December of the very year in
which he had been thus honored by the Legislative Assembly, Schiller was
on the point of writing an appeal to the French nation in defense of Louis
XVI. The King's head, however, had fallen before this defense was begun.
Schiller, a true friend of true liberty, never ceased to express his
aversion to the violent proceedings of the French revolutionists. "It is
the work of passion," he said, "and not of that wisdom which alone can
lead to real liberty." He admitted that many important ideas, which
formerly existed in books only or in the heads of a few enlightened
people, had become more generally current through the French Revolution.
But he maintained that the real principles which ought to form the basis
of a truly happy political constitution were still hidden from view.
Pointing to a volume of Kant's "Criticism of Pure Reason," he said, "There
they are, and nowhere else; the French republic will fall as rapidly as it
has risen; the republican government will lapse into anarchy, and sooner
or later a man of genius will appear (he may come from any place) who will
make himself not only master of France, but perhaps also of a great part
of Europe." This was a remarkable prophecy for a young professor of
history.

The last decisive event in Schiller's life was his friendship with Goethe.
It dates from 1794, and with this year begins the great and crowning
period of Schiller's life. To this period belong his "Wallenstein," his
"Song of the Bell," his Ballads (1797-98), his "Mary Stuart" (1800), the
"Maid of Orleans" (1801), the "Bride of Messina" (1803), and "William
Tell;" in fact, all the works which have made Schiller a national poet and
gained for him a worldwide reputation and an immortal name.

Goethe's character was in many respects diametrically opposed to
Schiller's, and for many years it seemed impossible that there should ever
be a community of thought and feeling between the two. Attempts to bring
together these great rivals were repeatedly made by their mutual friends.
Schiller had long felt himself drawn by the powerful genius of Goethe, and
Goethe had long felt that Schiller was the only poet who could claim to be
his peer. After an early interview with Goethe, Schiller writes, "On the
whole, this meeting has not at all diminished the idea, great as it was,
which I had previously formed of Goethe; but I doubt if we shall ever come
into close communication with each other. Much