He Became Napoleon’S Genius Son [EN]: Chapter 416

(416) The Heroic Symphony Announces the End of Germany

Vienna remained the artistic heart of Central Europe.

“Ludwig! Have you heard? Good heavens, Austria is collapsing!”

Even during wartime, the demand for music persisted, a testament to its enduring power.

Ludwig van Beethoven, Vienna’s most celebrated musician—indeed, arguably the greatest of the 19th century—was making his name.

Not one to kowtow to nobility, Beethoven would have sought patronage elsewhere had Vienna not appreciated his sheet music.

Beethoven, sketching notes while tousling his already disheveled hair, abruptly rose.

“My hearing has been poor lately. Now, I’m hearing nonsense. Ugh.”

“It sounds like severe tinnitus, but you seem agitated. A special envoy has arrived from France—Napoleon’s son!”

“Son? If he’s Napoleon’s son, isn’t he a baby? Ah, an adopted son, perhaps?”

Beethoven turned to Wegeler, his friend and sheet music publisher, and slammed his hand on the table.

“A traitor who destroyed the spirit of the revolution! It’s Eugène Bonaparte!”

This was an odd assessment.

Beethoven, unlike Goethe, initially held high hopes for the French Revolution.

He famously admired Napoleon as the man who toppled the old order.

However, Napoleon’s consolidation of power soured Beethoven’s opinion, turning admiration into animosity. But why direct his ire at Eugène?

Wegeler, accustomed to Beethoven’s outbursts, didn’t challenge him.

Suddenly, Beethoven hurled paper and charcoal at Wegeler.

“What on earth did he say? I can’t hear well, write it down! Wegeler!”

“Well…”

“I don’t think there’s any need for grand pronouncements. Beethoven, and Wegeler.”

Beethoven whirled around, startled by the tall figure who had entered unannounced.

“Duke Rudolf? What brings you here?”

Archduke Rudolf Johann von Habsburg, a member of the imperial family who had become a duke at 18, smiled.

“It is an honor that Vienna’s great musician holds me in such regard.”

“Even if I lack manners, I am not so ungrateful as to forget His Grace, the Duke.”

“Thank you. But I came because difficult times are ahead.”

Rudolf, the emperor’s youngest brother and Beethoven’s piano student, spoke with a somber expression.

“The Austrian kingdom will be dissolved tomorrow. The king will be deposed, and the territory divided, much like the Habsburg lands of old. I hear it will all fall under French rule.”

Though Beethoven didn’t bow to nobles, he accepted their patronage.

Archduke Rudolf was one of Beethoven’s primary benefactors.

Rudolf, lacking the arrogance of typical nobles and possessing a genuine passion for music, earned Beethoven’s respect.

Beethoven cared little for the empire, but he loathed France, and Rudolf’s impending displacement fueled his anger.

“What are the citizens of Vienna doing? They must resist!”

“Herr Beethoven, do you wish to die for our Habsburgs?”

“That’s not it! But isn’t this the destruction of Vienna, too!”

Rudolf offered a wry smile.

“Most don’t see it that way. They simply want the French army gone.”

For years, King Franz (Emperor Franz) had ruled Vienna with an iron fist.

Beneath his seemingly weak exterior, he maintained a network of secret police and informants.

While he didn’t guillotine anti-state activists like the Jacobins, he deported them, protecting the country in his own way.

Consequently, the citizens of Vienna had grown weary of Habsburg rule.

Beethoven fell silent, and Rudolf handed him a letter.

“What’s this?”

“A letter of recommendation to Prince Lichnowsky. If he refuses, I’ll provide another.”

“Your Highness!”

Beethoven glared, but Rudolf met his gaze with pity.

“Empires, kingdoms, and families crumble, but art endures. Let history remember that our Habsburgs fostered a great musician.”

Beethoven, trembling with emotion, nodded emphatically.

“I will create music that will destroy France!”

But that dream was not to be.

***

First, evading the French garrison’s watchful eyes in Vienna proved difficult.

“But you’re asking me to conduct the surrender ceremony? That’s absurd!”

Beethoven glared at the unexpected visitor and leaped to his feet.

Composers of this era often doubled as pianists and conductors.

So, the offer to conduct the marching ceremony wasn’t entirely unusual.

However, being asked to conduct the abdication ceremony of the Austrian monarch was akin to asking him to commit suicide.

Moreover, it was an insult to Beethoven’s anti-French sentiments.

But the proposer smiled brazenly.

“It’s not about cooperating with France, Monsieur Beethoven.”

“What’s the difference? It’s about using my music in a ceremony where France dominates Austria!”

“We could perform without your permission, but we are making a special request because this performance is for your patron.”

Eugène spoke clearly.

“It will be used for the ceremony announcing the inauguration of Duke Rudolf.”

Beethoven had suffered hearing loss since around 1802.

Various theories attributed to this hearing loss, from syphilis to lead poisoning and cirrhosis.

However, in 1806, though impaired, he could still hear.

Beethoven, frowning as if to confirm what he’d heard, spat out:

“You’re a coward, a traitor to the revolution.”

