Folio 141. From Colt. Friesen departing [for Holland] within two days and will go...

Folio 141. From Colt. Friesen departing [for Holland] within two days and will go via Celle. Colt hopes he will 'conclude the affaire' with Chauvet, the Elector persists in his resolve to have him, notwithstanding many attempts to set him against that general; 'Schöning's party are much alarmed ... the more [so] because the new field marshal's appointments will be deducted from the pention of the other [i.e. Schöning] who hitherto has injoyed all his allowances which amounted to 50,000 dollers yearly'. Will try and befriend [Christoph Dietrich] Bose [electoral privy councillor] as Stepney [seems to have] suggested. The march of the Saxon troops might be delayed if the circle [of Franconia] 'continues obstinate', it will 'breed bad blood', especially now that Schöning is not with the troops, but Chauvet, 'a person of that country and known to many there' and the Elector will not force a passage. Suspects a negative attitude by certain princes, from one of whom [unnamed] Stepney had sent him a letter, more that of the margrave [Christian Ernest] of Bayreuth whose envoy is now at Dresden to settle the 'joynder' [i.e. jointure] of the margrave's daughter [Christiana Eberhardina, wife of prince Frederick Augustus, the Elector's brother and subsequent successor], and the landgrave [Charles] of Hessen-Cassel whose envoy 'hath already orders to opose these troopes fetching such a compass to incomode them to please others'. Reflects on his next assignments, i.e. return to Celle, via Berlin, and 'performing the complements' at Hanover, to which he is not looking forward. The Saxon-Danish treaty was shown to the diplomats accredited at Dresden 'under many promises of secrecy': together with Ham he perused a copy; Ham's notes were compared with those taken by the envoys of Hessen and Brandenburg. The 'most material part of the whole', the fifth article, relates 'most certainly' to Saxony-Lauenburg, the seventeenth concerns the Empire, but the separate articles 'concern us and Holland' and show the intention of others. Stepney is to treat his observations in utter secrecy, at least until Clary has seen the document, too. Assures Stepney: '... I am certain there is nothing in that treaty against the Empire or the allies'. Grote may know all this as soon as Stepney does. PS.: Gathers that Grote [at Vienna] has spoken in Schöning's favour which, if true, was to ingratiate himself here [at Dresden]; 'none will dare accuse him though they have been free with me and had I followed their advice, I had put our master and myself ill with the Elector'.

Date and Place: 1693 Mar 31/Apr 10 Dresden