in, or
commercial union with several States, gradually extended, was a measure
which did much for the unification of Germany. With his brother
sovereigns he revisited Paris at the end of the military occupation in
1818, remaining there longer than the others, "because," said the
Parisians, "he had discovered an actor at a small theatre who achieved
the feat of making him laugh." He died in 1840. His Queen--heartbroken,
it was said--had died in 1810.

Alexander was still brimming over with the best and most benevolent
intentions towards every one. The world was to be free, happy, and
religious; but he had rather vague ideas as to how his plans were to be
carried out. Thus it is characteristic that when his successor desired
to have a solemn coronation as King of Poland it was found that Alexander
had not foreseen the difficulties which were met with in trying to
arrange for the coronation of a Sovereign of the Greek Church as King of
a Roman Catholic State. The much-dreaded but very misty Holy Alliance
was one of the few fruits of Alexander's visions. His mind is described
as passing through a regular series of stages with each influence under
which he acted. He ended his life, tired out, disillusioned, "deceived
in everything, weighed down with regret;" obliged to crush the very hopes
of his people he had encouraged, dying in 1825 at Taganrog, leaving his
new Polish Kingdom to be wiped out by-his successors.

The minor sovereigns require little mention. They retained any titles
they had received from Napoleon, while they exulted, at being free from
his heavy hand and sharp superintendence. Each got a share, small or
great, of the spoil except the poor King of Denmark, who, being assured
by Alexander on his departure that he carried away all hearts, answered,
"Yes, but not any souls."

The reintroduction of much that was bad in the old system (one country
even going so far as to re-establish torture), the steady attack on
liberty and on all liberal ideas, Wurtemberg being practically the only
State which grumbled at the tightening of the reins so dear to
Metternich,--all formed a fitting commentary on the proclamations by
which the Sovereigns had hounded on their people against the man they
represented as the one obstacle to the freedom and peace of Europe.
In gloom and disenchantment the nations sat down to lick their wounds:
The contempt shown by the monarchs for everything but the right of
conquest, the manner in w