CROWN DIAMONDS IN 1862.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 3099, 3 June 1881, Page 4

CROWN DIAMONDS IN 1862.

A propos of the projected sale of the Crown diamonds in France, which is a matter always talked of, but never, as it seems, to bo carried out, the Patrie relates a very curious legend regarding the Brunswick family. The scene of the adventure is supposed to be the camp of the Duke of Brunswick in September 1792. At this time the Duke had come up with his 50,000 men to the support of the King of Prussia, who, with 150,000 of his own troops, was on the point of attacking the French under Dumourier. If the attack had been made, it is the opinion of many historians that it must have been successful: but the Dnke of Brunswick is said to have urged on the King the expediency of waiting until tho Austrian force should have time to come up, and it is supposed that in co ... .}uence of these representations tho King made over the command of the whole army to the Duke. This latter, on September 20. made that attack upon the generals Kellorinann and Dumourier which is dignified by the name of tho Battle of Valmy, though the real fact is that the guns on both sides were discharged at a distance which was out of range. But after this the Duke, who was certainly best off in every respect, made a retreat which is described by the military critics of the time as altogether inexplicable. The Patrie furnishes the solution of this enigma by explaining that the retreat in question was an affair of pounds shillings and pence. Those eminent French politicians of the Revolution —Danton, Lebrun, and Dumourier — imagined the brilliant expedient of bribing the Duke of Brunswick, and they accordingly made over to him those Crown diamonds which induced him to execute the retreating movement so " inexplicable" to the critics. Ihe proof of the fact is to be found, as the authors of the story say, in the condition of the Duke himself, who although up to that time crippled with debts, was able at the end of 1792 to pay off his creditors to the extent of eight millions of francs, and become afterwards a rioh man, whose possessions in jewellery alone have been one of the great boasts of his descendants to this day.