I^Ci 2/Q 
 
 Qass_ 
 
 Book_ ^ ^11 
 
 t-i- 
 
THE 
 
 HISTORY 
 
 NAPOLEON BONAPARTE • 
 
 EMPEROR OF THE FRENCH, ^/J 
 
 KING OF ITALY. 
 
 WITH TWO ENGRAVINGS. 
 
 '< llle non i.iodo eorum hominmn, qui nunc sunt, gloriam, sed etiam antiqnitatls 
 niemoriam virtute superavit ; plura bella gessit quam cjeteri legerunt ; pliires pro- 
 vincias confecit, quam alii concupiverunt ; et ejus adolescentia ad scientiam rei mi- 
 litaris non alienis prseceptis, sed suis imperils ; non nfll ii iniiiliintinllii) nrirl nirfrri 
 IS ; non stipendiis, sed triumphis erudita est." /^^^ ''"'''' ""'V' "?.'x 
 
 Pi^St^ 
 
 BALTIMORE : 
 
 J^tinteo at t^e IBMz mn ^tztt 2D^e, 
 
 BY WARNER & HANNA, 
 1806. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 AS no apology for the manner in 
 wliich this volume is executed would 
 be admitted by its readers, none is of- 
 fered ; and as little merit is claimed, 
 no praise is expected: hence the for- 
 mality of a preface would have been 
 altogether omitted, had it not been 
 considered necessary to state whence 
 this history of Bonaparte has beea 
 compiled. The publications which 
 have been consulted, are a variety of 
 English and French works, such as the 
 Annual Registers, Stephen's Wars, 
 Campaign in Italy in both languages, 
 La vie de Bonaparte, Les Cinques 
 
IV PREFACE. 
 
 Hommes, Precis des Evenemcns MI- 
 litaires, Denon's Egypt, Berthier's 
 Narrative, Wilson's Expedition, Bo- 
 naparte and the French People, Le 
 Dix-huit Brumaire, Burdon's Life 
 and Character of Bonaparte, the Re- 
 volutionary Plutarch, &c. &c. This 
 work contains every thing interest- 
 ing in the life of Napoleon I. which 
 bears the character of authenticity. 
 With regard to a very late volume, 
 ^' The Secret History of St. Cloud^' 
 nothing has been extracted from it ; 
 for that book, besides its general fea- 
 tures, possesses very strong internal 
 evidence that it is a spurious produc- 
 tion, and although it will unfortu- 
 nately for society have an unbounded 
 circulation, still it cannot be denied 
 that little if any dependence can be 
 placed upon its details; and the per- 
 son who reads it through is spee- 
 dily nauseated and disgusted with 
 the incessant repetition of the intrigues 
 of debauchees, the excesses and infi- 
 delities of women in high life, and 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 the coarse indecent manner in which 
 they are narrated. As no certainty at 
 present exists with respect to those vo- 
 lumes to which this history is indebt- 
 ed; and as the extracts which have 
 been made are not marked, it is high- 
 ly probable that in some instances the 
 language of others has been unintenti- 
 onally adopted, whilst it was frequently 
 introduced by design*. ..therefore this 
 general remark will serve as a shield 
 against the charge of plagiarism..., and 
 originality in a work of this kind be- 
 ing impossible, all that can be desir- 
 ed is accuracy of detail, assiduity of 
 research, and correctness of style. 
 /He who writes the life of Bonaparte 
 at present, even if he were so inclined, 
 dares not to investigate freely and fully 
 the cause and effect of all those im- 
 portant events in which he has been 
 principally concerned ; and that pati- 
 ence of investigation which such a 
 work would demand, will not suit the 
 avidity with which the present gene- 
 ration wish to be informed of the won- 
 
VI PREFACE. 
 
 derfal changes which the French era 
 peror 's daily producing on the Eurc 
 pean continent. In this volume wi 
 be found no profundity of disquisit 
 on, no excursions of the imaginatioi 
 no embellishments of fancy, whic 
 never should be admitted into hist< 
 rical composition ., .no learned investi- 
 gations, no wild anticipations, and 
 no colouring: to the narration.... it is an 
 unadorned, and as far as the documents 
 which could be procured authorize, a 
 faithful relation of the uncommon 
 scenes through which has passed pro- 
 bably the m.ost extraordinary charac- 
 ter Vv hose name lives m history. That 
 which Cicero said of Pompey being 
 much more just when asserted of Bo- 
 naparte: " He has surpassed not the 
 ^' generals of the y) resent age only, but 
 '^ even those of antiquity in military 
 " fame ; conducted more wars than 
 'V those of which others have read; 
 ' " reduced more provinces than others 
 '^ have desired; and his youth was 
 '^ trained to the profession of armsj 
 
PREFACE. VU 
 
 ^^ not by the precepts of other men, 
 ^' but by his commands; not by mis- 
 ^^ takes in war, but by victories ; not 
 ^' by a series of campaigns, but by a 
 ^' succession of triumphs.'* This 
 narrative nevertheless contains a great 
 variety of incidents which are com- 
 prised in no other vohime, and which 
 cannot be known except by resorting 
 to the same sources, which would not 
 compensate for the trouble, and proba- 
 bly be unsuccessful. Many of the 
 anecdotes of Bonaparte which are in- 
 serted, remain unaltered and continue 
 in the language of the authors from 
 •whom they were extracted : and the 
 continual accession of new documents 
 even until the work was nearly com- 
 pleted, actuated the addition of those 
 few pages which are filled with occur- 
 rences received too late to be inserted 
 in their proper order in the body of 
 the history. The general distinctive 
 marks of Bonaparte's miatary charac- 
 ter, occur twice or thrice in the 
 volume^ but the repetition was consi- 
 
Vlll PREFACE. 
 
 dered necessary to render the connec- 
 tion and sense complete. 
 
 The Uteral errata which may be 
 discovered, and which have no effect 
 upon the meaning of the word are not 
 noticed.... but tlie reader is requested 
 to correct an important error in page 
 12th, in the sixteenth and seventeenth 
 lines from the head, for " Marshal 
 Prince of Saoccyny^'' read '^ Marshal 
 Comte de Saxe ;'' P^g^ 305, the 
 sip"naturc should be in conformity to 
 etiquette, " Napoleon^'' instead of 
 '' Bonapai^te ;' page SOZj eleventh 
 line, read " of the Italian consulta^^ 
 &c. page 310, twelfth line, for " re- 
 tilled'' read " retreated'^'' page 339.^ 
 fifth line from the bottom, for '^ op- 
 pressed'' insert '' opposed.'] These it 
 is beHeved are the most obvious mis- 
 takes in the volume. 
 
 GEORGE BOURNE, 
 
THE 
 
 HISTORY 
 
 OF 
 
 MAPOJLJEOM BOWAFAIRTE. 
 
 EMPEROR OF THE FREJVCH, 
 AND 
 ' KIJVG OF ITALY, 
 
 Birth.*.>Edu€ation...,and Employment of Bona- 
 parte^ until his appointment to the command 
 of the army of Italy ^ in the year 1796- 
 
 vjREAT events always produce extraordi- 
 nary characters : they excite the passions, and 
 invigorate the talents of men : they animate 
 exertion, raise merit from obscurity, and un- 
 fold the energy of genius. The truth 'of 
 this observation, has been strikingly evinced, 
 since the commencement of the French revo- 
 lution ; proving the love of freedom to be an 
 active and irresistibly powerful principle; 
 
 B 
 
10 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 — ^^^' ' ' ' ' ' . %■ ■ 
 
 which, when once roused, operates with an 
 electrick power, wakens the lethargick, in- 
 flames the whole mass of society, and in the 
 contests which it originates, exhibits all the 
 virtues and vices of human nature. >^ 
 
 When contending for liberty, against the 
 oppression of domestic tyrants, or the attempts 
 of foreign powers to enslave them; Greece 
 and Rome displayed a host of heroes. Si- 
 '3nilar causes have, in modern times, been ac- 
 companied by sim.ilar effects ; and the late war 
 in Europe discovered some of the most illus- 
 trious characters whom the historian has hi- 
 therto commemorated. 
 
 The French armies, previous to the Revo- 
 lution, were disorganized, without discipline, 
 dissatisfied, numerous without skill, and ge- 
 nerally unsuccessful in battle. That, which 
 forced the veterans of the continent of 
 Europe, to turn pale before raw recruits, 
 and which discomfited Brunswick, Clairfait, 
 Wurmser, &c. can have been no common 
 principle. Hence, we feel interested in eve- 
 ry particular which relates to such person- 
 ages as Jourdan, Pichegru, Hoche, Moreau 
 and Bonaparte ; and the high station to which 
 the latter has attained, renders the perusal 
 of a review of his life an interesting employ- 
 ment, which must be attended with consider- 
 able advantage. 
 
 Napoleon Bonaparte, the son of Charles 
 Bonaparte, and Lsetitia Raniolini, was born 
 at Ajaccio, in Corsica, August 15th, 1769. 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. II 
 
 His father, who was likewise a native of 
 Ajaccio, was bred to the law at Rome, and 
 joined Paoli, in the struggle between the 
 islanders and Louis XV. On this occasion, he 
 not only disrobed himself of his gown, but 
 carried arms as a private soldier. 
 
 When the French had conquered the 
 island, he wished to retire with Paoli ; but 
 a Canon, who was his uncle, and to whom he 
 always submitted with filial obedience, op- 
 posed his views so strongly, that he relin^ 
 quished his plan of emigration, and fixed his 
 residence in Ajaccio. 
 
 In 1773, a deputation was sent from Cor- 
 sica, to visit the French king ; and Charles 
 Bonaparte represented the nobles. He was 
 soon after appointed to fill the office of Procu- 
 ratore Reale of Ajaccio, in which his ances- 
 tors, who had left their native country Sarr 
 zana, during the wars between the Guelphs 
 and the Gibelines, had been settled for nearly 
 four centuries. 
 
 Charles Bonaparte was much esteemed 
 by the French, and his family lived in the 
 greatest intimacy with that of M. de Mar- 
 boeuf, the governor. 
 
 In the year 1779, Charles Bonaparte being 
 dead, governor Marbceuf sent Napoleon, then 
 10 years of age, to the military school of 
 Brienne, in Champagne ; where he applied 
 himself very industriously to the mathema- 
 tics, and in which he studied the art of war 
 scientifically : at this time the education 
 
12 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 which he received developed his great talents 
 and genius. Except the regular hours of du- 
 ty in the college, he spent nearly his whole 
 time, immediately after his arrival, in the 
 cell, and with part of a hammock, a washing- 
 bason, and an earthen pitcher, was con- 
 fined every night, like the other students, and 
 steadily watched by the inspector. As the 
 system of tuition was principally adapted for 
 those who were designed for a military life, 
 it was altogetbep congenial with his views 
 and inclinations. 
 
 There was something in his manners and 
 habits, very extraordinary for his age : the 
 playfulness of youth was lost in study ; Plu- 
 tarch's Lives, and the Life of the Marshal 
 Prince of Saxony, were his constant compa- 
 nions ; and an energy and pride unexampled, 
 were frequently exhibited by him. 
 
 While at the college of Brienne, he form- 
 ed a garden with his own hands, and forti- 
 fied it, against the attacks of his school-fel- 
 lows. In this garden, he would walk and me- 
 ditate ; and at length, became so fond of 
 his retreat, that he spent most of his hours 
 of recreation in it ; philosophical and mathe- 
 matical books were his delight, his mind dis- 
 daining all lighter studies. The^boys at the 
 college once, whilst sporting with some fire- 
 works, injured his garden, but they soon re- 
 pented of their carelessness. 
 
 He was indifferent to military disgrace, 
 The pupils were divided into companies, 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. IS 
 
 forming a battalion ; they assumed the French 
 regvilars' uniform ; and Bonaparte was one of 
 the captains. By a court-martial, collected to 
 confer together on some action of which it was 
 said he ought not to have been guilty, h^ was, 
 in all regularity of proceeding, with form and 
 solemnity, declared unworthy of his rank, 
 adjudged to be deprived of his office, and re- 
 duced to a private soldier. The sentence was 
 read, and he was divested of his official para- 
 phernalia, without evincing any emotion or re- 
 gret. 
 
 Bonaparte always interested himself with 
 much spirit in the Corsican patriots' success ; 
 he was very anxious to procure information 
 concerning his country : Paoli, his god-father, 
 was almost idolized by him ; and he was animat- 
 ed by a wondrous enthusiasm, when he either 
 thought or spoke of Paoli, or of his country. 
 One of his school-fellows relates this anecdote 
 of him, about this time: " Some of the French 
 officers, who had been in Corsica, would repair 
 to the military school ; and talking of the war, 
 would give the most exaggerated accounts of 
 their success against the Corsicans : Bona- 
 parte quietly suffered them to talk, asking 
 them occasionally a question or two ; but 
 when he was certain he could prove their hav- 
 ing falsified a fact, he would exclaim with ea- 
 gerness...." Are you not ashamed for a mo- 
 mentary gratification of vanity, to calumniate 
 in this manner a whole nation ? You say that 
 there were six hundred of you only in the en« 
 
14 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 gagement; I know yOu were six thousand; 
 and that you were opposed by a few wretch- 
 ed peasants only!" He would then open his 
 journals and maps, and he generally ended 
 his declamation with saying to his friend.... 
 " Come, let us leave these dastards." 
 
 His strictness and character made him ene- 
 mies amongst his school-fellows : he expected 
 one day a serious attack ; and had according- 
 ly barricaded his room in the military manner; 
 but he was disappointed; if they had formed 
 such a design it was abandoned : and yet it 
 does not appear, why any of the boys should 
 have so much disliked him ; for he was often 
 chastised for the faults of others, without ut- 
 tering a complaint, or expressing the least dis- 
 satisfaction. 
 
 The boys at Brienne joined in the celebra- 
 tion of the Lord's Supper : and it was usual 
 for the communicants to be confirmed on the 
 same day on which they first received it. The 
 day on which Bonaparte was confirmed, the ce- 
 remony was performed at the school by the 
 arch-bishop of the diocese. When he reach- 
 ed Bonaparte, he asked him, like the rest, 
 his christian name. Bonaparte answered 
 with a spirit and frankness, totally different 
 from the fearful and sheepish looks of his 
 companions. Napoleon being an uncommon 
 name, was not at first understoodby the arch- 
 bishop, who required him to answer again ; 
 upon v/hich Bonaparte repeated it with some 
 anxiety. The assisting priest observed to the 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. ts> 
 
 prelate: " Napoleon, I do not know that 
 saint." " I believe it," replied Bonaparte, 
 " that saint is a Corsican." 
 
 In the year 1783, Bonaparte's propensity 
 to fortification, displayed itself by building a 
 small fort of snow ; with the garden utensils, 
 he and his comrades erected a square, having 
 four corner bastions, encompassed by a wall 
 three feet six inches high, which was not dis- 
 solved until the ensuing May. 
 
 Bonaparte was instructed in the rudi- 
 ments of the mathematics by Father Patrault, 
 a minim of Brienne. He still esteems and 
 respects his master. The general instructi' 
 ons at the college, did not benefit him much, 
 he having devoted himself entirely to the ac- 
 quisition of the mathematics. The classical 
 and modern languages,, the arts and sciences, 
 writing, riding, h.c. received but a small 
 share of his attention. 
 
 He was removed from Brienne, in 1784, hav* 
 ing been advanced to the military school at Pa- 
 ris, to which he was ordered before he had spent 
 the time usually allov\^ed to the pupils, who 
 Wwere sent to the capital in rotation ; but the 
 progress which he had made, and the supe- 
 riority which he had attained, induced the 
 tutors to give him the preference ; he arrived 
 in that city October 17, 1784. 
 
 At Paris he manifested similar energy, 
 pursued the same principles, and displayed 
 the same characteristics by which he had been 
 known previous to his departure from 
 
16 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 Brienne. His leisure hours were passed 
 away in a bastion belonging to the fort, " Lieu 
 Brune," and erected for the use of the stu- 
 dents at the end of their usual promenade. His 
 companions in this situation were the works of 
 Vauban, CohonandFolard, by whose assistance 
 he planned the attack and defence of the fort. 
 Although not sixteen years of age, he pro- 
 posed himself as a candidate for a commissi- 
 on in the artillery ; and his success equalled 
 his merits, for among thirty-six who were 
 proclaimed victors in the contest at the exa- 
 mination, he ranked the twelfth. 
 
 When he was about fifteen years of age, 
 and a cadet in the military school of Paris... ^ 
 in the vast plain of the Champ de Mars, the 
 court, and the Parisians, were assembled to 
 witness the ascent of a balloon. Bonaparte 
 passed through the croud, and unperceived, 
 entered the inner fence, which contained the 
 apparatus for inflating the silken globe. It 
 was then very nearly filled, and restrained 
 from its flight by the last cord only. The 
 young cadet requested the aeronaut to permit 
 him to mount the car with him, which request^ 
 was immediately refused, from an apprehen- 
 sion that the feelings of the boy might em- 
 barrass the experiment. Bonaparte exclaim- 
 ed, " I am young, it is true, but I fear nei- 
 ther the powers of earth nor of air ;" and 
 sternly added, " Will you let me ascend?" 
 The aeronaut, a little offended at his obtrusi- 
 on, sharply replied, " No, sir; I will not; I 
 

 NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 17 
 
 beg that you will retire." Upon which, the 
 little enraged officer, drew a small sabre, 
 which he wore with his uniform, instantly 
 cut the balloon in several places, and destroy- 
 ed the curious apparatus, which the aeronaut 
 had constructed with infinite labour and inge- 
 nuity, for the purpose of trying the possibi- 
 lity of aerial navigation. 
 
 Paris was almost unpeopled this day to 
 view the spectacle. The disappointment of 
 the populace, which was said to have exceed- 
 ed seven hundred thousand persons, became 
 violent and universal. The king sent to 
 know the reason of the tumult ; when the sto- 
 ry was related to him, he laughed heartily, 
 and said, " Upon my word, that impetuous 
 boy will make a brave officer." He little 
 thought he was speaking of his successor. 
 The young offender was put under arrest, and 
 confined for four days. 
 
 About the same time, as he was upon 
 some occasion, conversing on the causes and 
 progress of the revolution, with several young 
 fficers of equal rank to himself, he defended 
 is opinions so firmly, that they would have 
 thrown him into the ditch which encircles the 
 Champ de Mars, and it was with difficulty he 
 escaped the punishment which they had in- 
 tended for him. 
 
 He entered the regiment of artillery, " La 
 Fere," which was in garrison at Auxonne, in 
 July, 1785; his days were spent in studying 
 
 C 
 
I« THE HISTORY OF 
 
 the fortifications, and a large portion of the 
 night in meditation on those subjects which 
 were connected with his profession, and 
 which tended to improve and to fit him for 
 that exahed station which he now fills. 
 
 Paoli visited France in the year 1790, and 
 there discovered Bonaparte ; to which inter- 
 view may be probably owing his residence in 
 Corsica ; for not long after, he was elected 
 lieutenant-colonel commandant of a battalion 
 of the national guards in active service, at 
 Ajaccio. 
 
 In the second expedition dispatched against 
 Sardinia, he embarked with his countrymen, 
 and landed in the island of Madalena, of 
 which he took possession in the name of the 
 French republic ; but he speedily discovered 
 that the troops who had been collected for this 
 expedition, were disorganized, and undisci- 
 plined, which hastened his return to Cor- 
 sica. 
 
 Bonaparte was very active in his opposi- 
 tion to the designs of the English, during 
 the year 1793 : he appeared off Ajaccio, andg^ 
 demanded that the town and citadel should^ 
 surrender to the republic ; but the town was 
 ably defended by his cousin Masseria, who 
 was at the siege of Gibraltar, and who learnt 
 the management of red-hot shot under lord 
 Heathfield. 
 
 In the mean time, a scheme was formed to 
 annex Corsica to England ; and Bonaparte 
 had a difficult part to act : he was strongly at- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 19 
 
 tached to Paoli ; and the treatment which he 
 had received from the terrorists had excited so 
 high a degree of resentment, that he himself 
 wrote the remonstrance which was transmit- 
 ted by the municipality of Ajaccio against 
 the decree declaring the general an enemy of 
 the commonwealth. It is evident that he was 
 suspected of having too intimate a connection 
 with Paoli, for Lacombe de St. Michel and 
 the other two commissioners of the conventi- 
 on, issued their warrant to arrest Bonaparte. 
 This did not eradicate his fidelity, nor did it 
 hinder him from performing his duty, and 
 fulfilling his engagements ; for as soon as he 
 learnt that the English Mediterranean fleet 
 had sailed to conquer his native island, he 
 retired with his family to France, and re- 
 sided about fifty miles from Toulon. 
 
 Excepting these unimportant occurrences, 
 the time which had elapsed from the com- 
 mencement of the revolution, had been prin- 
 cipally employed by Bonaparte in military 
 studies. At this time he was twenty-four 
 lyears of age, and an officer in a company of 
 artillery only. 
 
 The siege of Toulon roused his ardour, and 
 displayed his scientifick knowledge. Salicetti, 
 who was acquainted with his military endow- 
 ments, introduced him to Barras, who with 
 Ereron another representative of the people, 
 was ordered to superintend the operations of 
 the army. At the attack of fort Pharo, a 
 young officer was observed by them, to be 
 
20 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 very active in directing his corps of artillery. 
 The sang froid, and intrepidity which Bona- 
 parte has evinced in every part of his military 
 career, here shone with splendour : surround- 
 ed by danger and death, his wounded canno- 
 neers in heaps beside him, swimming in their 
 own blood,... he served almost alone a piece 
 of artillery ; charging, loading, ramming it, 
 and undauntedly performing the whole work 
 of the private men ; the two representatives 
 advanced him instantly, and gave him the de- 
 fence of an important redoubt. 
 
 Barras, who was well qualified for the si- 
 tuation which he held, having found fault 
 with the pointing of the guns in the battery ; 
 Bonaparte said, " Mind sir, your business of 
 representative, and leave to me, mine in the 
 artillery : . the battery shall remain where it 
 is, and I will answer with my life for its suc- 
 cess." It is unnecessary to add, that to Bo- 
 naparte's skill, the speedy reduction of that 
 city may be ascribed. 
 
 After the capture of Toulon, he was 
 raised to the rank of brigadier-general, and||k 
 ordered to Nice ; but Aubry the deputy 
 soon displaced him, and committed him to pri- 
 son as a terrorist. 
 
 His papers were searched most rigorously, 
 but nothing was discovered except a private 
 friendly correspondence on common topics ; 
 plans of the war ; military remarks ; and let- 
 ters filled with the. most honourable and patri- 
 otic sentiments : there being therefore no 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 21 
 
 grourud to suspect his attachment to the ca\3se 
 of Uberty ; he was immediately Hberated. 
 
 Tlie following circumstance will prove, 
 how much he was given up to his professional 
 studies ; and, how many hours he dedicated 
 to his own improvement ; for his unwearied 
 mind was so constantly in exercise, that as 
 usual, the night was appropriated to reading 
 and the investigation of tactics. Whilst he 
 staid at Nice, one of his friends, having im- 
 mediate occasion for his assistance, walked to 
 his apartment long before day, and concluding 
 that he was in bed, knocked at his door very 
 gently, that the noise might not discompose 
 him : but as soon as he had entered the cham- 
 ber, he saw to his astonishment, Bonaparte 
 dressed as in the day, his police cap on his 
 head, deeply engaged, with plans, maps, and 
 a variety of books open near him. " What,'* 
 said his friend, " not yet in bed ?" '' In bed," 
 replied Bonaparte, " 1 have already risen." 
 " Indeed," added the former, " What so ear- 
 ly?" "Yes, so early: two or three hours are 
 enough for sleep." 
 
 Soon afterwards an attempt was made to 
 remove him from the corps, which, as a mem- 
 ber he so much honoured, and to degrade 
 him to the infantry.... upon which he made a 
 journey to Paris to remonstrate against such 
 glaring injustice. ...but he received no redress 
 ....he in consequence thereof demanded to be 
 discharged..,. with permission to retire to Con- 
 stantinople : neither of his requests were 
 granted. 
 
THE HISTORY OF 
 
 On the insurrection of the sections of Pa- 
 ris, on the 4th and 5th of October, 1795, he 
 was second in command under Barras. That 
 deputy had been bred a military man, and was 
 reported to by his colleagues in all great 
 eniergencies ; he was anxious to have with 
 hiiti, at this time, the miost able men, and 
 therefore called upon Bonaparte to be near 
 him. But the superintendence of the army 
 was confided to Gentili, whose gallant defence 
 of Bastia, had procured him great reputa- 
 tion. It was immediately made known that 
 Gentili's deafness was an invincible obstacle 
 to success ; as he could neither hear nor 
 attend to the multiplied and complicated re^ 
 ports of the aides-de-camp, who were conti- 
 nually bringing him messages, or addressing 
 him relative to the situation of the people, 
 Bonaparte was appointed his successor, and 
 it is to the masterly dispositions made by him, 
 that the triumph of the representative body 
 is principally to be attributed. Even justice , 
 will admit, that the moderation then displayed 
 by him in Paris, is not parallelled in modern ^ 
 history. 
 
 Tranquillity was restored, and he was 
 rewarded with the command of the army of 
 the interior. 
 
 As Bonaparte's conduct in this affair has 
 been much censured, two or three remarks 
 cannot be unsuitable. 
 
 Whatever there may have been blamea- 
 ble in the opposition made to the people, or 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. hf 
 
 in the mode of securing the victory, must be 
 imputed to the convention, or to Barras, who 
 had the chief command. Bonaparte, as an 
 inferior officer, knew no principle, no duty, 
 but obedience to his commander. 
 
 But it shouM be recollected, that the day 
 would have been much more fatal than it 
 really was, had Bonaparte fully obeyed the 
 orders which he had received : for his inces- 
 sant firing of powder only during the night, 
 produced the desired effect, impeded the sec- 
 tions in their attempts to rally, disheartened 
 the leaders of the insurrection, and thus sav- 
 ed the lives of the people. 
 
 A general who was afterwards in compa- 
 ny where the 13th Vendemiaire was intro- 
 duced, said, in a manner which affected all 
 who heard him : " We must not judge with- 
 out knowing our ground ; the Parisians are 
 not aware how much they owe to Bona- 
 parte : had he literally followed his orders, 
 no day had ever been more bloody !" 
 
 After the inauguration of the directory, 
 Bonaparte as general of the armed force, 
 waited on each of the five directors. Carnot 
 lived at the top of a house, beneath the ruins 
 of the Luxembourg, the apartments prepar- 
 ing for him not being ready. It was on Mon- 
 day that Bonaparte presented himself, which 
 was the day in the week on which a certain 
 author was in the habit of regularly visiting 
 Carnot. When Bonaparte entered, this au- 
 thor was singing a new air, which a young la- 
 
24 THE HISTORY OV 
 
 • ■ ' ' ■'-^^- 
 
 dy accompanied on the piano-forte. The ap- 
 pearance of Bonaparte stopped the music. 
 Seeing five or six tall young men, his aides- 
 de-camp, come into the room, followed by a 
 well-made man, introducing and expressing 
 himself with dignity, and bowing to the com- 
 pany with an air of ease and politeness, which 
 formed a striking contrast with the manners 
 and appearance of most of the generals who 
 had appeared before, such as Rossignol and 
 Santerre : the author asked Carnot in a whis- 
 per, " who that gentleman was ?" Carnot an- 
 swered, " He is the general of the armed 
 force of Paris."...." What is his name ?".... 
 " His name is Bonaparte."...." Is he a mian of 
 sense?"...." I really do not know."...." Has he 
 great military skill ?"...." So it is said.".... 
 " What has he ever done that is remarkable ?" 
 ...." He is the officer who commanded the 
 troops of the convention on the 13th of Ven- 
 demiaire." This was enough for the inqui- 
 rer ; the shade deepened in his countenance ; 
 he was one of the electors of Vendemiaire, 
 bigottedly attached to his own opinions ; and 
 he retired silently to a corner observing him, 
 whose countenance beamed with an expressi- 
 on, which could not fail to have pleased him, 
 but from what Carnot had told him. 
 
 Bonaparte seeing the young lady had dis- 
 continued playing on her instrument, and the 
 company attending to him solely, said, " I 
 have stopped your amusement, somebody was 
 singing, I beg I may not interrupt the party." 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 25 
 
 The director apologized, the general insisted, 
 and the lady at length, played and sung two 
 or three patriotic airs. Bonaparte having 
 amused himself a few minutes, arose and 
 took his leave. 
 
 When he had retired, he became the sub- 
 ject of conversation, and Carnot asserted, 
 " That Bonaparte would not be long in the 
 same situation :" the event has more than 
 completely verified the prediction. 
 
 Not long after, he married the widow of M. 
 de Beauharnois, a beautiful French woman, 
 who had experienced a variety of persecutions 
 during the time of Robespierre. M. de Beau- 
 harnois had attained the rank of general in 
 the service of the republic, and had always 
 acted as a friend to liberty. On the day when 
 Louis XVI. and his family entered Paris, M. 
 de Beauharnois was president of the national 
 assembly, and exhibited great dignity of de- 
 portment ; notwithstanding which, he was a 
 victim to the hatred of the terrorists, who, 
 joining the narrow ideas of sectarists to the 
 ferocious character peculiar to themselves, per- 
 secuted all those whose opinions were not ex- 
 actly conformable to their own standard ; and 
 M. de Beauharnois, with a great number of 
 others, died by the guillotine. By tt^is mar- 
 riage, Bonaparte obtained a fortune of five 
 hundred thousand livres, and the chief com- 
 mand of the Italian army. 
 
 A little previous to his departure for Italy, 
 whilst visiting a friend, he sketched his in- 
 
 D 
 
26 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 tended campaign memoriter, and pointed out 
 Millesimo as the first theatre of his victories. 
 He traced the whole plan, proposing to drive 
 the Austrians from Italy, by the defiles of the 
 Tyrol, and at the bottom of the scheme wrote ; 
 " And at the gates of Vienna I shall grant 
 them peace. ^"^ 
 
 Upon his promotion to the commandj being 
 but twenty-six years of age, one of his friends 
 remarked to him, " You are very young to 
 go thus, and take the chief command of an 
 army:" he replied, " I shall be old when I re- 
 turn." 
 
 Bonaparte is rather below the middle sta- 
 ture, but admirably proportioned : though his 
 figure be thin, he is very muscular, and cal- 
 culated to bear the greatest fatigue. His fea- 
 tures are small and meagre. His nose is 
 aquiline ; his dark blue eyes are fiery, and 
 expressive of great genius. His forehead is 
 square and projects ; his chin is prominent, 
 and raised like that of the Apollo Belvidere. 
 He is of a pale olive complexion, with hollow 
 cheeks. His countenance is melancholy, yet 
 it indicates a superior and exalted mind. His 
 hair is of a dark chesnut colour, approaching 
 nearly to black, which he wears without pow- 
 der, and closely cropped. His air, though 
 serious, is open : and when roused, his com- 
 plexion reddens, and his body becomes all 
 energy and nerve. He possesses uncommon 
 attainments ; converses freely and without pe- 
 dantry on all subjects ; and writes and speaks 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 27 
 
 with fluency and eloquence. Above all things 
 he has attempted, and in a great measure ob- 
 tained, the government of his passions. He is 
 very abstemious at his meals, and was never 
 seen in the slightest degree intoxicated. 
 
 The following portrait of Bonaparte is 
 from a French author, which we must admit 
 to be a flattering likeness. 
 
 " He is habitually of a silent and contem- 
 *' plative disposition ; and preserves an invio- 
 " lable secrecy by means of a rigorous si- 
 " lence, far better than other men do by a lo- 
 *• quacious hypocrisy : yet, he is not devoici 
 " of the French politeness and gaiety. To a 
 ** courage at once ardent and daring, he unites 
 '* a coolness which nothing can derange ; to 
 *' the vast conception of genius, all those stra* 
 *' tagems of war which Hannibal practised so 
 " ably against the Romans ; the deepest re- 
 " flection to the most rapid execution ; all the 
 " impetuosity of youth, to the experience of 
 *' riper years ; the sagacity of the politician, 
 *' to the talents of a great general ; and to a 
 <' desire of glory, and the spirit of former 
 *' conquerors, the virtues of sober wisdom, 
 " and every sentiment of humanity and mode- 
 *' ration : politics, and the military art, are so 
 *' much the favourite studies of his mind, as 
 *' to be carried almost to enthusiasm and pas? 
 " sion; and from his opposite qualities, he h 
 *' eqvially great in peace as in war/' 
 
CampaigJis of 1796 and 1797, in Italy, 
 
 THE French army had durmg the cam- 
 paign of 1795, suffered very considerably, 
 and the want of pay and comfortable subsist- 
 ence had excited so much discontent among 
 the soldiers, that during the following win- 
 ter, the generals gave all who were dissatisfi- 
 ed permission to depart ; and thus many of the 
 worst soldiers returned to France. Although 
 the French government had resolved to carry 
 on the war with energy in Italy, they disguised 
 their proceedings, and eluded the vigilance of 
 the coalition ; who, from knowing the weak 
 and disorderly state of the southern army, 
 concluded that no great efforts were necessa' 
 ry to resist its progress. In January and Fe-- 
 bruary 1796, the directory assembled an ar- 
 my of nearly 40,000 of those troops who had 
 been engaged in Spain, and stationed them in 
 Languedoc, Roussillon and Provence. They 
 arrived in the territory of Genoa in the be-' 
 ginning of April, and with the remains of the 
 former army formed a body of 56,000 men. 
 
THE HISTORY OF NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 29 
 
 The German government had increased the 
 Austrian army, so as to place general Beau- 
 lieu at the head of 50,000 men ; general Col- 
 li commanded about 20,000 Piedmontese, and 
 the Due d'Aouste was in Savoy with 15,000 
 men, to watch the motions of general Keller- 
 man. Besides these, the Pope, the king of 
 Naples, and the emperor of Germany, had 
 assembled large bodies of additional troops, 
 to repel any attempts which the French might 
 make upon Italy. 
 
 When Bonaparte assumed the command of 
 the army of Italy, he found himself with 
 troops less numerous than those of the ene- 
 my, not clothed, without arms and ammuni- 
 tion, and dispirited by their diversified neces- 
 sities. A man of common endowments, un- 
 der these circumstances, would have been de- 
 pressed and dismayed. Bonaparte beheld 
 nothing in them, but the necessity of acting 
 without delay. " If we are conquered," said 
 he, "I shall yet be powerful ; we are there- 
 fore in want of nothing." From Geneva 
 some of his deficiencies were supplied, and 
 success very soon filled his army with a pro- 
 fusion of every thing of which they were in 
 need. 
 
