peaceful nature through and through. All his wars ended in disaster, so that he had little optimism left. He was never a victim to the desire for fame, and he only wanted to end his life without incurring new risks.
He never felt the desire to realize great ideals. His highest ambition was to fulfil his duty. He accepted as final the judgment of history, even when it went against him. He did not long to be revenged against Italy, nor did he wish to regain his position in Germany. He did not strive to regain the absolutism which he had lost, but he defended tenaciously that which existed and did not wish to cede anything of it. For this reason, he continued the long battle with Hungary which destroyed his popularity, because he was of the opinion that the Hungarians wanted to reduce the sphere of his legal power. For this reason, he accepted the enormous responsibility for the war at his advanced age, because he was convinced that an attempt was being made to rob him of that which was his own. During the time when it was given to me to get to know him more intimately, I could notice two strong convictions. The one was his attachment to the German alliance, which was never near his heart, but which his common sense had recognized as a necessity. The second conviction was his attachment to dualism, or rather, to dualism according to his interpretation, by which the army remained completely within the sphere of his power.
It was often painful for me, as I was tied by
