XIV,66 which he considered a mere
ébauche: 'Je mets à vos pieds ces prémices ; c'est l'histoire d'un siècle
glorieux, et semblable à celui que votre majesté va faire naître'; the
historian hoped that 'l'étoile du nord' would give her blessing to the
work (Best. D4791). Subsequently, on 25 August 1752, Voltaire offered
to send the revised second edition67: 'Pour épargner son terns qui est
précieux j'aurai soin de marquer avec un sinet [sic] les nouveaux
articles qui pourront mériter d'Elle un coup d'oeil' (Best. D4993). Thus
did Louisa Ulrica become part of Voltaire's carefully-orchestrated
promotional campaign in Europe. Whether she read the works or not is
unclear, as the copies in her library do not bear any marginal notes in
her hand. An analysis of Voltaire's interactions with aristocratic women
readers reveals a network of complex relationships, that varied
according to the effort which the philosophe himself was prepared to
make, the personalities and values of the individuals concerned and,
above all, the degree to which these arrangements were mutually
beneficial.
In return for the Queen's protection, Voltaire tacitly undertook to
promote her achievements in Europe. Thus, in April 1751, he
responded to a request from Princess Elisabeth of Anhalt-Zerbst and
the Countess of Bentinck, by composing the following inscription,
uncovered by Magnan, for a new portrait of Louisa Ulrica:
Sous ces augustes traits que l'univers admire
La sublime vertu, la majesté respire ;
Près d'Ulrique les arts ont placé leurs autels.
Ainsy s'offroit Minerve aux regards des mortels.68
This was to be the image Voltaire sought to promote; Louisa Ulrica was
hailed as the new Minerva, or her Greek counterpart, Pallas, the
goddess of wisdom, the patroness of the arts and the inventor of
musical instruments. In brief, Voltaire's relationship with his Swedish
patroness developed in much the same way as his beneficial association
66.
67.
68.
Le Siècle de Louis XIV. Publié par M. de Francheville [...], A Berlin, chez CF.
Henning, Imprimeur du Roi. M.DCC.LI. (Bengesco 1178; Bn3361).
Dresde, G. C. Walther, 1753 (Bengesco 1186).
Magnan, op. cit., pp. 284-5.
VOLTAIRE AND LOUISA ULRICA
57
with Catherine II of Russia in the 1760s and 1770s.69 For over fifteen
years (1763-1778), Voltaire and Catherine II exchanged letters. From
the outset, Voltaire felt that the benefits far outweighed the
disadvantages of such a double-act; not only did Catherine order
multiple copies of his works, but he was also able to secure the
Empress' financial backing for his 'causes célèbres', such as the Sirven
affair (Best. D13348). In return for such recognition, to his discredit
perhaps, Voltaire became Catherine's propaganda agent on the
European scene,70 even after rumours circulated that the Empress was
responsible for the death of her husband, Peter HI.
Contrary to Voltaire's high expectations, Louisa Ulrica displayed
far less wisdom and discretion in respect of Swedish internal and
external affairs. The Queen meddled needlessly in politics and caused
much division and turmoil in her realm. Several French Ambassadors
to Stockholm, each in turn, deplored the fact that Adolf Frederick was
lacking in backbone and easily manipulated by his wife; Baron de
Breteuil described the King in 1766 as a 'man with a weak character'
and a prey to the Queen's dangerous influence (MAE, S. 15, f. 70).
Writing in 1771 to Versailles, after Adolf Frederick's death, in a
Mémoire sur la Suède, Breteuil welcomed the opportunity for a new
beginning and a closer alliance between France and Sweden: 'One
must remember that the lack of influence of the late king and the
excesses of the Queen, were equally contrary to this communicative
trust' (MAE, S. 37, f. 187). Thus, Louisa Ulrica was seen as the powerbroker; so long as she remained pro-French and supported the
Francophile Hats, who were in government until 1765, against the
Anglophile and pro-Russian Caps, who held power from 1765 until
1771, France courted her. Unfortunately, the Queen was volatile and
changed her allegiance as her whims dictated, notably in the 1760s.