 As soon as he arrived at the head-quarters, 
 which was early in the spring of 1796, he 
 prepared for the campaign, determining to 
 commence it as soon as the melting of the 
 snow favoured the march of his troops. It 
 was during the interval of time which elaps- 
 
30 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 cd between his arrival and the first military- 
 movements , that he laid the foundation of all 
 his successes : he made use of every means 
 to secure the affections of his soldiers. ...lived 
 with them on terms of the greatest familiari- 
 ty.. ..marched on foot before them.. ..submitted 
 to all the hardships which they experienced.... 
 alleviated their distresses....redressed their 
 grievances. ...and paid attention to every pri- 
 vate's complaints. This conduct speedily 
 gained him the warm attachment of his sol- 
 diers, which was augmented in proportion as 
 his talents and success proved that he was al-' 
 together deserving of their confidence. 
 
 Carnot drew the outlines of the plan of this 
 campaign, which the ardour and skill of Bo- 
 naparte qualified him to realize and surpass. 
 Unlike the former, it was not restrained to the 
 attack and defence of posts, but exhibits a 
 scientifick appearance : the courses of the ri-^ 
 vers, the heights and direction of the moun- 
 tains, the various governments, and the views 
 of the people of Italy were all surveyed, and 
 every thing connected with the success of the 
 army; studied and consolidated. 
 
 The French army, standing on the defen- 
 sive, was cantoned on the barren rocks of the 
 river Final ; the head-quarters were fixed at 
 Albenga, and the advanced posts reached to 
 Voltri, between Genoa and Savona. 
 
 The Austrians possessed the heights of 
 Savona, Sarsello, Musona, Campo-Fredo, 
 the Bochetta, and the valleys of the Trebia 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. SI 
 
 and the Sere via, having the command of the 
 two roads from Genoa to the Milanese. The 
 Piedmontese were stationed at the foot of the 
 Alps, extending from the Col de Tendi to Cai- 
 ro, so as to secure the passes which led into 
 Piedmont. The Bochetta is a chain of 
 mountains, over which, forming endless 
 windings, passes the great road leading from 
 Genoa to Lombardy. On the top of the 
 heights of these mountains, the road contracts 
 itself so much, that scarcely three persons 
 can travel abreast. It is properly speaking, 
 this pass which is known by the name of Bo- 
 chetta, and which is the key to the Genoese 
 territories. 
 
 Thus were the contending armies situated 
 when hostilities commenced. The campaign 
 opened on the 9th of April. The French 
 threatened many points of the army at once, 
 to confuse the allies, and by dividing to weak- 
 en their force. It was effectual, for it actu- 
 ated the Piedmontese to extend their line. By 
 propagating a report that he intended to take 
 Genoa, and by ordering general Laharpe with 
 12,000 men to advance very near to that city, 
 Bonaparte induced general Beaulieu to leave 
 Alexandria, and to advance to Novi, to de- 
 fend the defile of Bochetta ; the latter imme- 
 diately detached a strong corps to take post 
 before Genoa, and through wishing to keep 
 up his communication with the army under 
 general Colli, his front occupied nearly twenty 
 leagues, which materially injured his position. 
 
32 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 On the 20th of Germinal, ninth of April, 
 general Beaulieu attacked the division under 
 general Cervoni, and forced it to return to the 
 centre of the army, which was posted on the 
 heights of Savona. The next day^ he conti- 
 nued his movements, and succeeded in his 
 attempts upon all the advanced posts of the 
 French army, except Montenotte, which it 
 was indispensably necessary to conquer, be- 
 fore the expectation of cutthig off the retreat 
 of the division which had been repulsed, could 
 be realized. Eighteen hundred men under 
 the command of Rampon, resisted all the Aus- 
 trian efforts to gain possession of this impor- 
 tant redoubt, and night prevented the conti- 
 nuation of the contest. 
 
 While these measures were auspicious to 
 the allies in front, Bonaparte, who had fore- 
 seen the retreat, had strengthened his posts 
 upon the flank of the Austrian army, and 
 during the night of the 21st, tenth of April, 
 sent Massena with a division to gain their 
 rear. On the 22d, eleventh, general Beaulieu 
 began the battle at break of day ; the success 
 was various, and the victory undecided, until 
 Massena appeared in the rear, which threw 
 the Austrian army into confusion, and forced 
 them to retreat ; Bonaparte pursued them to 
 Cairo : the loss of the Austrians amounted 
 to 3,500 men, of which 2,500 were prison- 
 ers. 
 
 Bonaparte immediately removed his head- 
 quarters to Carcara, and established himself 
 
. NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 41 
 
 the extreme. Bonaparte had also planted all 
 his artillery in the form of a battery, and a 
 heavy cannonading was commenced, which 
 continued several hours. 
 
 As soon as the major part of the French 
 army came up, Bonaparte called his generals, 
 and informed them of his design to cross the 
 bridge. The plan was unanimously disap- 
 proved of by them : but Bonaparte assembled 
 a council of grenadiers, and made thetn an 
 energetic harangue, which induced them to 
 undertake the attack, although he did not 
 dissemble the dangers which attended this 
 coup-de-main. Four thousand grenadiers and 
 carabiniers. formed themselves into a solid 
 column, and marched to the bridge. Hav- 
 ing begun to cross the bridge, they were sa- 
 luted with such an incessant shower of grape 
 shot, that the foremost ranks were swept 
 away, to the amount of 700 men, and they 
 had begun to hesitate about proceeding any 
 further, when Massena, Berthier, Cervoni,- 
 Dallemagne, Lasnes and Dupat, rushed 
 from • the ranks, put themselves at the head 
 of the troops, encouraged them by their words 
 and example, and Bonapane now appearing 
 to animate them, they crossed the bridge, de- 
 termined on death or victory, chaunting the 
 Marseilles hymn, and shouting " Vive la Re- 
 publique." The shock was so great, that the 
 Austrian troops were discomfited, and their 
 cannon taken ; the remainder of the French 
 
 F . 
 
42 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 army immediately followed, and the Austrians 
 not being able to maintain their ground, re- 
 treated to Mantua, having lost about 2,000 
 men in this action, an immense quantity of 
 baggage, and 20 pieces of cannon. 
 
 The French after the battle of Fombio pur- 
 sued the Austrians to Pizzighitone, but the 
 Adda interposing, its capture was retarded, 
 as the French had it not in their power to 
 cross the river. As general Beaulieu how- 
 ever, after the battle of Lodi, had fled to- 
 wards Mantua, and the French were closely 
 following him, neither this place nor Cremo- 
 na could be saved. Pizzighitone was invest- 
 ed on the 22d, the eleventh of May, and the 
 French entered it the day following : Cremona 
 surrendered without any resistance, and the 
 advanced guard of the army continued their 
 course to Milan. 
 
 General Beaulieu having left 1,800 men m 
 tKe citadel, evacuated that city on the 25th, 
 fourteenth, and Massena with 4,000 French 
 entered it on the 26th, fifteenth : Bonaparte 
 made his triumphal entry into the city on the 
 27th, sixteenth, and the castle surrendered 
 after a siege of ten days. 
 
 Bonaparte having prepared himself by a 
 short repose, to pursue the remains of the 
 Austrian army, addressed his troops on the 
 1st of Prairial, twentieth of May, in the fol- 
 lowing manner : 
 
 *' Soldiers I You have rushed likeVi toi'rent from the sum- 
 mits of the Appennine mountains, overthrown and dispossess- 
 ed eyery thing that opposed your march. 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE; 43 
 
 <■' The Piedmontese, delivered from the yoke of Austrian ty- 
 ranny, have declared the sentiments that were natural to them 
 of peace and amity for the French. 
 
 " Milan belongs to you, and the republican flag is displayed 
 throughout Lombardy. The dukes of Parma and Modena 
 owe entirely their political existence to your generosity and 
 clemency. 
 
 « The army that threatened you with so much haughtiness, 
 is compelled to seek safety in flight. The Po, Tessin, and 
 the Adda, could not by their streams stop one moment your 
 impetuosity. These vaunted bulwarks of lialy incited your 
 contempt, you passed them \vith the same rapidity that yoa 
 surmounted the Appennines, 
 
 <' Your successes have filled the bosom of your country with 
 joy. Your representatives have dedicated a festival to your 
 victories, which brought together the people of the republic,. 
 There, your parents, wives, sisters, and mistresses, rejoiced 
 at your successes, and owned you with pride. 
 
 "Yes, soldiers, you have done much. ...But does there not 
 yet remain more for you to do ?.... Shall it be said that yoa 
 knew how to gain victories, but not how to make a proper use 
 of them?. ...Shall posterity reproach you for having found a 
 Capua in Lombardy ?....But I already behold you fly to arms : 
 you cannot find rest on the down of sloth : you cannot dispense 
 with glory, without a diminution of your happiness. Let us 
 then be vigilant and resume our occupation. We have yet 
 some forced marches to make. There remain still some 
 enemies to subdue, some raurels tp reap, and some injuries 
 to avenge. 
 
 « Let those tremble who have sharpened the poignards of 
 civil war in our country, who have basely assassinated our mi- 
 nisters, and set fire to our vessels at Toulon : Let them trem- 
 ble. ...the hour of vengeance has sounded. 
 
 « But let the people be without disquietude, we are cordially 
 their friends. Nor are we without amity for the descendants 
 
44 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 of Briuus and Scifiio, and those other great men whom we 
 have taken for our model. 
 
 " To re-establish the capitol, and place there with honour 
 again, the statues of the heroes that gave it celebrity ; to re- 
 call to life the Roman spirit, benumbed several ages by slave- 
 ry : such will be the effect, soldiers, of your victories ; victo- 
 ries that will make a new sera in the annals of the world, and 
 confer on you the immortal glory of having changed the ffice 
 of the Eden of Europe. 
 
 " The Fi-ench people, free, and respected in every quarter 
 of the globe, will give to Europe a glorious peace, which will 
 indemnify the sacrifices of every kind which they have made du- 
 ring six years. You will resume then the calm tranquiUity of 
 your fire-sides, and your fellow-citizens will say, in presenting 
 you respectively to their friends : T/iis man belonged to the ar- 
 my of Italy.'" ' 
 
 The duke of Modena, at this period, soli- 
 cited and obtained an armistice from Bona- 
 parte, as a prelude to peace, upon terms ve- 
 ry similar to that which had been granted to 
 the duke of Parma. 
 
 On the 5th of Prairial, May twenty -fourth, 
 a general insurrection broke out against the 
 French. The inhabitants of the towns and 
 villages armed themselves, trampled the na- 
 tional cockade under foot, cut down the trees 
 of liberty, and massacred all the small par- 
 ties of the republicans. The inhabitants of 
 Pavia, assisted by 6,000 peasants, disarmed 
 the French garrison, and took it prisoner. 
 The garrison at Milan, upon a similar at- 
 tempt against them, dispersed the insurgents, 
 and killed great numbers- of them. Bona^ 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 45 
 
 parte had begun his march, when he heard of 
 this revoh. He immediately returned, burnt 
 the village of Binasco, slew a hundred of its 
 inhabitants, beat down the gates of Pavia, 
 delivered the garrison and pillaged the town : 
 these severe measures speedily quelled the 
 insurgents. 
 
 General Beaulieu had during the time that 
 these events occurred, crossed the Oglio and 
 the Mincio, and assumed a new position ; his 
 right was supported by the lake of Garda and 
 the fortress of Peschiera, his left by Man- 
 tua, and the whole of his line was covered 
 by batteries. 
 
 Bonaparte having resolved to cross the 
 Mincio at Borghetto, arrived there on the 
 10th, twenty-ninth ; the van-guard of the 
 Austrian army, consisting of 4,000 infantry 
 and 1,800 horse, defended the approaches to 
 it, The French forced all the redoubts, which 
 induced the Austrians to cross the bridge, 
 one of whose arches they destroyed. The 
 repairing of the bridge causing a great de- 
 lay, and being a work of much difficulty, 
 under the continual fire of the Austrian bat- 
 teries ; about fifty grenadiers, led by general 
 Gardanne, threw themselves into the river, 
 and immersed to the chin in water, with their 
 muskets elevated above their heads, forded it 
 to the astonishment of the Austrians, who 
 immediately retired. 
 
 The bridge was easily rendered secure in 
 consequence of-this act of intrepidity, an4 
 
 i 
 
46 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 the French troops took possession of Valeg- 
 gio, Beauheu's head-quarters, not long be- 
 fore abandoned. Augereau was now order- 
 ed to surround Peschiera, and to cut off the 
 retreat of the Austrians ; but the latter anti- 
 cipated this design, hastened away by Cas- 
 telnuovo, and effected their retreat. Beau- 
 lieu before his departure supplied Mantua 
 with provisions, garrisoned it with 12,000 
 men and retired into the Tyrol. 
 
 On the 12th, thirty -first, the French march- 
 ed to Rivoli, but general Beaulieu had cross- 
 ed the Adige, and carried off almost all the 
 bridges. These skirmishes cost the Austri- 
 ans 1,500 men and 500 horses. Beaulieu's 
 army was reduced when he reached the Ty- 
 rol to 14,000 men. 
 
 Whilst Bonaparte was reviewing a half 
 brigade, a private of the light infantry ap- 
 proached him, and said, " General ! so and 
 so ought to be done." " Fool," answered 
 he, '' wilt thou be silent ?"....He instantly dis- 
 appeared. The general made the most dili- 
 gent search for him, but in vain ; his advice 
 however, was an exact counterpart of the 
 orders which Bonaparte was then upon the 
 point of issuing. 
 
 Massena took possession of Verona on the 
 X3th Prairial, June the first ; and Mantua, 
 the only fortress in Italy in the possession of 
 'the Austrians, was immediately invested; but 
 its peculiar situation, the want of artillery and 
 ©ther causes rendered the blockade incom- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. ^V 
 
 plete. On the 16th, June 4th, the French 
 became masters of the suburbs of St. George, 
 and fixed then- head-quarters at La Favorite ; 
 the grenadiers with a running fire, were ad- 
 vancing on the causeway, and even forming 
 themselves into a cohtmn with the intention 
 of taking Mantua by assauk ; when the bat- 
 teries which hned the ramparts were shewn to 
 them : " At Lodi," said they, " there were 
 many more." But the circumstances being 
 dissimilar, they were ordered to return. 
 
 General Augereau at break of day left Cas- 
 tiglione Mantovano. After he had crossed 
 the Mincio beyond the lake, he advanced tO" 
 wards the suburb of Cheriale, carried the in- 
 trenchments, the tower, and forced the ene- 
 my to retreat within the walls of Mantua. A 
 drummer, aged twelve years, singularly dis* 
 tinguished himself ; during the hottest of the 
 firing he climbed over the top of the tower to 
 open its gate. 
 
 At San Georgio is a convent of nuns ; be- 
 ing much exposed they abandoned their re- 
 treat, and some of the French soldiers post- 
 ed themselves in it : no sooner had they 
 passed the threshold, than the sound of 
 groans struck their ears ; they flew to an in- 
 ner yard, and bursting open the door of a dis^ 
 mal cell, found a young lady seated on a decay- 
 ed chair, whose arms were bound with iron 
 chains ; the affrighted girl begged for life, and 
 her irons were immediately removed. She 
 appeared to be about twenty-two years old, 
 
4^ THE HISTORY OF 
 
 and had been in that shuation four years, for 
 no other reason than because, that in a coun- 
 try, the seat of love, and in the years of ex- 
 quisite sensibiUty, she had attempted to es- 
 cape, and obey the tender impulses of her 
 heart. The grenadiers took the best care of 
 her, and she expressed much predilection for 
 the French. She had been handsome, and 
 to melancholy, the consequence of her mis- 
 fortunes, she united the vivacity of the cli- 
 matCi On the entrance of any person into 
 her cell, she appeared anxious and troubled : 
 this was found to arise from the dread of see- 
 ing her former tyrants again. She intreated 
 for God's sake to let her breath the fresh air; 
 and when told that showers of case-shot fell 
 around her dwelling, " Ah .'" she replied, 
 *' to remain here is to me worse than death.'" 
 
 Determined to carry the war into the Ty- 
 rol, Bonaparte preceded his march by a pro- 
 clamation:.... 
 
 BONAPARTE, TO THE INHABITANTS OF THE 
 TYROL. 
 
 Head-Quarters Torlona, 26 Prairial^ June fourteenth. 
 « I am about passing through your territories, brave Tyro- 
 lians, to force the court of Vienna to a peace, as necessary to 
 Europe, as to its OAvn subjects. It is your own proper cause for 
 whichi am going to contend. How long have you suffered the 
 fatigues and horrors of a war, undertaken not for the interests 
 of the German people, but to glut the passions of a single 
 family. 
 
 ■ « The French army respects every people, but particularly 
 ;the.siraple and virtuous inhabitants of the mountains. Your 
 religion and customs shall ever be respected. Our troops 
 
NAPGLEON BONAPARTE. 49 
 
 shall maintain the strictest discipline, and nothing will be 
 taken in the countiy, without being paid for in specie. You 
 will receive us hospitably, and we will treat you with fraterni- 
 ty and friendship. 
 
 " But if there he any among you so lost to their true interests 
 as to take up arms, and receive us as enemies, to them we shall 
 be dreadful as the fire of heaven ; we shall burn the houses, 
 and lay vi^aste the country and villages of those who may take 
 an active part in a war that concerns them not. 
 
 " Beware of the agents of Austria, do not suffer them to 
 lead you into error. Preserve your country, already afflicted 
 by a five years war, from the woes which threaten it. The ca^ 
 binet of Austria will be forced, by a peace, to return to the 
 people the privileges which it has usurped, and to Europe 
 the tranquillity which it has disturbed." 
 
 New troubles arose in the Imperial fiefs in 
 the neighbourhood of Genoa, Tuscany and 
 Piedmont: Bonaparte's communication with 
 the former place was threatened to be cut off, 
 his convoys were attacked, his couriers mur- 
 dered, and the French detachments slain in 
 every part of the country. General Lasnes 
 entered these dominions with 1,200 men, ap- 
 prehended and shot the chiefs in the revolt, 
 burnt their houses, and destroyed the domain 
 of Arquata, whose owner had particularly 
 distinguished himself in exciting the commo- 
 tion. 
 
 In the mean time a column of the French 
 army marched towards the lake of Coma, 
 took the fort of Fuentes, and instantaneously 
 demolished it. 
 
 G 
 
S6 tHE HISTORt OF 
 
 General Augereau with his division, pass- 
 ed the Fo on the 28th of Prairial, Jnne six- 
 teenth, and arrived at Bologna Messidor 1st, 
 June nineteenth, in which town they captur- 
 ed 400 of the Pope's soldiers. 
 
 Bonaparte left Tortona Prairial 29th, June 
 seventeenth, reached Modena Messidor 1st, 
 nineteenth, ordered the garrison of the castle 
 of Urbino, 300 men to surrender, and canti- 
 Bued his route to Bologna. 
 
 A division of the French army marched 
 immediately towards Ferrara and Faenza, 
 which submitted to it and insured the eon- 
 quest af Romagna. 
 
 General Vaubois proceeded from Reggio, 
 and on the 8th of Messidor, June twenty- 
 sixth, arrived at Pistoie ; general Murat soon 
 followed, at the head of the advanced guard, 
 and passed the Arno at Fucechio ; on the 
 10th, twenty-eighth, instead of continuing 
 his progress towards Sienna, to which it was 
 generally understood he was ordered, he sud- 
 denly changed his route and took the roadta 
 Leghorn. Bonaparte quitted Pistoie the 
 same day, and commenced his march to join 
 that column. All the property of any power 
 with which France was at war, was seized, 
 and a strong garrison stationed in that city. 
 Bonaparte left it the next day, rested at Flo- 
 rence, and dined with the grand duke of 
 Tuscany, accompanied by Berthier, and hav- 
 ing with him part of his head guards. 
 
 In Romagna, a spirit of insurrection was 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 51 
 
 discovered, and Bonaparte feeling it necessa- 
 ry at once to repress it, on the 18th, July- 
 sixth, directed that Lugo, which v/as notiii- 
 ed as the head-quarters of the disaffected, 
 should be subdued. The insurgents would 
 listen to no terms, upon which general Auge- 
 reau attacked that town, and although the am- 
 bassador from Spain interposed, the spirit of 
 the people could not be calmed. After a 
 combat of three hours, in which the rebels 
 lost a thousand men, and the French two 
 hundred, the troops entered the town, pil- 
 laged it of every thing valuable, and sold the 
 booty at auction in the market place. 
 
 Whilst these events v/ere passing in Italy, 
 general Beaulieu had been recalled by the 
 Austrian government, all the troops in Carin- 
 thia and Styria had been sent by forced march- 
 es into the Tyrol, and general Wurmser 
 was ordered to take 30,000 choice men from 
 the Rhine, and assume the command of this 
 ntw Italian army These levies combined 
 formed a body of 60,000 men. 
 
 After the battle of Borghetto, a few unim- 
 portant skirmishes took place, which tend- 
 ed only to secure to the French the preponde- 
 rance which they had already obtained. 
 
 The siege of Mantua was continued ; on 
 the 28th July, sixteenth, early in the morn- 
 ing, 1,500 men from the garrison on one 
 side, and 300 on the other, sallied out with 
 the design of destroying the French batte- 
 
St ' THE HISTORY OF 
 
 ries, but after a skirmish of two hours they 
 were forced to return unsuccessful. On the 
 SOth, eighteenth, about midnight, a fierce 
 attack was made upon the town by the be- 
 siegers, which burnt many buildings ; and in 
 the morning the garrison rushed upon the 
 camp before the town with great vigour, but 
 the French bayonets resisted the shock and 
 disconcerted alt their designs. 
 
 At this juncture Bonaparte having finished 
 the construction of the trenches, and the bat- 
 teries being nearly ready to begin operations, 
 demanded the surrender of the city, which 
 was peremptorily refiised. 
 
 On the 1 1th Thermidor, twenty-ninth of Ju- 
 ly, general Wurmser began his march against 
 the French. He divided his army into three 
 bodies. The right wing directed its course 
 to Salo and Brescia ; the left towards the Po, 
 whilst the centre advanced to the Mincio, to 
 attack the front of the French army between 
 Mantua and Peschiera. 
 
 The former forced the posts of Salo and 
 Brescia ; the centre took Corona, obliged the 
 French to evacuate Verona, and conquering 
 all the French posts upon the Adige, drove 
 them back as far as the Mincio. Bonaparte, 
 at this crisis, was very nearly surrounded by 
 the enemy; he therefore on the 12th, thirti- 
 eth, raised the siege of Mantua, leaving be- 
 hind him 134 pieces of cannon and 140,000 
 shells and balls. During the same night he 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 
 
 marched his troops to regain the positions 
 from which the Austrians had expelled them. 
 
 A continued series of actions now took 
 place. On the 13th, thirty-first, Lonado was 
 re-taken : the next day Augereau entered 
 Brescia, and found all the magazines just as 
 the French had left them. On the 16 th, third 
 of August, there was a general battle, includ- 
 ing the attack and defence of Salo, Lonado 
 and Castiglione, which ended in the complete 
 defeat of the Austrians ; their loss consisted 
 of 3,000 men killed and wounded, and 4,000 
 prisoners. 
 
 On the 17th a skirmish took place between 
 general Dallemagne and the Austrians with- 
 out much advantage to either of the armies. 
 
 General Wurmser having collected all his 
 force, ranged his troops in order of bat- 
 tle, in the plain between Scanello and Chiu- 
 sa. Bonaparte also ordered all his columns 
 to re-unite, and repaired to Lonado with 
 1,200 men, to review his troops and to choose 
 those whom he thought most suitable for the 
 arduous duty before them. He had scarcely 
 entered the town when he received a mes- 
 sage summoning its commander to sur- 
 render, and representing that it would be fol- 
 ly to resist, as the place was on all sides sur- 
 rounded, and that the great disparity of num- 
 bers would render all resistance ineffectual. 
 Bonaparte directed the herald to be introduc- 
 ed into his presence. " Go tell your gene- 
 ^' ral," said Bonaparte, " that if he be desi- 
 
THE HISTORY OF 
 
 " rous to insult the French army, I am here, 
 " and he shall not do it with impunity : iii- 
 " form him that I know he commands one 
 " only of the shattered columns which our 
 " troops cut off from his army ; that if he dis- 
 " charge a single shot, and if his column do 
 " not lay down their arms in eight minutes 
 " after receiving this message, I will not give 
 " one man of them any quarter. Unbind 
 " the eyes of this gentleman, let him see 
 " the person who is speaking to him ; let him 
 " behold general Bonaparte : there ! tell 
 " your general what a prize he may make ! 
 " Begone sir, begone!" The Austrian gene- 
 ral desired to be heard, and propased a capi- 
 tulation. " No," rejoins Bonaparte, " you 
 are all prisoners of war." The Austrians 
 began to hold a consultation : Bonaparte or- 
 dered the light artillery to advance with the 
 grenadiers, and to begin the attack : upon 
 which the Austrian general exclaimed, " We 
 surrender!" This corps consisted of 4,000 
 men, and 50 Heulans, who with their artille- 
 ry and colours were captured by the French. 
 
 The French continued their march during 
 the night, and on the 18 th, fifth, at day- 
 break, saw the Austrians, whose line was de- 
 fended by a large train of artillery. The 
 French commenced the attack, and general 
 Serrurier having proceeded tov/ards Castigli- 
 one, and charged them in the rear, the Aus- 
 trians retreated to the Mincio, leaving behind 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE, 55 
 
 them 800 prisoners, 18 pieces of cannon, be- 
 sides 120 ammunition waggons. 
 
 On the 19th, sixth, the French entered 
 Mincio, and Massena passed with his divisi- 
 on to Peschiera, where the Austrians were 
 encamped, attacked them in their intrench- 
 ments, forced them to fly, and took from them 
 12 pieces of cannon with 700 prisoners. 
 
 These various movements compelled the 
 Austrians to raise the siege of Peschiera, 
 and to quit their position on the Mincio. On 
 the 20th, seventh, general Serrurier march- 
 ed to Verona, which the van-guard of the 
 Austrians still held ; the gates were shut, 
 and the draw-bridges lifted ; the town v/as 
 summoned to admit the French troops, which 
 the governor peremptorily refused. The 
 gates were now bombarded, and the French 
 entered, capturing several hundred prisoners^ 
 and a considerable quantity of baggage. 
 
 This affair enabled the French to resume 
 all their old positions. 
 
 During these operations, general Wurmser 
 assisted Mantua with a large supply of am- 
 munition and provisions. The whole loss of 
 the Austrians on these five days, amounted, 
 according to the account of Bonaparte, to 70 
 pieces of cannon, all their covered waggons, 
 from 12 to 15,000 prisoners, and 6,000 killed 
 or wounded. General Wurmser's account, 
 transmitted to the Aulic council of war, al- 
 lowed his loss to have been upwards of 17,000 
 tnen, iticluding 391 officers. 
 
56 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 In the course of this short expedition Bo- 
 naparte was exposed to great danger. The 
 ofiacer who commanded the Austrian flotilla 
 on the lake of Garda, having on the 13th of 
 Thermidor, July thirty-first, defeated that of 
 the French, disembarked his troops in the pe- 
 ninsula of Cermione, and placed them in am- 
 buscade on the road from Brescia to Pes- 
 chiera. His soldiers had orders not to fire, 
 and to stop no persons but such as might seem 
 to be of consequence. In the evening, Bo- 
 naparte and Berthier, with their staff, re-^ 
 turning from Brescia, ^passed along that road, 
 preceded by three hussars. The Croats who 
 were in ambuscade, hearing some cavalry 
 arrive at a quick rate, sprung on the high 
 road, and fired on the three hussars. Two 
 of them were killed, but the third having 
 been missed, he turned his horse and cried 
 out, " General, save yourself:" the whole 
 party galloped off and escaped all the shots 
 which were fired at them. 
 
 Not long after he was within two minutes 
 of being captured by the Austrian hussars, 
 at Goito. 
 
 The Austrians still occupied Corona and 
 Montebaldo, upon which Bonaparte ordered 
 Massena to march thither, who carried these 
 two posts and Preabolo on the 24th, August 
 eleventh. General St. Hilaire the next day 
 attacked the posts of Roque and Anfonce, and 
 after a slight skirmish at Lodron, took 1,100 
 prisoners and 6 pieces of cannon, with baggage* 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 57 
 
 General Wurmser having burnt his vessels 
 on the lake of Garda, and evacuated Riva, 
 fixed his head-quarters on the 2d of Fructi- 
 dor, August nineteenth, two leagues above 
 the Trent. On the 7th, tVv^enty-fourth, ge- 
 neral Sahaguet re-commenced the blockade 
 of Mantua, and attacked the bridges of Go- 
 vernolo and Borgafort, of which he gained 
 possession. 
 
 Bonaparte, according to his custom, is- 
 sued a proclamation previous to his entrance 
 into the Tyrol : 
 BONAPARTE TO THE INHABITANTS OF THE 
 TYROL. 
 *^ Head-Quarters, Brescia^ IS jFructidor, August thirtieth. 
 ".You solicit the protection of the French array. If you 
 expect that protection you must shew yourselves worthy 
 of it. Since the majority are well disposed, compel the few 
 mal-contents who are among you to be peaceable. Their out- 
 rageous conduct has a tendency to bring upon their native 
 country all the calamities of war. 
 
 " The superiority of the French arms is now manifest. The 
 Emperor's ministers, bought by English gold, betray their 
 country. That unfortunate prince commits an error in every 
 measure which he adopts, 
 
 *' You wish for peace ? The French are fighting for that ob- 
 ject. We march into your territory for the express purpose 
 of ^obliging the court of Vienna to accede to the prayer of de- 
 solated Europe, and to listen to the intreaties of the people.... 
 We come not here with a view of extending our dominions. 
 Nature has pointed out the limits of France by the intersection 
 of the Alps and the Rhine ; in the same manner she has placed 
 the Tyrol as a line of demarcation for the house of Austria, 
 
 H 
 
5B THE HISTORY OF 
 
 " Tyrolians ! whatever your past conduct may have been, 
 return to your habitations ! abandon the colours which have 
 been so often disgraced, and which you are unable to defend. 
 
 " The conquerors of the Alps and Italy are now opposed 
 to an host of enemies. They are in pursuit of a few victims, 
 whom the generosity of my country commands me to spare. 
 
 « We are formidable in battle, but we are the friends of 
 those who give us an hospitable reception. 
 
 " The religion, the customs, and the property of the com- 
 munes which submit, shall be respected* 
 
 " The communes Avhose Tyrolian inhabitants have not re* 
 turned on our arrival, shall be burnt ; the inhabitants seized as 
 hostages and sent to France. 
 
 « When a commune has stibmitted, the syndics shall be 
 bound to deUver, in one hour after, a list of the inhabitants 
 who are in the pay of the Emperor ; and if they should side 
 with the Austrians, their houses shall be immediately burnt? 
 and their relations arrested and sent to France. 
 
 " The Tyrolians who shall co-operate with the enemy, and 
 be taken vrith arms in their hands, shall be instantly shot. 
 
 " The generals of division are charged with the strictest ex- 
 ecution of this arret. 
 
 « BONAPARTE." 
 
 Bonaparte, who had been at Milan for se- 
 veral days, returned on the 15th, September 
 first, to Verona, where he found that gene- 
 ral Wurmser had stationed two-thirds of his 
 army at Bassano, and the other third at Alia. 
 In consequence of this intelligence, he or- 
 dered general Vaubois, on the 14th, second, 
 to join a part of his division which had em- 
 barked at Salo ; general Massena to march to- 
 wards Alia, and general Augereau repaired 
 to the heights between Zugo and Rovera. 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. S« 
 
 General Masse aa's advanced guard charg- 
 ed that of theAustrians at Alia, on the 17th, 
 third, and routed them. The latter were 
 posted at Marco, and seemed disposed to make 
 a vigorous resistance. His instructions en- 
 joined him to arrive before Serravalle on the 
 18 th, fourth, but he anticipated his orders 5 
 general Pigeon, with the light infantry, at- 
 tacked and forced the village in the night of 
 the 17th, third. The next morning early, 
 Massena begun the attack at Marco, and be^ 
 ing supported by Vaubois at Mori, the Aus- 
 trians after a few hours combat, retreated 
 from their files and intrenchments, and fled 
 in every direction. General Dubois pursu- 
 ed the Austrians, and decided the day, but 
 received three balls which occasioned his 
 death. One of his aides-de-camp fell at his 
 side. Bonaparte hastened to the gener.al as 
 he was expiring, who looking at hiiifi, ad.- 
 dressed him with great compostiire, *' I die 
 " for the republic, and glory in my death : Is 
 " our victory complete?"...*' It is," replied 
 Bonaparte. " My last moments are then my 
 '' sweetest," added the dying hero : " Success 
 " to our arms." 
 
 The Austrians retired to Roveredo, where 
 general Wurmser had established a formida- 
 ble line of defence, the centre of his army was 
 supported by the castle of CoUiano, his left 
 was strengthened by a steep mountain, and his 
 right by the Adige. The French troops had 
 been fighting and marching the whole of the 
 
60 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 three days before, yet this position could in 
 so short a time have been rendered impregna- 
 ble, that Bonaparte thought it most prudent 
 to try the event of an action immediately. 
 Orders being given, the soldiers were instant- 
 ly formed into columns, and general Dammar- 
 tin commenced the engagement with 8 pieces 
 of light artillery, whilst the grenadiers penetrat- 
 ed to the intrenchments and cut down the bar- 
 riers with their hatchets. On this the Austrians 
 began their retreat, and being pursued by the 
 cavalry, the victory was perfect.... 5,000 pri- 
 soners, 25 pieces of cannon, an immense 
 quantity of cartridges, and other supplies fell 
 into the hands of the French. 
 
 General Vaubois the same night joined 
 JViassena, v/ho resumed the pursuit of the 
 Austrians, and entered Trent on the 19th, 
 fifth. Soon after their junction, Bonaparte 
 directed the post of Lavls to be attacked, 
 from which after an obstinate contest, the 
 Austrians were dislodged with the loss of 400 
 men prisoners. 
 
