Questions about Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord
Short answers, pulled from the story.
Who was Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord and why is he famous?
Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord (the 2nd of February 1754 - the 17th of May 1838) was a French clergyman, statesman, and diplomat who served every major French government from Louis XVI through Louis-Philippe I. He is famous for his extraordinary diplomatic skill, most notably at the Congress of Vienna (1814-1815), where he secured lenient peace terms for France. His name has become a byword for crafty and cynical diplomacy.
What role did Talleyrand play at the Congress of Vienna?
Talleyrand was France's chief negotiator at the Congress of Vienna in 1814-1815. He arrived as the representative of a defeated nation excluded from the inner circle, but maneuvered France into the decision-making process. On the 3rd of January 1815, he signed a secret defensive treaty with Austria's Metternich and Britain's Castlereagh to resist Russian and Prussian expansion, and secured France's return to its 1792 boundaries without reparations.
Why did Napoleon call Talleyrand 'shit in a silk stocking'?
Napoleon made this remark during a famous dressing-down of Talleyrand before his marshals, after learning that Talleyrand and Joseph Fouché had been secretly discussing the question of imperial succession. Napoleon deemed their actions treasonous. Talleyrand responded, once Napoleon had left the room, 'Pity that so great a man should have been so badly brought up.'
How did Talleyrand secretly work against Napoleon?
After resigning as Foreign Minister in 1807, Talleyrand began accepting bribes from Austria and Russia to betray Napoleon's diplomatic secrets. At the Congress of Erfurt in September-October 1808, he secretly counseled Tsar Alexander I against Napoleon's proposals for an anti-Austrian military alliance, working directly against the mission Napoleon had sent him to carry out. Napoleon never discovered this betrayal at the time.
What caused the XYZ Affair and how was Talleyrand involved?
Talleyrand was directly behind the demands for bribes from the American government that triggered the XYZ Affair. He solicited payments to open diplomatic negotiations, precipitating a diplomatic disaster that escalated into the Quasi-War, an undeclared naval conflict between France and the United States from 1798 to 1800. His approach succeeded in Europe where French military power posed a real threat, but failed with the United States, which was shielded by British naval dominance.
Why was Talleyrand forced into the clergy instead of a military career?
Talleyrand was born with a congenital limb condition, possibly a clubfoot, that caused him to walk with a limp throughout his life. This disability meant he could not inherit his father's military title despite being the eldest surviving son. His parents chose a Church career as the alternative, with hopes he might eventually succeed his uncle Alexandre Angélique de Talleyrand-Périgord, who was Archbishop of Reims, one of the richest dioceses in France.