To him mainly it was due that France was saved from dismemberment, and received a constitution which, to use his own words, " united crown and representatives of the people in a sense of common interests."
At Liverpool on the 27th of October Gladstone described Parnell and his party as " marching through rapine to the disintegration and dismemberment of the empire."
There was no trace of a political idea in these disputes; the mutual hatred of two women aggravated jealousy to the point of causing terrible civil wars from 561 to 613, and these finally created a national conflict which resulted in the dismemberment of the Frankish empire.
As Sweden was known to be exhausted by the long wars of Gustavus Adolphus and his successors, and weakened by internal dissensions, the dismemberment seemed an easy matter, and Peter embarked on the scheme with a light heart; but his illusions were quickly dispelled by the eccentric young Swedish king, Charles XII., who arrived suddenly in Esthonia and completely routed the Russian army before Narva.
The rapid formation of this land empire, and the obvious intention to expand, called the attention not only of Italy but of Europe to this power which seemed destined to become supreme in north Italy, and eventually led to the league of Cambrai for the dismemberment of Venice.