 The Austrians after the battle of Rovere- 
 do, intrenched themselves in the village of 
 Priemolan, their left covered by Brenta, and 
 their right by some mountains in the vicinity. 
 General Augereau, on the morning of the 
 21st, seventh, appeared before the Austrians, 
 and after a severe conflict succeeded in driv- 
 ing them from the village. The latter, how- 
 ever, rallied again at the fort of Covelo, and 
 made a formidable opposition to the progress 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 61 
 
 of the French division. Bat the attack was 
 so well supported, and a body of French 
 troops, covered by the incessant fire of some 
 artillery, having attained the heights on the 
 right of the Austrians, their resistance be- 
 came ineffectual. The post was at length 
 abandoned, and a detachment sent by Auge- 
 reau having reached the head of the column, 
 the whole were obliged to surrender. 4,000 
 prisoners, 10 pieces of cannon, 15 waggons, 
 and several stands of colours were obtained 
 by the French in this battle. 
 
 On the day following the French and Austri- 
 ans met at the opening of the defiles of Bren- 
 ta, and near the villafje of Solagna : the head- 
 quarters of the latter remained at Bassano. 
 At 7 o'clock the action commenced; the 
 strength of the position which the Austrians 
 held, and the animation with which the pre- 
 sence of their generals inspired them, resist- 
 ed the impetuosity of the troops under the 
 command of Massena and Augereau for a 
 considerable time ; but their bravery eventu- 
 ally overcame every obstacle, the Austrians 
 were routed, and the French continued their 
 march to Bassano; having entered the village 
 in two different quarters, and captured the 
 division which defended the bridge, they 
 forced their way through it, although imped- 
 ed by a large body of Austrian grenadiers 
 who opposed their progress with fixed bayo- 
 nets. The Austrian army lost upon this oc- 
 casion 5,000 prisoners, 25 pieces of cannon, 
 
62 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 and a large quantity of baggage. The gene- 
 ral himself, and the army treasure, with dif- 
 ficulty escaped. 
 
 General Wurmser compelled to retreat from 
 Bassano, hastened to Montebello, where he 
 joined a division of his army consisting of 
 4,500 cavalry and 5,000 infantry; in his 
 march towards Mantua he attacked general 
 Kilmain, who was stationed at Verona, but 
 without success ; for during forty-eight hours 
 he opened a well-directed fire upon theAustri- 
 ans, and repelled all their attempts to force 
 his quarters. The 23d, ninth, at night, ge- 
 neral Wurmser began his march along the 
 banks of the Adige, and crossed it at Porto 
 Legnago. Hence it appearing evident that 
 the obj ect of the Austrian general was to se- 
 cure his retreat to Mantua, Bonaparte direct- 
 ed general Massena towards Porto Legnago, 
 and Sahuguet to Castellano, to destroy all the 
 bridges upon the Malinella. 
 
 The various movements made by Bona^- 
 parte to cut off the retreat of general Wurm- 
 ser, were nevertheless, from the rapidity of the 
 latter's progress, unsuccessful. The French 
 who had made themselves masters of the 
 bridge of Cerea, were obliged to retire from 
 it with some loss, which opened a free passage 
 to the Austrians, who on the 26thj twelfth, 
 captured a body of several hundred French 
 light-horsemen near Castellano, and continu-i 
 ed their route. 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 63 
 
 Whilst these transactions employed the ma- 
 jor part of the army, general Augereau with 
 his division arrived on the 26th, twelfth, be- 
 fore Porto Legnago, and immediately invest- 
 ed it. The garrison speedily surrendered 
 themselves prisoners of war, with 22 pieces 
 of cannon. In the town they found and re- 
 leased the cavalry who had been captured at 
 Castellano. General Massena left Castellano 
 early in the morning of the 28 th, fourteenth, 
 and marched towards Mantua, with the in- 
 tention of obtaining possession of the suburbs 
 of St. George. A skirmish commenced 
 about noon, which was attended with no other 
 advantage than the confinement of the Austri- 
 ans to narrower limits. 
 
 General Wurmser arrived utider the walls 
 of Mantua on the 26th, twelfth, with about 
 10,000 men, the remainder of an army which 
 not more than six weeks before formed the 
 finest body of Austrian troops that ever left 
 Germany. The reverses which the Austrians 
 experienced were not owing to want of brave- 
 ry, or to want of ability in their leader, for 
 all his conduct manifested his address, the 
 courage of the soldier, and the skill of the 
 general ; his constancy, patience and intrepi- 
 dity in this short but memorable campaign, 
 acquired a lasting glory, which will attach to 
 his name as long as the memory of his extra- 
 ordinary opponent shall survive the lapse of 
 time, and form an era in the historic page. The 
 destruction of that army may be traced to the 
 
64 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 separation of the Austrian generals ; Bona- 
 parte knew that his force, was vastly inferior 
 to that of the Austrians, he therefore entirely 
 dispersed or captured the third part under 
 general Q,uosdanovich, before general Wurm- 
 ser could assist him : and the energy which 
 his own army acquired, added to the anxiety 
 which their enemies must have felt, contri- 
 buted in no small degree to his astonishing 
 success. 
 
 The greater part of the garrison of Man- 
 tua sallied out on the morning of the 27th to 
 protect La Favorite and St. George, whilst 
 they endeavoured to procure food for their 
 horses. Bonaparte directed his generals to 
 endeavour to cut off all communication be- 
 tween the two forts, and between La Favorite 
 and the citadel : these corps having begun 
 the attack, the centre and left of the Austri- 
 ans were charged, and the combat sustained 
 with great spirit ; but the ardour of the French 
 overturned all opposition, St. George was 
 captured, and the Austrians retired into the 
 city, having left behind them 2,000 prison- 
 ers, and about 1,000 killed or wounded, 25 
 pieces of cannon and some baggage. 
 
 A corps of Austrians advanced from Man- 
 tua towards Governolo, on the 2d Vendemi- 
 aire, September twenty-thirdj but the French 
 were so active, that after a smart skirmish, 
 1,100 of them were made prisoners, with 5 
 pieces of cannon. The blockade of Mantua 
 was completed on the 8th, twenty-ninth, and 
 
 m 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 65 
 
 the combats between the garrison and the be- 
 siegers were incessant. 
 
 Marmont, an officer of distinguished me- 
 rit, and aid-de-camp to Bonaparte, was sent 
 by him at this period to Paris with twenty- 
 two stands of colours which had been taken 
 from the Austrian s ; trophies which had re- 
 cently conferred glory on the army of Italy. 
 He was presented to th€ directory on the 10th 
 of Vendemiaire, October first, by the minis- 
 ter of war, amidst the acclamations of a mul- 
 titude of citizens, whom the ceremony had 
 gathered together from every part of the re- 
 public. 
 
 The following address was pronounced by 
 the minister of war : 
 
 " Citizens Directors, 
 
 <* The army of Italy, always victorious, always triumphant, 
 present you additional trophies of their ascendency over the 
 enemy. 
 
 « The enemy, though conquered at Castiglione, were, by 
 the accession of reinforcements, enabled to prepare another at- 
 tack, and looked forward with the hope of repairing their loss- 
 Tes ; but they were awaited by our army, grown familiar with 
 victory, and the battle of Saint-George completed their de- 
 struction. 
 
 " Posterity will scarcely give cfedit to the historian who 
 shall inform them that the entire conquest of Italy was effected 
 in one single campaign by the army of the French republic : 
 that three armies of the enemy were successively destroyed ; 
 that more than fifty stands of colours were taken from them by 
 the conquerors ; that forty thousand Austrians laid down pas- 
 sively their arms ; and finally, Uiat fifty thousand French, 
 
 I 
 
66 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 under a warrior whose age did not exceed twenty-five years, 
 atchieved all these glories. 
 
 " The army of Italy has no more triumphs to obtain ; our 
 troops have run their career, and a noble one it has been. May 
 their success, therefore, be transplanted to the armies of the 
 Rhine ; and may the enemy, whom temporary advantages can 
 elate, learn that the soldiers of the republic are every where 
 the same, and that combating for liberty, nothing can resist 
 their impetuosity." 
 
 Marmont then rose and delivered the fol- 
 lowing : 
 
 « Citizens Directors, 
 
 « Though the army of Italy have conquered the finest 
 country in Europe, they have not done enough for France 
 and their own glory. It yet remains for their warlike pha- 
 lanxes to crush every enemy that shall take the field against 
 them, before they yield themselves to the blessings of peace 
 and repose. 
 
 « No sooner was an expedition projected, than the courage 
 and perseverance of our troops, joined to their implicit confi- 
 dence in the talents of the general in chief, promised always 
 success. The army began its march ; every obstacle was sur- 
 mounted, every enemy overthrown, and difficulties vanished 
 at their touch. The French, for the first time since their ex- 
 istence as a nation, arrived at the source of the Brenta, and pe- 
 netrated into the city of Trent ; thence changing suddenly their 
 direction, they reached like a flash of lightning the rear-ranks 
 of the Austrian army, and Bonaparte, their general, forced 
 Wurmser to battle with the thunder of his artillery. 
 
 « An army fighting for liberty bears down all resistance. 
 The Austrians were defeated, and those who escaped the fu- 
 ry of the French, threw themselves into Mantua, as their last 
 resource. The concurrence of a few favourable circumstances, 
 induced the Austrians once more to hazard a battle with their 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 67 
 
 enemy. The two armies engaged ; but the covu-age of our 
 troops conspired with their exquisite discipline to give them 
 their usual ascendency ; the Austrians were driven back into 
 Mantua ; some were slain, some wounded, and some taken pri- 
 soners. 
 
 " Hence Wurmser, who sought an asylum in Mantua for the 
 wreck of his army, and cherished the hope of being enabled 
 to prolong its defence, found his expectations destroyed and 
 his designs frustrated. 
 
 " The twenty-two stands of colour^ which I have now the ho- 
 nour to present you Citizens Directors, are the illustrious mo- 
 numents of the glory of my brethren in arms. They are the 
 fruits of only fourteen days combat ; of the battles fought at 
 Serravalle, Lavis, and the defiles of Brenta ; of our conquests 
 at Roveredo, Bassano and fort Saint-George. 
 
 " The army of Italy, during this brilliant campaign, have 
 destroyed two armies, made forty-seven thousand prisoners, 
 captured two hundred and eighty pieces of cannon, and taken 
 forty -nine stands of colours. These atchievements. Citizens 
 Directors, are testimonies of our attachment to liberty and the 
 republic ; performed by men who know their duty to their 
 country, and who are not less zealous to obey than defend its 
 noble laws. Consider the columns of our army the bulwarks 
 of your liberty, of that liberty which expands every heart to 
 gladness, and brightens every countenance into smiles. 
 
 " I have also the honour to present you two stands of colours 
 which we took from the troops of the Pope. We know that 
 little honour is annexed to a victory over a man who was bred 
 in the bosom of the church, and not in the camp ; but these 
 colours will serve to testify the vigilance of the army of Italy, 
 and the extent of their conquests." 
 
 Revelliere-Lepaux, president of the direc- 
 tory, replied with great animation to the fore- 
 going address : 
 
68 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 " With a rapidity never yet equalled, the army of Italy flies- 
 from triumph to triumph, from glory to glory. Every day i& 
 distinguished by some brilliant success, every day brings nevr 
 honours to the arms of the French, 
 
 " Such heroic deeds, such mighty conquests, have rendered 
 our soldiers' not less dear to the friends of humanity than to the 
 lovers of glory ; for their victories, while they reflect honour 
 upon the arms of France, will compel the enemy to sue for 
 peace. 
 
 " Let therefore our thanks be distribu'^ed to the brave army 
 of Italy, and to the superior genius who directs it. The Ex- 
 ecutive Directory, in the name of the French republic, receive 
 with the most lively satisfaction the trophies which you pre- 
 sent them, and charge you to deliver to your brave brethrea 
 in arms, the acknowledgements of the nation. 
 
 " And you, youthful warrior, whose courage the general 
 has often dwelt upon with energy, receive these arms (Mar- 
 mont was presented with a brace of pistols) as a mark of the 
 esteem of the Directory, and forget not that it is as glorious 
 to use them in the defence of the republican constitution, as ta 
 meet the enemy with them in the field : for the maintenance 
 of the laws is not less necessary to the happiness of the re- 
 public than the splendour of victory.'* 
 
 A variety of disorders had existed in Italy 
 during the summer. General Wurmser's ar- 
 rival, and his momentary success, had em- 
 boldened those who were enemies to the 
 French, to commit great depredations, and to 
 murder all whom they could overcome. 
 Bonaparte having now nothing to fear 
 from the Austrians, immediately applied a 
 remedy to these irregularities, and by the ac- 
 tivity of general Gaunier soon dispersed all. 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 69 
 
 those who were engaged in them, and pre- 
 vented the forming any regular and exten- 
 sive insurrections. 
 
 The anniversary of the foundation of the 
 French repubhc was celebrated in Milan, 
 with great pomp. Bonaparte and his lady 
 were present to dignify the solemnity, and to 
 enjoy the satisfaction which the esteem of the 
 citizens imparted. 
 
 In the month of June two armistices had 
 been concluded between the French republic 
 and the king of Naples, and the Pope.... the 
 former was changed into a treaty of peace, 
 whilst the latter was destroyed. The advan- 
 tages which the French acquired by this trea- 
 ty were immediately very great, as it divest- 
 ed them of all fear of a prince who could 
 have marched a powerful army to the sup- 
 port of the Austrians. The Pope rejected 
 the terms of peace offered to him, and there- 
 by exposed himself to all the difficulties 
 which some time after he experienced. 
 
 Bonaparte, who shines as a politician and 
 legislator, equally as a warrior, had, whilst 
 Mantua was blockaded, and after general 
 Wurmser had shut himself up in that city, 
 been employed in organizing the Italian re- 
 publics. The revolutionary spirit had disse- 
 minated itself throughout Italy, and from the 
 Austrian territories of Lombardy, and the 
 Milanese, the duchy of Modena, &c. were 
 formed the Cispadane and Transpadane re- 
 publics. The emperor of Germany agitated 
 
70 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 by this loss, and affected at the fate of the 
 brave but unfortunate general Wurmser, de- 
 termined to make another attempt to recover 
 his possessions, and to liberate the garrison 
 of Mantua. The regiments which had suf- 
 fered so much by the last short contest were 
 filled up, and 25,000 fresh troops joined with 
 them. 
 
 This new army, which began to move on 
 the 31st of October, was commanded by ge- 
 neral Aivinzy, who with 30,000 men directed 
 his course towards Bassano, whilst general 
 Davidovich with 20,000 men, proceeded to 
 Trent. 
 
 Bonaparte's forces were distributed at this 
 time in the following manner : 15,000 men 
 were cantoned on the banks of the Brenta ; 
 10,000 defended Trent ; and 25,000 block- 
 aded Mantua. The whole of Bonaparte's 
 army consisted of 50,000 men, whilst that of 
 the Austrians, if we include the garrison of 
 Mantua, exceeded 70,000, the greater part of 
 whom were but lately arrived from Germany, 
 and had not been fatigued by service. 
 
 Bonaparte when he began his retrograde 
 march in pursuit of general Wurmser, had 
 stationed one corps of troops in the Trenti- 
 no, and another in Frioul, to observe and 
 check the Austrians in those districts. On 
 the 20th Vendemiaire, October 11, a party 
 of Austrians tried to establish themselves at 
 Castei-Franco, but they were repulsed by the 
 French, and forced to resume their old posi- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. ri 
 
 tion beyond the Piave. General Alvinzy arri- 
 ved on the banks of the Brentaon the 13th of 
 Brumaire, November third, gained the pas- 
 sage of the river, and took his station at 
 Bassano with 12,000 men ; 12,000 were plac- 
 ed at Fonteniva under general Provera, and 
 the rest maintained the communication with 
 general Davidovich, part of whose army had 
 been attacked by the French the day before, 
 at St. Michael and Segonzano, had lost 1,500 
 men, although the resistance which they 
 made and the spirit with which they main- 
 tained their situation was a considerable de- 
 triment to general Massena's division. 
 
 Bonaparte having united the divisions of 
 Massena and Augereau, appeared in sight of 
 the Austrians, who under general Provera 
 had passed the Brenta. The armies fought 
 with the greatest animosity, the combat was 
 doubtful for a long time, and exceedingly 
 sanguinary. The Austrians lost 4,000 kill- 
 ed and 500 prisoners, that of the French 
 must have been very great ; their object was 
 however obtained, the former repassed the 
 Brenta, and the bridge at Fonteniva was de- 
 stroyed. 
 
 The two armies being posted in sight of 
 each other, on the 22d, November twelfth, the 
 French attacked the Austrians, and drove 
 them from the village of Caldero, after a very 
 severe conflict ; but the Austrians regained 
 the heights a om which Massena had dislodg- 
 ed them, ana a violent storm of hail, which 
 
72 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 blew in the faces of the French army, finish- 
 ed the day, both armies remaining in their 
 positions. Whilst these events occurred, the 
 division under general Vaubois had been as- 
 sailed by general Davidovich, and obliged to 
 retreat with considerable loss ; this action 
 enabled the Austrians to recover Trent. Pur- 
 suing his advantage, general Davidovich con- 
 tinued his march, and the French general 
 gave way until he was reinforced ; upon which 
 Bonaparte directed him to Castel-Nuovo. 
 
 General Alvinzi was hastening to Verona 
 to join the divisions of his army in the Tyrol, 
 when Bonaparte crossed the Adige, with the 
 hope of being able to capture the Austrian ar- 
 tillery and baggage, and by attacking them in 
 their flank and rear, at once to disperse the 
 army, and to destroy the communication be- 
 tween the Austrian generals. Before the 
 dawn of day on the 25th, fifteenth, the two 
 divisions of Massena and Augereau had 
 crossed the river, and continued their march 
 over the marshes which presented on every 
 side obstacles almost insurmountable. The- 
 Austrian general having discovered Bona- 
 parte's object, sent a regiment of Croats, and 
 several regiments of Hungarians, to, defend 
 the village of Arcole, strengthened equally 
 by nature and art, situated amidst marshes 
 and canals, and fortified by a numerous artil- 
 lery. 
 
 That village impeded the progress of the 
 French army during the whole day. The 
 
Napoleon solsrAt'ARTfe. ra 
 
 Austrians defended with invincible obstinacy 
 the dike which communicated with their po- 
 sition ; a canal which bordered the dike con- 
 tributed to its natural strength, and there 
 were no means left to drive the Austrians 
 from this post, but to pass the bridge under 
 the continual fire of all their artillery and 
 musketry. In vain did the generals place 
 themselves at the head of the French co- 
 lumns to lead them over the bridge ; they 
 Were nearly all wounded ; Verdier, Bon, 
 Verne, Lasnes, were carried from the field 
 of battle coveted with wounds ; Augereau 
 now seized a standard, and rushed to the ex- 
 tremity of the bridge, but the unceasing 
 storm of grape-shot forced him to retire. 
 Bonaparte perceiving the probability that the 
 bridge would not be passed in front, ordered 
 general Guieux, with 2,000 men, to cross the 
 Adige at Albaredo, and to attack the village 
 in rear. 
 
 But the conquest of the village was of too 
 much importance to induce Bonaparte to de- 
 sist from the attempt ; he therefore repaired 
 thither himself, with his whole staff, and ad- 
 dressing the troopS) said, " Are you the men 
 who so bravely forced the bridge of Lodi?'* 
 This excited their enthusiasm, upon which 
 he leaped from his horse, seized a standard, 
 and marched to the bridge, at the head of the 
 grenadiers, calling out " Follow your gene- 
 ral." Although they had nearly reached the 
 
 K 
 
^4 THE HISTORY OF, 
 
 .... r 
 
 bridge, yet the tremendous fire from the 
 Austrians compelled them to retreat : two 
 more of the generals were wounded, and one 
 of Bonaparte's aides-de-camp killed. Bona- 
 parte's horse was afterwards shot under him, 
 and during the day he was continually expos- 
 ed to the hottest of the fire : general Guieux's 
 division did not arrive until midnight, when 
 the Austrians were driven from the village, 
 who joined the main body of the army ; but 
 the French immediately evacuated it, and 
 prepared for the Austrians, whom they ex- 
 pected to meet the next morning in a general 
 battle. 
 
 The Austrians having understood that ge- 
 neral Guieux had withdrawn from Arcole, 
 entered it again, and at break of day appear- 
 ed there with all their collected force. 
 They commenced the attack at every point, 
 and the armies fought with inconceivable fu- 
 ry. The column under the command of ge- 
 neral Massena resisted the Austrian charge 
 with great firmness, and Augereau support- 
 ed him but without much effect ; the village 
 was not retaken. During the night a plan 
 was concerted by Bonaparte and executed.... 
 on the 27ih, seventeenth, the causeway on 
 the left was att?.cked by the division of Mas- 
 sena, the front was attempted the third time 
 by that of Augereau, and part of the garrison 
 of, Porto Legnago, with 1,500 horse, assail- 
 ed tliem in the rear. 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 5^5 
 
 The attack was made early in the morn- 
 ing ; Augereau was again repulsed, but Mas- 
 sena advancing to his succour, and the other 
 detachment making a strong diversion in their 
 favour, general Alvinzy upon the renewal of 
 the attack was forced to abandon the village 
 and its vicinity, and during the night re- 
 treated towards Vicenza ; the French pursu- 
 ing the flying Austrians and annoying their 
 retreat. 
 
 During the battle on the third day, Bona* 
 parte directed Hercules, the officer of his 
 guides, to take twenty-five chosen men from 
 his company, to pass the marshes which 
 guarded the left wing of the Austrian army, 
 and to approach their rear in full gallop, blow- 
 ing their trumpets. This artifice succeeded, 
 the Austrian infantry became confused, and 
 800 men coming upon them at this juncture, 
 perfected the defeat of the day. 
 
 Thus ended one of the most bloody com- 
 bats during the whole year. The Austrians 
 were totally discomfited, whilst the loss of 
 the French was very great ; three days inces- 
 sant fighting, in which every step of the 
 French was disputed with great valour by the 
 Austrians, manifests, as well as the number 
 of high officers in the French army slain, 
 that the battle of Arcole must have had a ve- 
 ry important influence upon the remainder of 
 the campaign. 
 
 On the night ensuing this long and dread- 
 ful battle, Bonaparte disguised himself in the 
 
76 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 dress of an inferior officer^ and traversed the 
 camp. In the course of his round, he dis- 
 covered a centinel leaning on the but-end of 
 his musket in a profound sleep. Bonaparte 
 taking the musket from under him, placed 
 his head gently on the ground, and kept 
 watch for two hours in his stead, at the end 
 of which the regular guard came to relieve 
 him. On awaking, the soldier was astonish- 
 ed at. seeing a young officer doing duty for 
 him ; but when looking more attentively he 
 recognised the commander in chief, his asto- 
 nishment was converted into terror. " The 
 general '.....Bonaparte !" he exclaimed; "I 
 am then undone." Bonaparte replied : "Not 
 so, fellow-soldier: recover yourself : after so 
 much fatigue a brave man like you may be. 
 allowed for a while to sleep, but in future 
 choose your time better." 
 
 The following extract is from a letter writ-- 
 ten by Bonaparte, dated Verona, Brumaire 
 29th, nineteenth, and will assist us in form- 
 ing a correct opinion of the terrific scenes 
 which these three days combats exhibited. 
 
 « Never was a field of battle •more obstinately contended for 
 than that of Arcole. Every step of ground was disputed. 
 I have scarcely a general left. I am deprived of my dearest 
 friends : of the sharers of my toils, and the partakers of my tri- 
 umphs. There are yet some surviving, whose worth must con. 
 sole me. General Lasnes, though not yet recovered from the 
 wounds he received at Governolo, has resumed the fatigues of 
 military duty. He was twice wounded during the first day of 
 the battle. About three in the afternoon, when extended on 
 his camp-bed fainting under the anguish of his wounds, word 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. n 
 
 was brought him that I had headed the column in person : he 
 immediately caught new life from the intelligence, and forget- 
 ting the agony of his pain, threw himself from the bed, called, 
 for his horse, mounted him with some assistance, and rode up 
 to my side through the hottest of the fight. Being yet too 
 weak to act on foot, he kept his saddle, and animated the men 
 by his presence. At the bridge of Arcole, however, he re-* 
 ceived another wound that smote him to the earth. How can 
 soldiers be otherwise than invincible when they have such gene- 
 rals as Lasnes, Augereau and Massena to lead thera on to 
 battle." 
 
 After the sanguinary day of Arcole, Bo- 
 naparte wrote the following letters from Ve^ 
 rona: 
 
 « TO GENERAL CLARKE. 
 
 « Your nephew, Elliot, was killed in the field of battle at 
 Arcole. This young man was accustomed to the din of arms. 
 Ke had often marched to the attack of places at the head of 
 columns. lie would have arrived at the highest summit of 
 military preferment. He is dead l but who would regret his 
 death, when it is told he fell fighting valiantly in the face of 
 the enemy? On the contrary, what reasonable man does not 
 envy his death ? We live in a world where the shield of recti- 
 tude cannot secure us from the envenomed shafts of calumny 
 and detraction ; in a world where there is more to be endured 
 than enjoyed ; where our comforts are, at the most, but fleet-, 
 ing and evanescent : where our best projects are often blasted 
 by the adverse gale of fortune ; where the claim to excellence 
 is disputed, and ambition construed into crime. The careeJ^ 
 pf a life exposed to such numerous vicissitudes is surely well 
 finished in the bed of honour and of glory." 
 
 "TO MADAME MUIRON. 
 " Muii-on fell at my side in the field of battle at Arcolcx 
 you have lost a man whom you called by the endearing name 
 
^8 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 of husband, and I one whom I addressed by the title of friend. 
 But our regrets are absorbed in the louder sorrows of his coun- 
 try, which has lost one of its warmest advocates, and ablest 
 defenders. If I can be of service either to you or to your 
 child, I have to entreat you will acquaint me without reserve. 
 The action of the field has not so steeled my heart, but that 
 I can sympathize with the widow, and feel for her offspring." 
 
 "TO THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTORY. 
 
 *' Citizen Muiron has served in the artillery from the com- 
 mencement of the revolution. He eminently distinguished 
 himself at the siege of Toulon, where he was wounded in storm- 
 ing an English redoubt. 
 
 " His father was at that time arrested by the government. 
 Young Muiron presented himself at the bar of the national con- 
 vention, covered with the blood that he had shed in fighting 
 for his countiy. He demanded the freedom of his father. 
 The senators, charmed with the magnanimity of the youth, 
 released, in his presence, the venerable parent. It was an 
 affecting scene. 
 
 " He obtained subsequently the command of the division of 
 artillery that guarded the convention. He resisted every se- 
 duction of his acquaintances to wean him. from the republic. 
 I asked him if the government might rely on his fidelity : 
 " Yes," said he, " I will support the republic with my heart's 
 blood. I have entered into the army, because I know it to be 
 its bulwark and defence. Whatever leader the republic ap- 
 points, I shall consider it my duty to obey. I am an enemy to 
 all counter-revolutions, and to those that would put another 
 monarch on the throne. My ancestors suffei'ed persecution 
 under kingly tyrants, and their injuries it becomes me to 
 avenge. 
 
 " Muiron invariably conducted himself tnie to his principles. 
 No man was more useful than he, in the day that brought li- 
 berty to our country. I was interested in his welfare, as he 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 70 
 
 contributed to me some very essential services in the field. 
 From the beginning of the campaign in Italy, citizen Muiron 
 acted as my aid-de-camp. He fell gloriously in the battle of 
 Arcole, and has left a widow to deplore his death, who is far 
 advanced in pregnancy." 
 
 General Davidovich, whilst the battle of 
 Arcole continued, was making progress to- 
 wards Mantua ; he, on the 27th of Brumaire, 
 seventeenth, attacked and defeated general 
 Vaubois, constrained him to retreat from the 
 heights of Rivoli ; repeated his attack on the 
 28th, eighteenth, and the French falling 
 back, he hastened towards Castelnuovo. 
 
 Bonaparte, having been informed of the 
 success which accompanied Davidovich, re- 
 solved to meet him, and on the 1st of Fri- 
 maire, twenty -first, ordered an attempt to be 
 made upon the Austrians, which was pros- 
 perous ; for after a considerable contest the 
 latter fled, leaving 1,100 prisoners, some can- 
 non and baggage. 
 
 General Wurmser, amidst these battles, 
 had attempted three sorties, but the French 
 under general Kilmaine were so strongly 
 supported, and the cannonading of the be- 
 siegers so regular, that they failed in each 
 sortie, except the procuring a small quantity 
 of provisions. 
 
 During the fifteen days which employed 
 the French and Austrian armies in this last 
 expedition, Bonaparte's skill was peculiarly 
 evident: his exertions were very great; his 
 attacks were incessant j and his time was al- 
 
m THE HISTORY OP 
 
 ways occupied in improving any advantages 
 which by the uncommon bravery of his 
 troops, he had acquired. His army was consi-^ 
 derably fewer in number than that of the 
 Austrians, yet he found means to destroy one 
 half, to disperse the remainder of them, and 
 to maintain the blockade of Mantua. 
 
 As the Venetians had been very active in 
 succouring general Alvinzy's army, Bona- 
 parte took possession of Bergame, to awe the 
 inhabitants around, and to insure the regula- 
 rity of a communication between the Adda 
 and the Adige. 
 
 The French and Austrian armies continu- 
 ed for some time, in a state of perfect inac- 
 tion. The former were engaged in the block- 
 ade of Mantua, whilst the latter were too 
 weak to effect any enterprize which could re- 
 lieve the garrison. 
 
 The Pope, in this interval, ordered a bo" 
 dy of troops to Faenza, raised them soon af- 
 ter to 20,000 men, and gave the command to 
 General Colli, late chief of the Sardinian 
 troops. 
 
 Mantua was now reduced to its last extre- 
 mity, when general Wurmser captured some 
 boats laden with provisions and ammunition 
 for the French army. This delayed the sur- 
 render, but it was apparent that it could not 
 be avoided, without some speedy relief, as 
 the garrison had then consumed the greater 
 part of their horses. 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 81 
 
 < ' " ■'■■'■■■ ■ " - 
 
 General Laudohn, with the right wing of 
 general Davidovich's army, on the 29th of 
 Frimaire, December thirteenth, began to re- 
 connoitre, and examined as far as Brescia ; 
 a body of troops was detached by general Al- 
 vinzy at the same time, towards Ferrara and 
 Bologna, to cover the Pope's territories, and 
 to induce Bonaparte to weaken his centre. 
 
 The Austrian army at the commencement 
 of the year 1797, was reinforced by a large 
 body of troops sent by the Emperor of Ger- 
 many to general Alvinzy, among whom were 
 a corps of volunteers, composed of the 
 youths of the first families in Vienna. Ge- 
 neral Wurmser on the 9th of Nivose, twenty- 
 ninth, had vigorously assailed the French 
 troops, but in vain ; he had no resource but 
 to return to the fortress, the garrison of 
 which was much diminished by sickness and 
 duty. This sortie, however, favoured the 
 escape of an English colonel, who after six 
 days, having eluded the French patroles, arri- 
 ved at the Austrian head-quarters. The in- 
 formation which he gave general Alvinzy of 
 the wants of the garrison, and the utter im- 
 possibility of their subsisting one month 
 longer without a supply of provisions, actu- 
 ated the Austrian general instantly to exe- 
 cute the projected operations. 
 
 This fifth army considerably exceeded 
 50,000 men, of whom 10,000 were command- 
 ed by general Provera, who was before Pa- 
 
 L 
 
THE HISTORY OF 
 
 dua ; 10,000, the centre, were at Bassano ; 
 and 25,000 were in the Tyrol under the im- 
 mediate orders of general Alvinzy. The 
 former was to attack tHe French on the 
 Adige, the centre to proceed against Verona^ 
 and the grand army to begin to move in the 
 Tyrol. The French army also had received 
 some reinforcements, but it was vastly infe- 
 rior to that of general Alvinzy ; Bonaparte's 
 whole force did not amount to 40,000 men. 
 
 General Provera, in conformity to the ar- 
 rangement made by the commander in chief^ 
 left Padua on the ISthof Nivose, January se- 
 venth, 1797, and directed himself against Por- 
 to-Legnago. The next day he commenced 
 his operations by a vigorous attack upon the 
 French posts, from which the latter were 
 driven and forced to retire to Berilaqua : a re- 
 inforcement was now brought to assist the 
 French, but without success, as they were 
 obliged to retreat to Porto-Legnago, to join 
 Augereau, who commanded 10,000 men^ 
 The Austrian general followed up his successy 
 and on the 20th, ninth, had arrived upon the 
 Adige, which he must necessarily cross be- 
 fore he could reach Mantua. 
 
 Bonaparte was at Bologna when he was in- 
 formed of the march and advantages which 
 general Provera had anticipated. Having or- 
 dered the 2,000 men who were with him to- 
 repair to the Adige, he departed for Verona, 
 and arrived there just as the Austrians had 
 attacked the French under Massena. A ve- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 83 
 
 ry brisk action ensued, which . was not fa- 
 vourable to either army, although the French 
 took 600 prisoners and 3 pieces of cannon, 
 and obliged the Austrians to retreat towards 
 the mountains, whilst they resumed the same 
 position before Verona. 
 
 General Alvinzy marched on the 2 2d, ele- 
 venth, to Montebaldo, and attacked part of 
 the French line the following day, but could 
 not conquer the intrenchments ; on the 24th, 
 thirteenth, having assailed the French in their 
 rear, they succeeded in obtaining possession of 
 the redoubts of Corona, which induced ge- 
 neral Joubert to join the troops at Rivoli, the 
 strongest post which the French held on the 
 Upper Adige. 
 
 Bonaparte received information of these 
 events the same evening ; and it appearing 
 that general Alvinzy meant to pierce through 
 Rivoli, he directed a considerable force to 
 march there, and himself with the staff arri- 
 ved about midnight. They immediately 
 posted themselves before the town, took pos- 
 session of St. Mark, the only point between 
 the Adige and the lake of Garda by which 
 the Austrians could pass, and the general 
 with his officers examined the situation of the 
 Austrian army until day appeared. 
 
