"Dear General Clarke, I am in receipt of your letter of the 27th of August. I suppose that you have received my letters of the 22nd, which would have informed you clearly of my intentions concerning what is necessary for the defense of Anvers. I do not find it bad in fact, I find it favorable that the Prince of Pontecorvo has not withdrawn the troops he has. Have the Duke of Coneliano follow my instructions closely: he must draw up near the Heights of Flanders in order to not let himself be cut off from the Prince of Pontecorvo, and he must join up with this Marshal in order to defend Anvers on the left bank, since the Marshal is defending the right bank. The Prince of Pontecorvo has as few as 36 harnessed cannons. He must be supplied with 36 more, to make a total of 72. General Lameth is an abominable schemer capable of spreading order everywhere: remove him from the ranks of my troops. I have just seen a Colonel, dismissed from service since Year 2 (of the Republic), who was in Spain and returned here; I was obliged to send him packing. He is a man who can not be of any use, and who however, will have cost me a great deal of money serving in one post or another. I am distressed to see that you have employed General Salme; that man is evidently hostile. I have no need for people like that. Colonel Rabier would have defended the heights of Flanders as well as he. By accumulating in this manner seeds of discontent in the north, we are leaving ourselves open to setbacks. People of that sort, not having any loyalty, will intrigue, will complain, and will not be of any usefulness. It is advisable to place the troops available from the camp of Pontivy and from the 13th Military Division between Paris and (Rouen?), so that if the enemy should attempt something in the neighborhood of Cherbourg and try to burn the two vessels stationed there, these troops could promptly reach the area. Napoleon".
Two page manuscript letter in French to the Duc de Feltre, framed with two bronze medals of the era. 15" x 18" double-glazed frame, 8 1/4" x 7" document.
Henri Jacques Clarke, Duc de Feltre, was Napoleon’s highly competent Minister of War.