‘Stay here,’ he ordered quietly, and then crossed to the door facing the French bank of the Niemen. He pushed the handle down and entered the apartment, closing the door behind him.There he paused a moment, admiring the fine construction and decoration that his men had crafted. Napoleon nodded. The Tsar could not help but be impressed by the raft, not to mention the feat of putting it together so quickly, and positioning it so precisely in the middle of the river.Which was good, Napoleon mused. If the preliminary talks went well, he had resolved to put the Grand Army on display to impress the Tsar with its efficiency and élan. Napoleon crossed to the other door, opened it and emerged on to the far side of the raft.

The Tsar’s barge had put out from the other bank and the men at the oars were rowing lustily to speed their passenger to the encounter with Napoleon. They were making a meal of it as they splashed furiously through the smooth ripples of the river. Napoleon focused his attention on the figure sitting at the rear of the barge. Alexander was wearing a green jacket adorned with heavy gold epaulettes, and diamond-encrusted stars were pinned to his breast. A broad red sash hung from his shoulder and a white plume rose high from his cocked hat. He sat stiff and erect as the boat neared the raft and seemed to look straight past Napoleon as the latter waited, alone.

The Russian barge bumped into the side of the raft, causing those aboard to lurch forward, and the Tsar hurriedly snatched a hand to his hat to keep it on his head. Once the boat was alongside, the Tsar stood and held out his arms and two of his men lifted him bodily from the boat on to the raft, where he paused and looked his adversary over without expression. Alexander was a tall, slender man with a rounded face and soft feminine features, and as he removed his hat and bowed he revealed a high forehead and receding hair.

Napoleon strode the few paces between them and grasped the Tsar’s hand, smiling warmly. ‘Your majesty, it is a pleasure to finally meet you in person. I had begun to fear that the tragic war that existed between our nations would deprive me of the pleasure of your company for ever. But here we are!’ Napoleon gestured to the finely appointed raft.

The Tsar glanced round and nodded approvingly. Speaking in accentless French, he said, ‘A fine piece of work, your majesty.’