Louisa Ulrica composed a play, dedicated to her husband in 1761 and
published in 1762, of which the title betrays her domineering nature:
69.
70.
See Rivière, Marc Serge, 'Women's Responses to Voltaire's Writings in the
Eighteenth Century: "A Silencing of the Feminine'", in New Zealand Journal
of French Studies, 22, no. 1 (May 2001), pp. 21-4.
See Colin, Maurice, 'A propos de la correspondance entre Catherine II et
Voltaire', in Rousseau et Voltaire en 1978: Actes du colloque international de
Nice sur Rousseau et Voltaire, 1776-1778 (Geneva/ Paris, Slatkine, 1981)
pp. 178-210; Wilberger, Carolyn H., 'Voltaire's Window on the East', in Studies
on Voltaire and the Eighteenth Century, 164 (1976), p. 146.
58
RIVIERE
La Femme qui a raison, now to be found at the Kungliga Biblioteket,
Stockholm.71 Her initial happiness as Crown Princess Royal in 1744,
made way for long periods of inner turmoil and unrequited ambition
from 1751 until Adolf Frederick's death in 1771.
Perhaps she heeded Voltaire's advice, in April 1751, a little too
religiously for her own good: 'Régnez, embélissez, affermissez le
trône' (Best. D4447). The continuous conflicts between the Court and
the Estates in the 1750s led an increasingly desperate Louisa Ulrica to
contemplate a 'coup d'état'. On 21 January 1756, the royal couple were
at the State Theatre when news broke of a riot near the port. Louisa
Ulrica knew the truth, as did her supporters; a plan had been conceived
by Brahe, Horn, Bielke, Wrangel, Hard and Puke to seize power. The
Queen had sworn to wreak vengeance on a number of senators, the
French Ambassador, d'Havrincourt, and leaders of the Estate of nobles,
including von Hôpken and Fersen (MAE, S 24, f. 103). To this end, the
plotters had assembled an unruly crew of soldiers plied with alcohol.
The Queen's plan miscarried; under torture, two of the conspirators,
Puke and Stalsvard, confessed to having conspired with her, and
several of the plotters were arrested, among them Erik Brahe and
Gustav Jakob von Horn. On 23 July 1756, Brahe, Horn, Puke,
Stalsvard and four others were executed outside Riddarholm Church,72
while Erik von Wrangel and Johann Ludwig von Hard took refuge in
Prussia at Frederick's court. The net result of the failed coup was that
the Court lost further prestige both inside and outside Sweden, as
Franklin Scott comments: 'The monarchy was humiliated and the
Estates reigned with greater authority than before.'73
Significantly, during the turmoil of the fifties, Voltaire does not
appear to have corresponded regularly with the Queen, either because
he became disenchanted with yet another lapsed philosopher on the
throne, or because he was in the bad books of the King's family, on
account of his falling out with Frederick in 1753. On 9 April 1759,
following the death of Wilhelmina in 1758, Voltaire wrote to
commiserate with Louisa Ulrica, but he also seized the opportunity of
sending his eulogy to the Margravine of Bayreuth. Using language that
71.
72.
73.
Stockholm, Kungliga Biblioteket, B II 2-31.
Scott, Franklin D., Sweden: The Nation's History (Minneapolis, University of
Minnesota Press, 1977) p. 248.
Ibid. See also Oakley, Stewart, The Story of Sweden (London, Faber & Faber,
1966) p. 143.
VOLTAIRE AND LOUISA ULRICA
59
characterises the pessimist Martin in Candide, Voltaire dreamt of past
happiness at Monbijou: 'Je ne vois guère que des calamitez dans ce
monde. Il me semble qu'il était moins malheureux et moins pervers
quand je faisais ma cour à votre majesté à Monbijou' (Best. D8253).
One last time, he played the part of the former 'amant'. Unlike
Catherine U, Louisa Ulrica did not emerge as a 'great man' on the
throne;74 in one respect, however, she did not disappoint the philosophe,
namely as patroness of the arts and sciences in Sweden.
