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This new article may move you more than habitually, because today we are going to reveal key details about one of the most sensitive mysteries of History.
We don't intend to overwhelm you, but it may happen ! There are several parts in our article, so you can make a pause if you feel a bit shaky.
Today is the 226th birthday of this "only for your eyes" event, concerning Queen Marie-Antoinette and her uchronic escape from the Conciergerie Jail in Paris.
It involved not only the Baron de Batz as he was accused afterwards to have been his top organizer, but also several other unexpected actors in a very intricated and perilous situation.
By knowing some key elements which are going to be unveiled, you will make your own opinion about it, of course.
But first, get ready for something you absolutely never imagined this way !
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A lot of people have read "The Knight of Maison Rouge", published by Alexandre Dumas in 1846. In this historical novel, after having failed to save the Queen in the Temple Jail in Paris, he was hiding at Dixmer house and still had the will to try to save her...
The real name of this Knight was Alexandre Gonsse De Rougeville (1761- 1814), who was a controversial character of the French Revolution. In fact, Dumas changed the name of "De Rougeville" in "De Maison Rouge" at his personal request.
But from the right beginning, there was an existing confusion between two historical characters : this man, and the Baron Jean de Batz (1754- 1822).
This confusion probably came from the operation of rescue of the Queen, in the Conciergerie Jail, which involved as top parallel organizer our lucky Baron, sometimes also called Jean-Pierre de Batz. We are talking about the tangle stamped "Carnation Conspiracy".
In this new jail the Queen was isolated, as her children and her sister-in-law, Madame Elisabeth (1764 - 1794) had remained in the Temple Jail, and were separated from her since August 2nd, 1793.
The actual cell showed to tourists in the Conciergerie Jail is not precisely hers, because the conformation of premises has been completely modified since.
Hardly concealed by a screen, the Queen was monitored day and night by two guards. Her only furniture were a cane armchair, two chairs, a simple table and a little bed.
Another confusion stemmed from the fact that the so-called "Carnation Conspiracy" ("Conspiration de l'Oeillet" in French), was mistakenly inflamed to the Baron de Batz.
In reality, the original idea came surprisingly from the Committee of Public Salute, for reasons of high politics.
Hence, it was just a manner to discredit more the Queen before her planned death, by using the unlucky and a bit naive De Rougeville : he would be struggling in dire straits for an illusion of startle.
But above all, it was a biased way to put an end to the legend of savior of the Baron de Batz, who wouldn't be able to do anything !
Let De Rougeville approach the Queen and propose her an escape, and lock noisily the game at the end, that was the crual and tortuous plan !
As a Master Spy, the Baron de Batz who was aware of the project of De Rougeville, smelt something was wrong in its conception : it looked short-sighted and far too easy. And it has to be added too, that he felt personaly challenged !
He knew this previous "Knight of the dagger" was certainly a man of action - yet rather impressionable and sometimes improvident. And he thought he was most likely maneuvered in that circumstance, by his compatriot of Arras : Maximilien de Robespierre (1758 - 1794). So he decided to trap the latter and his Committee, in their own fake "Carnation Conspiracy".
After all, it provided him the unexpected opportunity he was looking for to save the Queen, with a simple but awesome plan : short-circuiting the Committee, with an anticipated intervention, by using all the facilities artificially created by the same Committee for the success of the plan. Simultaneously, the advantage for him was that he would be faithful to his legend !
De Rougeville visited Marie-Antoinette on Wednesday, August 28th, 1793, with the Inspector of Prisons and Chief of Police Jean-Baptiste Michonis (1735 - 1794), who was also member of the Commune of Paris and lemonade producer. At this occasion, De Rougeville let drop on the floor a very little message from the two white carnations of his buttonhole proposing her to escape. So, very naturally, those flowers gave the name of the operation, which was in reality already hijacked by the Baron de Batz.
Yet, it doesn't appear De Rougeville was aware about it : he was taking De Batz for a very rich Royalist banker mainly, not a master of work. Anyhow, he thought he didn't need him as his savings (400 Louis d'Or and many assignats), looked sufficient in his eyes to buy the guards.
However, just before this surprising visit, the Queen Marie-Antoinette got to know De Batz was preparing something : it leaked from the words and change of attitude of her two proximate guards he had simply bought in this scarcity period, among other people. And she totally trusted him.
That's why she discretely noded De Rougeville, to show she accepted to escape this time.
On the same day, one of the guards told her to get ready for "the rehearsal of coming Friday night, at 11:30".