 General Alvinzy, who had prepared for a 
 general attack on the next morning, spent also 
 the night in making his dispositions. Pre^ 
 suming that Bonaparte could not arrive to as- 
 sist general Joubert before this attack, he had 
 
84 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 indulged the hope of being able to cut him off, 
 by dispatching a column in his rear to hinder 
 any reinforcements from joining him. In 
 conformity with the arrangements made by 
 the French general, Joubert commenced the 
 battle about 4 o'clock in the morning, and: 
 the conflict was extremely obstinate. The 
 Austrians repulsed the left wing of the 
 French army, and were upon the point of 
 forcing it to retreat, when Bonaparte arrived 
 with a small corps, and animated them to 
 maintain their position. The French centre 
 sustained a vigorous attack from the main bo- 
 dy of the Austrians, which was collect- 
 ed, having injured the French left wing, to 
 oppose the junction of the right under Jou- 
 bert with the rest of the army. Whilst the 
 Austrians employed all their strength to gain 
 possession of the cannon which was stationed 
 in the front of the column in the centre, one 
 of the French captains rushed forward, ex- 
 claiming to the men who followed him, 
 " They shall not take our cannon from us, 
 " soldiers ; shall it be said that the fourteenth 
 " lost their artillery ?" Massena arriving at 
 this juncture, the French retook all the posts 
 from which they had been driven, and pre-, 
 pared to renew the contest. 
 
 A column of Austrians now appeared, and 
 by expecting to capture Rivoli, threatened 
 the rear of the French centre and right wing.. 
 They had established themselves on the 
 heights which command Rivoli, and conquered 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 85 
 
 some of its strongest posts. Bonaparte hav- 
 ing perceived that in descending from the 
 heights the Austrian troops maintained Uttle 
 order in their ranks, directed the grenadiers 
 to charge the platform, whilst a small column 
 of cavalry assailed them in the rear. This 
 movement was attended with complete suc-^ 
 cess ; the Austrians were forced to evacuate 
 Rivoli with the loss of their cannon ; but the 
 centre of their army continued the contest, 
 and a body of four thousand men having 
 ranged themselves in order of battle in the 
 rear, the French were totally surrounded and 
 the communication between the army and Ve- 
 rona, and the lake of Garda entirely destroy- 
 ed. The two armies were so near to each 
 other upon this occasion, that the French 
 heard the Austrians saying one to another, 
 *' We shall soon put them to flight." 
 
 The intrenchments at Rivoli now became 
 the prize, the possession of which would de- 
 cide the fate of the day. The Austrians cap- 
 tured them thrice, but all their efforts to hold 
 them were unsuccessful ; for at this crisis 
 Bonaparte ordered some light artillery to can- 
 nonade the right wing of the Austrians, 
 which had been turned. Generals Brune 
 and Monnier, with a small detachment in 
 three columns, were dispatched to dislodge 
 the Austrians from the heights which they 
 occupied, and which afforded much assist- 
 ance to the other corps fighting in the intrench^ 
 ments» This desperate service they perform^ 
 
86 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 €d: advancing with recovered arms, and sing- 
 ing " The Song of Departure,'^ they arrived 
 within gun-shot of the Austrians, and imme- 
 diately fell upon the posts with the utmost fu- 
 ry. The violence of the assault so confound- 
 ed the x\ustrians, that they fled in the utmost 
 disorder towards the lake of Garda ; and be- 
 ing accosted by a small body of fifty marks- 
 men only, who were trying to join the French 
 army, they surrendered themselves and deli* 
 vered up their arms. 
 
 The following extract is from a letter writ- 
 ten by citizen Rene, the captain of those fifty 
 men to his father, detailing that event.' 
 
 " The 25th, in the morning, general Monnier asked me 
 whether I would remain in the village of Garda with fifty 
 men, to keep an eye upon the lake and to favour a disembarkai. 
 tion. I told him I would. About four o'clock, just as I had 
 visited a little post that I had stationed in advance, seven Aus- 
 trians appeared. I ordered the post to charge and endeavour 
 to take them, while I should run back to collect the rest of my 
 detachment. I assembled it, and was beginning a march from 
 the village, when I beheld n^y little post bringing along with 
 them the seven prisoners . Apprehensive of being soon attack- 
 ed, I was just about to dispose of my men in an advantageous 
 position, when, how great was my surprise to observe an Aus- 
 trian column turning the defile I The commander ordered me 
 to lay down my arms, and told me that I was his prisoner. 
 * JVq Srr,' cried I, ' 'tis you thai are mine. I have already disarm^ 
 ed your advanced guards of ivhom you here behold a part. Laif 
 down your atins, or by the god of war I will gh>e you no quarter.* 
 My soldiers, encouraged by my example, repeated this injunc- 
 tion. The prisoners, perceiving that at the first fire they 
 should be killed, cried aloud to their comrades to surrender 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. Sf 
 
 themselves prisoners. This tumult astonished the Austrian 
 commander. He was desirous to parley. ' JVo,' exclaimed ly 
 * lay down your arms' He offered to capitulate. ' JVo,' rejohied 
 I, ' lay down your aryns.' '• But^ Sir,' said he, ' if I surrender shall 
 I not have cruel treatment to undergo ?' I gave him my word 
 of honour that he should not. He pulled off his hat, advanc- 
 ed, presented me his sword, and the whole troop laid down 
 their arms. I was not, however, yet without disquietude. I 
 was apprehensive that he would perceive the diminutiveness 
 of my force. I made it take a retrograde motion : but scarce- 
 ly had we gotten to the borders of the lake when we descried a 
 body of imperialists embarking in two large boats, who gain- 
 ed the stream, without our havirvg the pmver to prevent them 5 
 but, being overloaded, and getting into the eddy, the boats 
 went down, and the troops were drowned. A minute or two 
 afterwards, several of the Austrians refused to march : nor 
 did the officers seera disposed to obey our injunctions. I felt 
 the criticalness of my situation, but particularly when I heard 
 a captain say, ' Don't let us go on.' ' What's that you say, sir* 
 exclaimed I, raising my voice. ' Where is your honour ? Arc 
 you not a prisoner ? Have you not delivered up, your arms ? Have 
 J not your ivord? You are an officer....! covjlde in your loyal' 
 ty.,..To convince you that I do, I return you your sivord, and 
 command you to make your troop begin a march. I shall other'^ 
 wise be compelled to make the column of six thousand men act 
 against you that is noiv in my rear.' The word honour, but, 
 above all, the mention of the pretended column in my rear, 
 produced the desired effect. ' I am going to convince you, sir* 
 said the officer, putting his hand to his breast, ' that I know 
 ,what honour means as litell as most of my cloth. It is the noble 
 mind's distinguishing perfection. Make only the signal, sir, of 
 departure, and I nuill answer for it the whale troop shall advance.^ 
 He then addressed his people in German, who immediately 
 assumed an air of obedience, and prosecuted their route. W^ 
 arrived without any other accident. This column was compos- 
 
88 THE HISTORY 01? 
 
 ed of a regiment of the imperial line, and a body of auxiliary 
 troops, forming collectively eighteen hundred men.'* 
 
 Bonaparte victorious in front, detached a 
 considerable force against the corps of Aus- 
 trians who remained at Corona. Being at* 
 tacked by several columns in front and rear, 
 there was no resource but to surrender, or to 
 force their way through, sword in hand. 
 They attempted the latter, but in vain ; and 
 after an unsuccessful contest the whole body 
 laid down their arms on the 26th, fifteenth. 
 The French accounts made the number of 
 prisoners 6,000, whilst the Austrian general 
 states them at four. The following extract from 
 a private letter, relating his situation, writ- 
 ten by that commander, cannot be unaccepta- 
 ble. 
 
 " I had the command of the first column, consisting of four 
 thousand men, without a single horse or cannon, each soldier 
 and officer on foot, provided with iron cramps, preceded by 
 pioneers to break the ice. I marched thus during two days 
 and two nights without halting, over rocks covered with snow, 
 and without finding a single bush with which to make a fire. 
 The third day, after a march equally severe, but through a 
 country less dismal, I succeeded according to the general 
 plan, in turning the position of the enemy, who were intrench- 
 ed atRivoli on the banks of the Adige. Whilst I made this 
 movement with my corps, three columns attacked the intrench- 
 ments of Rivoli in front and carried them. The enemy re- 
 took them, and we again succeeded in driving them out ; but 
 by one of those inexplicable fatalities peculiar to the Austrian 
 army in Italy, the three columns which had attacked in front 
 having once more lost the intrenchments, my column found 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 89 
 
 itself cut off and abandoned by the rest of the army. I had 
 now nothing left but to cut my way through the enemy, for I 
 could not bring myself to capitulate. Without cannon or ca- 
 valry I had to make my way through a victorious army, which 
 attacked me with all the advantage arising from numbers, from 
 the ground, and from the nature of their arms.... accordingly 
 the greater part of my troops was either killed or taken. Al- 
 most all the staff officers of my corps were Avounxled and made 
 prisoners." 
 
 " Seeing no longer any means of rejoining our army, which 
 had retired to the mountains, I turned with ten officers towards 
 the lake of Garda, upon the borders of which I remained shut 
 up in a country house for two days and two nights, in order to 
 escape the French patroles in search of us. On the third 
 night I threw myself into a boat with my officere, and in spite 
 of the vigilance of the French feluccas we succeeded in pass- 
 ing through them by dint of rowing, and happily arrived at 
 Torbole, where there was an Austrian garrison." 
 
 Bonaparte not hearing from general Auge- 
 reau, now conjectured tha,t the intercourse 
 was obstructed, and immediately visited Ri- 
 voli, Verona and Castelnuovo, where he re- 
 ceived information that 10,000 Austrians had 
 crossed the Adige at Anguiari, and forced ge- 
 neral Guieux after a slight skirmish to retreat 
 to Rones. The general then proceeded to Vil- 
 la Franca with a detachment of troops, and 
 there learnt from general Serrurier that the 
 Austrians were at Castellana, on their way to 
 Mantua. Upon the route a regiment of French 
 dragoons came in sight of an Austrian squadron, 
 and the two commanders fought with their own 
 swords, which was the signal for a general 
 
 M 
 
§6 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 contest ; it continued a short time only, the 
 French being victorious, and the whole of 
 the Austrians captured. 
 
 On the 25th, fourteenth, Bonaparte arrived at 
 Roverbella, and found that Augereau had col- 
 lected his forces to attack general Provera ; but 
 the latter marched towards Mantua with such 
 rapidity that the French could charge his rear 
 guard only, the whole of whom were defeat- 
 ed and made prisoners, with a large quantity 
 of ammunition. The Austrian generalj 
 with his force diminished to about 6,000 me% 
 reached the vicinity of St. George on the 26th, 
 fifteenth, at noon. He attempted to carry 
 that post during the remainder of the day, 
 but without any eifect. General Miolis, wha 
 defended it, was immediately summoned by 
 general Provera to surrender.. i. he replied,^ 
 " that he was sent there to Jight, not to sur- 
 render," 
 
 General Provera, on the 26th, sixteenth, had 
 contrived to concert an attack upon La Favorite, 
 whilst general Wurmser should make a sortie 
 to assist him with the garrison. The latter 
 left the citadel before the dawn of day, and 
 captured St. Anthony ; he then marced to La 
 Favorite, and exerted himself to the utmost 
 to force the intrenchments. General Provera 
 attacked the post on his side.... but the inces- 
 sant fire from the intrenchments repelled eve- 
 ry attempt, and whilst these useless efforts 
 were making to storm the lines of the block- 
 ade, the French were surrounding the Aus- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 
 
 trian corps. General Miolis then sallied out 
 from St. George, and advanced in front 
 against the Austrians. Finding all resistance 
 unavailable, and desirous to preserve the 
 lives of his soldiers, general Provera propos- 
 ed a capitulation, to which Bonaparte assent- 
 ed ; 6,000 foot and 700 horse were made pri- 
 soners, and 20 pieces of cannon delivered to 
 the French. Among the prisoners was the 
 volunteer corps of young gentlemen from 
 Vienna, whose colours had been embroidered 
 and presented them by the Empress of Ger- 
 many in person. 
 
 Thus in the short space of eight days, the 
 fifth Austrian army opposed to Bonaparte 
 was entirely discomfited. The French cap- 
 tured 44 pieces of cannon, and nearly 20,000 
 men were prisoners. The victory of La Fa- 
 vorite decided the fate of Mantua, and left 
 general Wurmser with no hope of relief.. ..the 
 garrison were now reduced by want, sickness 
 and fatigue, and there being no possibility of 
 escape, he began to reflect upon the proprie- 
 ty of surrendering it. 
 
 General Alvinzy, in consequence of the 
 defeats which he had experienced, was inca- 
 pable of any offensive operations, and unable 
 to maintain the positions which his army held, 
 was anxious concerning its preservation only. 
 He retreated into the defiles of the Tyrol, whilst 
 his troops marched towards the Tervisano. 
 General Massena removed on the 5th of Plu- 
 viose, January twenty-fourth, to the vicinity 
 
92 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 of Bassano, which the Austrians manifested 
 a design to defend ; a skirmish ensued, and 
 the French gained a sUght advantage. On 
 the 6th, January twenty-fifth, in the night, 
 the Austrians evacuated their intrenchments, 
 and hastened to Carpedenolo ; which move- 
 ment induced Massena to dispatch a column 
 in pursuit, who overtook the Austrians at 
 that village, and after a smart engagement 
 took 900 of them prisoners. General Jou- 
 bert also put his division in motion, and hav- 
 ing charged the Austrians at Ario, captured 
 400 of them. 
 
 These divisions of the French army conti-. 
 nued their progress generally, without oppo- 
 sition, and took possession of Torbole, Ro- 
 veredo and Trent immediately as the Austrians 
 retired from them : in the latter they found 
 2,000 Austrians, sick or wounded, and in their 
 retreat made 1,800 of them prisoners. The 
 Austrians took a strong defensive position be^ 
 hind the Adige, Lavis and Piave ; their line 
 extended from Bolzano to the mouth of the 
 Piave : one body of the army covered the Ty* 
 rol, another and the principal corps Friuli ; 
 whilst the third was stationed between the 
 two latter rivers. In this situation, defend- 
 ed by three rivers, and a chain of inaccessi' 
 ble mountains, the Austrians collected them- 
 selves together, and waited for reinforcements., 
 
 Mantua is said to have been built by the 
 Etrurians before the Trojan war, and is si- 
 tuated upon a lake formed by the- Mincio* 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 93 
 
 The city is large, neatly built, and adorned 
 with many costly buildings. Whilst in pos- 
 session of the dukes of Mantua, and previ- 
 ous to the destruction of that family in 1707, 
 it contained upwards of 50,000 inhabitants, 
 at present their number does not exceed 
 30,000. It has always been fortified, and its 
 peculiar situation has rendered it in all Italian 
 wars a place of the utmost importance. 
 Open force and military operations have sel- 
 dom or never reduced it ; its surrender has 
 principally been owing to a blockade, and the 
 want of provisions. The fortifications are 
 not its principal defence ; that consists in the 
 difficulties which oppose the progress and at- 
 tacks of an enemy. The city is entirely en- 
 compassed by water and marshes, and can be 
 entered by three bridges or causeways only, 
 each of which has strong works erected at its 
 extremities. These avenues communicate 
 with the suburbs St. George, St. Anthony 
 and La Favorite, which may be defended, and 
 without the possession of which a besieging 
 army can do nothing effectual. If the su- 
 burbs be conquered, the blockade maybe sup- 
 ported, but the part of the town upon which 
 any trenches may be opened is so narrow that 
 a regular siege is scarcely practicable. The 
 waters of the lake stagnate in the summer 
 time, and become thereby so unwholesome, 
 as to induce those inhabitants who can afford 
 the expence to leave it for that season. 
 
f4 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 Notwithstanding all these disadvantages, 
 Bonaparte commenced the blockade of Man- 
 taa on the 30th of Messidoi', eighteenth of 
 July, 1796, and it had been continued nearly se- 
 ven months : the garrison had suffered every 
 species of privation, and exerted all their 
 powers to effect a junction with the Austrian 
 army. So destitute were they of food, that 
 5,000 horses had been killed for their subsist- 
 ence. In this situation general Wurmser 
 proposed to surrender, and the terms which 
 were granted to him evinced the high respect 
 which Bonaparte felt for his character ; and 
 were equally honourable to the victor and to the 
 conquered. The capitulation v/as signed on 
 the 14th Pluviose, February second ; the 
 Fi'cnch entered the citadel the next day, and 
 the Austrian army proceeded on their march 
 to Goritz in Tyrol, By this convention it was 
 agreed that general Wurmser, all the gene- 
 rals, staff officers, 200 cavalry and 500 indi- 
 viduals to be selected by the general, should 
 not be prisoners of war, and should return 
 home with six pieces of cannon and artillery- 
 men ; the generals retained their swords and 
 baggage, the privates of the infantry their 
 knapsacks, and those of the cavalry their 
 cloak-bags. Bonaparte's eulogy on general 
 Wurmser is too interesting to be omitted ; it 
 is contained in a letter which he wrote to the 
 directory, dated Faenza, Pluviose 15th, Fe- 
 bruary third. 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. ^S 
 
 " I have an earnest desire to shew general Wurnnser every 
 generosity in my power ; who, whether his years or valour be 
 considered, is eminently entitled to it. Fortune has beeii very 
 cruel to him during the whole of the campstign, but he has 
 notwithstanding, exhibited a cotirage and constaticy which will 
 give dignity to the page of the impartial historian. 
 
 " SuiTounded on all sides after the battle of Eassano by our 
 army, and cut off from a considerable part of his own, he che- 
 rished the design of seeking refuge in Mantua, from whicli he 
 was very remote, and effectually executed it hy surmountiftq^ 
 every obstacle which opposed his passage ; by passing the 
 Adige, overthrowing our advanced posts at Cerea, and tra- 
 versing witli vigour the waters of the Molinella. From Man- 
 tua he made several sorties which he always headed in per- 
 son ; and had to encounter besides the obstacles which the cir- 
 eumvallation of our line presented, a disinclination of his sol- 
 diers for combat, from the frequency of their defeats, the hor- 
 rors of famine, and the calamities of disease." 
 
 The surrender of Mantua alForded Bona* 
 parte a favourable opportunity to address his 
 troops ; this duty he executed a few days af- 
 ter the occurreiiGe of that event, by publish- 
 ing the following abridgement of what his ar- 
 my had atchieved, and what he expected them 
 still to perform. 
 
 BONAPARTE TO THE SOLDIERS OF THE ARMY 
 OF ITALY. 
 
 Head-Quarters, Bassano, 20th Fentose, March tenth. 
 
 " The capture of Mantua has almost given the finishing 
 stroke to a campaign which has entitled you to the eternal 
 gratitude of your country, 
 
 " You have proved victorious in fourteen pitched battles ahd 
 in seventy engagements. You have taken more than a hun- 
 dred thousand prisoners. You have also obtained from the 
 
96 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 enemy five hundred field pieces, and two thousand large can- 
 non. 
 
 " The contributions levied on the countries which you have con- 
 quered, have supported, maintained and paid the army during 
 the whole campaign. You have, moreover, sent thirty milli- 
 ons to the minister of finance, for the increase of the public 
 treasury. 
 
 " You have enriched the Museum of Paris with above three 
 hundred subjects, master-pieces of ancient and modern Italy, 
 the prodtiction of which has been the labour of thirty ages. 
 You have conquered for the I'epublic the finest countries of 
 Europe. The republics of Lombardy and Cispadane are in- 
 debted to you for their liberty. The colours of France, for 
 the first time, wave on the Adriatic shores, opposite and 
 within twenty-four hours sail of ancient Macedonia. The 
 kings of Sardinia and Naples, the Pope, and the duke of 
 Parma, are detached from the coalition of our enemies, and 
 are leagued in friendship with us. You have chased the Eng- 
 lish from Leghorn, Genoa and Corsica ; but you have not yet 
 finished your career. A more splendid atchievement is in re- 
 serve for you : in you the country places its dearest hopes, 
 continue to deserve its confidence. 
 
 " Amongst all the enemies who coalesced to stifle the repub- 
 lic in its birth, the Emperor alone is opposed to us. This 
 prince, degrading himself from the rank of a great poten- 
 tate, is in the pay of the merchants of London. He is actu- 
 ated by no other policy, has no other will, than that of the 
 perfidious islanders, who being themselves strangers to the 
 horrors of war, smile with pleasure at the miseries of the con- 
 tinent. 
 
 " The executive directory have spared no endeavours to give 
 peace to Europe : the moderation of their proposals was not dic- 
 tated by the strength of their armies ; they did not consult your 
 courage, but followed the impulse of humanity, and a desire 
 to behold you in the bosoms of your families : their voice has 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 97 
 
 not been heard at Vienna, and there is no other hope for 
 peace, but by seeking it in the heart of the hereditary states 
 of the house of Austria. You will there find a brave race op- 
 pressed by the wars against the Turks, and by the present 
 war. The inhabitants of Vienna and the states of Austria 
 groan under a superstitious and arbitrary government. There 
 is no one who doubts that the ministers of the Emperor have 
 been corrupted by the gold of the English. You will respect 
 their religion, their customs, their property— remember it is 
 liberty you are carrying to the brave Hungarians. 
 
 " The house of Austria, which for three ages has been di- 
 minishing its power by wars, has excited the discontents of 
 the people, by depriving them of their privileges ; ifwiil find 
 itself reduced, at the end of the sixth campaign, since it forces 
 us to commence it, to accept such a peace as we shall be 
 pleased to grant ; and will descend in reality to the rank of a 
 secondaiy power, in which it has already placed itself by sub- 
 mitting to be in the pay and at the disposal of England. 
 
 « BONAPARTE." 
 
 The reduction of Mantua expelled the 
 Austrians from Italy, and completed the tri- 
 umphs of the French army. Bonaparte had 
 previous to that event determined upon chas- 
 tising the Roman government for the duplici- 
 ty which it had manifested. Whilst bound by 
 an armistice to maintain peace, the court of 
 Rome were exciting revolts among the Itali- 
 ans, fomentins: divisions between the differ- 
 ent principalities, and endeavouring to per- 
 suade the Emperor to continue the contest 
 with vigour, with a promise to assist him by 
 SI diversion in his favour with their own 
 
 N 
 
98 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 troops. The Pope's secretary of state, cardi- 
 nal Busca, had written a letter to the legate at 
 Vienna, proving himself to have possessed 
 all that deceit and cunning which have always 
 distinguished the bishoprick of Rome. This 
 letter Bonaparte intercepted, and it determin- 
 ed him to proceed to immediate operations, 
 that the cabal of intriguers at Rome might be 
 entirely destroyed, and be no longer permit- 
 ted to continue their deceptive machinations. 
 
 When the French had begun their march 
 into the Papal dominions, Bonaparte issued a 
 declaration dated Pluviose 15th, February 
 the third, stating, the ground of his conduct, 
 and the dissimulation which the ecclesiastical 
 government had manifested ; to which he ad- 
 ded an address enjoining the utmost obedi- 
 ence to the French authority, and threaten- 
 ing all, especially the priests, with tremen- 
 dous punishment in case of disobedience. 
 
 In conformity with the dispositions made 
 by Bonaparte, general Victor advanced to 
 Priola, the nearest of the Roman towns, and 
 slept in it on the 13th of Pluviose, February 
 the first. The next day he marched to attack 
 Faenza, in the front of which the Papal troops 
 were intrenched behind the river Senio, and 
 after a very slight resistance, the Pope's sol- 
 diers fled, leaving behind them 14 pieces of 
 cannon and 1,400 men, killed, wounded and 
 prisoners. The French immediately travers- 
 ed Romagna, took Forti, Cesenna, entered the 
 dutchy of Urbino and captured Ancona, with 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 9^ 
 
 a very large quantity of arms and ammunition 
 which they found in it. The famed chapel of 
 Loretto was also seized by the French, but the 
 greatest part of the valuables had been re- 
 moved by Colli, the commander of the Papal 
 forces. Bonaparte gives the following list of 
 some of the " adot'able'^ articles which his 
 troops discovered there : " A wooden image of 
 " the pretendedMadona...,the vestiges of an old 
 " garment, said to have been the gown of the 
 " Virgin Mary.... three old broken porringers 
 " of delft-ware, reported to have been part of 
 " her culinary' utensils, and which have eve- 
 " ry appearance of having been made 20 Or 
 " 30 years ago." 
 
 It is proper to remark here that plunder 
 and devastation formed no part of Bonaparte's 
 scheme when attacking the Pope's dominions : 
 his sole object was to secure himself from a;ll 
 fears of attack from that quarter, and hence 
 he proposed and definitively adjusted a peace. 
 
 The French ecclesiasticks who had emi- 
 grated in 1791 and 1792, received at this cfi-. 
 tical moment much kindness from Bonaparte. 
 By a proclamation which he issued, he for- 
 bade under the severest penalties, all attempts 
 to injure them; directed that they should be 
 maintained at the expence of the convents, 
 and added that the melioration of their situa- 
 tion dirough the kindness of the bishops and 
 oth^ would afford him great pleasure. 
 
 Bonaparte continued his progress towards . 
 ' Rome, and entered Foligno and Macerata : 
 
THE HISTORY OF 
 
 /rom the latter town, distant about 120 miles 
 from Rome, he wrote to cardinal Mattel : 
 
 " I have traced, reverend Cardinal, in the letter which you. 
 did me the honour to write me, that simplicity of manners 
 which is your distinguishing characteristick. I now subjoin the 
 reasons that have urged me to break the armistice concluded 
 between his holiness and the republic of France. 
 
 " No person is more persuaded of the sincere desire that the 
 French have to make peace tlian cardinal Busca, which is ob" 
 vious from the tenour of his letter to M. Albani. It was a sub- 
 ject of raillery to the enemies of France, when it was sigviified 
 that the 'first powers of Europe would come forward to ac- 
 knowledge the republic, and treat with her for peace. But the 
 world is aM'akened from its delusion. 
 
 " His holiness has yet one refuge left : he may save his 
 states b\ proposing a pacifick negociation, and throwing him- 
 self upon the generosity of the French republic. 
 
 " I know that his holiness has been deceived. I would wish 
 to convince Europe of the moderation of the executive direc- 
 tory of the republic of France, in granting the Pope five days 
 to send a negociator, invested with full powers, to Foligno, 
 where I shall be found, and where it will be my study to ex- 
 emplify the consideration that I have for his holiness. But, 
 whatever may happen, be persuaded, I'eve rend Cardinal, of the 
 distinguished esteem with which I have the honour to be, &c." 
 
 The French head-quarters were immedi- 
 ately removed to Tolentino, which filled 
 Rome with terror. All the riches of the ci- 
 ty were conveyed to Naples and Terracina, 
 and the higher ranks of the citizens were pre- 
 paring to leave it, when the Pope wrote to 
 Bonaparte : 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. lOi. 
 
 Plus. P. VI. 
 " Dear Son, Health and j^Jiostolick Benediction. 
 " Being desirous amicably to terminate our existing differ- 
 ences with the French republic, by the retreat of the troops 
 which you command, we send and depute to you as our pleni- 
 potentiaries, two ecclesiastics, cardinal Mattei, with whom 
 you are intimately acquainted, and Mon Signor Galeppi ; and 
 two laymen, the duke Don Louis Braschi our nephew, and 
 the marquis Camillo Massimi, who are invested by us with 
 full power to concert with you, to promise and subscribe such 
 conditions as we hope will be just and reasonable, binding our- 
 selves by our faith and word to ratify and approve them in spe- 
 cial form, that they may at all times be valid and inviolable. 
 Being assured of the sentiments of good faith which you have 
 manifested, we have abstained from any removal from Piome, 
 and by that you will be persuaded how great is our confidence 
 in you. We conclude by assuring you the paternal Apostoli- 
 cal Benediction. 
 
 « PIUS VI. 
 « St. Peters, Rome, February 12th." 
 
 On the 1st of Ventose, February nine- 
 teenth, the treaty of peace was signed, up- 
 on which occasion Bonaparte wrote to the 
 Pope ; 
 
 BONAPARTE TO POPE PIUS VI. 
 
 " Most Holy Father, 
 
 " I have to thank your holiness for the obliging expressions 
 contained in the letter which you did me the honour to write 
 me. 
 
 " The treaty of peace has just been signed between your ho- 
 liness and the republic of France. I felicitate myself upon hav- 
 ing, in any measure, contributed to your tranquillity and re- 
 pose. 
 
 " I would recommend your holiness to disclaim the officious 
 
1,02 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 friendship of certain persons at Rome, who are not less the 
 foes to your interest than the enemies of Finance. 
 
 " The pacifick virtues of the disposition of your holiness arc 
 known to all Europe. You will, I trust, find the French repub- 
 lic one of the sincerest friends to Rome. 
 
 " I have sent my aid-de-camp to express to your holiness the 
 perfect esteem and veneration which I hold for your person : 
 and I have to intreat you to rely on the perfect deference with 
 which I have the honour to be, &c. Sec" 
 
 Cardinal Mattel announced the conclusion 
 of the treaty to cardinal Busca, by the fol- 
 lowing billet: 
 
 " The treaty is signed, and I now speed a courier to your 
 eminence with the intelligence. The conditions are hard, and 
 resemble the capitulation of a place that has been besieged. 
 It is dictated in the tone of a conqueror, and I trembled 
 for his holiness, for Rome, and for the state. Rome however 
 is saved, as well as her religion, notwithstanding the sacrifi- 
 ces which have been made. We will attend you soon. 
 
 A. C. MATTEL 
 
 " Tolentino^ February 19, 1797." 
 
 By this treaty of peace the Pope renounc- 
 ed the coalition, agreed to disband his troops, 
 and to close his ports against the ships of the 
 enemies of the republic ; ceded Avignon, Ve- 
 naissin, Bologna, Ferrara and Romagna to 
 France; consented to pay 31,000,000 of 
 livres in addition to the five before paid ; to 
 deliver the paintings, statues and manuscripts 
 directed by the armistice, and permitted the 
 French to retain Ancona until a continental 
 peace might be established. 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 103 
 
 Whilst Bonaparte was engaged in adjusting 
 a peace with the Pope, a sixth Austrian ar- 
 my had with great difficulty been collected by 
 the Emperor ; new battalions were raised ; 
 to these, several divisions of the army from, 
 the banks of the Rhine were added, and the 
 command given to the Arch-Duke Charles, 
 who in his contest with general Moreau had 
 acquired considerable reputation. The di- 
 rectory had also ordered a number of battali- 
 ons from the Rhine under general Berna- 
 dotte to join Bonaparte, who found upon his 
 return from Tolentino that hostilities had 
 been renewed. 
 
 Bonaparte, when he had traversed the 
 dutchy of Urbino, thought of restoring tran- 
 quillity to the republic of Saint-Morino, 
 which was surrounded by his troops. He 
 invested Citizen Monge with this office, of 
 whose mission he gave the Directory the fol- 
 lowing account: 
 
 BONAPARTE TO THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTORY. 
 
 ^^ Head-Quarters^ Tolentino^ Ventose l^Februarij nineteenth, 
 " You will find subjoined, Citizens Directors, the report of 
 Citizen Monge, whom I sent to Saint-Marino, with the 
 discourse which he pronounced. When I get to Rimini I will 
 transmit you a memoir of the demands which accompanied it, 
 with what I shall have done to testify for that ancient re- 
 public the esteem and consideration of the republic of France." 
 
 The following discourse was pronounced 
 before the two regent-captains of the repub- 
 lic of Saint-Marino, by the deputy to the 
 chief general of the army of Italy. 
 
104 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 " Citizens Regents, 
 
 " Liberty, which during the prosperous days of Athens and 
 Thebes, transformed the Greeks into a people of heroes ; 
 which ill the time of the Roman republick brought glory to the 
 Romans, and during the short interval that, in later ages, she 
 cheered part of Italy with her presence, caused science to 
 lift her head, and stones to leap to form ; this goddess 
 was afterwards, banished many centuries from Europe, and 
 sought an asylum in Saint-Marino, where she was received 
 by the inhabitants with open arms, and has blessed them 
 with her smiles amid the tumult of revolutions, and the wreck 
 of worlds. 
 
 " The French people, after enduring the yoke of slavery 
 through a continued succession of ages, have awakened from 
 their lethargy to bask in the sunshine of freedom. 
 
 " Europe beholding with jaundiced eye the efforts of France 
 to obtain its freedom, entered into a conspiracy against her> 
 formed a coaUtion, launched fleets into the ocean, and brought 
 armies into the field : while the torch of civil war began to 
 kindle in the interior states of the nation. 
 
 " But liberty smiled on our projects. It was she that put 
 strength into our arms, and fire into our hearts. 
 
 " Of our numerous enemies, those who possessed sagacity 
 withdrew in time from the coalition, while others, beholding 
 their companions gasping in the dust, humbled themselves be- 
 fore the tri-coloured standards, and clamoured for peace. 
 There now remained but three enemies to subdue ; one of whom 
 the army of Italy opposed with the most bi'illiant success. Of 
 four armies that Austria brought into the field, not one return- 
 ed back to their country. There was scarcely a day that 
 thousands did not return to their mother earth, while myriads 
 were made prisoners by the troops of the republic, the thunder- 
 bolts of war. 
 
 " Yet war was ever considered by the republic an evil. It 
 was with regret that shebeheld the field empurpled with blood. 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 105 
 
 She therefore proposed a peace, and dictated the terms 
 of it. 
 
 " But her propositions, citizens, were either rejected with 
 obstinacy, or eluded with craft. 
 
 " The army of Italy, therefore, has been compelled to con- 
 tinue the war, and in pursuing its enemies, to pass near your states . 
 
 " I cortie from General Bonaparte, in the name of the French 
 republic, to assure the ancient republicof Saint-Marino of peace 
 and inviolable friendship. 
 
 "-Citizens regents, the political constitution of the people 
 that surround you may be subject to vicissitudes. If any part 
 of your frontiers should be molested by your neighbours, I am 
 charged by the Chief General to inform you, that the troops 
 of the French republic will ever come forward with alacrity to 
 manifest the friendship which they bear you by affording their 
 succour. 
 
 " At the same time I cannot refrain from felicitating myself 
 upon the event that has procured me the occasion to be able to 
 express to you the veneration with v/hich the children of liber- 
 ty conterapbte the republic of Saint-Maiino/' 
 
 The representatives of the republic of 
 Saint-Marino, to citizen Monge, meffiber of 
 the national institute of France, and member 
 of the commission of arts and sciences in 
 Italy, deputed by general Bonaparte, 
 
 " Deputed-Citizen, 
 " We can scarcely believe it i^eal tliat you should appear be- 
 fore our assembly in the character of a republican deputy. It 
 appears to us a phantom, of the imagination. Surrounded a^s 
 we have been by slaves, apd wretches paii'ed to,ll)e ,ypU,e ,pf 
 bondage, the pleasure is not less grateful, than the distip(^tipn 
 is flattering, to receive assurances of friendship from a nation 
 that has triumphed, over, despotism, and planted the tree of li- 
 
 o 
 
106 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 berty in their dominions. We deliver you the answer of the 
 council to the eloquent address which you pronounced in the 
 name of the French republic. It was received by the people 
 with exquisite sensibility. Assure your general of our senti- 
 ments of gratitude and veneration. Intercede with him for 
 the favour which we find it necessary to our existence to de- 
 mand, and be persuaded we shall ever remember with pleasure 
 your own virtues and talents." 
 
