Make France Great Again

"France does not wish to restore the old order, no matter how it is dressed, nor does it wish to attempt harmful and unfeasible fantasies. Because I am the opponent of both, France places its hope in me.

…

If my government has failed to achieve all the planned improvements, it is to blame the factional activities.

As can be seen, for the past two years, whenever it concerns measures to combat chaos with suppression, I have always been able to secure parliamentary support. But when I wish to implement welfare and improve the residents' situation, it refuses to help me.

A new phase of our political era begins, and every French citizen should actively voice their opinions. If France realizes that people have no right to deal with the constitution beyond the constitution itself, France only needs to make this point clear; my strength and courage will not fail it.

No matter what duties the country asks me to undertake, I am determined to execute its will.

.....

In my hands, France will not suffer."

Once the article was published, it caused a huge stir in industrial/semi-industrial cities such as Paris, Lyon, Strasbourg, Nancy, Loire, and Dijon. Anyone with some political knowledge understood that the President's open letter was directly targeting the National Assembly, and he was calling upon all French citizens to oppose this National Assembly elected by their votes.

"Is this Jerome Bonaparte so impatient to overthrow the National Assembly?" At this moment, Thiers, who was staying at the residence on Puevert Street, looked even gloomier. Sitting on the sofa, he furiously gazed at Berlier beside him, seemingly questioning Berlier.

"Obviously! He's already impatient!" Berlier shrugged, showing a helpless expression as he said, "Our strength is no longer enough to confront him. When the National Assembly has already lost the ability to check the President, naturally the President will no longer see the National Assembly in his eyes."

The self-exposure of the Count of Chambord caused both the Orthodox Faction and the Orléans Faction to explode. The Orthodox Faction, led by Broi and Montalambert, separated from the Order Party, joining Bonaparte along with some Church Faction members. On the Orléans side, besides Count Morel choosing to retire out of excessive disappointment, Audion Barrot also withdrew from the Order Party, moving towards Bonaparte.

The once-largest party completely split into minor factions, and relying solely on Thiers and Berlier could no longer support the framework of the Order Party.

"Fortunately, those 'Social Democracy' members have no mind to welcome another Emperor!" Thiers calmly analyzed the current situation, turning his gaze towards Berlier as he said, "Mr. Berlier, we must take action! Relying solely on our strength, we are simply not a match for Bonaparte!"

"What do you mean?" Berlier responded to Thiers' statement.

"We must look for allies!" A cunning smile appeared at the corner of Thiers' mouth.

"Allies… who else…" Berlier subconsciously wanted to refute Thiers' idea, "Wait, are you saying…"

"That's right!" Thiers knowingly nodded, confirming Berlier's thought.

"But we are Royalists!" Berlier, whose moral flexibility was not very high, was having a fierce internal struggle.

"Mr. Berlier, we are all tomorrow's Republicans!" Thiers repeated the words he had said during the February Revolution.

"Since you've already thought of a strategy, then I will follow your lead!" Berlier seemed to have inwardly agreed to Thiers' action, seemingly making a pretense of modesty by entrusting the decision-making to Thiers.

"Then we need to have a good 'negotiation' with the Republicans!" Thiers emphasized deliberately.

While Thiers and Berlier were conspiring together, the Duke Broi, Count of Montalambert, and Audion Barrot, who had defected or half-defected to the Bonaparte Faction, jointly went to Jerome Bonaparte's residence at the Tuileries Palace.

Since Jerome Bonaparte last stayed at the Tuileries Palace overnight, he had taken root there.

The Elysee Palace, once the President's home for office and resting, had completely turned into Prince Monfort's residence.

The Duke Broi and his party were led into a drawing room in the Tuileries Palace by Valerovsky.

The drawing room exuded a strong air of the First Empire, with a half-open portrait of Napoleon, framed in gold, hung over the fireplace. Jerome Bonaparte sat on the sofa beside the fireplace.

"Welcome, Duke Broi, Mr. Audion Barrot, Count of Montalambert!" Jerome Bonaparte stood up, shook hands with each of the three, and invited them to sit down together.

Sitting on the sofa, Jerome Bonaparte slightly spread his legs and rested his hands on the sofa, leaning backward into a relaxed posture, as he inquired, "Ladies and gentlemen, may I know what brings you to the Elysee Palace?"

"It's like this, Mr. President!" Audion Barrot recounted how they had seen Jerome Bonaparte's news in the Havas News Agency's newspaper.

