Napoléon Bonaparte- Clémence envers la Princess d'Hatzfeld

Following the interception of a letter to the Prince of Hohenlohe containing military intelligence, the Prince of Hatzfeld, governor of Berlin, was immediately sentenced to death for espionage. At the news of the arrest of her husband, the princess of Hatzfeld, eight months pregnant, forces with the complicity of Duroc, Ségur and Rapp, the entrance to the cabinet of the Emperor. Throwing herself at her feet, she protests that her husband cannot be guilty. Napoleon shows him a letter whose content is overwhelming and whose young woman recognizes the writing. Touched by his tears, Napoleon asks him to burn the letter, so that he can no longer pursue his husband. This episode was narrated by the Emperor himself in a famous letter to Joséphine dated November 6, 1806: "[...] For the rest you will see that I was very good for one who was sensitive and good, Mrs. Hatzfeld. When I showed her her husband's letter, she sobbed at me with deep and naive sensitivity: "Ah! This is his writing. …“When she read, her accent went to the soul. She made me sorrowful; I said to her, "Well, Madame, throw this letter into the fire, I will not be strong enough to punish your husband." She burned the letter, and seemed very happy. Her husband has since been quiet. Two hours later, he was lost. You see, then, that I love women who are good, naive, and sweet; but it is because they alone are like you. "
Widely used by propaganda, this act of clemency of Napoleon is undoubtedly the one that was most represented by the artists under the Empire.