Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER II. LOUIS PHILIPPE AND HIS FAMILY. LOUIS PHILIPPE, after accepting the lieutenant-generalship of the kingdom, which would have made him regent under Henri V., found himself raised by the will of the people — or rather, as some said, by the will of the bourgeoisie — to the French throne. He reigned, not by " right divine," but as the chosen ruler of his countrymen, — to mark which distinction he took the title of King of the French, instead of King of France, which had been borne by his predecessors. It is hardly necessary for us to enter largely into French politics at this period. The government was supposed to be a monarchy planted upon republican institutions. The law recognized no hereditary aristocracy. There was a chamber of peers, but the peers bore no titles, and were chosen only for life. The dukes, marquises, and counts of the old re'gime retained their titles only by courtesy. The ministers of Charles X. were arrested and tried. The new king was very anxious to secure their personal safety, and did so at a considerable loss of his own popularity. They were condemned to lose all property and all privileges, and were sent to the strong fortress of Ham. After a few years they were released, and took refuge in England. There were riots in Paris when it was known that the ministers and ill-advisers of the late king were not to be executed; one of the leaders in these disturbances was an Italian bravo named Fieschi, — a man base, cruel, and bold, whom Louis Blanc calls a scelerat bel esprit. The emeute, which was formidable, was suppressed chiefly by a gallant action on the part of the king, who, while his health was unimpaired, was never wanting in bravery. "The king of the French," says Greville, "has put an ' end to the disturbances in Paris about... --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.