 « We count, citizen deputy, the day of your mission to our 
 republic among the most glorious atras of our esdstence as a 
 nation. The Frtnch republic, while she triumphs over her 
 enemies by the power of her arms, conquers all hearts with 
 the greatness of her generosity. Happy are we to have before 
 us a model so deserving to excite our emulation, but more hap- 
 py to find a friend in so mighty a nation. It is with the most 
 lively interest that we behold the arms of the French republic 
 recall to memory in Italy the celebrated deeds of ancient Greece 
 and Rome. 
 
 *' Our own enjoyment of liberty enables us to appreciate the 
 magnanimous efforts of a great nation struggling to recover 
 their's. You have left upon record an example of what energy- 
 may be produced from the inspiration of this passion. Alone, 
 and unassisted, you triumph over the united opposition of 
 Europe. 
 
 " Your army, marching upon the footsteps of Hannibal, and 
 surpassing in atchievements the most vaunted feats of anti- 
 quity, has, conducted by a hero, a heaven-born general* 
 prosecuted its march to a corner of the globe where the re- 
 mains of ancient liberty had fled to perpetuate her blessings, 
 and where you will find the Spartan simplicity of manners, ra- 
 ther than the Athenian elegance and refinement. 
 
 " Return, therefore, to the hero who sent you hither, not 
 so much with expressions of our homage, as our gratitude. In- 
 form him that the republic of Saint-Marino, contented with 
 humble mediocrity, desires not to increase its territory ; but 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. ler 
 
 would felicitate herself upon beholding theii' band of union ce- 
 mented by the opening of a commercial intercourse with the 
 republic of France, and to enter into a treaty that shall give it 
 the sanction of a law. 
 
 " To this do we confine our ambition, and it is on this sub- 
 ject that we intreat you to exert your influence with the French 
 general in chief. Accept from us yourself, the assurances of 
 our unalterable esteem, and believe us that we experience a 
 most lively satisfaction in being honoured with the mission 
 of a man, who to the virtues of a citizen joins the accomplish- 
 ments of literature. The object of your expedition, and the 
 happy manner in which you have acquitted it, will form a per- 
 petual monument of glory to the conqueror of Italy and the ar- 
 my which he commands ; and be transmitted with grateful re- 
 membrance to the latest of our posterity.. 
 « Saint-Marinot Februry 12, 1797." 
 
 On the 17th of Pluviose, February the 
 fifth, the division of Tyrol drove the Austri- 
 ans from their position between Savero and 
 Besotto ; and generat Marat on the following 
 day forced on the right of the Adige the post 
 of Denenbano, 
 
 The Austrian levies were all stationed be- 
 tween the Tagliamento and the Piave, while 
 the French occupied the right banks of the 
 latter, and were ready to oppose their pro- 
 gress. On the 4th of Ventose, February 
 twenty-second, general Guieux retook Trevi- 
 zo ; and on the 5th, twenty-third, and fol- 
 lowing days, the two armies had a variety of 
 slight skirmishes, which were a prelude to 
 more important conflicts. On the 12th of 
 Ventose, March second, Bonaparte directed 
 
IDS' THE HISrORY OF 
 
 general Joubert to attack the Austrians upon . 
 the Lavis, which hmdered them from esta- 
 blishmg themselves as they had intended. 
 On the 20th, tenth, general Massena repair- 
 ed to i'eltri, upon which the Austrians eva- 
 cuated Cordevole, and proceeded to Bellum. 
 Two days after, very early in the m.orning, 
 the French passed the Piave, discomfited 
 those Austrians who disputed the passage, 
 and arrived at San-Salvador ; but the Aus- 
 trians had left their camp at Campana, doubt- 
 ful of being surrounded. Another division 
 of the French followed in the afternoon, v/ho 
 reached Conegliano the same night. On the 
 23d, thirteenth, general Guieux attacked the 
 Austrian rear-guard at Sacile, and made some 
 of them prisoners. In the mean time gene- 
 ral Massena had surrounded the rear-guard of 
 another division of the Austrian army, and cap- 
 tured 700 prisoners. On the 26th, sixteenth^ 
 Boiiaparte ordered the divisions of general 
 Guieux, Bernadotte and Serrurier, to proceed 
 by Valvasone to the borders of the Taglia- 
 mento, on the opposite side of which the 
 Austrians were intrenched, to dispute the 
 passage of the river. The French army at 
 this crisis was divided by Bonaparte into three 
 corps ; Massena with a considerable division 
 was directed to pursue the Austrian troops 
 who had posted themselves amidst the fast- 
 nesses between the Venetian territories and 
 the Tyrol ; the main body remained under 
 the immediate commatid of Bonaparte, whilst 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. ' 109 
 
 the third conducted by Joubert, Baraguay 
 d'HiUiers and Dehiias, was to make a diver- 
 sion, by penetrating along the Adige into 
 Carinthia. 
 
 These movements having been adjusted, 
 and the main body of the French army hav- 
 ing arrived on the banks of the TagUamento, 
 which, ahhough a steep river with a very 
 forcible current, could be easily forded, on 
 account of the severity of tlie frost, Bona- 
 parte resolved not to lose the advantages 
 which the situation of the river now of- 
 fered him ; as soon therefore as general Ber- 
 nadotte arrived with his division, Guieux was 
 commanded to pass the river under the cover 
 of 12 pieces of artillery, to attack the right 
 of the Austrian intrenchments, whilst Ber- 
 nadotte made a similar attempt upon their left. 
 The cannonading began and was continued 
 with much vigour. Dupoz, at the head of 
 one division, supported by general Bon and 
 his grenadiers, and Murat with another, sus- 
 tained by Bernadotte's grenadiers, plunged 
 into the river at the same time, and landed 
 on the opposite bank. The whole Trench 
 line was in motion, the artillery soon follow- 
 ing. On this bank the Austrian cavalry re- 
 peatedly charged the French infimtry, but all 
 their attempts to break the line were inef- 
 fectual ; they resisted the shock with the 
 points of their bayonets, and the incessant 
 discharges of grape-shot, which fell like a 
 shower upon the Austrians, soon overcame 
 
110 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 all opposition, and being thrown into disor- 
 der they abandoned a large portion of their 
 artillery and baggage to the French, who cap- 
 tured this day about 400 prisoners, many of 
 them distinguished officers. 
 
 The French army immediately passed Pal- 
 manuova, where they procured a large quan- 
 tity of provisions, crossed the Lifonzo and 
 hastened to Gradisca, took possession of the 
 heights which command the fortress, and 
 immediately summoned the Austrians in it 
 to surrender. Perfectly surrounded, with 
 no possibility of escape, and certain of death 
 in case of an assault, the garrison capitulated 
 on the 29th Ventose, March nineteenth. In 
 the fort were found 3,000 men, 10 pieces of 
 cannon, and 8 sta.nds of colours. 
 
 Whilst these events promoted the safety of 
 the main body of the French army, the two 
 divisions had triumphed in a similar manner. 
 Massena became master of La Chiusa, and 
 forced the bridge of Cassola, which the Aus- 
 trians attempted in vain to hinder. This 
 skirmish cost the latter 600 prisoners.... 
 their magazines fell into the hands of the 
 French, v/ho on this occasion entered the 
 Austrian intrenchments sword in hand. This 
 division of the French army continued its 
 victorious progress, and drove the Austrians 
 to v/hom it was opposed beyond the de- 
 files of Caporetto. The French general pro- 
 ceeded to Travis, where he was attacked by a 
 large body of Austrians, and a most obsti^ 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. Ill 
 
 nate battle was fought, but the Austrians 
 were entirely defeated. Three generals were 
 taken, and a regiment of Cuirassiers nearly- 
 destroyed. In the mean time general 
 Guieux had beaten a column at Pufero, who 
 accelerated their march to reach the defile of 
 La Chiusa, a strongly fortified post, from 
 which they were obliged to retire after an ob- 
 stinate defence, and immediately encountered 
 Massena's division; a slight contest ensued, 
 but the whole body laid down their arms to 
 the Trench.... 5,000 men, 4 generals, 400 
 baggage waggons and 30 pieces of cannon, 
 were the reward of this day's labour. This 
 battle was fought above the clouds, on the 
 top of the mountains, where the snow was 
 three feet deep, and the cavalry forced to 
 charge on the ice. 
 
 Joubert, who had been sent through the 
 Tyrol to rejoin Bonaparte at La Drave, was 
 equally fortunate with the other parts of the 
 army. He began his march on the 30th of 
 Ventose, March twentieth, and in the vicini- 
 ty of Lavis surrounded a corps of the Austri- 
 ans, who maintained a long and bloody con- 
 flict, which ended in the capture of 4,000 of 
 them prisoners, with all their baggage and 3 
 pieces of cannon.. ..2,000. were killed. This 
 body was composed chiefly of Tyrolean rifle- 
 men. 
 
 The Austrians retired after this defeat to 
 the right bank of the Adige, in which posi- 
 tion they appeared to be determined to conti- 
 nue. General Joubert, on the 2d of Germinal, 
 
113 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 March twenty-second, repaired to Salerno, 
 whilst general Vial gained possession of the 
 bridge of Neumark, and intercepted general 
 Laudohn's retreat. An obstinate combat fol- 
 lowed, the issue of which appeared uncertain, 
 until general Dumas with the cavalry rushed 
 into the village of Tramin, made 600 prison- 
 ers, and captured two pieces of cannon. The 
 Austrian troops immediately fled to the 
 mountains, as their retreat was lost. 
 
 The French troops passed through Bot- 
 zen and proceeded to Clausen. The Austri- 
 ans in this place were strongly defended both 
 by their own efforts and by works almost in- 
 accessible ; but the attack of the French was 
 so vehement, and their efforts so ably direct- 
 ed, that the victory belonged to them, with 
 1,500 prisoners. 
 
 At Brixen, Botzen, and in the other depots, 
 the French found large quantities of provi- 
 sions, which were generally accompanied by 
 the Austrian hospitals, the latter retreating so 
 suddenly as not to be able to take them away. 
 Bonaparte during the time which had elapsed 
 in the transaction of these events, had with 
 the main body of the army entered Goritz on 
 the 2d of Germinal, March twenty-second, 
 in which the Arch-Duke had left hi^ maga- 
 zines of provisions and military stores. On 
 the 4th, twenty-sixth, general Dugua entered 
 Trieste, and the mines of Ydria afforded Bo- 
 naparte, gold to the amount of nearly twenty- 
 two millions, upwards of 80,0001. sterling. 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 113 
 
 On the 9th, twenty-ninth, he arrived at Clag- 
 enfurth, the capital of Carinthia, and on the 
 12th, April first, he promulged this address: 
 
 BONAPARTE TO THE PEOPLE OF THE PROVINCE 
 OF GORITZ. 
 
 ^'' Head-Quarters^ GorilZf Germmal 1, March twenty -first, 
 "The mention of the French army has unjustly carried ter- 
 ror with it. We neither come hither to conquer your coun- 
 try, to change your manners, nor to alter your religion. The 
 French republic is the friend of all nations. Woe to those 
 kings who have the folly to make war against her. 
 
 " Priests, nobles, citizens, people, who form the popula- 
 tion of the province of Goritz, banish your fears, we are good 
 and humane. You will experience more liberal dealings from 
 us than from the ambassadors or ministers of kings. 
 
 " Enter not into a quarrel with which you have no business. 
 I will protect your persons, your dwellings, your possessions, 
 your privileges and religion. I will restore to you your rights. 
 The French people consider every victory base and counterfeit 
 which has not justice for its characteristick." 
 
 After a few slight skirmishes which occur- 
 red between the 29th and the first of April, the 
 armies on that day met and fought with great 
 fury at St. George, which opened a passage 
 for the French to Neumark, at which they 
 arrived on the following morning. General 
 Joubert still continued his progress, and on 
 the 8th, twenty -eighth, forced the defile of 
 Inspruck," after a brisk cannonading. 
 
 Bonaparte whilst at Clagenfurth, and be- 
 fore the battle of St. George, wrote to the 
 Arch-Duke as follows : 
 
 P 
 
114 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 BONAPARTE TO THE ARCH-DUKE CHARLES. 
 
 'i llth Germi7ial, March thirty -Jirst. 
 « M. General in Chief, 
 
 " Brave soldiers make war, ancT desire peace. Have not hos- 
 tilities lasted for six years ? Have we notkilled men, and com- 
 mitted evils enough against suffering humanity ? Such are the 
 exclamations used on all sides. Europe, which had taken up 
 arms against the French republic, has laid them down. Your 
 nation alone remains ; and yet blood is about to flow more than 
 ever. The sixth campaign is announced under the most por- 
 tentous auspices. Whatever may be the result, many thou- 
 sands of gallant soldiers must still fall a sacrifice in the prose- 
 cution of the contest. At some period we must come to an un- 
 derstanding, since time will bring all things to a conclusion, 
 and extinguish the most inveterate resentments. 
 
 " The executive directory of the French republic communi- 
 cated to his Imperial majesty its inchnation to terminate a con- 
 flict which desolates the two countries. These pacific over- 
 tures were defeated by the intervention of the British cabinet. 
 Is there no hope, then, of accommodation ? Is it essential to 
 the interests, or gratitying to the passions, of a nation far re- 
 moved from the theatre of war, that we should continue to 
 murder each other ? Are not you, who are so nearly allied to 
 the throne, and who are above all the despicable passions which 
 generally influence ministers and governments, ambitious to 
 merit the appellations of ' the benefactor of the human race' 
 and ' the saviour of the German empire.' Do not imagine, 
 my dear general, that I wish to insinuate that you cannot possi- 
 bly save your country by force of arms ; but on the supposition 
 that the chances of war were even to become favourable, Ger- 
 many will not suffer less on that account. With respect to 
 myself, gallant commander, if the overture which I have now the 
 honour to make to you could be the means of sparing the life of 
 a single man, I should think myself prouder of the civic crown 
 to which my interference would entitle me, than ofthemelan- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 115 
 
 choly glory likely to result from the most brilliant military ex. 
 ploits. I beg of you to believe me to be, general in chief, with 
 sentiments of the most profound respect and esteem, 8cc. Sec. 
 
 « BON AP ARE." 
 
 THE ARCH-DUKE CHARLES'S REPLY TO BONA- 
 PARTE. 
 
 " M. General, 
 
 " Though I make war, and obey the dictates of honour and 
 duty, yet I desire, as well as yourself peace, for the happi- 
 ness of the people and the interest of humanity. 
 
 " As, nevertheless, in the post with which I am intrusted, 
 it does not belong to me to scrutinise or to terminate the quar- 
 rels of the belligerent powers ; and as I am not furnished,, on 
 the part of his Imperial majesty, with any power to treat ; you 
 will see that it is natural, M. general, that I should not enter 
 into any negociation with you on that subject, but wait for su- 
 perior ordei's relative to an object of such high importance, and 
 which is not fundamentally a part of my duty. But whatever 
 may be the future chaiice of the war, or the hopes of peace, I 
 entreat you to t>e persuaded, M. general, of my distinguished 
 esteem and consideration. 
 
 " CHARLES, Field-Marshal." 
 
 A skirmish took place at the entrance in- 
 to Hundsmark on the 14th, April third, 
 which continued for an hour, and ended in 
 the loss of nearly 900 of the Austrians, 600 
 of whom were prisoners : the French immedi- 
 ately occupied Kintenfield, Murau and Ju- 
 denburgh ; and in this position the whole of 
 the divisions re-united; Joubert was accom- 
 panied by 8,000 prisoners, whom he had cap- 
 tured in the course of his march through the 
 Tyrol. 
 
1^6 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 Bonaparte had now traversed the southern 
 eham of the Alps, and arrived within 30 
 leagues of Vienna : nothing less was antici- 
 pated than that the French would pursue the 
 road to Vienna, and consternation filled the 
 capital, whose inhabitants were clamorous 
 for peace; which induced the Emperor to re- 
 quest a suspension of arms. The Count de 
 Bellegarde and M. Morveldt, the Imperial 
 plenipotentiaries, visited Bonaparte at his 
 head-quarters, Leoben, and presented him a 
 note in the name of the Emperor, to which 
 Bonaparte immediately replied : 
 
 " Judenbur^h, ,4firit 7; 
 " His majesty the Emperor and King has nothing niore at 
 heart than to concur in restoring repose to Europe, and putting 
 an end to a war which desolates the two nations ; in consequence 
 of the overture whieh you made toliis royal highness by your let- 
 ter from Clagenfurt, his majesty the Emperor has accordingljf 
 sent us to you, to treat on a subject of such high importance..... 
 Pursuant to the conversation we have just had with you, and 
 persuaded of the good-will, as well as the intention of the 
 two powers, to terminate, as soon as possible, this disastrous 
 warj his royal highness desires an armistice for nine day«, on 
 purpose to attain the desired end with more speed, and in 
 order that all delays and obstacles which the continuance of 
 hostilities might occasion to the negociation may be removed} 
 and every thing ctaicur to the re-establishment of peace 
 between the two great nations. 
 
 « Count BELLEGARDE, Lieut. General. 
 
 " MORVELDT, Major.General." 
 « TO GENERALS BELLEGARDE AND MORVELDT. 
 " Gentlemen, 
 " In the military position of the two armies, an armistice is 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE . lit 
 
 hostile to the French ; but if it be to smooth the road to peace, 
 which is so much desired, and will be so useful to the two 
 nations, I consent without difficulty to your desires. 
 
 " The French republic has often manifested to his majesty 
 her desire to put an end to this cruel war : she remains in the 
 same sentiments ; and I do not doubt, after the conference 
 which I have had the honour to have with you, that in a few 
 days peace will be at length re-established between the French 
 republic and the Emperor. I beg you to confide in those sen- 
 timents of esteem and consideration with which I am, gentle- 
 men, &c. 
 
 « BONAPARTE " 
 
 An armistice was agreed to, and prelimina- 
 ries of peace instantly succeeded. The pre- 
 liminaries began with a declaration on the part 
 of the Emperor, that he acknowledged the 
 French republick. Bonaparte, interrupting the 
 recital, observed with dignity, " The French 
 " republick is, like the sun in the firmament ; and 
 " blind indeed are those who have not observ- 
 " ed its splendour .'" The article was erased. 
 
 At the signing of these preliminaries the 
 Emperor sent three of the principal nobility 
 of his court as hostages. Bonaparte receiv- 
 ed them with every mark of distinction, invi- 
 ted them to dine with him, and at the desert 
 said, " Gentlemen, you are free : tell your 
 " master that if his imperial Word require a 
 " pledge, you cannot serve as such ; and if 
 " it require none, that you ought not." 
 
 The Venetians were next to feel the effects 
 of Bonaparte's resentment : the government 
 of that city had expressed the most enthusi- 
 astic rapture when they reflected that he 
 
118 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 might among the mountains and defiles of 
 Styria, experience the fate of Charles XII. at 
 Pultowa, and manifested the most pointed 
 enmity to the French. 
 
 Whilst Bonaparte continued his brilliantly 
 successful career, three hundred French, who 
 were sick in the hospitals at Verona, were 
 murdered in cold blood by the Venetians : a 
 trifling advantage which a body of Austrians 
 had gained over a division of the French ar- 
 my, separated from the main body, produc- 
 ed a belief in the citizens of Verona and its 
 vicinity, that victory had abandoned the con- 
 queror of Italy. When Bonaparte heard 
 this affecting intelligence, he wrote to the 
 Doge of Venice a menacing letter :.... 
 
 " Through your contmental territories the subjects of the 
 " most serene republic are in arms j the rallying word is, 
 " Death to the French." 
 
 " The number of soldiers of the army of Italy who have 
 " been its victims, amounts to many hundreds.... Do you be- 
 " lieve that when I can carry our arms into the heart of Ger- 
 " many, I have not a force sufficient to make the first people. 
 " in the world respected ? Do you think that the Italian legi- 
 " ons can suffer the massacres which you excite ? The blood 
 •' of our brethren shall be revenged. I resolved to send 
 '' you my propositions by one of my aides-de-camp and chiefs 
 " of brigade.... r^Far or peace. If you do not immediately adopt 
 " measures to disperse the mobs. ...if you do not arrest and 
 " deliver into my hands the perpetrators of the murders which 
 " have been committed. ...war is declared." 
 
 The Doge replied: he assured Bonaparte 
 of the grief which the senate felt upon the 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPAHTE. 1 19 
 
 reception of his letter, expressing to him all 
 that desire which the Venetian government 
 entertained to live in peace and in the best 
 harmony with the French republick ; that if 
 the Venetians had taken up arms, it was from 
 fidelity and attachment io their lawful gov ern- 
 mejtt against those %vho had mutinied and re" 
 volted; that in addition, the senate were dis- 
 posed to deliver to the hero of Italy those who 
 had committed these assassinations upon the 
 French; and that he had prohibited the use 
 of arms among his subjects except in their 
 own defence against the rebels. 
 
 Bonaparte had offered them peace or war^ 
 and when the preliminaries of peace with 
 Austria were signed, he determined upon the 
 latter. Before he commenced offensive ope- 
 rations he published the following manifesto, 
 stating his complaints and the reasons of his 
 conduct : 
 
 *' Head-Quarters^ Palma JV^uovo, 14 Ploreal, May thirteen. 
 " Whilst the French were engaged in the defiles of Styria, 
 and left far behind them Italy and the principal establishments 
 of the army, where only a small number of battalions remain- 
 ed, this was the conduct of the government of Venice : 1 . 
 They profited of Passion-week, to arm forty thousand pea- 
 sants, and uniting these with ten regiments of Sclavonians, 
 organized them into different corps, and sent them to different 
 points, to intercept all kinds of communication between the 
 French army and the places in its rear, — 2. Extraordinary 
 commissaries, ammunition of all kinds, and a great quantity 
 of cannon, were sent from Venice to complete the organiza- 
 tion of different corps. — 3. All persons in the Terra Firma, 
 
120 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 who had received us favourably, were arrested ; benefits and 
 the confidence of the government were conferred upon all 
 those who possessed a furious hatred to the French name, and 
 especially the fifteen conspii-ators of Verona whom the prove- 
 ditori Prioli had arrested three months ago as having preme- 
 ditated the massacre of the French. — 4. In the squares, cof- 
 fee-houses, and other public places of Venice, all French- 
 men were insulted, mal-treated, and called by the names of 
 jacobins, regicides, atheists. The French were ordered to 
 leave Venice, and a short time afterwards they were prohibit- 
 ed from entering it. — 5. The people of Padua, Vicenza, and Ve- 
 rona, were ordered to take up arms, to second the different corps 
 of the ai'my, and to begin the new Sicihan Vespers. It belongs, 
 said the Venetian officers, to the lion of St. Mark to verify 
 the proverb — that Italy is the tomb of the French*-^6. The 
 priests in the pulpit preached up the crusade : and the priests 
 in the state of Venice never speak any thing but the will of 
 the government. Pamphlets, perfidious proclamations, ano- 
 nymous letters, were printed in the different towns, and be- 
 gan to agitate the minds of all : in a state where the liberty 
 of the press is not permitted, in a government as much fear- 
 ed as it is secretly detested, printers publish, and authors 
 write, nothing but what the senate pleases. — 7. All smiled at 
 first at the perfidious project of the government. French 
 blood flowed on every side. On all the roads, our convoys, 
 our couriers, and every thing for the army, were intercepted. 
 — 8. At Padua, a chief of battalion and two other Frenchmen 
 were arrested. At Castiglione de Mori our soldiers were dis- 
 armed and assassinated. On all the great roads from Man- 
 tua to Legnago, and from Cassano to Verona, we had more 
 than two hundred men assassinated. — 9. Two French battali- 
 ons, wishing to join the army, met at Chiari with a division 
 of the Venetian troops, which attempted to oppose their pas- 
 sage : an obstinate conflict took place) and our brave soldiers 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 121 
 
 cut a way for themselves, by putting these perfidious enemies 
 to the route.— 10. At Valeggio there was another battle, &t 
 Dessengaro a third. The French were every where the v/eak- 
 est in numbers ; but they know well that the number of the 
 -enemy's battalions is never counted when they are composed 
 only of assassins. — 11. At the second feast in Easter, on the 
 ringing of the bell, ali the French were assassinated in Vero- 
 na, Neither the sick in the hospitals were respected, nor 
 those who, in a state of convalescence, were walking in the 
 streets ; they were thrown into the Adige, where they died, 
 pierced with a thousand wounds from stilettos. More than 
 four hundred were assassinated.— 12. For atveek the Vene- 
 tian army besieged the three castles of Verona. The cannon 
 which were placed on the battery were carried at the point of 
 the bayonet. The town was set on fire, and the moveable co- 
 lumn that arrived in the interim, put these cowards to com- 
 plete rout, by taking three thousand of the enemy prisoners, 
 among whom were several Venetian generals. — -13. The house 
 of the French consul to Zante was burnt in Dalmatia — 14. 
 A Venetian ship of war took an Austrian convoy under its pro^ 
 tection, and fired several shot at the corvette La Brune. — 15. 
 The Uberateur d'ltulie^ a vessel of the republic, with only- 
 three or four small pieces of cannon, and a crew of forty men, 
 was sunk in the very port of Venice, and by order of the se- 
 nate. The young and intrepid Haugier, lieutenant and com. 
 mander of the said ship, as soon as he saw himself attacked 
 by the fire of the fort and the admiral's galley, being from both 
 not more than pistol-shot, ordered his crew to go below. He 
 alone got upon the deck, in the jnidst of a storm of grape-shot, 
 and endeavoured, by his speeches, to disarm the fury of his 
 assassins ; but he fell dead. His crew threw themselves into 
 the sea, and were pursued by six shallops, with troops on board, 
 in the pay of Venice, who cut to pieces several that sought for 
 
122 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 safety in the water. One of the masters, with several wounds, 
 and bleeding in every part, had the good fortune to reach the 
 shore, near the castle of the port ; but the commandant him- 
 self cut off his hand with an axe.. 
 
 " On account of the above-mentioned grievances, and 
 in consequence of the urgency of affairs, the general in 
 chief requires the French minister to the republic of Venice, 
 to leave the said city ; directs the different agents of the re- 
 public of Venice in Lombardy, and the Venetian Terra Fir- 
 ma, to quit it in twenty -four hours ; directs the generals of di- 
 vision to treat as enemies the troops of the republic of Venice, 
 and to pull down, in the towns of the Terra Firma, the lion 
 of St. Mark. Every one will receive, in the orders of the 
 day to-morrowj a particular instruction respecting ulterior ope- 
 rations. 
 
 « BONAPARTE." 
 
 On the sixteenth day after the pubHcation 
 of this manifesto, Baraguay d'HiUiers enter- 
 ed Venice with 6,000 men. The French mi- 
 nister immediately addressed the government, 
 and deeply lamented that which the Vene- 
 tians had committed against the French. He 
 Said, " French blood has been shed : it de- 
 " mands vengeance ; it shall obtain it." The 
 council replied,' " That the restoration of 
 " harmony was the object of their public ef- 
 " forts ; that they desired the suspension of 
 " hostilities to settle amicably all differences 
 " between the republics of France and Ve- 
 " nice." They named three commissioners, 
 arrested the three inquisitors of state, as the 
 authors of the troubles ; ordered that every 
 person should give information respecting 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 123 
 
 those who were concerned in the assassinati- 
 ons ; and imprisoned many persons of rank. 
 
 The French army triumphed throughout 
 the Venetian repubhc. In one of the procla- 
 mations Augereau said : 
 
 " People ! I come amongst you to punish crime, to protect 
 innocence, and to avenge the blood of my brethren. I know the 
 evil which you have done us.; I know to what a length the ter- 
 rible right of conquest extends ; I know how far we might 
 urge our vengeance ; but you were deceived by fanaticism and 
 giddiness. You are conquered, unhappy and submissive ; we 
 shall be compassionate, kind and just. Generosity becomes 
 power ; nevertheless let none be imposed upon ; it is for weak- 
 ness, poverty and credulity I shall permit the heart to speak : 
 the wicked enlightened man, the perfidious conspirator, need 
 not expect kindness ; they shall be punished." 
 
 Augereau entered Verona ; the peasants 
 detained in fort St. FeUx were led before the 
 constituted authorities, and then to the place 
 of execution to be shot : the general, after 
 liaving addressed them in the language of the 
 proclamation, said to them: 
 
 "Far from slaying you, I will return the children to their 
 mothers, husbands to their wives, fathers to their mourning 
 families, and citizens to the state. I come to dry up the tears 
 of repentance, and to conquer hearts to the French : go, ye 
 unfortunate, return to your countrymen ; and say to them how 
 we revenge ourselves I" 
 
 After the French had taken possession of 
 Venice, the Pacha of Scutari wrote a letter 
 to Bonaparte :.... 
 
124 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 THE PACHA IBRAHIM. 
 
 " God is great, and his tvorks are wonderful." 
 " To the general in chief Bonaparte, protector of the law of 
 Issa ; to the powerful man of the French republick ; to the 
 general of generals, mighty conqueror of the countries of 
 Italy, general in chief, faithful, beloved, merciful, benefi- 
 ceut : it is to him that I address this writing :.... 
 *' Prince of generals, O that your vows may be favourably 
 heard 1 O that our friendship may be eternal I O that 
 my sincere salutation may reach you I O that I may be in- 
 formed of the happy state of yoivr health. I request the fa- 
 vour that my subjects and my merchants who have business in 
 Venice, may be protected in their persons and their commer- 
 cial business ; that the merchants of Scutari, my subjects, 
 may be regarded, protected and honoured : I desire to give 
 ycu the most frequent and signal proofs of my friendship. 
 This letter will serve to express to you my aeknowledge- 
 ments. 
 
 " God is great, and his works are wonderful. O that the 
 friendship which unites us may never cease. 
 
 " In the first days of Mabaram, year of the Hegira, 
 1272." 
 
 BONAPARTE TO THE PACHA IBRAHIM. 
 
 " I have read with much pleasure the flattering expressions 
 contained in the letter of your highness. The French repub- 
 lick is truly the friend of the Subhme Porte; she particu- 
 larly esteems the brave Albanian nation which is under your 
 command. 
 
 " Your highness will find annexed the order AVhich I ha-ve- 
 given that the Ottoman flag should be respected in the Adria- 
 tick ocean. The Turks shall be treated not only as other nati- 
 ons, but with peculiar partiality. On all occasions I will pro- 
 tect the Albanians, and shall feel a pleasure in giving to your 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 125 
 
 highness a proof of my esteem, and of the high consideration 
 which 1 have for it. 
 
 " I request your highness to receive in testimony of my 
 friendship, the four chests of muskets which I herewith send 
 to you." 
 
 Augereau destroyed the old form of go- 
 vernment, and established a democracy ; but 
 by the definitive treaty of peace of Camp6 
 Formio, which Bonaparte signed on the 26th 
 Vendemiaire, October twenty-sixth, Venice 
 and its dependencies on the continent were de- 
 livered to Austria. 
 
 Bonaparte at Campo Formio, displayed that 
 warmth of character for which he is distin- 
 guished. Perceiving that the proposals of 
 the French government were not much at- 
 tended to by the Austrian deputies, he took 
 up a beautiful piece of China, dashed it 
 to atoms, saying, " Since you will hjave 
 it so, thus will I reduce you to dust:" and 
 instantly quitted the room. The energy with 
 which he spoke intimidated the Austrian go- 
 vernment so much that they acceded to terms 
 immediately, and the treaty was signed in the 
 course of a few days. 
 
 Having fixed peace on the continent, and 
 established the Italian republicks, he returned 
 to Paris, where he was received by the go- 
 vernment and the people as the conqueror of 
 Italy, with the most vehement applause. 
 
 Some intimate friends of Bonaparte talking 
 freely with him concerning the treaty of Cam- 
 po Formio, observed, that he had allowed the 
 
126 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 Emperor great advantages in giving up to him 
 the spoils of Venice; and that the destruction 
 of one of the most ancient repubHcs in the 
 world had served only to indemnify the Em- 
 peror, through the success of a repub- 
 lican general. " I was playing at vingt-et- 
 iin^''' said the conqueror, " and being twenty I 
 stood.'' 
 
 The congress of Rastadt was appointed 
 some time after, and Bonaparte deputed as 
 plenipotentiary on the part of the French ; 
 but the general discovered that it was more 
 easy to march over mountains, besiege towns, 
 and conquer hostile intrenchments, than to 
 vanquish the duplicity and insincerity of 
 statesmen, and adjust the disputes which they 
 make, merely to protract the proceedings, and 
 by extending the points of negociation, to per- 
 plex those who are engaged in them. He 
 therefore left Rastadt, and at Paris began to 
 meditate upon the Egyptian expedition. 
 
 It is almost superfluous to add any remarks 
 \ipon Bonaparte's first Italian campaign, or 
 to investigate his individual character from 
 the events already narrated. He appears in 
 the most favourable light, in almost every in- 
 cident. His military skill as displayed in 
 1796 and 1797, raises him to the very high- 
 est rank As a warrior : and whether we consi- 
 der the science which characterises his plans, 
 the almost intuitive perception which he e-dnc- 
 cd of the errors of those whom he opposed, 
 the rapidity with which he seized every ad- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 12f 
 
 vantage arising from those errors, the cool- 
 ness and intrepidity which he manifested in 
 every difficuhy, or the unbounded authority 
 which he had acquired over his soldiers, it 
 must be admitted tiiat modern history at leasts 
 affords no parallel to Napoleon Bonaparte, 
 There are two qualifications uniting in the 
 subject of this history, which are indispensa- 
 bly necessary to the commander of an army ; 
 that presence of mind which no danger can 
 disconcert, and that unconcern respecting the 
 indulgence of the natural appetites and passi- 
 ons which no hardships can discompose. The 
 history of these campaigns affords ample 
 proof of the prudence and judgment of 
 the directory in appointing to the most diffi- 
 cult service in the republic, a man, to whom 
 as a general, the renowned heroes of Greece 
 and Rome must relinquish their laurels, and 
 acknowledge that our times have produced 
 their superiour. 
 
