Descending On France 1780
Chapter 222 - 215 All Monarchs are rebels and usurpers!

Chapter 222: 215 All Monarchs are rebels and usurpers!

In the following days, Anning took over all the prisons in Paris.

After field inspections, Anning arranged for Louis XVII to be placed in the best-conditioned Danpier Prison, which also had another name, Temple Tower Prison.

As the name suggests, this prison was built by the Templar Knights.

It’s uncertain whether someone in cool white hooded robes would come to jailbreak Louis XVII.

Just as Anning had thrown Louis XVII into prison, Philip Egalite rushed to his Paris Security Command.

"I only have this one son," said Egalite as soon as he entered, "Although Christina can inherit the property, she’s in the military and may not necessarily marry. This way, our family line would end..."

According to the thinking of this era, girls joining the military meant they were not planning on getting married, and good families would also disdain women with military experience.

But Egalite used the words "may not necessarily marry," suggesting that he still held some hope for his daughter’s marriage.

For a moment, Anning thought about just marrying her off, but then he felt that in the future he might have to go to war against the Anti-France Alliance, with plenty of battles to fight, the kind where he couldn’t return home every day.

In this era, it was very normal for the wife to cuckold her husband while he was away at war, so normal that it wouldn’t even incur social condemnation.

In Napoleon’s Life, Josephine not only cuckolded Napoleon but also brought her young lover to the front lines for Napoleon to see.

Although Anning thought Christina was not that kind of person, but... damn, the customs of this era were such, and this era simply wasn’t suitable for those who believed in pure love!

So, Anning feigned indifference and half-jokingly said to Egalite, "You’re still in good health, you could have another child."

Egalite sighed, then seriously asked, "I won’t beat around the bush with you. How much money would it take to save my son?"

Anning: "That’s probably... very difficult. Unless I could immediately defeat Austria and Prussia and capture Louis XVI in Austria."

Egalite: "Is that possible?"

Anning could not help but laugh: "How could it be? Lazar Kano is reorganizing the troops, and by next July or August, he has assured me that there will be around 200,000 French Army troops ready for my command. Only then can we launch an attack, and by that time, the grass over the King’s grave would be one meter tall."

Egalite slumped into the sofa like a deflated ball, looking extremely dejected: "How could this be... or perhaps I could do this, not let them pass the public trial bill for my son in Parliament..."

Anning: "Not likely."

These days, Anning had learned about the things the Royalists had done in Paris, and somewhat understood the public’s rage.

If Louis XVII didn’t die, all of Paris would not agree.

With the threat of the coalition still present, they might attack Paris at any time. If Paris couldn’t be stabilized, Anning simply couldn’t focus on fighting the coalition.

So, Anning himself hoped to execute the King as soon as possible in order to stabilize the situation in Paris.

Of course, he did not voice this thought in front of Egalite but silently watched the Duke muttering to himself.

Finally, the Duke made up his mind: "Right, I should go to Parliament."

Anning: "No, you should retire and stay at the Royal Palace."

In real history, Egalite was also betrayed by his son and sent to the guillotine by the Jacobin faction.

Anning did not wish for history to repeat itself here.

Egalite: "Why? I am going to save my son!"

"You should be saving yourself! If you now speak up for him, it might lead to both you and him being sent to the guillotine. Do you know that on the morning of the 26th, I saw a kind woman mourning those who died the night before, and she was almost executed by the public, mistaking her for someone sympathetic to the Royalists.

"If you speak for the Royalists, they won’t care what you did for the revolution before; they will hang you.

"Do you want Christina to lose her father after losing her brother?"

Mr. Equality was silent for a few seconds, then raised his hand to cover his face: "How could this happen... How could things have turned out this way!"

While Anning was trying to console Mr. Equality, the National Assembly was engaged in fierce debates.

This was already the third day.

The Assembly had been arguing from the 26th all the way until March 1st.

The legal expert Mayer was speaking: "Since we have decided to establish the Republic, naturally the constitution of 1791, which declared the Monarch inviolable, can be considered invalid.

"Rousseau once said that placing a person above the law is disgraceful! We can consider, in accordance with the stipulation on the dereliction of duty by public officials in the 1791 Constitution, to put Louis XVII on trial!

"Because you know, from the perspective of the law, Louis XVII was merely a former chief public official!"

A wave of agreement sounded in the hall, but mainly from the Jacobin Party, that is, the Mountain Faction.

Those in opposition were mostly frowning.

The violent actions of the armed Parisians the night before had frightened many. They were now afraid that this kind of violence, this kind of terror, would further descend upon themselves.

Moreover, many of them had voted against the abolition of the Monarchy and the establishment of the Republic.

The legal expert Mayer continued: "However, Louis XVII should not be tried by a court, I mean, not by an ordinary court.

"Louis XVII was called the King according to the constitution. The National Assembly acts both as the Legislative Assembly and the Constitutional Assembly; it exercises the highest sovereignty of the people. It is independent of the King and all legal powers; it fully and perfectly represents the French Republic, and it has the responsibility and obligation to prosecute Louis XVII!"

Another wave of agreement sounded in the hall.

Mayer concluded by saying, "Finally, I believe that General Frost will soon defeat the Prussian and Austrian coalition; the army of the Republic will launch a whirlwind against Monarchy across the entire European Continent!

"We need to show the whole of Europe how to treat a former Monarch! I have finished."

After Mayer finished speaking, he left the podium, and the entire hall erupted with enthusiastic applause.

But before the applause died down, Morisson, formerly of the Girondists, stood up: "According to our system, to put Louis XVII on trial, there must first be an existing man-made law capable of judging him, yet no such law exists at the moment. We need to create this law first, and then consider whether to prosecute him!"

Immediately, a Jacobin member loudly objected: "No! We have laws for judging common people, and the King is a commoner; we can use the laws for judging common people!"

Morisson stood his ground: "No! Don’t you see? How terrible the events of that night were! Enough, let’s not have any more bloodshed! Let it stop here, let’s aim our hostility at the Prussian and Austrian Coalition, which might cross our borders at any time!"

This speech received quite a bit of approval from the original Girondists, and to make their presence felt, they deliberately raised their voices very high.

Just then, Saint Just stood up and came to the podium.

"Ladies and Gentlemen! Mayer believes that we can trial Louis XVII as a citizen; I oppose this suggestion.

"Because Louis XVII is not an ordinary citizen, he is the main backdrop for all of France’s insurgent forces; the root of all rebellion! He once used the most despicable methods to deal with the free people!

"On the night of the 26th, he even attempted to arrest the hero of France, General Frost, who made countless merits on the battlefield!

"How can such a person be judged by the laws that apply to ordinary people? That would be letting him off too easily!

"And Mr. Morisson and his followers are trying to evoke our sympathy for Louis XVII.

"However, remember this man oppressed a free nation, abused the law, and turned innocent people into enemies of this country. No, he cannot be innocent; there is no middle ground for him; he must either continue to rule or die!

"To rule means it is impossible for him to be innocent; believing in the innocence of Louis XVII is an absurd act!

"All Monarchs are rebels and usurpers!"

His emphatic words resonated throughout the Assembly chamber.