<122> he would on this occasion shew that deference and regard what was due to any advice offered on the part of His Majesty, as far as it was consistent with his own safety, which he was persuaded His Majesty had sincerely at heart.
I then acquainted the King of Prussia with His Majesty's views of bringing about a good understanding between the courts of Petersburg and Berlin,1 and pointed out to him the means His Majesty had proposed for that purpose.2
The King of Prussia said it was too late to attempt this, he feared His Majesty's interest in Russia was lost, that this measure appeared to him ill founded and could have no effect, that in the present circumstances (alluding to the treaty he supposes to be between the courts of Vienna and Russia)3 he did not think it proper that anything should be said to the court of Russia directly from him, but that he had that complaisance for His Majesty that he authorized me to acquaint Sir Charles Williams that he, King of Prussia, had given the strongest assurances to His Majesty that the late armaments had relation only to his own security and, so far from being meant offensively against the Czarina, that His Prussian Majesty was inclined to enter into the most friendly concert of measures with the court of Petersburg in conjunction with the King$#133;4
I have made use of all the materials your Lordship was pleased to furnish me with, in order to prepare the King of Prussia for the second proposai I was directed to make to him, viz. that of a camp somewhere in the neighbourhood of Wesel. He answered immediately it was impossible, that he had already given Orders for withdrawing some of his troops from Wesel, Guelderland etc.5 and believed that about this time they might be on their march towards the camp near Halberstadt, that there were but seven battalions at Cleves and not one single tent in the garrison, that he had even been obliged to order some of his peasants to be brought in, for the defence of his garrisontowns during the absence of the troops.
…I took the liberty to say that, if reports were spread as if an encampment was intended this autumn to be formed near Wesel, and if the peasants were ordered in the strong places with some eclat, it might be of use in Holland to facilitate the augmentation, and that, if he would at the same time be pleased to order his minister at the Hague to give assurances of his protection and support not only to the government, but privately to the towns to encourage them to make the augmentation, it could not fail of producing a good effect;6 to which
1 Vergl. Bd. XII, 360.
2 Vergl. den Auszug aus dem Erlass des Grafen Holdernesse vom 13. Juli unter Nr. 7774.
3 Auf Grund des durch Hellen übersandten Berichts Swart's vom 19. Juni. Vergl. S. 114. 116; auch S. 95.
4 Vergl. den Entwurf zu dem hierauf erfolgten Schreiben Mitchell's an Williams unter Nr. 7774.
5 Vergl. S. 89; Bd. XII, 434.
6 Vergl. Nr. 7766.