 A late writer who has published his observa- 
 tions on that portion of Bonaparte's life which 
 includes his consulship, has advanced an cpi- 
 nion, which it is almost unnecessary to con- 
 tradict. Of Talleyrand he says, " His pow- 
 " er over the chief consul increases daily, 
 " and must increase, as he is the only one 
 " who is thoroughly versed in a thousand 
 " things of which Bonaparte and his nearest 
 " attendants know nothing." This must refer 
 to the presumed ignorance of Bonaparte with 
 regard to the art of governing : but a consi- 
 
128 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 deration of the scenes in which he was en- 
 gaged in Italy and in Egypt, will force us to 
 conclude, either that the author was a very su- 
 perficial observer of the consul, or that he 
 composed his volume under the influence of 
 the strongest prejudice. In Europe, it is al- 
 most impossible for any man to relate Bona- 
 parte's interesting history, untainted by the 
 violence of party spirit.. ..on the one hand it 
 will be unqualified panegyrick, or on the 
 other, the most virulent reproaches : but We 
 who are at a distance, and whose passions are 
 less roused, can examine the character of any 
 public individual, though not so minutely, 
 undoubtedly with more accuracy. 
 
 Bonaparte in Italy demonstrated that he 
 possesses all those requisites so desirable in 
 the executive department of governm,ent : 
 and at this period of his life it cannot be 
 disputed tha.t Talleyrand had given him no in- 
 tructions in political legerdemain. To the 
 revolutionary spirit excited, nourished and 
 animated by the French general alone, must 
 be itmputed much of the success which at- 
 tended his army : the republicks established and 
 the measures adopted by him at that peri- 
 od discover great penetration, a just view of 
 the importance of raising a strong barrier to 
 any sudden inroads upon the French territo- 
 ry by the German Emperor, a clear estimate 
 of the human character, and a perfect ac- 
 quaintance with all those means which are so 
 necessary to gain and to secure the affections 
 of a conquered people. 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 129 
 
 Some have murmured at the removal of the 
 paintings, statues, manuscripts, &:c. which 
 were buried in dust at Milan and Rome, and 
 which are now the ornament of Paris: 
 but the whole literary world regard the pre- 
 sent ruler of France as having in this in- 
 stance proved himself to be the patron of 
 science. ...the monuments of genius and taste 
 which had been so long obscured are now 
 exhibited to all nations, and the various pro- 
 ductions of art which the ignorance and bi- 
 gotry of past ages had concealed, are dis- 
 played for the present generation to admire 
 and to imitate. 
 
 It cannot be denied by the most determin- 
 ed opponent of Bonaparte, that he has very 
 essentially contributed to the diffusion of sci- 
 entifick knowledge in France, and that the ex- 
 hibition of those remains of ancient genius, 
 which are now deposited in Paris, has been 
 attended by the most important effects : these 
 chef d'oeuvres of themostrenownedartists have 
 kindled a spirit of enthusiasm in the literati of 
 France, which never can be eradicated whilst he 
 holds the direction of public affairs. To the 
 philanthropist who rejoices in the dissemination 
 of every kind of knowledge, the issue of the 
 campaigns in Italy must be very grateful.... for 
 in whatever point of view we consider them, 
 we cannot doubt but that the chans^e to the 
 inhabitants was advantageous. It is true 
 they were burdened with many exactions, 
 
 R 
 
130 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 they were impoverished by contributions, but 
 they were released in some measure from the 
 chains of that odious tyranny which had du- 
 ring so many centuries degraded the sons of 
 the Roman patriots to the level of the animal 
 whose guide is instinct and passion alone. 
 
 The individual character of the man was 
 amply displayed whilst he commanded the ar- 
 my of Italy.. ..and if in the punishment of those 
 who opposed him, he may have evinced 
 a disposition to adopt barbarous measures to 
 enforce his regulations, and to maintain obe- 
 dience ; it must be admitted that his situation 
 was so delicate and insecure that it required 
 strong measures to confirm his possession of 
 the newly conquered countries. In the instances 
 alluded to, the village of Binasco, and the 
 domain of Arquata, his conduct is decidedly 
 at variance with the whole tenour of his pri- 
 vate life. His attention to his soldiers, his 
 sympathising with them in all their concerns, 
 his addresses to them, his letters, all prove 
 that Bonaparte possessed a considerable share 
 of the " milk of human kindness." 
 
 it may be said that all his kindness or pre- 
 tended affection for his officers and troops, as 
 well as his severity with respect to the Itali- 
 ans who revolted, proceeded from the same 
 source.. ..an insatiate love of fame, and an un- 
 conquerable ambition. But this does not af- 
 fect the view which is given of the genuine 
 character of Bonaparte. ...and it must be re- 
 marked that we have much more reason to sus- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. ISl 
 
 pect the purity of motive for every uncommon 
 measure which he may now execute, than 
 when his name was ahnost unknown to his 
 country, and when the extraordinary success 
 which attended his mihtary career was almost 
 sufficient of itself to insure his proscription. 
 
 One author who appears to have spared no 
 pains to procure the Austrian relation of the 
 campaign of 1796 in Italy, can see little or 
 no merit in Bonaparte, but this is surely an 
 unfair estimate of his talents. Upon the 
 presumption that Carnot's mathematical and 
 geographical knowledge furnished the out- 
 lines of the course which the young hero 
 should pursue, nothing can be deducted from 
 the talents and skill of the chief of the ar- 
 my. 
 
 Carnot did not select his generals ; Carnot 
 did not compose those classical and energetic 
 harangues and addresses which whilst they 
 inspired his own army with every degree of 
 energy and confidence calculated to insure 
 success to his operations, scattered dismay 
 and terror amongst the soldiers and adherents 
 of the house of Austria ; Carnot did not, 
 could not have anticipated those multifarious 
 events which demanded a promptitude of mi- 
 litary movements, admitting of not a mo- 
 ment's delay, which vv^ere all directed by Bo^ 
 naparte in person, w^hich required an immense 
 fund of activity and knowledge in the leader, 
 and v/hich were rendered more necessary 
 than in any campaign of which modern his- 
 
132 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 tory speaks ; because as fast as one army 
 was conquered, another was recruited and 
 dispatched against him ; and at no one peri- 
 od from the commencement of hostiUties until 
 the preliminaries of peace were signed, did he 
 command an army more than four-fifths of 
 the number of either of those six armies 
 which he either captured or dispersed ; and 
 aUhough Carnot might have sketched some 
 instructions for the general, he could not 
 have animated the troops with the enthusiasm 
 which they indisputably felt.... he could not 
 have prepared any plan to derange the pro- 
 gress of the Austrian troops, when no mor- 
 tal could possibly know what course the ar- 
 mies might follow, and especially as every 
 advantage in the spring of 1796 was altoge- 
 ther with the combined forces. 
 
 The energy, celerity and perspicacity 
 which were apparent in Bonaparte through 
 the whole of the campaigns, provided he pos- 
 sessed no other qualities to entitle him to the 
 rank to which he attained, would justify the 
 impartial historian in elevating him to one of 
 the highest stations among the host of men 
 who have no other claim to renov/n than the 
 superior facility with which they can load 
 their fellov/ creatures with all the miseries in- 
 cident to human nature. 
 
 But the motives of all his conduct are the 
 grand point upon which the question rests 
 with regard to Bonaparte's character. That 
 he felt in common with all military men, a 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 13» 
 
 Strong desire to become eminent cannot be 
 disputed ; that he displayed much hauteur 
 and self-importance when young, is evident ; 
 and that even in Italy there are some in- 
 stances in his journeys which evidenced much 
 of the infirmity of the human character is in- 
 controvertibly true. Nevertheless, that he is 
 an ignorant upstart, without genius or learn- 
 ing, without science or courage, and depen- 
 dent altogether upon the advice, prudence 
 and management of others in his civil govern- 
 ment, is a position so preposterous as to re- 
 quire no refutation. If the transactions al- 
 ready related do not suffice to convince every 
 person of the genius of Bonaparte, let the 
 following address which he made to his army 
 when he had resolved to begin hostile opera- 
 tions, be adduced :.... 
 
 " Soldiers ! 
 " This is no longer a defensive war, it is a war of invasion J 
 ' you are now to make conquests. You have no equipage, 
 " no magazines ; you are without artillery, without clothes, 
 " without shoes, without pay ; you want every thing; but you 
 '' are rich in courage. Well I there are your magazines ; 
 " your artillery ; you have iron and lead ; march, and they 
 " shall soon be yours." He then shewed them the fertile 
 " plains of Lombardy and Piedmont. " The enemy are four 
 " times more numerous than you, hence we shall gain a great- 
 *' er degree of glory." 
 
 This is not an incorrect description of the 
 state of the French army : with what talents 
 must that man be endowed, who could with 
 a body of not 60,000 men, so unprovided, set 
 at defiance the German empire, and all the 
 
134 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 Italian pov/ers, and eventually oblige each 
 governnient in rotation to submit to the terms 
 of peace which he d^cta,ted. 
 
 Many circumstances in addition to those 
 whic'i'i have been recited, attest that Bonaparte 
 was not devoid of that sensibility which is one 
 of the finest attributes of human nature. At 
 the passage of the Piave, a soldier carried 
 away by the current, was on the point of be- 
 ing drov/ned : a woman who accompanied the 
 column jumped into the water, and saved his 
 life. The general made her a present of a 
 gold neck-lace, ornamented v/ith a civic 
 crovv^n, and the name of the soldier engraved 
 in it. 
 
 The death of Hoche undoubtedly affect- 
 ed Bonaparte very sensibly.... to manifest 
 his esteem for the memory of a man who di^ 
 ed as he had lived, universally beloved.. ..the 
 general offered a thousand sequins to any 
 person who composed an ode v/orthy of the 
 subject, on the restoration of peace in La 
 Vendee, which had been established by the 
 unremhtting efforts and patriotic exertions of 
 Hoche. 
 
 The means by which Bonaparte attained 
 his vast ascendency over the soldiers, may be 
 correctly appreciated by the following inci- 
 dent : One of the cavalry was deputed from 
 Milan to Montebello, with very urgent dis- 
 patches : upon his arrival he found the gene- 
 ral ready to depart in pursuit of the Austri- 
 ans ; he delivered him the packet, and waited 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 135 
 
 his answer. Bonaparte immediately gave it 
 him : " Go," said he, " and above all things 
 " go quickly." " General, as swiftly as I 
 " can : but I have no horse ; I killed him, by 
 " the speed which I made on my journey ; he 
 " lies dead at the door of your house. '' It is 
 " a horse you want only ; take mine." The 
 messenger objected to the present...." You 
 " will find him a very fine horse, and very 
 " richly harnessed: Go, my comrade, there 
 " is nothing too magnificent for a French war- 
 
Expedition to Egypt* 
 
 BONAPARTE having tetired from the 
 congress at Rastadt, returned to Paris, and 
 the leisure which the want of active service 
 afforded, permitted him to form new plans, 
 and to invent new projects. The treaty of 
 Campo Formio had rendered unnecessary a 
 very considerable part of the immense bo- 
 dies of troops which had been employed in 
 defending the republic, and the directory 
 were desirous to engage them in some service 
 which would eflPectually injure the British 
 commerce. The English were complete mas- 
 ters of the sea, and able to purchase a conti- 
 nental war at any time ; hence the French go- 
 vernment were anxious to despoil her of part 
 of her great mercantile influence, by opening 
 new channels to acquire wealth. With this 
 view, the hero of Italy conceived the design 
 of subjugating Egypt, which proposed every 
 advantage to the French, and which if it had 
 been successful, would have strongly influ- 
 enced the English East-India possessions. 
 Situated as were the two hostile countries, 
 the expedition to Egypt evinces all the distin- 
 
I-HE HISTORY OF NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 137 
 
 gnishing traits of Bonaparte's character. Si- 
 milar measures with those which had been 
 adopted in Italy, were rendered more neces- 
 sary, whilst an extensive acquaintance with 
 the Eastern manners, great self-denial and 
 uncommon fortitude to bear the unezpanpled 
 difficulties which they had to encounter, 
 were indispensable. 
 
 This enterprise required profound genius, 
 a penetrating mind, a legislating spirit, vast 
 local knowledge, much coolness and intrepi- 
 dity, vigour of plan, energy in execution, 
 and boldness nearly allied to temerity. All 
 these qualities unite in Bonaparte : and the 
 directory having assented to the plan v/hich 
 he proposed, an armament w^as prepared with 
 the greatest activity at Marseilles and Tou- 
 lon, and in the month of Floreal, April-May, 
 1798, the requisites v/ere provided for this 
 hazardous voyage. 
 
 All the countries of Europe contempla- 
 ted with much anxiety the destination of 
 this immense armament : it was promulged 
 that England was to be invaded by it, that 
 its real object might remain unknown to the 
 British fleets. Bonaparte understanding 
 that the vessels were ready to weigh anchor, 
 and attended by the generals and soldiers 
 who had conquered Italy, arrived at Toulon, 
 to which port a large body of literati had 
 proceeded to accompany him. 
 
 S 
 
135 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 Previous to his departure, Bonaparte to 
 improve his leisure, demanded from the Ubra- 
 ry at Milan all the books which treated on 
 Egypt, Syria, the Red Sea, Persian Gulf, 
 &:c. On returning them, the passages which 
 related to Egypt were marked, so that he 
 appears to have availed himself of every ne- 
 cessary pre-requisiie, and maturely weighed 
 the arduousness of the undertaking. 
 
 Bonaparte did not arrive at Toulon until 
 the beginning of May 1798 : on the 19th 
 Floreal, May eighth, he visited the squa- 
 dron ; on the 21st, tenth, he addressed his 
 army : 
 
 " Soldiers I You are one of the wings of tlie army of Eng- 
 land : you have inade war on mountains, on plains, and in 
 sieges : it remains for you to make war by sea. The Roman, 
 legions, which you have sometimes imitated, but not yet 
 equalled, combated Carthage, by turns, on this same sea, and 
 on the plains of Zama. Victory never forsook them, be- 
 cause they were always brave, patient under fatigue, obedient 
 to their leaders, and united among themselves. 
 
 " Soldiers t vhe eyes of Europe are upon you : you have great 
 destinies to fulfil, biittles to fight, dangers and fatigues to over- 
 come : you must do even more than you have yet done, and 
 endure more than you have yet endured, for the prosperity of 
 your native country, the happiness of the human race, and 
 your own glory. Soldiers, sailors, artilleiy, infantry and ca- 
 valry, be all united, be one : remember, that in the day of 
 battle you will have need of each other. Sailors, you 
 have been hitherto neglected ; now the greatest solicitude of 
 the republick is for you : you will be worthy of the army of 
 vhich you form a part. The genius of liberty, which from 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 139 
 
 ' ' ' . ... ., LL 
 
 her birlh has rendered the republick the arbitrator of Europe, 
 wills that she shall be the same in the most distant seas and 
 nations." 
 
 " The military force, when the several de- 
 tachments were united, consisted of nearly 
 40,000 men ; and the list of artists, men 
 of letters, and those of science, contains 
 the following numbers and departments : in 
 geometry eight, in astronomy four, in gene- 
 ral mechanics fourteen, in watch-making two, 
 in chemistry eight, in mineralogy five, in bo- 
 tany three, in zoology five, in surgery six, 
 in pharmacy three, in antiquities two, in ar- 
 chitecture four, in drawing five, in engineer- 
 ing nineteen, in geography eighteen, in print- 
 ing fifteen. In conformity with the various 
 objects attended to in this assemblage of per- 
 sons, the implements of war were accompa- 
 nied by those of science." 
 
 The wind continued unfavourable until Flo- 
 real 30th, May nineteenth, when the signal 
 gun was fired, and Bonaparte on board L 'Ori- 
 ent, left the port the following day.. ..the 
 whole armament consisted of fifteen ships of 
 war and upwards of 200 transports. On the 
 SdTriiirial, twenty-second, the fleet were 
 off St. Florenzo, and passing by Cape 
 Corso and Capraya, laid to on the 6th, twen- 
 ty-fifth, for the divisions from Ajaccio and 
 Civita Vecchia ; the former joined them, but 
 the latter which had steered direct for Malta, 
 and had waited for the arrival of the com- 
 
140 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 mancler, did not unite with them until they 
 reached that island. 
 
 The armament appeared off Malta on the 
 20th Prairial, June eighth, and on the follow- 
 ing evening, Bonaparte sent one of his aides- 
 de-camp asiiore to request permission of the 
 Grand Master for the armament to fill their 
 water casks. The answer given was, that 
 two vessels only should take in water at the 
 same time, which would have employed nine 
 months, for the vessels hadmcreased to more 
 than 500 sail : upon which Bonaparte direct- 
 ed the trooDS to land, and after a slieht resist- 
 ance the island was subdued. The inhabi- 
 tants resorted to Valetta, whose castle is 
 nearly impregnable, if defended with skill 
 and courage ; but between the military efforts 
 which Bona|5arte had determined to make, and 
 the negociations which he attempted, the for- 
 tress capitulated the same evening: and on 
 the 24th, twelfth, the tri-coloured flag was, 
 raised on the walls of the town. The con- 
 sul-general of the Batavian republic had writ- 
 ten to Bonaparte previous to the signing of 
 the convention between them : 
 
 " His most eminent highness and his comicil, having sent 
 for me, have commissioned me to observe to yon, citizen 
 general, that when they denied you entrance into the ports, 
 and begged to have your answer, they pretended to no more than 
 a perception of the departure which you required of them from 
 the laws imposed by their neutraUty. The conduct of the or- 
 der towards the French republick, and the protection which, as. 
 well as its people, from whom it will always be inseparable, it 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 141 
 
 has always received from the French nation, cause it to consi- 
 der a rupture as a misfortune to which it wishes to put an end. 
 His most eminent highness, therefore, and his council, ask for 
 a suspension of hostilities, and for information concerning 
 your intentions, which will doubtlessly be conformable with the 
 generosity of the French nation, and the known sentiments 
 of the celebrated general by whom it is represented." 
 
 By the capture of Malta, the French pro- 
 cured two ships of war, one frigate, four gal- 
 lies, 1,200 pieces of cannon, l,500,000lbs. 
 of powder, 40,000 muskets and other arti- 
 cles. The garrison which Bonaparte left 
 consisted of 4,000 men under general Vau- 
 bois. A considerable number of Turks and 
 others were received on board, and helped to 
 fill up the vacancy occasioned by the garrison 
 which was stationed at Malta. 
 
 On the 29th, seventeenth, the squadron 
 began to leave the port, the following eve- 
 ning the whole were under weigh, and on 
 the 1st of Messidor, nineteenth, L'Orient 
 left the harbour. The armament passed the 
 isle of Candia on the 6th, twenty-fourth, and 
 on the 12th, thirtieth, arrived before Alexan- 
 dria. They passed off the coast within six 
 leagues of Nelson's fleet, which had arrived at 
 Alexandria three days before, and had steer- 
 ed to the north-east in search of them. 
 
 Somq disturbances having been excited at 
 Malta by the soldiery, through misconduct of 
 a nature v/hich might be extensively inju- 
 rious in Egypt, Bonaparte formed a code of 
 regulations enforcing the strictest discipline 
 
142 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 under heavy penalties, and caused them to 
 be read on board each ship. Among other 
 articles, it was ordered that whoever should 
 violate the women, or enter the houses of the 
 Mohammedans, or the Mosques, should be 
 shot ; and ilone of these regulations, the spi- 
 rit of which is so necessary for the welfare of 
 an army, were transgressed. In a procla- 
 mation, published two days subsequently to 
 the departure from Malta, after declaring the 
 object of the expedition, which was to pro- 
 mote the general interests of civilization and 
 commerce, and humble the naval power of 
 England, and confidently promising, after se- 
 veral fatiguing marches, and some hostile 
 encounters, complete success, Bonaparte told 
 them they vv^ere going to live with Mohamme- 
 dans, the first article of whose religious creed 
 was, that there is no God but God, mid Mo- 
 hammed is his prophet. " Do not contradict 
 tiiem," said he. " Conduct yourselves to- 
 wards them as you have done towards the 
 Jews and the Italians. Show respect to their 
 Muftis and Imans, and the ceremonies pre- 
 scribed by the Koran ; as you have shown to 
 the Rabbis and the Bisiiops. Cherish the 
 same spirit of toleration for the Mosques that 
 you have entertained for the religion of Mo- 
 ses and of Jesus Christ : the Roman legions 
 protected all religions. You will find here 
 usages different from those of Europe. You 
 will reconcile yourselves to them by custom. 
 The people of the land into which w^e are 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. i*g 
 
 about to enter, differ from us in their mode 
 of treatment of women ; but, in every coun- 
 try, he who offers violence to the women is a 
 monster." Bonaparte proceeded next to warn 
 them against giving way to a spirit of plun- 
 der : " Plunder, which enriches only a very 
 few, reflects dishonour on the whole ; it 
 dries up our resources, and converts into 
 enemies those whom it is our interest to have 
 for friends." In conclusion, he reminded 
 them that the city they were going to attack 
 was built by Alexander, and that grand re- 
 collections, fitted to excite the emulation of 
 Frenchmen, would be recalled to their minds 
 at every step. At the same time, orders were 
 issued that every individua.1 of the arnly who 
 should pillage or steal, should be shot ; that 
 the punishment of death should also be in- 
 flicted on every individual of the army who 
 should impose contributions on the towns, 
 villages, or individuals, or should commit 
 extortions of any kind ; and that, when any 
 individuals of a division should have commit- 
 ed any disorders in a country, the whole divi- 
 sion, if the offender should not be discovered^ 
 should be responsible and pay the sum ne- 
 cessary to indemnify the inhabitants for the 
 loss sustained. 
 
 Bonaparte, before he landed, issued two 
 addresses : 
 
 BONAPARTE TO THE PACHA OF EGYPT. 
 
 " On board U Orient., 12 Messidur^ June thirtieth. 
 " The executive directory of the French repubUck have fre- 
 quently applied to the Sublime Porte, to demand the punish- 
 
144, THE HISTORY OF 
 
 ment of the beys of Egypt, who have oppressed with their vex- 
 ations the merchants of France. 
 
 " But the Sublime Porte declared, that the beys, an ava- 
 ricious and fickle race, refused to listen to the principles of 
 justice, and not only that the Porte did not authoiize these in- 
 sults, but withdrew their pi'otection from the persons by whom 
 they were committed. 
 
 " The French republlck has resolved to send a powerful ar- 
 my, to put an end to the exactions of the beys of Egypt, in 
 the same manner as it has been several times compelled, during 
 the present century, to take these measures against the beys 
 of Tunis and Algiers. You, who ought to be the master of 
 the beys, and yet are kept at Cairo, without power or authori- 
 ty, cannot but regai'd my arrival with pleasure. You are 
 doubtless already apprised that I come not to attem.pt an y 
 thing against the Alcoran or the Sultan. You know that the 
 French nation is the only ally whom the Sultan has in Eu- 
 rope. Come then and meet me and curse with me the impi- 
 ous race of the beys. 
 
 « BONAPARTE." 
 
 BONAPARTE, COMMANDER IN CHIEF, TO THE 
 COMMANDER OF THE CARAVAN. 
 
 « On board U Orient^ 13 Messidor, July first. 
 " The beys have oppressed our merchants with vexation ; 
 I am come to demand reparation. To-morrow I shall be in 
 Alexandria. You ought to feel no uneasiness ; you belong to 
 our grand friend the Sultan ; conduct yourself accordingly. 
 But if you commit the least hostility against the French army, 
 I shall treat you as an enemy, and for this you must be ac- 
 countable, as it is far from my heart, and from my intentions. 
 
 » BONAPARTE." 
 
 A heavy sea opposed the landing, the wind 
 was very unfavourable, the transports were 
 in much confusion, and an attack by Nelson 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. U5 
 
 was immediately expected. " It fell to my lot . 
 (says Denon) to accompany the French consul 
 onboard the flag ship. We were to communi- 
 cate to the general whatever might interest 
 him most powerfully under such critical cir- 
 cumstances. The English had been seen, 
 and they might come up with us every mo- 
 ment. It blew a fresh gale ; and the convoy 
 was blended with the fleet in such confusion, 
 that the most terrible defeat would have ensu- 
 ed had the enemy appeared. I watched the 
 general's countenance, which did not change 
 in the slightest degree. He made me repeat 
 the statement which he had just heard, and 
 after a silence of a few minutes, commanded 
 the troops to be landed." 
 
 Although late in the evening, Bonaparte 
 ordered an immediate debarkation.. ..the gene- 
 rals Menou and Kleber, with their divisions, 
 landed with the loss of a few lives, and the com- 
 mander joined them at 1 1 o'clock. The next 
 morning very early, the French carried a 
 small fort; and the Mamelucs and Arabs 
 began to skirmish with the French who had 
 landed. 
 
 On the 14th, July second, the French 
 reached Alexandria ; under its walls thejr^ 
 met with much resistance, but their usual 
 impetuosity surmounted all opposition : they 
 scaled the walls, and though the inhabitants 
 had fortified the houses, before the day was 
 ended the two castles surrendered, and the 
 
 T 
 
US THE HISTORY OF 
 
 French took possession of the city, forts and 
 harbours. During the assault general Kle- 
 ber, while pointing out to the grenadiers where 
 they ought to scale, was struck with a ball on 
 the forehead ; he fell, but the wound was 
 not mortal : Bonaparte gave hirii the com- 
 mand of the town. 
 
 In the morning of the 15th, third, Bonaparte 
 surrounded by the grandees of the city, and 
 by the members of the old government, re- 
 ceived the oath of fidelity. He addressed him- 
 self in the following terms to the sheik Kcraim : 
 
 " I Ivdve taken you irt arms, and I might treat you as a pri- 
 soner ; hS you have, however, behaved with courage, and as 
 I think bravery inseparable from honour. I ;^:ive you back 
 yo.ur arms, and I think that you will be as faithful to the re- 
 publick as you have been to a bad government " 
 
 In the evening Bonaparte published this 
 proclamation:.... 
 
 " Too long have the Beys who govern Egypt insulted the 
 French nation, and loaded her merchants with vexations : the 
 hour of their chastiseHnent is arrived. Too long has this horde 
 of slaves, purchased from Caucasus and Georgia, tyrannized 
 over the fairest part of the world ; but God, upon whom every- 
 thing depends, has ordered their empire to end. People of 
 Egypt I You will be told that I come to destroy your religion ; 
 believe it not : reply that I come to restore youf rights, to 
 punish the usui'pers, and that I venerate, more than the Ma- 
 Kielucs, God, his prophet, and the Koran. Tell these that 
 all men are equal before God : wisdom, talents, virtues, 
 make all the difference between them. Now, what wisdom, 
 what talents, what virtues, distinguish the Mamelucs, that 
 they exclusively should possess all that is lovely and sweet 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 147 
 
 In life ? Is there a bTtautitul estaie ? Ic bclonii;b lo the Manie- 
 lucs. Is there a beavitiful slave, a beautiful horse, a b-auti- 
 ful house? they beif>n.L;; to the Marncliics. If Ej,ypt be their 
 tarm, let them show the lease which God has grunted. But 
 "God is just ivnd bountiful to all mankind; all the Ei^ypticins 
 are culled to fill all posts ; let the most wise, the most inform- 
 ed, tl)e most virtuous govern, and the people ^viil be happy. 
 There were formerly amon:< you great cities, great canals, 
 great commerce : by what has all been destroyed, if not by 
 the avarice, the injustice, and the tyranny of the Mamelucs ? 
 ■Cadis, Sheiks, Imans, Tshorbadjles, tell the people that we 
 ■are the friends of true Moslems. Is it not we vvho have de- 
 stroyed the Pope, who said that war must be made on Moslems ? 
 Is it not we who have destroyed the knights of Malta, be- 
 cause the m:tdmen believed that God willed them to make war 
 on Moslems ? Is it not v/e who have long been the friendstif 
 the Grand Seignior, whose designs may God accomplish ! and 
 the enemies of his enemies ? Are not the Mamelucs, on the 
 other hand, in continual rebellion against the Grand Seignior, 
 whom they still refuse to acknowledge ? They execute their 
 own schemes only. Thrice happy thoue who are for us, they 
 shall prosper in their I'ank and fortune. Happy those vvho are 
 neuter ! They will have time to become acquainted with us, 
 and they v/ill come to our side. Bat wretched, thrice wretch- 
 ed those who shall arm for the Mamelucs, and fight against 
 us ! There shall be no hope for these ; they shall perish 1" 
 
 An alliance was immediately formed be- 
 tween the Mufti, the principal Sheiks of 
 Alexandria and Bonaparte. Upon which 
 the former issued the following :.... 
 
 DECL\RATION 
 Of the Mufti^ and prindfial Sheiks of 'he city of Alexandria, in 
 the name of the Inhabitants. > 
 
 " Glory to God, to whom all glory is due, and peace to the 
 
148 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 holy prophet Mohamed, his family, and the companions of 
 his divine mission. 
 
 " The followini^ agreement has been concluded between us, 
 the chief men of the city of Alexandria, whose names are 
 hereunto subjoined, and the general in chief of the French 
 army encamped in this city. 
 
 " The undersigned chiefs shall continue to observe the law 
 and sacred institutions. They shall determine all differences 
 according to the purest justice, and carefully keep at a distance 
 from the crooked path of iniquity. The cadi, to whose care 
 the tribunal of justice is to be confided, shall be a man of the 
 purest morals and the most irreproachable conduct ; but he 
 shall not pronounce any sentence without first consulting the 
 chiefs of the law, and his final judgment shall be regulated by 
 their decision. The subscribing sheiks shall study the means 
 of making righteousness flourish, and direct all their efforts to 
 that object, as if animated with the same spirit. They shall 
 take no resolution but what is adopted with one accord. They 
 shall zealously labour for the good of the country, the happi- 
 ness of the people, and the destruction of the children of vice 
 and iniquity. They further promise never to betray, or attempt 
 to ensnare the French ariny, to act contrary to its interests, or 
 to enter into any conspiracy which may be formed against it. 
 
 " To all these promises they have bound themselves by the 
 most solemn oath, which they renew by this act in the sin- 
 cerest and most religious manner. 
 
 " The general in chief of the French army promises, on his 
 part, that no one of the soldiers shall molest the inhabitants of 
 Alexandria, by vexatious proceedings, rapine, or menaces ; 
 and those who shall commit such excesses shall be punished 
 with the utmost rigour. 
 
 " The general in chief has also most solemnly promised* 
 that he will never attempt to compel any of the inhabit 
 tants to change their religion, or to make an innovation ia 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 14.9 
 
 theh' religious usages ; but, on the contrary, assures them, 
 that his wish is, that they shall continue to profess their reli- 
 gion, and he will continue to maintain their ti-anquillity and 
 property by all the means which are in his power, as long as 
 they shall abstain from any attempt against his person, or the 
 army which he commands. 
 
 " The present convention was prepared and signed on the 
 morning of Wednesday, the 20th of the moon Muharem, 
 1 2 1 3th year of the Hegira, corresponding to the 1 7th Messi- 
 dor, July fifth, 6th year of the French republic, one and indi- 
 visible. 
 
 " The floor Suleiman, mufti of Maliki. 
 
 " The poor Ibrahim el Bourgi, chief of the sect Hamate, 
 
 " The floor Muhamed el Messira. 
 
 « The poor Ahmed, life'* 
 
 The greater part of the army merely passed 
 through Alexandria: except the garrison which 
 was placed in the city and the troops under Me- 
 nou, who had marched to subdue Rashid, the 
 whole army with their artillery and some 
 horse, begun its march for Cairo, on the 18th 
 and 19th Messidor, July sixth and seventh. 
 On the morning of the third day after their de- 
 parture, they discovered the Nile at Rahma- 
 nieh, into which they immediately plunged : 
 here they rested two days, and general Me- 
 nou, who had met with no resistance, joined 
 the army. 
 
 General Dessaix arrived at Rahmanieh with 
 his division soon after, and whilst they 
 were bathing, was attacked by 6,000 Mame- 
 lues, but a brisk cannonading from the French 
 induced them to retire. Having passed Min- 
 
150 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 iet Salameh, the French army perceived 
 4,000 Mamelucs Dosted to oppose their pro- 
 gress. In the village of Jibbrish, they had 
 placed several pieces of cannon, and on the 
 Nile were supported by some armed vessels : 
 two .actions were now fought, one. on the ri- 
 ver, and the other on land. 
 
 The French after an obstinate con£ict, re- 
 gained the vessels which they had lost upon 
 the water, burnt the Mameluc admira^, and dis- 
 persed the whole. Bonaparte had formed his 
 army into five divisions, and having planted 
 his artillery at the angles, he permitted the 
 Mamelucs, who charged with extreme fary, 
 to approach within the reach of grape shot, 
 when the cannon were discharged, which ob- 
 liged them to retreat : the village was carried 
 by assault ; and the Mamelucs lied with the 
 loss of 600 men. 
 
 Bonaparte continued his march without anjr 
 opposition, except that which v/as made by the 
 Arabs, v/ho assa,iled all the small parties of 
 the French whom they could find. On 
 the evening of the 2d of Thermidor, July 
 twentieth, they first saw the pyramids; and 
 in the evening were but six leagues distant 
 from Cairo : here Bonaparte learnt that 
 twenty-three Beys, with all their troops, were 
 intrenched at Embabeh, and defended by 
 sixty pieces of cannon. Their force amount- 
 ed to 6,000 Mamelucs, besides Arabs and 
 peasants. As soon as this corps was disco- 
 vered, the army formed as on the former oc-- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. I5i 
 
 casion ; and when Bonaparte had given his 
 final orders, he said to the soldiers, pointing 
 to the pyramids : *•' Rush on, and recollect 
 that from the summit of those monuments 
 forty centuries watch over us." Dessaix 
 proceeded to the other side of the village, 
 Regnier followed on the left, and Dugua, Vial 
 and Bon, apDroached the Nile. The Mame- 
 lues rushed upon the two first divisions, but 
 in vain. ...the incessant discharge of musketry 
 and grape shot, drove them back in disorder. 
 The cavalry trying to force the French 
 battalions, v/ere exposed to two fires; and 
 Bonaparte immediately ordered the intrench- 
 ments to be assailed, which were forced, and 
 the army totally routed. The Ma.melucs 
 were pursued to Gizeh : their whole loss 
 amounted to 2,000 men, 40 pieces of cannon, 
 400 camels, much baggage and provi- 
 sions, many horses, and a large quantity of 
 gold. 
 
 In the morning Bonaparte published these 
 proclamations :.... 
 
 BONAPARTE, COMMANDER IN CHIEF, TO THE 
 SHEIKS AND NOTABLES OF CAIRO. 
 
