noon
and assuredly he would not have so acted one year ago as he did to-day ... . The empress had remained standing with a marvellous dignity ; she smiled as if the accident was the result of mere awkward-ness ... . but her eyes were full of tears , and her lips trembled ... '' At last the 15th of December had come ; the day on which Josephine was to endure the most cruel agony of her life , the day on which she was solemnly to descend from the throne and bid farewell to her whole brilliant past , and commence a despised , lonely , gloomy future . In the large cabinet of ceremonies were gathered on this day , at noon , the emperor , the Empress Josephine , the emperor 's mother , the King and Queen of Holland , the King and Queen of Westphalia , the King and Queen of Naples , the Vice-king Eugene , the Princess Pauline Borghese , the high-chancellor Cambaceres , and the secretary of civil affairs , St. Jean d'Angely . Josephine was pale and trembling ; her children were agitated , and hiding their tears under an appearance of quietude , so as to instil courage into their mother . Napoleon , standing upright , his hand in that of the empress , read with tremulous voice : `` My cousin , prince state-chancellor , I have dispatched you an order to summon you hither into my cabinet for the purpose of communicating to you the resolution which I and the empress , my much-beloved wife , have taken . I am rejoiced that the kings , queens , and princesses , my brothers and sisters , my brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law , my daughter-in-law and my son-in-law , who also is my adopted son , as well as my mother , are here present to hear what I have to say .