‘Hah!’ Masséna called out as he handed his weapon to one of his bearers and took a loaded replacement. ‘First strike to me!’
A moment later a bird erupted from the reeds directly ahead of Napoleon and flew straight into his line of sight. He tracked it for a second and then began to lead the target before he squeezed the trigger. Instantly a cloud of smoke obliterated his view and the butt kicked savagely into his shoulder. As the breeze swept the smoke away Napoleon saw that he had winged the duck and it flapped pathetically for a little distance, losing height before it dropped into the marsh.
‘One!’ he shouted to Masséna, and reached for another gun.
As the day wore on more and more birds were frightened into the sky and were shot down by the imperial hunting party. When the beaters had exhausted the supply of birds in the marsh, they began to release those in the cages. Napoleon had become locked into a fierce competition with Masséna as each strove to score the most kills, and late in the afternoon Masséna was two birds ahead. Napoleon’s arms were beginning to ache from holding his weapon as an uncaged pheasant flapped into the air slightly to his right, warbling in panic. Knowing that Masséna would be bound to claim the bird unless he shot first, Napoleon raised his gun and tracked the bird to his right. It flew low and fast and before he realised it Napoleon had turned almost ninety degrees to the side.
‘Careful, sire!’ one of the bearers cried out in alarm.
Napoleon snatched at the trigger and the weapon went off with a loud report. Almost at once there was a cry of pain and rage and when the smoke cleared Napoleon saw that Masséna was staggering back, hands clasped to his face as blood dripped through his fingers. After an instant’s hesitation Napoleon began to run across to him, and behind came Berthier, racing towards the sound of Masséna’s shouting. When the Emperor reached Masséna the marshal was down on his knees, groaning, and his bearers were standing over him. Napoleon brushed them aside. ‘Get some bandages and water!’
‘Yes, sire.’
‘And see if there is a physician in the party.’
The bearer nodded and ran back up the hill as the shooting continued on either side. Berthier came running up, panting.
‘What happened?’
‘An accident,’ Napoleon muttered. He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and began to wipe away the blood on Masséna’s face.
‘Careful, damn you!’ Masséna growled. He pulled the cloth from the Emperor’s hand and mopped at the blood streaming down the left side of his face. Napoleon could see the small puncture wounds where the shot had struck, and blood and fluid seeping from the marshal’s left eye. He heard the sound of footsteps rustling through the grass as the bearer returned with an officer, Dr Larrey, who had served with Napoleon in Egypt and Syria.
Larrey bent over Masséna and examined the wounds. ‘What happened?’
‘What do you think?’ Masséna growled through clenched teeth. ‘Some careless bastard shot me in the face.’
Larrey glanced round at the Emperor.
Napoleon felt a surge of anger at the clear accusation. He turned on Berthier and glared. ‘It was you.’
‘Me? But sire . . .’
‘It was you, Berthier. It must have been.You lost sense of where you were aiming. It was an accident.’
Berthier opened and closed his mouth in numbed surprise. He looked to Larrey, and then at Masséna, and shook his head. ‘I didn’t . . .’
‘Don’t deny it, Berthier.’ Napoleon grasped his arm. ‘As I said, it was an accident. Masséna is wounded, but he will recover. Isn’t that right, doctor?’
Larrey was examining Masséna’s face closely, and did not meet the Emperor’s stare. ‘Yes, the marshal will recover, but he may lose the sight in this eye. I’ll do what I can to save the eye, of course. Can you stand, sir?’
‘Yes,’ Masséna hissed. ‘I was shot in the face, not my fucking legs.’
He struggled to his feet and Larrey gestured up the slope. ‘Follow me, sir. We’ll take your carriage back to Bayonne. I have my kit there and I can treat you.’
‘Let’s go then,’ said Masséna, and then paused to glare at Napoleon. ‘With your permission, sire.’
‘Yes, yes, of course. Go.’
With the doctor gently guiding Masséna by the arm, the two made their way towards the crest of the hillock. Berthier coughed. ‘Sire?’
‘Yes.What is it?’
‘Should I call an end to the shooting party?’
Napoleon turned to his chief of staff with a frown. ‘No. There’s nothing anyone else can do for Masséna. Let the guests enjoy themselves. Except you, of course. You’ve done enough harm for one day. Return to the carriages and wait for the rest of us there.’
For a second it seemed as if Berthier would protest, but the warning glint in Napoleon’s eye challenged the chief of staff to defy him. He drew a sharp breath, clamped his mouth shut and bowed his head before turning to stride away. Napoleon watched him for a moment, and then turned back towards his hide and called out for another gun.
A week later, towards the middle of May, as the imperial party was preparing to return to Paris, a despatch arrived from Murat. There had been riots in Madrid and a mob had killed over two hundred French soldiers. Murat had responded by declaring martial law and ordering his troops on to the streets. Over two thousand Spaniards had been killed before order was restored. Napoleon lowered the report and stared at the staff officer who had brought it from Madrid.
‘Major Chabert, isn’t it?’
‘Yes, sire.’
‘Were you in Madrid at the time of the uprising that Marshal Murat tells me of ?’
‘Yes, sire.’
‘Well, then, explain the situation to me in your own words.’
Chabert swallowed nervously. ‘As you command, sire. I think the trouble began with some of our men.You know what they are like, sire. They have a bit of a drink, and then begin to help themselves.’
‘Which is why I insisted that strict discipline be maintained, and that our men be restricted to the suburbs of Madrid.’
A look of surprise flitted across Major Chabert’s face and Napoleon sighed bitterly. ‘I take it that Murat did notquarter his men in the suburbs.’
‘Well, no, sire. Many were billeted in the centre of the city.’
Napoleon closed his eyes briefly and winced. Once again Murat had failed to obey the express orders of the Emperor, and thousands of Spaniards and some soldiers had died as a result.Worse still, there would be a simmering atmosphere of resentment that would make it all the harder to ensure that the junta would call for Joseph to be the new King. Napoleon’s first instinct was to recall Murat, have him brought in front of his Emperor and berate him severely. But that would only undermine French authority in Spain even further; and besides, whatever his occasional faults, Murat was his brother-in-law and had served with him from the early days. Napoleon knew that he had no choice in the matter. Murat had set the course for relations between the French army and the Spanish people for the immediate future. Any sign of weakness now would endanger whatever influence France still had over its neighbour.With a sigh Napoleon opened his eyes again.