 " Head-quarters at Gizeh, 4th Thermidor, July 
 twenty-second. 
 " You will see^y the annexed proclamation, by what senti- 
 ments 1 am animated. Yesterday the Mamelucs were for the 
 most part, killed or taken prisoners, and I am now in pursuit 
 of the few who remain. Send hither the boats which are on 
 your banks of the river, and send also a deputation to make 
 known to me your submission. Cause bread, barley, meat 
 
155 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 and straw, to be provided for my army, and be perfectly easy, 
 for no one has a greater desire than I to contribute to your 
 happiness. i 
 
 " BONAPARTE." 
 
 BONAPARTE, COMMANDER IN CHIEF, TO THE 
 PEOPLE OF CAIRO. 
 
 " Hesid-quarters at Gizeh, Mh Thermidor^ July 
 tiuenty 'Second. 
 
 " People of Cairo, I am satisfied with your conduct. You 
 have done right not to take any part against me ; I am come 
 to destroy the race of the Mamelucs, and to protect the trade 
 and the natives of the country. Let all those who are under 
 any fear be composed ; and let those who have quitted their 
 houses return to them — let prayers be offered up to day as usu* 
 al, for I wish that they may be always continued. Entertain 
 no apprehensions for your families, your houses, your proper- 
 ty, and, above all, for the religion of your Prophet, whom I 
 honour and love. 
 
 " As it is absolutely necessary that some persons should be 
 immediately charged with the administration of the police, in 
 order that tranquillity may not be interrupted, there shall be a 
 divan composed of several persons, who shall assemble at the 
 mosque of Ver ; and there shall always be two with the com- 
 mandant of the place, and four shall be occupied in maintain- 
 ing publick tranquilUty, and in watching over the city. 
 
 » BONAPARTE." 
 
 The principal person of Cairo, attended by 
 the Kia, or Lieutenant of the Pacha, instan- 
 taneously offered Bonaparte possession of the 
 city. The Pacha had left it in the night with 
 Ibrahim Bey. The deputation returned to 
 Cairo with a detachment from the French ar- 
 my, and Bonaparte removed his head-quarters 
 thither on the 5th, twenty-third. 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 
 
 The Mamelucs after the battle at the Py- 
 ramids, were divided into two bodies ; Murad 
 Bey vv^ith one part retreated into Upper Egypt, 
 whilst the other under Ibrahim Bey, retired 
 towards Suez and Syria. General Leclerc 
 was dispatched in pursuit of the latter, and 
 on the 19th Thermidor, August sixth, Bo- 
 naparte with a body of troops joined his divi- 
 sion, and a most obstinate skirmish ensued 
 at Salahieh, between the rear guard of Ibra- 
 him's army, and the advanced guard of the 
 French, at the end of which the latter found 
 themselves in possession of two pieces of can- 
 non and fifty camels : near Belbeys the French 
 army rescued a part of the holy caravan of 
 Mecca, from the Arabs. Having left gene- 
 ral Cafarelli to fortify Salahieh and Belbeys, 
 Bonaparte returned to Cairo. 
 
 On the 25th Thermidor, August twelfth, 
 Bonaparte accompanied by several of his 
 staff, and some members of the national insti- 
 tute, after visiting the five inferior pyramids, 
 contemplated with much attention that of 
 Cheops, into which he was conducted by se- 
 veral muftis and imans. He penetrated into 
 its interior, where he found a passage a hun- 
 dred feet long and three feet broad, which 
 introduced him to the tomb of Pharaoh, who 
 erected the monument. A second passage, 
 much injured, and leading towards the sum- 
 mit of the pyramid, carried him successive- 
 ly over two platforms, and thence to a gallery* 
 
 U 
 
154 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 This last apartment is a flattened vault. 
 Bonaparte there seated himself with his at- 
 tendants, upon a chest of granite, ei<;^ht feet 
 long and four deep, and requesting the muf- 
 tis and imans, Suleiman, Ibrahim and Mu- 
 hamed, to be also seated, he commenced this 
 conversation : 
 
 Banuparte. — God is great, and his works are marvellous. But 
 we haA-e here a grand production of the hand of man. What 
 was the object of the individual who caused this pyramid to be 
 constructed ? 
 
 Suleiman. — He was a powerful king of Egypt, v/liose name 
 it is said was Cheops. He wished to prevent the sacrilegious 
 from troubling the re{)ose of his ashes. 
 
 Bonaparte. — The great Cyrus commanded., that when dead 
 his body should be left in the open air, that it might return 
 to the elements. Dost thou not think that he did better ? 
 What is your opinion ? 
 
 Suleiman. — Inclining himself. Glory to God, to whom all 
 glory is due ! 
 
 Bonaparte. — Honour to Allah '. Who was the calif that caus- 
 ed this pyramid to be opened, and thus troubled the ashes 
 of the dead ? 
 
 Mnhamed. — It is believed by some that it was Mahmoud, 
 tiie commander of the faithful, who reigTied several centuries 
 ago, at Bagdad; others say that it was the renowned Haroun 
 Raschid....Peace to his manes '.....who expected to find trea- 
 sures here : but when by his command entrance was made 
 into this apartment, tradition says that hie found mummies 
 only, and this inscription in letters of gold on the wall : The 
 impious sJiail commit inigidty noitliout recomfiense^ but not voithout 
 remorse. 
 
 Bonaparte. -^The. bread stolen by the wielded fills his mouth 
 irith sand. 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 155 
 
 , ,' ■ ., , ■ ' , I. ' 
 
 Muhamed, inclining himself. Thine are the words of wisr 
 dom. 
 
 Bonaparte. — Glory to Allah ! There is no other God but 
 God ; Mohammed is his prophet, and I am his friend. 
 
 Suleiman. — The salutation of peace to the envoy of God 1 
 Salutation to thee also, invihciWe warrior, favourite of Moham- 
 med ! 
 
 Bonaparte, — Mufti, I thank thee. The divine koran is the 
 delight of my soul, and the object of my contemplation. I love 
 the prophet, and I hope, ere long, to see and konour his tomb 
 in the holy city. But my mission is first to exterminate the 
 Mamelucs. 
 
 Ibrahim. — May the angels of victory sweep the dust from 
 thy path, and cover thee with their wings. The Mameluc has 
 merited death. 
 
 Bonaparte. — He has been smitten and delivered to the 
 black angles, Moukir and Quakir, God, on whom all things 
 depend, has ordained, that his dominion shall be destroyed. 
 
 Suleiman. — He has extended the hand of rapine over the 
 land, the harvests, and the horses of Egypt. 
 
 Bonaparte. — And over the most beautiful slaves, thrice holy 
 mufti. Allah has withered his hand. If Egypt be his porti- 
 tion, let him show me the lease which God has given him of 
 it : but God is just and merciful to the people. 
 
 Ibrahim. O most valiant among the children of Issa ! Al- 
 lah has caused thee to follow the exterminating angel, to deli- 
 ver his land of Egypt. 
 
 Bonaparte. — This land was a prey to twenty -four oppressors, 
 rebels against the Grand Sultan, our ally. ...Whom God turn 
 to his glory I and to ten thousand slaves from Circassia and 
 Georgia. Adriel, the angel of death, has breathed upon 
 them ; we are come, and they have disappeared. 
 
 Muhamed. — Noble successor of Scander, honour to thy in- 
 
156 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 ■ ■■ ' ^'^cr 
 
 vincible arms, and to the unexpected thunder which issvies 
 from the middle of thy warriors on horse. 
 
 Bonaparte. — Dost thou believe that thunder to be a work 
 of the children of men ? Dost thou believe so ? Allah has plac- 
 ed it in my hands by his messenger the genius of war. 
 
 Ibrahim. — We perceive in thy works the great Allah who 
 has sent thee. Couldst thou have conquered if Allah had not 
 permitted ? The Delta, and all the neighbouring countries, 
 resound with thy miracles. 
 
 Bonaparte. — A celestial car will ascend by my command to 
 the abode of the clouds ; and the lightning will descend to the 
 earth, along a metallic wire, the moment I shall bid it. 
 
 Suleiman.— ^ And the great serpent, which sprung from the 
 base of the pillar of Pompey, on the day of thy triumphant 
 entry into Scanderich, and which remained withered at the 
 socket of the pillar ; was not that also a prodigy effected by 
 thy hand ? 
 
 Bonaparte. — Lights of the age, you are destined to see yet 
 greater wonders, for the days of regeneration are come. 
 
 Ibrahim. — May the divine unity regard thee with an eye of 
 predilection, adorer of Issa, and render thee the support of the 
 children of the prophet. 
 
 Bonaparte, — Has not Mohammed said, Every man who 
 adores God, and performs good works, whatever may be his 
 religion, shall be saved ? 
 
 Suleiman., — Muhamed, IbraJum together, inclining them- 
 selves. He has said so. 
 
 Bonaparte. — And if, by an order from on high, I have mo- 
 derated the pride of the vicar of Issa, by diminishing his ter- 
 restrial possessions, in order to amass for him celestial trea- 
 sures, was it not rendering glory to God, whose mercy is in- 
 finite ? 
 
 Muhamed.^ nvith an air of hesitation. The mufti of Rome 
 was rich and powerful ; we are poor muftis. 
 
 Bonaparte. -^1 know that you are poor : be without apprc- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 15/ 
 
 hension ; for you have been weighed in the balance of Balthazar, 
 and you have been found light. Does this pyi^amid, then, 
 really contain no treasure of which you know ? 
 
 Suleiman. — His hands on his breast. None, my lord, we 
 swear by the holy city of Mecca. 
 
 Bonaparte. — Unhappy, thrice unhappy those wjio seek for 
 perishable riches, and covet gold and silver, which are like 
 unto dust ! 
 
 Suleiman. — Thou hast spared the vicar of Issa, and hast 
 treated him with clemency and goodness. 
 
 Bonafiarte. — He is an old man whom I honour.. ..May God 
 accomplish his wishes, when they shall be regulated by reason 
 and truth '.....but he is to blame in condemning to eternal fire 
 all the moslems :.... Allah defend us from intolerance 1 
 
 Ibrahim. — Glory to Allah, and to his prophet, who has sent 
 thee into the midst of us to rekindle the faith of the weak, and 
 to open to the faithful the gates of the seventh heaven I 
 
 Bonaparte. — You have spoken my wishes, most zealous 
 muftis: be faithful to Allah, the sovereign ruler of the seven 
 marvellous heavens ; and to Mohammed his vizier, who traver- 
 sed all the celestial mansions in a single night. Be the friends 
 of the Francs ; and Allah, Mohammed, and the Francs, will re- 
 compense you. 
 
 Ibrahim. — May the prophet himself cause thee to sit at his 
 left hand on the day of resurrection, after the third sound of 
 the trumpet ! 
 
 Bonaparte. — He that hath ears to hear, let bim hear. The 
 hour of political resurrection hss arrived for all who groan un- 
 der oppression. Muftis, imans, mullahs, dervises, and kal- 
 enders, instruct the people of Egypt ; encourage them to join 
 in our labours to complete the destruction of the beys and the 
 Mamelucs. Favour the commerce of the Francs in your 
 country, and their endeavours to arrive at the ancient land of 
 Brama. Let them have store-houses in your ports, and drive 
 ar from you the islanders of Albion, accursed among the chil- 
 
158 , THE HISTORY OF 
 
 dren of Issa. Such is the will of Mohammed. The treasures, 
 industry, and friendship of the Francs shall be your lot, till 
 you ascend to the seventh heaven, and are seated by the side 
 of the black-eyed houris, who are endowed with perpetual 
 youth and virginity, and repose under the shade of Laba, whose 
 branches present of themselves to true moslems whatever 
 their hearts may desire. 
 
 Suleiman^ inclining himself. Thou hast spoken like the 
 most learned of the mullahs. We place faith in thy words, 
 we will serve thy cause, and God hears us. 
 
 Bonaparte. — God is great, and his works are marvellous. 
 The salutation of peace be upon you, thrice holy muftis ! 
 
 During these events the famous naval bat- 
 tle of the Nile had destroyed the French 
 fleet, and left Bonaparte without any probabi- 
 lity of receiving aid from Europe. 
 
 The general requested admiral Brueys, 
 when he commenced his march for Cairo, to 
 enter the port of Alexandria immediate- 
 ly, or to land ail the artillery and army 
 equipage, andto sail for Corfu : in the full expec- 
 tation of his having complied with this arrange- 
 ment, Bonaparte was inexpressibly alarmed 
 when he found that he vv^as at Aboukir, forti- 
 fying himself with a design to resist any at- 
 tack which the English fleet might make. 
 On the 14th Thermidor, August first, admi- 
 ral Nelson entered the bay of Aboukir.. ..dou- 
 bled the French line about half past six 
 o'clock.... in the evening, a little after nine, 
 the Orient began to burn and at 10 blew up. 
 The French admiral had been wounded at 
 8 and killed at 9. ...which increased the 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 159 
 
 confusion. Another French ship was de- 
 stroyed in the same manner. In the morn- 
 ing the tv/o fleets ceased the contest : the 
 whole of the French fleet except two ships of 
 the Une and two frigates, which escaped, 
 were either destroyed or rendered nearly use- 
 less. 
 
 " It appears to me," said Bonaparte in his letter to the di- 
 rectory, " that admiral Brueys was unwilUng to retire to Cor- 
 fu before he was absolutely certain that he could not enter the 
 port of Alexandria, and before the army, of which he had 
 been without news, was secure from all necessity of retreat ; 
 but if in this fatal event he had his faults, he has expiated 
 them by a glorious death. 
 
 " The destieies have wished in this case, as in many others, 
 to prove, that if they have given us a preponderance on the 
 continent, they have granted to our rivals tlie empire of the 
 seas. Great, however, as this reverse may be, it cannot be 
 ascribed to the inconstancy of fortune.... she has hitherto ne- 
 ver abandoned us..., so far from it, that sire has served us in 
 the whole of this expedition, beyond what she has ever done 
 before. 
 
 « When I arrived before Alexandria, and leamt that 
 the English had passed there some days before in supe- 
 rior forc€, notwithstanding the frightful tempest which pre- 
 vailed, at the risk of shipwreck I threw myself ashore. I 
 recollect that at tlie moment when the preparations were mak- 
 ing for disembarkation, a signal was given at a distance to 
 tlie windward, of a ship of war. It was -La Justice returning 
 from Malta. I exclaimed : Fortune.^ wilt thou abandon me ? I 
 <tsk of thee Jive days onhj. I marched during the whole night ; 
 1 attacked Alexandria at day-break with three thousand wea- 
 ried soldiers, without cannon, and almost without ammuni- 
 tion, and in five days I was master of Rosetta and Daman- 
 
160 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 hour, that is, already established in Egypt. In these five 
 days the squadron ought to have been secure from the Eng- 
 lish, whatever their number ; instead of this it remained ex- 
 posed during the remainder of Messidor, end of June and be- 
 ginning of July. It received from Rosetta, eai'ly in Thermi- 
 dor, July ; a supply of rice for two months. The English showed 
 themselves in superior numbers during ten days in these lati- 
 tudes. On the 11th Thermidor, July twenty-ninth, our squa- 
 dron learned the news of the army being in complete posses- 
 sion of Egypt, and of its entrance into Cairo ; and it was not 
 until Fortune saw that the continuance of her favours were 
 useless, that she abandoned our fleet to its destiny." 
 
 The pacha of Egypt having fled into Sy- 
 ria, the following note was sent to him : 
 
 BONAPARTE, COMMANDER IN CHIEF, TO THE 
 PACHA OF CAIRO. 
 
 " Head-quarters at Cairo, 2d Fructidor, AugvM 
 nineteenth, 
 " The intention of the French republick in taking possession 
 of Egypt, is to drive out the Mamelucs, who were both x-ebels 
 to the Porte, and declared enemies to the French government. 
 At present, when master of it by the signal victory which its 
 army has gained, its intention is to preserve to the Pacha of 
 the Grand Seignior his revenues and appointment. I beg then 
 you will assure the Porte, that it will suffer no kind of loss, 
 and I will take care it shall continue to receive the tribute 
 which has been heretofore paid to it. 
 
 « BONAPARTE." 
 Bonaparte immediately employed himself 
 in organizing the government of Egypt : and 
 having resolved to carry the war into Syria 
 in person, he dispatched Dessaix in pursuit 
 of Murad Bey, who had fled into Upper 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 161 
 
 Egypt ; that general left Cairo on the 9th 
 Fructidor, August twenty-sixth, accompani- 
 ed by a flotilla as a convoy. A few slight 
 skirmishes with wandering parties of the 
 Arabs, were the only military operations in 
 which the main body of the army under Bo- 
 naparte were engaged until he commenced 
 his march towards Syria. 
 
 The system of government which this new 
 conquest required was altogether different 
 from that which Bonaparte had established in 
 Italy ; and the protection which his troops 
 demanded was also in every respect dissimi- 
 lar. In Italy his scientifick knowledge could 
 convert every river, mountain or forest into a 
 strong hold, but in Egypt none of these na- 
 tural and easily fortified positions were to be 
 found. He directed that the old works at 
 Cairo should be repaired, new forts con- 
 structed, and hence the city became the cen- 
 tre of all their military movements : this ena- 
 bled him eff'ectually ^to obstruct the predatory 
 efforts and incursions of the desert tribes, 
 and afforded him a secure and tenable situa- 
 tion in case the inhabitants should attempt 
 an insurrection. Alexandria was defended, 
 by strong batteries, that if attacked by sea it 
 might resist an invader, whilst Belbeys 
 and Salahieh could make a respectable de- 
 fence. Besides these measures which Bona- 
 parte had adopted to provide for the ^9-iety of 
 
 ■.X 
 
THE HISTORY OF 
 
 the French army, he executed a very impor- 
 tant plan to aid the movements of his troops, 
 and to assist them when in action in the vici- 
 nity of the Nile. A formidable flotilla, car- 
 rying many pieces of artillery, and navigated 
 by Europeans, was established upon that ri- 
 ver ; and all the army supplies of every kind, 
 including the ammunition and implements ojf 
 death, were conveyed by the vessels which 
 were stationed for this purpose. 
 
 The army beneath his immediate cogni- 
 zance was governed by a discipline the most 
 severe, and the people of Cairo certainly re- 
 spected the character of the general. The 
 markets were abundantly supplied, and to 
 divert the minds of his soldiers, all kinds of 
 amusements were authorised. 
 
 Bonaparte in all his publick life has prov- 
 ed himself to be the friend of science, and a 
 iover of those improvements which expand 
 the mind and dignify the intellect of man ; 
 and to his endeavours and example must be 
 attributed all the increase of knowledge 
 which we have derived from his expedition. 
 The ardovir with which the literati who ac- 
 companied him pursued their investigations 
 in every department of natural philosophy, 
 was equally honourable to him and to them. 
 
 He began by establishing a publick library ; 
 a chemical laboratory followed ; a new liquor 
 vmknown to the Egyptians was distilled for 
 the troops, and salt-petre refined by a novel 
 process. Hydraulick machines for common 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 16^ 
 
 and useful purposes were formed; wind-mills, 
 never before seen in Egypt raised, and bread 
 made for the army. 
 
 The institute of Cairo soon after met ; this 
 body included all the learned men, and ma- 
 ny of the general officers, whose united ef- 
 forts were directed to procure information 
 concerning the natural productions, history 
 and antiquities of a country which has never 
 ceased to interest the theologian, the antiqua- 
 rian and the philosopher. Evety exertion 
 was used by them, and all their leisure hours 
 employed in examining the diversified curio- 
 sities of this ancient nation. Bonaparte him- 
 self, although distracted by the variety of his 
 cares, associated with them in this honoura- 
 ble labour. Besides visiting the pyramids, he 
 surveyed the canal which formerly led from 
 the Nile to Alexandria, and by almost incre- 
 dible efforts restored the internal communica- 
 tion between that city and Rosetta, which 
 the blockade of the British had entirely de- 
 stroyed, except by land. He also assisted 
 in determining the question, respecting the 
 canal between Suez and the Mediterranean, 
 discovered its entrance, and traced its course 
 to the length of four leagues. A trading" 
 company was settled ; the merchants were en- 
 couraged ; the road to Mecca was protected, 
 and the taxes were considerably diminished. 
 
 The Mohammedans were treated with 
 liiuch kindness ; the situation of the Copts 
 and Greeks was meliorated ; schools for th« 
 
16* THE HISTORY OF 
 
 instruction of youth in French, Arabic, geo- 
 graphy and the mathematics, were estabUsh- 
 ed ; marriages between the army and the 
 natives countenanced; children of the same 
 parents were admitted to an equal right of 
 inheritance ; the condition of the women 
 amended ; strict justice patronized ; many 
 presents were made to the Turks, Greeks 
 and Arabs; shews, festivities and games in 
 which his army and the natives mixed were 
 sanctioned ; a number of prsedial slaves were 
 stimulated to industry, by being presented 
 with lands to cultivate on their own account 
 
 to which Bonaparte added a question for 
 
 the discussion of the institute : " By what 
 instruments and airs may the minds of the 
 Egyptians be most readily and effectually im- 
 pressed through the powers of musick;" and 
 introduced numberless other regulations very 
 similar to the customs of the European coun- 
 tries. The army was recruited by a mix- 
 ture of every nation, who allured by the 
 prospect of participating in the spoils of the 
 French soldiers, attached themselves to Bo- 
 naparte. 
 
 The birth day of Mohammed is an anniver- 
 sary among all his disciples. The ceremony 
 and feasting were unusually grand, arising 
 from the large sum which Bonaparte had 
 given to the inhabitants to defray the expence. 
 It was upon this occasion that he declared 
 himself the protector of all religions, and re- 
 ceived from the Moslems the name of AH Bona- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 16S^ 
 
 parte. He had previous to this event mani- 
 fested great regard to the grand seignior, by- 
 permitting all the Turkish vessels in Alexan- 
 dria, as well as all neutral vessels, either to 
 remain or set sail for their respective destina- 
 tions at their pleasure, and setting free and 
 sending to Constantinople, on board those 
 vessels, with a letter to the grand vizier, 
 fraught with many professions of regard and 
 subordination to the Porte, the Turkish 
 slaves, to the number of three hundred, 
 whom he had found at Malta. 
 
 He also obtained a passage for Beau- 
 champs, who was the bearer of dispatches to 
 the Porte, and in it stated his reasons for en- 
 tering Syria and attempting the punishment 
 of Ahmed Djezzar, pacha of Acre. Bona- 
 parte's complaint against the Butcher^ which, 
 name was given to Ahmed on account of his 
 horrible cruelty and murders, he thus stated : 
 " Ibrahim Bey fled to Gaza, and the pacha 
 " received him as a friend. I sent an ofiicer 
 " to the latter, requiring Djezzar to keep the 
 " bey at a distance, and to refuse him suc- 
 " cour. He made no reply, but dismissed 
 " the officer, and imprisoned all the French 
 " at Acre in irons : he also protects the Ma- 
 " melucs, and having collected a large force 
 " threatens the frontiers of Egypt with hos- 
 " tility." 
 
 A deliberative assembly was collected from 
 the fourteen provinces, composed of the most 
 influential men in each, assisted by two of the 
 
166 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 French philosophers, who appointed Abdal- 
 lah Kezkaori, an Arabian prince, their pre- 
 sident, the duties of which station he per- 
 formed with great dignity. The members of 
 this body were Uberally paid, and wore a tur- 
 ban and tri-coloured shawl, which distinguish- 
 ed them from the other chiefs. 
 
 To increase the impressions which had 
 been made upon the minds of the Egyptians, 
 Bonaparte ordered that the anniversary of the 
 republick's commencement should be cele- 
 brated at Cairo with the greatest splendour. 
 The day began with discharges of artillery from 
 all the forts, batteries, and the flotilla on the 
 Nile. The troops assembled in the principal 
 square, with 105 flags, one to each department 
 and the Italian republicks, decorated with the 
 tri-coloured figures. Inscriptions were affixed 
 to the porticos and triumphal arches, comme- 
 morating the battle of the pyramids, the de- 
 feat of the Mamelucs, he. the names of the 
 soldiers who had died were recorded, and al- 
 tars erected to their memory. The specta- 
 tors, who consisted of the members of the 
 divan and the other officers, besides a large 
 multitude of the inhabitants, were delighted 
 with the sight of the sentence which was 
 emblazoned before them : " There is no God 
 but one God, and Mohammed is his prophet." 
 Bonaparte addressed his soldiers in front of 
 the line :.... 
 
 " Soldiers ! We are celebrating the first day of the seventh 
 year of the republick. Five years since, the independence of 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 167 
 
 the people was threatened, but you took Toulon, which pre- 
 saged the ruin of our enemies. The next year you defeated 
 the Austrians at Dego ; the following year you were on the 
 summit of the Alps ; two years since you were employed 
 against Mantua ; and last year you gained tfje, celebrated vic- 
 tory of St. George. On your return from Germany you ex- 
 plored the sources of the Drave and the Izouso. ' Who at tlrat 
 time would have thought that you would now be on'tiie bariks*^ 
 of the Nile, in the centre of the ancient continent ? 
 
 " Soldiers I Yjur destiny is enviable ; you are worthy of 
 what you have accomplished, and of the opinion which your 
 country entertains of you." 
 
 At the conclusion of this address, the 
 bands of musick began to play their marches 
 and patriotick airs, with songs of victory, 
 and the general's address was cheered with a 
 general and enthusiastick cry of " Vive la 
 Republique :" a hymn was next sung, after 
 which the troops filed off before Bonaparte, 
 who returned to his quarters. A large com- 
 pany had been invited to dine at his house, 
 where a sumptuous dinner was prepared for 
 the guests. The French and Turkish colours 
 were intwined, the cap of liberty was plac- 
 ed by the side of the crescent, and the rights 
 of man by the koran. After dinner Bona- 
 parte gave as his toast, " The three hun- 
 dredth year of the French republick." One 
 of his aides-de-camp, " The legislative 
 bodies and the executive directory." Monge, 
 president of the Egyptian institute, " The 
 perfection of the human understanding and 
 the advancement of knowledge." Berthier,' 
 
THE HISTORY OF 
 
 " The expulsion of the Mamekics, and the 
 prosperity of the people of Egypt." The 
 patriotick verses which were sung by the sol- 
 diers concluded the feast. 
 
 Foot and horse races, and other games in 
 the ancient manner commenced at 4 o'clock.... 
 the prizes were adjudged to the victors in due 
 form, who were carried in triumph round the 
 circus. In the evening a superb illumination 
 heightened the effect which the brilliancy of 
 the day had produced. This was an exhibi- 
 tion altogether novel in Egypt: the crystal 
 lamps which were disposed in every variety 
 upon the pillars, arches, h.c. combined with 
 a most splendid display of fire-works, and ac- 
 companied with discharges of artillery and 
 musketry, surprised and delighted the inhabi- 
 tants. 
 
 The ceremony of the opening of the Nile 
 was this year performed with unusual pomp^ 
 and attended by Bonaparte, who distributed 
 large sums in aims to the poor, and invited 
 the principal inhabitants to a magnificent 
 feast. 
 
 The general divan met on Vendemiaire 
 17th, October eighth, but their deliberations 
 were soon contaminated by the spirit of bigo- 
 try, which represented every innovation as 
 opposite to the koran, and subversive of its 
 dignity, it having provided for every possible 
 emergency. These murmurs were reported 
 to Bonaparte, who used every precaution 
 which his situation afforded him to defend 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 169 
 
 himself, he hnmediately enrolled all the Eu- 
 ropeans of every nation in Cairo, and form- 
 ed from them ten companies of national 
 guards, whom he stationed at certain appoint- 
 ed posts in the city, which they were to oc- 
 cupy and maintain. 
 
 The event which he had anticipated soon 
 occurred. On the 1st of Brumaire, October 
 twenty-second, immense crowds armed with 
 spears and sharp stones, assembled in all the 
 mosques, as places of defence and posts from, 
 which to sally. The alarm being given, the 
 French were immediately under arms. Bo- 
 naparte gave orders for a battalion to march 
 against the grand mosque, where eight or 
 ten thousand Turks were assembled. Up- 
 on being summoned, they refused to surren- 
 der. The citadel immediately began to bat- 
 ter the grand mosque, into which several 
 bombs fell, scattering terror and despair. 
 The mosques were at length forced by the 
 French, who had hitherto considered themi 
 sacred, and a dreadful slaughter ensued : the 
 great mosque and many other buildings in 
 which the rebels had concealed themselves 
 were burnt, and those who escaped the flames, 
 perished by the bullet or bayonet : every arm- 
 ed Turk was slain, whilst every Frenchman 
 or small party of the French, experienced 
 the same fate. 
 
 The loss of the Egyptian insurgents 
 amounted to nearly 5,000 men, whilst that of 
 
 Y 
 
iro THE m STORY OF 
 
 the French did not exceed 100 killed or 
 wounded ; and this was owing chiefly to a 
 very heavy shower of stones which were 
 thrown from the tops of the houses. The 
 governor of Cairo was among the number of 
 the killed ; he had gone out unarmed, and 
 almost alone, to investigate the cause of the 
 tumult, and lost his life ere the insurrection 
 was discovered. 
 
 Denon, an eye witness of this scene, adds 
 the following interesting particulars :.... 
 
 « I was finishing my drawing of the sanctuary of death, so 
 absurdly gay, when I heard loud cries, which I at first took to 
 be some funeral, attended by hired female mourners, as is the 
 custom here ; but on turning my eyes I saw a number of wo- 
 men running away, and making a sign for me to follow them. 
 The idea of the scourge of the country at first rushed into my 
 mind, but seeing the ground clear for a considerable distance 
 and no Arabs collecting, I resumed my drawing. Directly 
 after, however, I saw several men also flying off", and being at 
 a considerable distance from our own posts, I thought it most 
 prudent to return. I found some agitation in the streets, and 
 surprize in the looks of the inhabitants. When arrived at my 
 house, I learnt that there had been an aff'ray in the town, and 
 that the governor had been assassinated. The noise of firing 
 had been heard, and we were alarmed for the house of the in- 
 stitute, which was situated in the midst of gardens looking to- 
 wards the country, and enjoyed in times of peace a defightful 
 tranquillity, but for the same reason was the first quarter of 
 the suburbs to be abandoned in any serious disturbance, or if 
 attacked by the Arabs : toAvards the town it looked upon the 
 part inhabited by the poorest class only, and consequently the 
 most to be feared. We learnt that the house of general 
 Caffarelli had just been pillaged, and that many persons in it 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 171 
 
 belonging to the commission of arts had fallen victims to the 
 fury of the populace. We immediately made a muster of 
 our own party, and found four absent, who, as we learnt 
 an hour after fiom our people, had been massacred. We had 
 no intelligf nee of Bonaparte, night was coming on, firing was 
 heard in different places, and cries every where ; in short, we 
 feared a general insurrection. 
 
 *• General Dumas, in returning from his pursuit of the 
 Arabs, had made a great carnage of the rebels in entering the 
 town, and had cut off the head of a seditious chief whilst he 
 was haran.^uing the people ; but a full half of the town, and 
 that the most populous, was barricaded up ; more than four 
 thousand inhabitants were intrenched in a mosque ; two cOift- 
 panies of grenadiers had been repulsed, and the cannon had 
 not been able to penetrate into those narrow and crooked 
 streets, whilst the enemy unseen and protected in their houses, 
 were able to throw stones and lances on our party with safety 
 and effect. The general had sent for our protection a detach? 
 ment, which however he was obliged to withdraw about mid- 
 night, and this for a time aggravated the danger to which the 
 institute was exposed. The night, however, passed quietly 
 enough, for the Turks do not like to fight after dark, and 
 make a point of conscience not to kill their enemies when the 
 sun is gone down : and, on the other hand, I, who have al- 
 ways thought that in perilous situations, prudence, when it 
 can do nothing, becomes a painful trouble, lay down to rest, 
 trusting to the terror of others to awake me in case of alarm. 
 
 " Early the next morning the war re-commenced : muskets 
 v^ere sent us ; all the members of the institute took up arms, 
 and chose their leaders, but every one had his own plan of 
 operations, and no one would obey. Dolomieu, Cordier, De- 
 lisle, Saint-Simon and myself, lodged at a distance from the 
 others ; our house might have been pillaged by any one who 
 would take the trouble, but as sixty men had been sent to the 
 assistance of our comrades, we became easy on their accountj 
 
172 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 and set about intrenchi'ig ourselves in the best manner we 
 could, tso as to hold ou«*4it least four hours, if attacked by a 
 moderate force only, tWat we might have time to procure re- 
 lief by the alarm of our firing. 
 
 " At one time we thought we were actually invested, for we 
 saw the peaceable inhabitants fly, and we heard the noise of 
 arms reach up to our walls, and the bullets whistling on our 
 terraces. We immediately pulled them to pieces, to give us 
 materials for knocking down and crushing any enemy who 
 might attempt to force our gates ; and at an extremity we 
 could even use as a weapon ot offence the ladder which served 
 for mounting to our chamber. In the midst of our danger, how- 
 ever, the heavy artillery of the castle made the diversion in 
 our favour, which I so anxiously expected ; it produced all the 
 effect which I looked for, and consternation succeeded to rage. 
 The ai'tillery, however, could not reach the mosque, which 
 ■was now the only rallying point of our enemies, all the rest 
 having surrendered at discretion : but the mosque itself was 
 soon turned, and a battery taught the enemy that our warfare 
 did not stop with the day ; as a last effort, they now pulled 
 down their barricades and made a sortie, but being repulsed) 
 surrendered. The rest of the night passed quietly, and the 
 next day we were at liberty. 
 
 " Some traitors were indeed arrested and punished, but 
 the mosques which had been the asylum of crimes were re- 
 stored, and the pride of the offenders was heightened by this 
 act of condescension, whilst their fanaticism was not subdued 
 by their terror. Whatever representation could be made to 
 Bonaparte of the danger of such a line of conduct with the 
 rebels, nothing could shake the sentiments of humanity Avhich 
 he displayed in this event ; he wished to shew as much cle- 
 mency as he could excite terror, and the past was forgotten, 
 whilst we had to lament many and serious losses. 
 
