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How Bernstorff got his job
Date: 2023-05-07 03:58 am (UTC)Johann Ernst Bernstorff, Danish foreign minister and only equal to Fritz in the eyes of one Stefan Hartmann, was a Hanoverian. Had you studied 1720s diplomacy in as much detail as I did, this would be obvious to you, since G1's minister Bernstorff is a major player in this period, always throwing a wrench in the works of Charles Whitworth's attempts to negotiate a peace between Prussia and Sweden in the Great Northern War. The Bernstorff family is notable for having produced some 5 or so powerful ministers over the course of the 18th century, of whom I know at least three off the top of my head.
Danish Bernstorff's Hanoverian ancestry will be important to this story of how he got his job.
Like many Germans, including Moltke, he's gone seeking his fortune in Denmark. This was a common thing for Germans to do, because working for a king gave you more advancement opportunities than working for a duke or count or somesuch, and there were only so many Protestant kings to go around.
So Bernstorff, in the 1740s, is Danish envoy in Paris. Then in 1750, the Danish foreign minister dies. Moltke wants Bernstorff as his successor.
Why? Not because he's such a huge personal fan of Bernstorff, but because their politics align, and the alternative is someone Moltke very much doesn't want.
Here we have to take a step back and look at Danish foreign policy. There have historically been a couple of things driving it:
- Keep Schleswig-Holstein away from the house of Gottorp (this means future Peter III's family).- Oppose traditional enemy Sweden.
Opposing Sweden means ties with Russia, who likes to keep Sweden in line, and ties with Great Britain, the traditional enemy of France, who supports Sweden. So Danish alliances have usually gone like this:
Denmark - Russia - Great Britain vs. France - Sweden
That was all well and good for a long time, but it's now 1750, and a few things have changed. These include:
- Sweden is no longer the threat it used to be, after losing the Great Northern War (you may remember Russia and Denmark were on the opposite side). After France prodded Sweden into starting the 1742-1744 Russo-Swedish War, and it lost badly, Sweden is more a battleground for bribery of the Hats and Caps by foreign powers than it is a potential empire.
- Great Britain and Russia have gotten really powerful in the Baltic, where Denmark has major commercial interests and is a little tired of being pushed around by these superpowers. A greatly weakened Sweden is starting to look more like a potential ally than the biggest threat around.
- The head of the Gottorp family, future Peter III, is now heir to the throne of Russia, and he wants Schleswig back BAD. So bad.
Since 1749, Moltke has been de facto in charge of foreign policy, in the sense that he's avoiding any formal appointments like the plague, but he's arranged things so that all important papers relating to foreign matters have to be run by him so he can decide what to present to the king and what advice to give ihm.
And what Moltke is thinking at this point is: "Let's cautiously shift away from Great Britain and Russia and toward France and Sweden. Without making any major enemies, of course."
Since everyone can see the writing on the Russian wall and knows future Peter III is going to launch Russia's resources at Denmark as soon as he gets the chance, the Danes are trying to arrange a territory swap with Russia. They've been trying for many years, and will continue trying.
In 1750, the Russians are basically open to the idea, but only if the Danes will appoint a Russia-friendly foreign minister to replace the guy who just died. The minister they have in mind is Rochus Friedrich Lynar, currently Danish envoy to St. Petersburg.
Moltke's reaction to the prospect of a Russian Trojan horse (the author's words, not Moltke's as far as I know) deciding foreign policy for Denmark is a major DNW, so he starts campaigning for Bernstorff, the pro-French guy.
So Frederik (aka Moltke) officially summons Bernstorff back from his post in Paris, telling him to come back to Copenhagen and assume the role of foreign minister. But here matters take an unexpected turn.
Bernstorff, who you would think would jump at this career opportunity, writes back that he's plagued by gout and can't come back to Copenhagen until his health improves.
Frederik: Isn't he in his 30s, Moltke?
Moltke: Yes, Your Majesty. I smell a fish. I think he has something secret he doesn't want to commit to paper.
Frederik: Gotcha! Bernstorff, change of plans. You come back to Copenhagen to make an oral report. Then you can go back to Paris when you're done if you still really want to.
Bernstorff: *travels to Copenhagen*
Bernstorff: So! As Moltke correctly suspected, I have ulterior motives for turning down this promotion. As Mildred noted earlier, my family has been super prominent in Hanover for generations. Frederick, Prince of Wales, has promised I can be governor/prime minister in Hanover and run the place once he's king. But that's contingent on my promise to him that I won't accept any jobs that might create a conflict of interest, like, oh, say, foreign minister of Denmark.
Some Danish minister: Hey, Lynar, looks like you're going to get that job after all!
Lynar, over in St. Petersburg: Sweet! I will start making preparations.
Moltke: Lynar for foreign minister over my dead body. Let's all just sit tight and proceed with caution and see if we can work something out without any drastic measures.
Frederick of Wales: *dies in 1751*
Bernstorff: Guess I'm available for foreign minister of Denmark now!