'La Pallas de Suède'(Best. D4447)
It was in this area that Louisa Ulrica made her greatest contribution as
royal consort. She corresponded with several philosophes and literary
artists of her day, such as Maupertuis and Montesquieu, just as Christina
had done in her day. As a fervent Francophile, like her brother
Frederick, Louisa Ulrica presided over a silver, if not a golden, age of
culture and science in Sweden.75 With French and English cultures vying
for supremacy in Stockholm's high society,76 the Queen, who spoke and
wrote elegant French, and who, like other members of her family, had
been brought up by her mother to despise the German language, became
the chief supporter of French culture in Sweden. For many of the Hats
and prominent intellectuals of the time, such as Carl Tessin, A. J. von
Hôpken, the Scheffers, Carl Hârleman and Carl Michael Bellman, the
poet, Paris was the Mecca. The greatest collector of art works in Sweden
was Carl Tessin; when he decided to sell his collections, the enlightened
Queen moved quickly to purchase them on behalf of the nation.
Louisa Ulrica's most lasting legacy to Sweden's intellectual and
cultural life was the creation of a small Academy of Letters on 20 March
1753.77 Although it was suspended for four years following the
unsuccessful coup of 1756, the academy flourished at Drottningholm and
at the Royal Palace, Stockholm, until Louisa Ulrica's death in 1782.78 The
74.
75.
76.
77.
78.
To Shuvalow, Voltaire wrote: 'L'impératrice sera regardée comme un grand
homme' (Best. D10730).
See Scott, op. cit., pp. 252-61.
Roberts, Michael, The Age of Liberty. Sweden 1719-1772 (Cambridge,
Cambridge University Press, 1986) p. 135.
Forste Delen, Kongl. Svenska Vitterhets-Academiens Handlingar (Stockholm,
Lars Salvius, 1755).
See Deny, Thomas Kingston, The History of Scandinavia (London, Allen &
Unwin, 1979) p. 176.
60
RIVIERE
list of academicians for the period 1720-1782 included the most cultured
and prominent individuals of their day: A. J. von Hôpken; C. Ekeblad;
C. F. Scheffer, C. Rudenschôld; 0. von Dalin, who was Secretary from
1753 to 1763; G. Bonde; C. R. Berch; J. Ihre; G. F. Gyllenborg; S. A.
Piper; A. Schônberg, and several others.79 Among the foreign associate
members for the same period were: Président Hénault, d'Alembert and
Voltaire who was officially invited to receive this honour on 13 May
1774. In his letter of acceptance to the Director of the Academy, Voltaire
wrote: 'Mr, Vous me faites suédois; c'est l'honneur le plus flatteur que je
puisse recevoir, et je remercie V. E. du fond de mon cœur de m'avoir
naturalisé.'80 On 14 June, the new Academician wrote personally to the
Queen: 'L'honneur que me fait votre majesté redouble le petit chagrin
d'avoir quatre-vingt ans [...]. L'académie que vous protégés sera
emploiée à célébrer le plus beau règne de la Suède' (Best. D18985).
Voltaire's exertions to find patronage had at last paid dividends, with this
ultimate accolade from an 'old friend', the 'divine Ulrique'; the
prospective 'courtisan' had become one of the few foreigners to be so
honoured in Sweden. In an inventory of Louisa Ulrica's possessions at
Drottningholm Palace, made after the Queen's death, is to be found a
reference to an 'Antique Bronze of Voltaire'.81 Minerva/Pallas never
forgot the tributes paid by 'French Apollo' at Monbijou and Bayreuth,
nor perhaps the innocent love interlude of her youth.
Louisa Ulrica made a lifelong commitment to music, European
literature, classical theatre and painting. Over many years, she had
books sent to her from Berlin and all parts of Europe, while her literary
acquaintances, notably Maupertuis and Voltaire, presented her with
editions of their works, such as the 1751 Walther edition of Voltaire's
works still found today at the Kungliga Biblioteket in Stockholm.82 As
a result of her erudition, a substantial library was set up at
Drottningholm, of which an early Catalogue of 75 pages, now at the
Kungliga Biblioteket, contains some 443 published works and 25
manuscripts, covering all disciplines, including history, philosophy,
79.