"So it's about this matter!" Jerome Bonaparte brought his legs together, straightened his body leaning on the sofa, and asked seriously, "Gentlemen, I think you should understand what my ultimate goal is!"

"Mr. President, you still have more than a year left, there's absolutely no need to rush!" Count of Montalambert advised Jerome Bonaparte: "Acting in this way might cause some of your supporters to defect to the other side!"

"You're talking about Mr. Thiers, aren't you!" Jerome Bonaparte candidly said to Montalambert.

"Exactly!" Montalambert nodded in response to Jerome Bonaparte.

"Count of Montalambert, Mr. Audion Barrot, Duke Broi!" Jerome Bonaparte named them one by one: "You've worked with Mr. Thiers for quite some time, haven't you noticed that Mr. Thiers is a complete egoist! Everything he does is for himself, he formed the Order Party to counterbalance me, he disagreed with Changarnier becoming the Speaker to prevent Changarnier from usurping his position..."

Jerome Bonaparte mercilessly criticized Thiers.

In some respects, Thiers and Jerome Bonaparte were similar types of individuals.

"Such a person would never lower himself beneath others! He's like a venomous snake lurking in the shadows, ready to bite you when you're off guard," Jerome Bonaparte vilified Thiers profusely.

The three of them, upon hearing Jerome Bonaparte's assessment of Thiers, remained silent.

"Alright! Gentlemen, since you all understand what I want to do, I still need you to rally and offer your support after the parliament reconvenes!" Jerome Bonaparte spoke gently to the three present.

"Mr. President, forgive my directness! Your action this time is very likely to face failure!" Duke Broi, who had been silent for a long time, spoke up: "According to the constitution, it requires the agreement of more than two-thirds for it to come into effect. Our numbers fall far short of three-fourths."

I intentionally want it to fall short of three-fourths.

Jerome Bonaparte silently spoke to himself, knowing that in his camp, including his father Prince Monfort, some were still hesitant, trying to maintain a stance of indecision.

They wanted to overthrow the Legislative Assembly but did not want blood on their hands.

Hoping to complete a coup d'état in a legal and bloodless manner.

Aiming to achieve something without bearing its costs, that's the mindset of some in the Bonaparte Faction.

To these vacillating types, Jerome Bonaparte intended to use the harshest reality to show them that if they did not choose to fully trample upon the National Assembly, the powers they cling to would completely collapse in the second week of May 1852.

Nothing is clearer than a veto by the Legislative Assembly.

"I just want to see how many people in the Assembly are truly willing to support us!" Jerome Bonaparte explained to Duke Broi: "In the coming year, we just need to secure the support of these people! Unless absolutely necessary, I still hope to resolve everything through a referendum rather than force! A four-year term is simply insufficient for me to accomplish greatness! Duke Broi, are you willing to help me?"

Jerome Bonaparte's words once again perplexed Duke Broi and the others; to them, the President still seemed to hold respect for the constitution.

To prevent the President from resorting to force to amend the constitution, they had to compromise with his actions.

"Of course!" Duke Broi immediately agreed to Jerome Bonaparte's request.

In the next ten days or so, Duke Broi ran about for Jerome Bonaparte, while Montalambert similarly became the Elysee Palace spokesperson for Jerome Bonaparte, and Thiers' carefully designed Permanent Committee of the parliament turned into an Elysee Palace Faction with the help of insiders.

Even Speaker Du Ban, who once opposed Jerome Bonaparte and his faction, gradually leaned towards the Elysee Palace.

Meanwhile, a petition from Gironde Province arrived in Paris.

"Mr. President is an indispensable presence for France, and his term should be extended!" George Eugène Haussman, then governor of Gironde Province, similarly called for all French provinces to unite and send the petition to Paris to show their stance.

Eugène Haussman's public statement undoubtedly pointed the way for other provincial governors, showing that flattering the President was a necessary measure in light of his suppression of the parliament.

In a short time, except for a few obstinate Royalist Party provinces, governors from other provinces expressed their hope for Jerome Bonaparte's continuation in Paris.

The military was also busy; under the arrangement of the Paris Military Bureau and the Ministry of War, commanders of the Strasbourg Army, the Alps Army, and the Italian Army also conveyed their stance to Paris.

Petitions poured into Paris from all directions, and Jerome Bonaparte's momentum reached its peak under the support of provincial governors and generals.