Lynar: Me, me, pick me!
Frederik: What do?
Moltke: Well, remember how we were trying to get Russia to agree to a territory swap so that they don't invade us when Peter becomes tsar? The Russians are no longer open to that, and it's all because Lynar offended them so badly he can't be trusted with anything important.
Lynar: I never! That was just internal Russian politics. Nothing I or any diplomat could have done to change their minds. Who you gonna believe, Your Majesty, me or Moltke?
Frederik: Is that a question? Bernstorff for foreign minister!
Moltke's biographer comments that painting Lynar as incompetent over something that was probably not his fault was maybe not the most ethical thing Moltke ever did, but that he really believed Lynar's appointment would not be in the best interests of Denmark, and also that Lynar was an unreliable hypocrite.
Mildred: I'm starting to see why Christian VII described Moltke as "stork below, fox on top."
Once Bernstorff gets into power, his relationship with Moltke is interesting. They don't have enough in common to be friends, but the professional respect was mutual. Moltke always says positive things about Bernstorff in his memoirs, and we have a complimentary letter that Bernstorff wrote to Moltke, saying no one had ever earned his lord's trust as much or used it as diligently, and that Moltke had never abused his power, or been vengeful or haughty.
However, when Bernstorff wrote this, they had both just fallen from power under Struensee, and, the author says, that must have cast something of a rosy glow on the good old days. The truth was somewhat more complicated. Moltke having the final say in presenting foreign affairs to Frederik must have been an irritant to Bernstorff, who knew that it had the potential to reduce him to a mere department head carrying out the orders of the real leader, Moltke.
In the first year of Bernstorff's rise to office, one thing they clashed over was Fritz's attempts to get his sister-in-law Juliana Maria married off to Frederik, as part of Fritz's effort to bring Denmark into an alliance with Prussia.
Bernstorff is opposed, not just because he hates Prussia (but also that), but because it would threaten the good relationship with Great Britain, which he considers important for Denmark.
This episode, btw, is when Fritz starts hating on Bernstorff. He hears rumors from his envoy that Moltke resents Bernstorff's domineering style and regrets having helped him up.
Fritz: Sweet! Time to begin Operation Bribe Moltke!
According to the author, as far as we know, this operation never got out of the planning stages. Moltke certainly never mentions such an attempt in his memoirs.
What Moltke does mention is that Ferdinand, Duke of Brunswick, brother of Juliana Maria and brother-in-law of Fritz, visits Copenhagen in 1753. Ferdinand is allegedly here to see his newly born nephew, prince Frederik (the one John Brown claims was deformed), but actually he's here to put forth a number of proposals to bring Denmark closer to Brunswick (and thus to Fritz). The Danes (Mildred note: Moltke says "the king" but we all know Moltke was the royal spin doctor) are engaged in talks other Europeans powers and can't give a positive answer, Fritz is extremely taken aback, and has Ferdinand work toward getting Bernstorff dismissed.
Frederik: Once and for all, I am not getting rid of ministers except for extremely important reasons. Also, it is not consistent with my dignity to dismiss ministers just because a foreign power says so. [Mildred: Only when Moltke says so.]
Then the author comments: Moltke is careful to present the king as the real decision maker here, but reading between the lines, it's clear he orchestrated the point blank refusal to Prussian demands.
Mildred: That's what I said!
After this episode, Moltke and Bernstorff overcame whatever differences they had and realized they needed to have each other's backs, which they did for the rest of their careers.
By the way, back when Frederik very first became king, the first thing Moltke did was write up a "how to rule Denmark" manifesto, which was printed as part of his memoirs, contained a couple of things I want to note:
1. "Dear Your Majesty, always support your ministers. They can only do a good job if they know you have their backs. Also, dramatic changes are bad. Did I mention bad? Never make drastic changes! Always proceed with caution. Only dismiss ministers if you've investigated carefully and thoroughly, and they really are criminally incompetent or corrupt."
This passage foreshadows two developments. One, the transition from Christian VI to Frederik V did not result in the big ministerial shake-up that was expected, but only a couple of changes, and for the rest of Frederik's reign, the only ministerial changes are for voluntary retirement due to old age.
Two, you can see why Struensee and Moltke really, really couldn't work together. I can only imagine! (I haven't got to that part yet. Will let you know if there's anything interesting.)
So Moltke got dismissed by Struensee. But conversely, as I've mentioned, when it came time for a conspiracy against Struensee, and the ringleaders tried to enlist Moltke, his reaction was basically, "You did not read the part of my manifesto where I recommended always to proceed with caution and not overthrow ministers willy-nilly. Does staging a coup sound cautious to you?? No, I will not join your conspiracy."
2. Also in Moltke's "how to rule Denmark" manifesto is: "Fritz is power-hungry and not to be trusted. Stay away from Prussia!"