80.
81.
82.
See
Hildebrand,
Bengt, Matrikel
Over Ledamôtersv
Kungl.
Vitterhetsakademien [...] 1753-1953 (Lund, H. Ohlsson, 1954).
'Handlingar Rôrande Louisa Ulrikas Vitterhetsakademi', Stockholm,
Antikvarisk-Topografiska Arkivet, Voltaire to the Director, F H: 5.
Riksarkivet, Stockholm, K268, f. 66.
See Voltaire, Best. D4447.
VOLTAIRE AND LOUISA ULRICA
61
literature, science, the arts, geography, and travel.83 A later catalogue
listed 2530 works, of which most were published before 1780.84 A
splendidly presented and illustrated modern catalogue, recently
compiled by Clas-Ove Strandberg,85 has done justice to the valuable
collection of numismatic literature once owned by the Queen and
presently housed in the Library of the Royal Academy of Letters,
History and Antiquities in Stockholm. Strandberg remarks: 'The
majority of books in the Queen Louisa Ulrika Collection were at some
stage owned by Tessin, altogether 203 titles. In addition, we have 23
titles with a provenance solely from the Queen'.86 In Catalogues of the
Drottningholm Biblioteket,87 are listed some 35 individual works, or
collections of works, by Voltaire. The most precious, according to a
manuscript inscription, 'Edition rarissima, manu authentiques',88 is the
Œuvres mêlées de M De Voltaire. Nouvelle Edition Revue sur toutes
les précédentes et considérablement augmentée. Tomes I-V. A Genève,
chez Bousquet, 1742,™ that contains a large number of corrections in
Voltaire's minute handwriting. Inside the title-page of volume I is to be
found the following inscription to the Queen:
A son Altesse royale
Madame la princesse
Ulric
L'esprit et la beauté reçoivent mon hommage
Ah si j'avois écrit au pied de leur autel
De vivre auprès de vous si j'eusse eu l'avantage
Vous auriez embelli l'ouvrage et rendu l'auteur immortel. 90
83.
84.
85.
86.
87
88.
89.
90.
Kungliga Biblioteket, Stockholm, Manuscript U231. See Ankarcrona, Anita,
'Drottningholmsbibliotekets bokbestând', in Biblioteket pâ Drottningholms
Slott (Stockholm, Drottningholms Slottsfôrvaltning, 1998) pp. 15-25.
Kungliga Biblioteket, Manuscript U236. See also Lindberg, Sten G.,
Biblioteket pâ Drottningholm (Stockholm, Skolan for bokhantverk, 1972)
pp. 1-22.
Strandberg, Clas-Ove, The Queen Louisa Ulrika Collection of Numismatic
Literature (Stockholm, The Royal Academy of Letters, History and Antiquities,
2001).
Ibid., p. 17.
Kungliga Biblioteket, Stockholm, Manuscripts U231, U232, U236: Biblioteket
pâ Drottningholm.
Kungliga Biblioteket, Manuscript U236.
Ibid., no. 965, f. 265.
Ibid., vol. 1, title-page.
62
RIVIERE
Voltaire's art of flattery and his genuine affection combined to produce
this personal tribute to Louisa Ulrica, the 'Pallas of Sweden'. In
promoting the arts and sciences, Louisa Ulrica left an indelible mark on
Swedish society and culture, in much the same way as Christina had
done before her." A Prussian at heart, Louisa Ulrica was a Francophile
by taste, thereby presenting an interesting case of intercultural
transposition: a curious blend of Prussian political values, French
cultural values, and reluctantly-acquired Swedish social values, was at
the root of both her successes and failures as royal consort. Voltaire was
seemingly more interested in the Francophile Queen than in the
complex individual.
University of Limerick
91.
See Hallendorff, Carl and Schuck, Adolf, History of Sweden (London, Cassell,
1929) p. 340