Duke Rudolf would be inaugurated as the nominal ruler of Austria?

Beethoven couldn’t refuse the request to conduct.

France, in turn, would appease the citizens of Vienna through the music of Beethoven, a rising star.

Furthermore, Beethoven would enjoy a lasting career under the new French system.

Eugène tilted his head, puzzled by Beethoven’s words.

“Why am I a traitor to the revolution?”

“You may not know me, but I know you. A standard-bearer of the revolutionary army since childhood! A young hero of the revolutionary war who fought for the republic! A revolutionary who destroyed the old empire!”

“Oh, that’s… well, quite an exaggeration.”

Eugène smacked his lips, unsure whether it was an insult or a compliment.

Considering later generations’ views in the original timeline, such an evaluation from Beethoven might be an honor.

Beethoven moved closer to Eugène and shouted.

“But! You and your father betrayed the revolution and became emperors and kings! You betrayed the blood of revolutionaries who dreamed of equality, the deaths of citizens, and the aspirations of the people!”

Eugène, whose hearing remained sharp despite his war experiences, smiled wryly.

He knew Beethoven considered Napoleon a traitor to the revolution.

He hadn’t expected to be viewed the same way.

Nevertheless, it felt unfair.

Eugène wasn’t solely driven by personal gain.

“I came from the New World to create a new world, Monsieur Beethoven.”

As Beethoven blinked, surprised by the sudden shift, Eugène continued quietly.

“There, I am building a country where natives, blacks, Englishmen, and Spaniards live alongside the French.”

“Wait, what is that?”

“We are granting voting rights in accordance with the spirit of the revolution, freeing slaves, and creating a system where everyone can attain the position they desire based on their abilities.”

Eugène rose and addressed Beethoven.

“You may believe that revolution and empire are incompatible. But neither my father nor I will stop here. As the world evolves…”

Eugène fought on multiple fronts.

He sought to prevent the era from regressing should the revolution fail.

Because, ultimately, Napoleon’s failure would set the world back.

Beethoven, staring intently at Eugène, shouted:

“Your words sound plausible. If you don’t prove them with your life, I will compose music that curses you!”

Eugène turned to leave and bowed to Beethoven.

“That’s also an honor, Monsieur Beethoven.”

Perhaps this was their last conversation.

***

Royal families typically begin with the fanfare of victory and end miserably in defeat.

“His Majesty the King—no, His Imperial Majesty—is being taken away!”

The carriage carrying the Habsburg family was visible from the Hofburg Palace in Vienna.

The citizens gathered, buzzing with speculation.

Even if they disliked the king, he was their monarch, and the French were driving him out.

Moreover, the guards surrounding the carriage were French soldiers in blue uniforms.

Then, another group appeared.

*Chuck, chuck, chuck!*

Soldiers in white uniforms, seemingly Austrian, marched into the square in front of the Hofburg Palace.

Instead of protecting the departing king, they escorted him as if guarding someone else.

While the citizens looked on, bewildered, a young man in a black uniform stepped forward.

“Citizens of Vienna.”

The young man spoke in slightly accented Southern German.

“I present to you the new Duke of Austria.”

The *bourgeoisie* [middle class], including lower-ranking officials, merchants, doctors, and lawyers, gasped.

“What? Duke Rudolf?”

“But what about the Duke of Austria? Wasn’t Austria supposed to become a French territory?”

“Oh, this is different from what the nobles were saying?”

The young man in the black uniform, Eugène, smiled.

Having been occupied by France three times, Vienna’s pride as the former imperial capital had long been diminished.

In particular, the empire’s demotion to a kingdom and its acceptance of the first partition had shattered the Habsburg family’s prestige.

Therefore, the citizens weren’t outraged by the king’s ouster and the kingdom’s dismemberment.

Moreover, since the nominal duke was a Habsburg, the simmering public discontent was temporarily quelled.

“Now, the former king will live out his days comfortably as a predecessor, and the new duke will rule you. Just as Vienna’s great art is eternal!”

Soon after, the orchestra began to play in the street.

*Clang clang! Ppabababa-! Ppampam!*

The music was *Eroica*, the Heroic Symphony.

Eugène had specifically requested *Eroica* from Beethoven.

Beethoven’s music, including *Eroica*, would later be considered pioneering in the era of German nationalism.

However, Eugène deliberately made *Eroica* a symbol of Austria’s demise.

It was a cornerstone to prevent the future unification of a German Empire.

Of course, that would require additional measures against Prussia rather than Austria.

At that moment, Chief Adjutant Ippolito, standing next to Eugène, said sarcastically:

“You’re not being entirely truthful, Your Highness.”

“What?”

“That the Kingdom of Austria will be divided, and Moravia, Tyrol, and Silesia will all have different rulers.”

Eugène gazed at the citizens of Vienna, the city of art, absorbed in the music, and replied:

“That’s a problem the citizens of Vienna can discover later.”

For example, after Napoleon and Eugène returned to France.

December 21, 1806, shortly before Christmas.

It was the day Austria was utterly destroyed.