This amused me for two reasons. One, the author said that the manifesto is mostly focused on Denmark, and the diversion to talk about Prussia feels kind of random, and might be because Moltke came from Mecklenburg and was especially interested in German affairs. Me: Fritz is just that controversial!
Two, because Moltke is consistently seen by Fritz as the less virulently anti-Prussian minister in Denmark and a good target for the efforts to get rid of the more virulently anti-Prussian Bernstorff. Honestly, politically, notwithstanding the Brunswick marriage, I think you had equally bad chances with both of them, Fritz. Moltke was probably just more polite in public (i.e when not writing manifestos for his king) about his dislike!
Notes:
1. Lynar is not the sexy Saxon envoy we know from his threesome with Anna Leopoldovna and Julia Mengden, but the younger brother of sexy Saxon envoy. He is a Saxon who has gone into Danish service, like Mecklenburgian Moltke and Hanoverian Bernstorff and eventually Struensee of Halle (are you seeing a pattern here? Struensee's grandfather and Moltke's uncle had already preceded them into Danish service).
After losing out on the position of foreign minister to Bernstorff, Lynar ends up appointed governor of some minor province. He spends the rest of his life resenting Bernstorff and especially Moltke, whom he sees as the real author of his misfortunes, but he can't do anything about it. Eventually he makes himself so unpopular with the locals, with his oppressive taxation, that he's put on trial and dismissed for abuse of office, and he has to pay back the money he improperly collected.
I imagine Moltke thinking, "You're not exactly disproving my point about whether you can be entrusted with anything important."
2. No, I haven't read Moltke's "how to rule Denmark" manifesto. 18th century German, that's not even in an OCRed document that I can copy-paste occasional words and phrases from to ask Google what they mean, is...slow going. I haven't even finished his memoirs yet, just read selections. One day!
3. Reading a Danish biography of Moltke is even slower going than reading 18th century German memoirs by Moltke, but I'm extremely determined!
Re: How Bernstorff got his job
Date: 2023-05-07 06:51 am (UTC)I'm just impressed that the king didn't want the marriage and the foreign minister didn't want the marriage, but the chamberlain wanted the marriage, so the marriage *happened*. We see who has the real power here. Moltke would definitely be the man to bribe, Fritz, if only he were bribable!
Speaking of which, I'm still amused by his account of how the British tried to bribe him:
British: We like your monarch's marriage to a British princess, Moltke, and are interested in keeping relations friendly! Can we offer you, O most powerful man in Denmark, a pension?
Moltke: I do like money, but I like my king more, and he would have to okay this "pension".
British: Well, we were thinking of something more, how do we say this, unofficial.
Moltke: And did I mention, only if it's a lump sum.
British: *sigh* That would defeat the purpose of having a long-term hold over you.
Moltke: But when I'm no longer in service to the king and thus have no power or influence at all, I'll be happy to accept a pension from you.
British: ...You're willfully missing the point, aren't you?
Moltke: Willfully! But it doubles as being diplomatic and not offending you by refusing your "pension" outright, and also as seeing if you're stupid enough to give me money in a way that doesn't benefit you at all.
British: The word you are looking for here is "no."
Moltke: Eh, it was worth a try. :D
ETA: But who *was* a fan of Fritz was Frederik V. You can tell he had no power, because he was all, "Fritz is so cool! I could be more like Fritz! Denmark could be more like Prussia!" and you can almost see Moltke and Bernstorff going, "Maybe the silver lining to all the drunken orgies is that they distract him from having the application to carry out ideas like this. D: MEANWHILE, Denmark will be remaining neutral."
Frederik: :( Oh, all right, where's my wineglass? There's got to be some upside to being king if I can't start wars.
Re: How Bernstorff got his job
Date: 2023-05-14 09:03 pm (UTC)Moltke: Willfully! But it doubles as being diplomatic and not offending you by refusing your "pension" outright, and also as seeing if you're stupid enough to give me money in a way that doesn't benefit you at all.
British: The word you are looking for here is "no."
Moltke: Eh, it was worth a try. :D
LOLOLOL! This is pretty great. Have I mentioned I like Moltke? :)
Re: How Bernstorff got his job
Date: 2023-05-14 09:24 pm (UTC)Re: How Bernstorff got his job
Date: 2023-05-15 11:40 am (UTC)Re: How Bernstorff got his job
Date: 2023-05-14 09:03 pm (UTC)Who you gonna believe, Your Majesty, me or Moltke?
Me: Uh.
when it came time for a conspiracy against Struensee, and the ringleaders tried to enlist Moltke, his reaction was basically, "You did not read the part of my manifesto where I recommended always to proceed with caution and not overthrow ministers willy-nilly. Does staging a coup sound cautious to you?? No, I will not join your conspiracy."
Heeee! Yeah, this is something that attracts me about Moltke -- he's consistent! I like that.
I imagine Moltke thinking, "You're not exactly disproving my point about whether you can be entrusted with anything important."
Yeah, fair enough!