"The coming Friday night" was August 30th, 1793, and not the night of Monday 2 to Tuesday 3 September 1793, planned by De Rougeville and Michonis during their new visit of that day. She was a bit puzzled, but she thought one wanted to guarantee the success of the escape.
Anyhow, during that night she passed all the wickets without incident and even the exit giving on the proximate street. She was so delightly surprised to be able to make some steps out freely, in the obscurity !
When she wanted to return inside at the end of "the rehearsal", a woman hidden in the dark gently stopped her : she whispered in her ear to move away quietly by following her friend the Baron, beside her.
It was going to be Midnight. And this woman who looked very much like her and was dressed similarly, entered then in the Conciergerie Jail instead of her : she was Cornélia de Galéan, and was ready to give her life for the Queen.
The plan of genious of De Batz had been to graft his own intervention on the false "Carnation Conspiracy" of the Committee, by using cleverly the facilities created for the occasion. That's why he had proceeded to this Substitution with a Double, ahead of the De Rougeville and Michonis project.
At the same time, he had planned to let De Rougeville trying to save the fake Queen, Cornélia de Galéan. And if he was miraculously successful this time, at least she could be saved too, even she was ready to die instead of the Queen. This way, she would have stayed only three full days in the Conciergerie Jail !
On the night of Monday 2 to Tuesday 3 September 1793, De Rougeville and Michonis came back for their operation. Everything seemed totally all right ; they could pass all the wickets very easily with the prisoner, till the grid of the final exit. Next was the "rue de la Barillerie", now called "Boulevard du Palais" (since 1864), and ...Freedom.
But the guard suddenly changed his mind and prevented the fake Queen to get out.
De Rougeville and Michonis insisted to bring her out according to their plan, but he obstinately refused. Them they could go away together, but "the Citizen Capet" had to be taken back to her cell !
De Rougeville immediately thought he didn't give the guard enough money.
Anyhow, the fact is De Rougeville and Michonis gave up !
And, on September 3rd, 1793, this guard made a report of the incident to his superior, who informed in his turn the Committee of Public Salute. The so-called "Carnation Conspiracy" was brought to the light, even it was a fake, and the game seemed to be over.
That's also the reason the intervention of De Rougeville to save the Queen isn't properly considered as a true one by some historians, who are doubting about its reality.
They can, as if he had used force that night as he was usually doing, he could probably have gone out with the false Queen (so not the real Marie-Antoinette), and run away.
To his discharge for this second failure, it seems he had been completely screwed by the authoritarian attitude of the guard, which was so sudden and definitive.
To bring a conclusion, the last guard had just played to have been bought, according to the staging. And the Committee of Public Salute, after a quick checking, celebrated the failure of its fake "Carnation Conspiracy" with big laughs, totally certain that the Queen didn't escape !
The strange thing is De Batz was accused afterwards to have been his top organizer, and therefore neither the Committee obviously, nor De Rougeville directly. Yet Michonis, swiftly arrested about him as accomplice, will finish guillotined on June 17th, 1794.
And almost fourty days after the so-called "failure" of this hodgepodge, on October 12th, 1793, the prisoner was interrogated about her "betrayal" of the Nation and "her" son, and she was told abruptly she would be tried three days later, on October 15th, 1793.
Quickly sentenced to death, she was executed on October 16th, 1793 at 12 : 15, instead of the morning. As a matter of fact, Robespierre, Master of the Committee, wanted to avoid the annoying misadventure of January 21st, 1793, about the King and his last minute Rescuer along the "52 rue de Beauregard" in Paris, the Baron de Batz.
Yet to his great surprise, the Baron didn't appear and he really wondered why, by suddenly fearing having made a huge mistake !
He was right to think so, because Jean de Batz had no reason to intervene to save an already saved Queen !
The false "Carnation Conspiracy" had been in fact doubled very astutely by his anticipated operation of Deception : the "Counter-operation of the Two Carnations", where Robespierre and his followers had been completely done !
As a uchronic epilog, the second "Cornélia de Galéan, Marchioness of Janson" (1755 - 1834), aka Marie-Antoinette died naturally at 79 in Paris, when the Revolution was over, and Robespierre and his most proximate followers guillotined from a long time !
History can be so ironical sometimes !
Of course, it is up to you to think over and over this Black Op of the Baron de Batz, which was so amazing. But remember that a white carnation can easily hide another white carnation, for obvious reasons of success, when the honour and fame of a living legend are challenged !
"The Invisible Man" as Robespierre was nicknaming him, had struck again !
