Bonaparte enhanced his reputation as a military leader. All the while, by his charm and
the favours he bestowed on those who supported him, he was consolidating his hold on
power; his government was making overtures towards the Catholic church; the
prosecution of the war was an excuse for repressive measures, for increased police
surveillance of opposition groups, for closing down newspapers, for attempting to limit
the freedom of the Tribunate. The unsuccessful royalist bomb plot of the Rue Nicaise
against him on 24 December 1800 only strengthened his hand. (Significantly the whole
Tribunate, including Constant, went to see the First Consul to express its indignation on
hearing the news of the attempted assassination.) Constant’s own life was now dominated
by the serious duties of his position as a tribune—resisting as best he could the abuse of
executive power by Bonaparte, questioning the ambiguous wording of draft bills and
representing the interests of Geneva. In spare moments he read Isabelle de Charrière’s
manuscript novels and plays and tried to find a publisher for her, or listened to those
trying to persuade him to sell La Chablière in Lausanne. All of this was interspersed with
ferociously hard work on his political treatise, particularly during October 1800 while he
was at Hérivaux. In the middle of a stay in Switzerland with Germaine between July and
September his uncle Samuel de Constant, Juste’s brother, died during the night of 12–13
August 1800. Benjamin’s relationship with him had often been strained, and the
hypersensitive Samuel had felt that he showed him neither sufficient respect nor
affection: as a final act of piety Benjamin wrote an obituary of Samuel (who had
published novels and a moral treatise) which appeared in newspapers in October.^98
By the autumn of 1800 Constant’s existence was becoming thoroughly worthy and not
a little dull. No doubt aware of this, Julie Talma introduced him to one of her friends,
Anna Lindsay, on 20 November 1800.^99 Constant’s relationship with Germaine de Staël
had grown stale; they were frequently apart for long periods, first under the Directory
because of the decree of expulsion of 1794, and now at the whim of the Foreign Ministry
(although Talleyrand had lately been kind to Germaine); when they were together
Constant often smouldered with resentment at her domineering and possessive manner;
and Constant did not plan to remain unmarried for ever. For her part Germaine may well
have resisted the idea of marriage to Constant because she was afraid of his alarming
propensity for gambling and running up debts—something that must have been an
unpleasant reminder of her spendthrift husband the Baron de Staël. Her remaining fortune
might not last long in Constant’s hands. Thus Anna Lindsay entered Constant’s life, if
unexpectedly, at a moment when he was ready for a new emotional experience. When it
came, that experience was to be one of the most intense of his life.
Germaine de stael 173