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The victorious Bonaparte arrived in Paris at the beginning of December Four weeks were to elapse before Josephine rejoined him, yet, seeing that her delays were by now routine and notorious, he could hardly have been greatly surprised. He did not know that Captain Charles, ordered in November to return to Paris, had failed to do so. Bonaparte, in truth, had little time to brood, for he was enjoying the sweet taste of power. With Italy at his feet he had gone post-haste to the Rhineland, where his triumphs continued.
Here, during his brief stay at Rastatt, he dominated the discussions of the German princes on the reorganization of western Germany. He had also negotiated for the transfer overnight to the Austrians, and he had further arranged for the transfer of Mainz, a key military post and one of the chief cities of the Rhineland, to France.
These were impressive achievements demonstrating that the man who awaited Josephine was now beginning his great role as the arbiter of Europe. Bonaparte's winning of Mainz, whose loss to the Prussians had led to Alexander de Beauharnais' death in , crowned the triumph of Josephine's second husband. Mainz was now the glittering symbol of a victory that had confirmed France in possession of Belgium and the entire Rhineland, giving her the 'natural frontiers' neither Richelieu nor Louis XIV had been able to win.
When the directors, therefore, honoured Bonaparte with a magnificent public reception in the gardens of the Luxembourg Palace he was at the height of his popularity. He skilfully and generously shared his fame with the directors. They had no ears, on the other hand, for Barras, who followed. This wily director was unable to command even the semblance of attention for the unctuous phrases of congratulation he poured upon Bonaparte.