 " Though the populace, the devoteesj and some of the great 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 173 
 
 people of Cairo, shewed themselves fantastical and cruel in 
 this revolt, the middle class, Avhich is 'n all countries l^ie most 
 accessible to reason and virtue, was pei'fectly humane and ge- 
 nerous to us, notwithstanding the wide differences of manners, 
 religion and language ; whilst from the galleries of the mina- 
 rets murder was devoutly preached up, whilst the streets were 
 filled with death and carnage, all those in whose houses any 
 Frenchmen v/ere lodged, w,ere eager to save them by conceal- 
 ment, and to supply and anticipate all their wants : an elderly 
 woman in the quarter in which we lodged gave us to under- 
 stand, that as our wall was but weak, if we were attacked, 
 we had only to throw it down, and to seek for shelter in her 
 harem ; a neighbour, without being asked, sent us provision 
 at the expence of his own store, when no food was to be pur- 
 chased in the town, and every thing announced approaching 
 famine ; he even removed every thing from before our house 
 which could render it conspicuous to the enemy, and went to 
 smoke at our door as if it was his own, in order to deceive 
 any that might attack us : two young persons who were pur- 
 sued in the streets were snatched up by some unknown people 
 and carried into a house, and whilst they were furiously strug- 
 gling for deliverance, expecting that they were destined for 
 some horrible cruelty, the kind ravishers, not being able 
 otherwise to convince them of the hospitable benevolence of 
 their intentions, delivered up to them their own children as 
 pledges of their sincerity. Many other such anecdotes could 
 be given of delicate sensibility, which recall the feelings of hu- 
 man nature in the times in which they seem to be entirely 
 abandoned. If the grave mussulman represses those tokens 
 of sensibility which other nations would take a pride in exhi-. 
 biting, it is in order to preserve the dignified austerity of his 
 character." 
 
 On the 21st Frimaire, December eleventhj 
 
174 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 the sheik Sadat, gave a dinner to Bonaparte, 
 on account of the festival of Seyd ut Zehnab, 
 a woman of All's family, son-in-law to Mo- 
 hammed, which was celebrated in the mosque 
 dedicated to her. Dinner was preceded and 
 followed by conversation. Bonaparte told 
 the sheiks that the Arabs, in the time of the 
 califs^ had cultivated the arts and the scien- 
 ces, but now they were in profound igno- 
 rance, and that no traces could be perceived 
 in them of the knowledge of their ancestors. 
 The sheik Sadat replied, that they possessed 
 the koran, which comprised all knowledge. 
 The general asked if the koran taught them 
 how to cast cannon ; all the sheiks present 
 answered " Yes." 
 
 Bonaparte having arranged his plan, pre- 
 pared to execute it by marching into Syria. 
 He ordered general Bon to take possession of 
 Suez, which he entered on the 17th Fri- 
 maire, December seventh. On the 2d of 
 Nivose, December twenty-second, Bonaparte 
 arrived, and there heard that Ahmed Djezzar 
 was appointed pacha of Egypt ; that he was 
 collecting troops, and that he had sent a corps 
 to El-Avisel, not far from the desert. He 
 immediately dispatched Le Grange to fortify 
 Cathich, who on the 17th Nivose, January 
 sixth, reached it and fulfilled his orders. Bo- 
 naparte returned to Cairo the same day, and 
 immediately adjusted the Syrian expedition. 
 
 The army engaged in this enterprise was 
 composed of 12,892 men, divided into four 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 175 
 
 bodies, under the command of Kleber, Bon, 
 Lannes and Regnier....Dommartin was at the 
 head of the artillery, and Caffarelli led the 
 engineers. The foot soldiers amounted to 
 9,882, the cavalry to 800, the engineers to 
 340, the artillery 1,38 5, the guides 400, and 
 88 dromedaries. ...the park of artillery consist- 
 ed of 4 pieces of twelve, 3 of eight, 5 how- 
 itzers, 3 mortars and 3 cowhorns, and to each 
 of the four divisions in addition to these, 2 
 pieces of eight, 2 howitzers of 6 inches, and 
 2 pieces of three. 
 
 The horse guides were accompanied by 4 
 pieces of eight, 2 howitzers of six inches ; 
 and the cavalry by 4 pieces of four. 
 
 Bonaparte ordered the provisions and am- 
 munition of the army to be transported to 
 Cathich, and three French frigates to cruise 
 off Jaffa, preserving their communication with 
 him. On board these vessels were the pieces 
 of heavy artillery intended for the siege of 
 Acre. 
 
 Regnifer left Belbeys on Pluviose 4th, Janu- 
 ary twenty-third, and arrived before El-Arisch 
 on the 21st February, ninth. ...in the fort and 
 town were stationed about 2,000 of the pa- 
 cha's troops. On the day previous to his ar- 
 rival, his van-guard had dispersed some small 
 parties of the Mamelucs. The French pre- 
 pared an immediate attack upon the village, 
 which is situated in the form of an ampithea- 
 tre, and notwithstanding the most obstinate 
 resistance, it was fQi;ced by the bayonet with 
 
176 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 the loss of 200 men on the part of the Turks, 
 against whom the gates had been closed. The 
 blockade was completed the same evenmg : 
 soon after a large reinforcement of cavalry 
 and infantry, with a supply of provisions for 
 the garrison appeared, which received con- 
 tinual accessions of fresh troops until the 
 25th, thirteenth, when they encamped them- 
 selves in the vicinity of El-Arisch, in a very 
 strong and favourable position. Kleber hav- 
 ing arrived and joined Regnier, they resolved 
 to surprise the Turkish camp, which they 
 fully performed in the night of the 26th, four- 
 teenth.. ..the Mamelucs were nearly all prison- 
 ers or slain.. ..all their camp equipage, horses, 
 camels, provisions and ammunition were cap- 
 tured by the French: two beys and several 
 kyachefs were among the dead on the field. 
 
 Bonaparte with the general staff left Cairo 
 on Pluviose 22d, February tenth, and on the 
 27th, seventeenth, arrived at El-Arisch, 
 where the artillery, and Bon and Lannes, 
 with their divisions, joined him. The army 
 were posted in front of the town, and on the 
 SOth, eighteenth, a cannonade commenced, 
 v/hich made a considerable breach : Bona- 
 parte immediately summoned the garrison to 
 surrender, to v/hich they replied, that they 
 would consent to the demand, provided their 
 arms and baggage were left them, and per- 
 mission given for them to retire to Acre : this 
 delayed the assault, and on Ventose 2d, 
 twentieth, the garrison af 1,600 men, were 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. m 
 
 allowed to march to Bagdat through the de- 
 sert. 
 
 On the 6 th, twenty-fourth, the army en- 
 tered Palestine, and marched to Kan Jou- 
 nesse, near which Abdalla Pacha, with 1000 
 cavalry and 5,000 Naplousians had been en- 
 camped, but the approach of the French ar- 
 my induced him to retreat towards Gaza : on 
 the following day the army continued their 
 march, and when within two leagues of Gaza, 
 perceived the pacha's cavalry. The French, 
 tl'oops were divided into three square bodies, 
 whilst the cavalry, with six pieces of cannon, 
 commanded by Murat, hastened in front di- 
 rectly towards the Turks, who made various 
 movements, advancing and retrograding.... but: 
 the French being ordered to charge, they re^ 
 tired, and towards the close of the day the 
 whole corps disappeared. The French ad- 
 vanced three leagubs beyond Gaza, where 
 the head-quarters were established, and near 
 which the ai'my was posted: They found in 
 the town 15,000lb. of powder, cartridges, 
 cannon, with a large quantity of provisions 
 and military stores ; the inhabitants met Bo- 
 naparte previous to his entering the tow^n, 
 who were treated in a friendly manner, and 
 tlie possession of their property secured to 
 them. 
 
 On the 10th Ventose, February twenty- 
 eighth, the French head-quarters were re- 
 moved towards Jaifa, in which troops were 
 
m THE HISTORY OF 
 
 eolleeting for its defence. At Ramley and 
 Ledda they procured a large quantity of bis- 
 duit. Kleber, with his division, being the 
 advanced guard, marched on the 13th, March 
 third j upon his approach to the town, the 
 Turks commenced a cannonading, which in- 
 duced him to halt until Bonaparte arrived 
 with the other divisions ; who immediately di- 
 rected Kleber and the cavalry to post them- 
 selves on the river L ahoy a to cover the siege 
 of Jaffa, which is surrounded by a wall, with 
 several towers defended by cannon, besides 
 two forts which command the entrance into 
 the port from the sea. 
 
 Bonaparte having determined upon attack- 
 ing the town by the south side near the sea, 
 invested it on the 14th, fourth, encamped on 
 the high grounds, and on the same evening, 
 opened the trenches and raised four batte- 
 ries, the completion of which occupied the 
 next day ; two sorties had been attempted on 
 the 15th, fifth, but with considerable loss to 
 the garrison. The batteries began to play 
 upon the walls on the morning of the 16th, 
 sixth, and early in the evening the breach 
 which had been made, authorised an immedi- 
 ate assault. Rambeaud and Vernois led the 
 attack ; the French troops entered the breachy 
 and amidst a strong flank firing of the garri- 
 son, gained possession, and carried the 
 square tower : the artillery showered grape 
 shot on the city, and supported the infantry. 
 The French continued their progress, and 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. lYS 
 
 captured the fort and the port, which so dis- 
 couraged the garrison that they flew in all di- 
 rections, and were mostly slain ; their number 
 amounted to 3,700 men, besides 300 Egypti- 
 ans who escaped the carnage, and were sent 
 to Egypt. Ten pieces of cannon were found 
 in the towers, and about 20 indifferent siege 
 pieces. 
 
 On the 17th, seventh, Bonaparte having 
 gained possession of the fortifications, sucr 
 .ceeded in repressing the disorders attending 
 an assault, and the inhabitants returned to 
 their habitations. Fifteen small vessels were 
 captured in the harbour. He formed a divan, 
 composed of the principal Turks in the town, 
 gave orders to place the town in a complete 
 state of defence, and established a hospital. 
 The possession of Jaffa was of great impor- 
 tance to the French army, as it became the 
 depot of all the supplies which they received 
 from Egypt. From Jaffa Bonaparte wa*ote to 
 Djezzar this letter, dated 19th Ventose, 
 March ninth :.... 
 
 " Since my arrival in Egypt, I several times informed you 
 that I had no design to make war against you, and that my 
 only object was to expel the Mamelucs. You returned no an- 
 swer to the overture which I made you. I announced that I 
 desired that you would drive Ibrahim Bey from the frontiers 
 of Egypt ; but instead of that you sent troops to Gaza ; you 
 fornied there large magazines, and promulged that you in- 
 tended to march against Egypt, You indeed began to put 
 this plan in execution ; and you threw 2,000 of your troops 
 jnto the fortress of El- Arisch, which is six miles only from the 
 
180 THE HISTORY OV 
 
 frontiers of Egypt. I was obliged then to depart from Cairo, 
 to direct in person the war which you seemed to invite. The 
 districts of Gaza, Ramley and Jaffa are already in my power. 
 I have treated with generosity such of your troops as surren- 
 dered at discretion, but I have been severe towards those who 
 violated the rights of war. In a few days I shall march 
 against Acre. But why should I go to deprive an old man, 
 with whom I am not acquainted, of the few remaining years 
 of his life ! What are a few miles more of territory, in com- 
 parison of those which I have already conquered 1 And as 
 God grants me victory, I will, like him, be clement and mer- 
 ciful, not only towards the people, but to the great. You 
 have no solid reason for being my enemy, since you were that 
 of the Mamelucs. Your government is separated from that 
 of Egypt by the districts of Gaza, Ramley and impassable 
 marshes. Become my friencf, be the enemy of the Mamelucs 
 and the English, and I will do you as much good as I have 
 done you hurt ; and I can still do you more. Send me a short 
 answer, by some person invested with full powers, that I may 
 know your views. He needs only to present himself to my 
 advanced guard with a white flag ; and I have given orders to 
 my staff to send you a pass of safety, which you will find an- 
 nexed. On the 1st of Germinal, March twenty-first, I shall 
 march against Acre, I must therefore have an answer before 
 that day." 
 
 Djezzar returned him a verbal answer: 
 
 <' I have not written to you, because I am resolved to hold 
 no communication with you. You may march against Acre 
 when you please ; I- shall be prepared for you, and will bury 
 myself in the ruins of the place, rather than let it fall into 
 your hands." 
 
 On the 25th Ventose, March fifteenth, the 
 Trench army marched for Zeta/ and discover- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 181 
 
 ed a corps of cavalry ; Abdalla Pacha was 
 on the heights of Korsum, but avoided a 
 combat ; as he fled at the commencement of 
 the attack, with about 200 men killed and 
 wounded. Caiffa was abandoned, with a 
 large quantity of provisions to the French, 
 as soon as they approached the town. Bo- 
 naparte proceeded towards Acre, and on the 
 28th, eighteenth, took possession of one of 
 the heights in its vicinity. Jaifet, Nazareth 
 and Scheffamz were also secured to maintain 
 the communication with Damascus, 
 
 The trenches were opened on the SOth, 
 twentieth, and the siege continued with great 
 activity ; on the 6th Germinal, twenty-sixth, 
 the garrison made a sortie, but returned with 
 loss : on the third day after, a considerable 
 breach was effected ; a mine had been blown, 
 which was thought sufficient, and an assault 
 was made, but a ditch of 15 feet secured the 
 works, and the besiegers were forced to re- 
 treat. During these events the provisions and 
 artillery sent from Egypt, destined for the 
 French army, were captured by Sidney 
 Smith's fleet, who had joined Djezzar, and 
 to whom, with Philippeaux, may be attribu- 
 ted the defence which it made. A new breach 
 was made on the 12th, April first, but the 
 attempt to enter it was unsuccessful. 
 
 General Vial was dispatched on the 14th, 
 third, to Sous ; having secured safety to those 
 who had fled at his approach, and establish- 
 ed a small garrison in it, he returned to the 
 
182 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 camp at Acre. A sortie was made on the 
 18th, seventh, on all sides, but the Turks were 
 received by the French army with so strong a 
 fire that they returned with much loss. It 
 was between these two actions that Djezzar 
 ordered all the killed or wounded French in 
 his possession to be mutilated, and exhibited 
 in triumph ; at the same time 400 French 
 who had been imprisoned by him, were lash- 
 ed together in couples, placed in a sack, and 
 cast into the sea. Information was also re- 
 ceived by Bonaparte that large bodies of 
 troops were assembling on every side to at- 
 tack him, whilst Djezzar supported by the 
 English flotilla was to aid their design. This 
 induced him to detach general Junot to recon- 
 noitre, who discovered some cavalry on the 
 heights of Loubi.... continuing his march, he 
 suddenly perceived on turning the mountain, 
 3,000 cavalry in a large plain, who instantly 
 attacked him: he retreated fighting, and 
 reached Nazareth, having been pursued six 
 miles and lost 60 men: the Turks must have 
 suffered much, as five standards were captur- 
 ed on this occasion by the French detach- 
 ment. 
 
 Kleber upon the receipt of the intelligence 
 .of this combat, marched to join Junot at Na- 
 zareth : on the 22d, eleventh, he had scarce- 
 ly arrived at Sed Jarra, when the Turks de- 
 scended from the hills and enveloped his di- 
 yision, with 4,000 cavalry and 600 foot; he 
 immediately attacked the horse, carried the 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 183 
 
 village, and forced them to retreat to Jordan. 
 Three days after this skirmish a large body of 
 troops collected in the plain of Fouli, which 
 was joined by a great number of Samaritans 
 and Naplousians. Kleber informed Bona- 
 parte that 18,000 men, though others said 30 
 or 40,000, were marching against him ; whilst 
 the garrison at Jaffet was blockaded, with a 
 very small quantity of provisions and ammu- 
 nition ; these events induced him to resolve 
 upon a decisive battle. 
 
 On the 24th, thirteenth, Murat was de- 
 tached from Acre with 1,000 infantry and a 
 regiment of cavalry, who took possession of 
 Jacoub's bridge, by which means he assailed 
 the rear of the troops who blockaded Jaffet, 
 and then joined Kleber. Bonaparte on the 
 26th, fifteenth, with the remainder of the ca- 
 valry, Bon's division and 8 pieces of artille- 
 ry, left the camp before Acre, and on the 
 morning of the 27th, sixteenth, having as- 
 cended the last height, he discovered Kleber 
 engaged with the Mamelucs near Mount 
 Thabor.... about 2,000 foot against 20,000 ca- 
 valry.... their camp was also in view at about 
 six miles distance : the army was formed in- 
 to three squares, one of which was cavalry 
 ....he made the proper arrangements to turn 
 them at a considerable distance, to cut off 
 their retreat to their camp, and then to drive 
 them towards Jordan, where Murat was wait- 
 ing to consummate the victory. The cavalry 
 marched with two pieces of artillery to seize 
 
184 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 the camp, whilst the infantry proceeded to 
 execute their duty. Kleber having received 
 a supply of ammunition, cavalry and 4 pieces 
 of cannon, formed his corps into two squares, 
 and posted his light troops among some ruins. 
 The Mamelucs had stationed in the village of 
 Fouli the Naplousian infantry, with two 
 pieces of cannon : the whole of the cavalry 
 surrounded Kleber's main body, which re- 
 pelled every charge. When arrived within a 
 short distance, Bonaparte ordered Rampon' 
 to assist Kleber, Vial to march towards the 
 mountain of Nouzes, and the foot guides to 
 cut off the retreat by Genin. Kleber per- 
 ceiving that a strong body of French had 
 joined him, attacked the village of Fouli, 
 which was carried by the bayonet, and then 
 returned to charge the cavalry. The Mame- 
 lucs were cut off from the mountains of Na- 
 plouse ; and the road by Genin was intercepted; 
 upon which the whole body hesitated, and fled 
 in great disorder to Mount Thabor, and 
 Jordan, in which great numbers were drown- 
 ed. Murat had surprized the governor of 
 Damascus' son, at Jacoubs' bridge, took his 
 camp, slew great numbers of his army^ and 
 pursued them towards Damascus. The camp 
 of the Mamelucs was taken, 500 camels, all' 
 their tents and provisions, and 250 prisoners. 
 The villages of Nouzes, Genin and Fouli- 
 were burnt, and those who remained in them 
 killed, but the Naplousians were spared. 
 Murat instantly marched to Tabbarie, in 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 
 
 which he found a whole year's supply of am- 
 munition and provisions. Bonaparte return- 
 ed to the camp before Acre, with Bon's divi- 
 sion and Murat's cavalry. The Mamelucs 
 lost in this action nearly 5,000 men and all 
 their magazines. 
 
 A party of Arabs having encamped near 
 Mount Carmel, general Leturcq surprised 
 them on the 30th, nineteenth, and took from 
 them 800 head of cattle, and killed 60 men. 
 
 The operations of the siege were continu- 
 ed with great vigour ; the garrison protected 
 their sorties by new works, whilst the French 
 endeavoured to undermine the walls and the 
 towers ; on the 5th Floreal, April 24th, the 
 tnine exploded, but without its intended ef- 
 fect... .the grenadiers were ordered to enter by 
 the breach into the tov/ef, but the garrison 
 threw so many combustibles among them^^ 
 that they were obliged to retire. 
 
 On the 12th, May first, a strong battery 
 was completed, and opened against the tower 
 which had been so frequently attempted ; up- 
 on which the garrison sallied out in consider- 
 able force ; but their retreat being cut oif, a 
 considerable number, not protected by their 
 own works, were driven into the sea ; their 
 whole loss amounted to 500 men. 
 
 About 10 o'clock in the evening of the 
 ieth, fifth, Bonaparte ordered an attack upon 
 the out-works ; the Turks stationed in them 
 were surprized, and almost all of them slain. 
 
 A. A 
 
iB6 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 On the following night, another general as- 
 sault was made, but the works were so pow- 
 erfully defended, that with all their courage 
 the French could not maintain their position 
 in the tower. A similar attempt was made 
 on the night of the 18th, seventh, and al- 
 though the French troops completely succeed- 
 ed in carrying the works, and weakening the 
 garrison by a great slaughter of the soldiers 
 who were posted in them, they could not ad- 
 vance, and after a severe conflict retired with 
 the loss of 150 men and 17 officers. Bona-' 
 parte ordered, another attack on the following 
 morning, " but it ended like the former at-* 
 tempts ; the combat continued throughout 
 the day) and at night they retreated to the 
 camp. A very considerable reinforcement of 
 men and provisions was landed on the 19th, 
 eighth, and animated the garrison with new 
 energy. " 
 
 On the 21st, tenth, three assaults were 
 made, but the force with which the garrison 
 had been augmented rendered them ineffectu^ 
 al : the slaughter had been so great among 
 the Turks, that an infectious disorder was 
 anticipated, as the bodies remained in the 
 works not buried : a flag of truce was imme- 
 diately sent to Djezzar to propose a suspen* 
 sion of arms whilst the dead were interred, 
 and to establish an exchange of prisoners. 
 The only answer which was given was the 
 continuation of the firing from the batteries. 
 Two sorties were made by the garrison on the 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 18f 
 
 27th, sixteenth, but without success ; the 
 assailants were obUged to retire at all points. 
 
 A flag of truce left Acre on the 28th, se- 
 venteenth, accompanied by the Turk who 
 had been sent to Djezzar. His answer was, 
 that the English guns were the only reply he 
 had to make....he broua;ht with him the pro- 
 clamation of the Turkish government, sanc- 
 tioned by sir Sidney Smithy which was read 
 to all the army. 
 
 *' The Ministry of the Sublime Porte^ to the Generals^ Offi' 
 cers and Soldiers of the French army in Egypt. 
 
 " The French directory forgetful of the rights of nations, 
 has deceived you, surprised your good faith, and in contempt 
 of the laws of war, sent you to Egypt, a country subject to 
 the Sublime Porte, by persuading you that the Sublime Porte 
 kself had consented to the invasion of its own territory. 
 
 " Can you entertain any doubts but that the only object of 
 the directory in sending you to a remote country was to banish 
 you from France, and to plunge you into an abyss of dangers ; 
 If, completely ignorant of the truth, you have invaded the 
 territqry of Egypt, and are made the instruments to violate 
 treaties of the most solemn kind, must you not attribute this 
 to the perfidy of the directory ? Egypt must however be freed 
 from so iniquitous an invasion, and vast armies are now «> 
 march, and the sea is covered with formidable squadrons, for 
 the attainment of that object. 
 
 « Those among you of whatever rank they may be, wh© 
 wish to extricate themselves from the imminent peril to which 
 they are exposed, are called upon to signify their intentions, 
 without delay, to the commanders of the land and sea forces 
 of the allied powers. They may be confident of a safe conduct 
 to whatever place they may be desirous to proceed, and they 
 
THE HISTORY OF 
 
 shall receive passports to protect them on their voyage from 
 the squadrons and cruizers of the allied powers. Let them 
 then hasten to take advantage of the benignant disposition of 
 the Sublime Porte, and let them consider it as a propitious 
 occasion to extricate themselves from the horrible gulf into 
 which they are precipitated. 
 
 « Done^t Constantinople, the 11th of the moon Ramazan? 
 in the year of the Hegira 1213, and February 5th, 1799." 
 
 The officer who brought this address re- 
 turned without an answer, and the firing 
 continued.. ..but this on the part of the French 
 was a mere feint, for Bonaparte had resolved 
 immediately to return into Egypt. His army 
 was in a very sickly condition ; with much 
 difficulty they procured provisions ; his hea- 
 vy artillery had been captured ; the army 
 against which he fought exceeded thrice the 
 number of his troops, besides the marine 
 force under sir Sidney Smith ; his presence 
 was immediately necessary in Egypt, to quell 
 the appearance of disorder which had been 
 excited in his absence. ...the expectation of a 
 large Turkish force at Alexandria was an ad- 
 ditiona,! motive ; the whole country was op- 
 posed to him ; and the season would soon 
 have altogether precluded his return : this 
 proclamation was therefore issued :.... 
 
 " Head-Quarters before Acre, 2Bih Floreai, 
 May seventeen. 
 *' Soldiers ! You have traversed the desert virhich separates 
 Africa from Asia, with more rapidity than an Arabian army 
 could have done. The army which had marched to invade 
 Egypt you have destroyed ; you have taken its general, all 
 their field equipage, baggage and camels. You took posscssi- 
 
NAPOLEON BON A.P ARTE. 18? 
 
 on of alitiie strong holds and fortresses which guard the wells of 
 the Desert. You dispersed on the fields of Mouut Thabor 
 thatcloudofmen who had collected from all parts of Asia, with 
 th? hope of plundering Egypt. The 30 ships which you saw 
 arrive at Acre 12 days since, contained an army intended to 
 besiege Aleiscandria ; but compelled to come to the relief of 
 Acre, it has there finished its career.. ..a part of tjieir coloui's 
 will decorate your re-entrance into Egypt. In short, af- 
 ter having, with a handful of men, sustained a war of three 
 months ii) the heart of Syria, taken 40 pieces of field cannon, 
 50 colours, 6,000 prisoners, destroyed the fortifications of Ga- 
 za, Jaffa, Caiffa and Acre, we are about to return into Egypt. 
 The season of debarkation in that country calls me back. A 
 few days more, and you had well grounded hopes of taking thp 
 Pacha in jthe midst of his palace ; but at this season the cap= 
 tuire of the fortress of Acre is no longer worth a day's delay, 
 and the brave men whom I must lose by continuing the siege are 
 become necessary in the prosecvitipn of more essential opera- 
 tions. 
 
 " Soldiers ! We have a further career to run of danger and 
 fatigue. After having deprived tbe East of the means of an-? 
 noying us in this campaign, it may perhaps be necessary to 
 oppose ourselves to the efforts of the West. You will find 
 new fields of glory; and if amidst so many combats, each day 
 shall be marked by the death of a brave man, new heroes 
 must arise, and take rank in their turn, amongst the small 
 number who lead in danger, and by their example command 
 
 victory. 
 
 « BONAPARTE." 
 
 During the night the sick and wounded be^ 
 gan to remove, and the artillery was with- 
 drawn. The advanced guard immediately 
 inarched to secure the passes. On the 1st 
 frairial. May 20^ two sorties were made by 
 
190 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 the garrison, who, enraged at the destruction 
 of Djezzar's palace, and many other edifices, 
 fought with unprecedented obstinacy, but they 
 were at length obliged to return into the town 
 with great loss. The heavy artillery being 
 entirely removed, all the useless materials 
 were cast into the sea; and on the same 
 night, after a siege of sixty day^, the trench- 
 es were evacuated. The army retired in 
 perfect order, and with so much secrecy that 
 their return was not perceived by the garri^ 
 son until the following day. At Cantoura 
 they sunk 22 pieces of cannon, and after pU' 
 nishing the villages which had aided the 
 Turks, destroying the fortifications of Jaffa, 
 raising from that town 150,000 livres, setting 
 fire to the grain in the vicinity of Ibrel and 
 other villages ; taxing Gaza 100,000 livres, 
 and blowing up its fort; on the 26 th Prairial, 
 June fourteenth, Bonaparte arrived at Cairo, 
 where preparations had been made for his re- 
 ception; illuminations, triumphal arches, &c. 
 were exhibited in honour of the army of Syria. 
 On the 23d Messidor, July eleventh, 100 
 sa.il of vessels anchored at Aboukir ; the 
 troops landed on the 27th, fifteenth, carried 
 the fort by the most intrepid assault, and 
 halving landed their artillery, intrenched 
 themselves on the peninsula. Immediately 
 as Bonaparte heard this intelligence, he left 
 Cairo, and on the 7th Thermidor, July twen- 
 ty-fifth, appeared before the Turkish army. 
 The Pacha had posted his army so as %9, 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 191 
 
 , il^. ■■■■■ — . M .i^ I I. - ■.— ,■,-,,.- ,-- .1.. . * I. ■■ ■■'■■■ '•- ■ ' ■ 
 
 form three lines of defence, defended by ar- 
 .tillery and gun boats. On the right 1,200 
 Turks occupied a post with 4 pieces of can- 
 non ; the retreat of these was cut off by De- 
 staing ; on the left 2,000 Turks, with 6 pieces 
 of cannon, were stationed; these were at- 
 tacked by Lasnes, and by the activity of Mu- 
 rat's body, of cavalry, the whole of the 
 •two corps, preferring death to a capitulation, 
 were either killed or wounded : in the centre 
 a redoubt was defended by 9,000 men and 1^ 
 pieces of cannon ; this was attacked by Des- 
 taing and Lasnes.. ..the Turks fought with en- 
 thusiastick valour, but the cavalry advancing, 
 they slung their muskets behind them, took 
 to their swords and pistols, and endeavoured 
 to wrest the bayonets from the French who 
 assailed the iiitrenchments ; Murat as the re- 
 doubt was forced in front, charged all the po- 
 sitions in the rear, cut off their retreat into 
 the fort, and completed the defeat ; resolved 
 not to capitulate, they followed the example 
 of their comrades, and about 7,000 of them 
 perished in the sea. The Pacha was captur- 
 ^ed, with 200 Turks ; 2,000 were dead on the 
 ;Beld ; the tents, baggage, cannon, and all 
 'the army equipage, was taken, and the fort 
 -immediately ceased to fire; but the fleet hav- 
 ing communicated with the fort in the eve- 
 ning, they determined to defend it to the last 
 extremity : the garrison were summoned on 
 the 8th, twenty-sixth, and on the 1 5th, Au- 
 gust second, surrendered. The Pacha's son. 
 
192 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 with^ 2,000 men, were prisoners ; in the fort 
 were found 1,800 dead and wounded. By 
 this expedition the Turks lost 18,000 men. 
 The following had been previously issued: 
 ARMY OF THE EAST. 
 
 " GENERAL ORDERS. 
 
 " Thermidor lAth, Jugust Jirst, 
 " BONAPARTE, GENERAL IN CHIEF. 
 
 « The name of Aboukir was fatal to all Frenchmen. The 
 7th Thermidor, July twenty -fifth, has rendered it glorious. 
 The victory which the army has gained accelerates its leturn 
 to Europe. 
 
 « We have conquered Meritz and the limits of the Rhine, 
 by invading a part of Germany. We have now re-conquered 
 our establishments in India, and those of our allies, by a sin- 
 gle operation. We have put into the hands of government 
 the power to force England, and notwithstanding its maritime 
 triumphs, to a peace glorious for the republic. 
 
 « We have suffered much : we have had to fight enemies 
 of every kind : we have them still to conquer : but, at lengthy 
 the result will be worthy of you, and we shall merit the thanks 
 of oui* country." 
 
 Soon after these events Bonaparte determin- 
 ed to return to France ; he therefore ordered ad- 
 miral Ganteaume to prepare two frigates and 
 two sloops for a Voyage^ and addressed a 
 sealed note to all those whom he intended 
 should accompany him, with directions that 
 it should not be opened until a certain day, at 
 a particular hour, and upon a given spot on the 
 sea-shore. The day appointed was the 5th 
 Fructidor, August twenty-second ; the whole 
 party attended as they were commanded, Ber- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. i4< 
 
 thier alone being acquainted with the desii^n : 
 having broken the seals of their notes they 
 found that they were immediately to embark : 
 at one in the morning of the 6th, twenty- 
 third, Menou informed Lasnes, Murat, Mar- 
 mont, h.c. that Bonaparte was waiting for 
 them on the beach : leaving their baggage 
 and horses, they were received on board, and 
 after a short detention by contrary winds, de- 
 parted from the road of Aboukir on the 7th, 
 twenty-fourth. 
 
 He appointed Kieber chief, gave to Des- 
 saix the command in Upper Egypt, and 
 wrote to the army, dated Fructidor 6th, Au- 
 gust twenty -third:.... 
 
 <' In consequence of news from Europe, T have determined 
 immediately to return to France. I resign the command of the 
 army to general Kieber. They shall hear from me speedily. 
 This is all I can say to them at present. It grieves me to the 
 heart to part from the brave men to whom I am so tenderly 
 attached. But it will be for an instant only ; and the general 
 whom I leave at their head is in full possession of the confi- 
 dence of the govei'nment, and of mine." 
 
 Bonaparte arrived at Ajaccio on the 9th 
 Vendemiaire, September thirtieth, and was 
 received with the utmost enthusiasm; his little 
 fleet saw no vessel during the passage..... 
 the wind obliged the ships to stay in that port 
 until the 14th, October jflfth, when they 
 weighed anchor, and the following evening 
 being in sight of the French coast, and dis- 
 tant ten leagues only from Toulon, they per- 
 
 B B 
 
t94 THE HISTORY OF , 
 
 ceived an English squadron of eight sail. 
 The moon was covered with a thick fog, and 
 the Signal guns of the squadron which was 
 endeavouring to intercept the passage of the 
 French frigates were heard. A council was 
 immediately held on board the frigate in 
 which Bonaparte sailed, to decide whether they 
 should return to Corsica, or attempt to reach 
 the shore. Bonaparte now assumed the com- 
 mand: " Be not alarmed," said he, " for- 
 tune will not abandon me, let us steer di- 
 rectly for the coast." The signals were 
 made accordingly, and at midnight they lost 
 all apprehension, being too near the shore to 
 indulge any fears of an attack. At day break 
 they saw Frejus, and about nine in the 
 morning of the 16 th, seventh, anchored near 
 St. Rapheau. Bonaparte with his compani- 
 ons and suite arrived at Frejus about two, 
 amidst an immense concourse of people. 
 When they landed they prostrated themselves 
 to embrace the ground, whilst the spectators 
 in the most rapturous transports of joy 
 shouted on all sides " Vive la Republique ! 
 Vive Bonaparte!" The magistrates of Fre- 
 jus received them with triumphal honours. 
 Lasnes and Murat being wounded, accom- 
 panied the crews to Toulon. 
 
 At six o'clock in. the evening of the 17th, 
 eighth, Bonaparte left Frejus and proceeded 
 to Paris, with Berthier, Monge, Bertholet 
 and Arnaud. The courier who had been 
 sent to announce his arrival to the directory, 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 19? 
 
 and to prepare horses for his journey, called 
 for them m his name : the crowd of spectators 
 was so great as frequently to impede the pro- 
 gress of the carriages : every tov/n through 
 which he passed at night was illuminated, and 
 his whole journey was one continued trium- 
 phal procession. At Lyons they gave him a 
 splendid reception ; a short theatrical piece 
 called the " Hero's Return," was composed 
 and represented immediately; the performers 
 read their parts, there being no time to com- 
 mit them to memory : when he entered the 
 theatre, the acclamations and thunders of ap- 
 plause were inconceiveable, and when he re- 
 tired, the citizens followed him to his lodg- 
 ings. He reached Paris Vendemiaire 25th, 
 October sixteenth, and on the following day 
 had a private audience of the directory. The 
 courts and all the streets leading to the Lux- 
 embourg were on this occasion filled with 
 the citizens : he appeared very sensible of 
 these testimonials of joy: among others he 
 observed many of the soldiers who had serv- 
 ed with him in Italy; these he called to him, 
 shook them by the hand, expressed much 
 friendship for them, and treated them with 
 unusual affability. He was dressed in a grey 
 riding coat, without uniform, a Turkish sa- 
 bre hung in a silk scarf over his shoulder, 
 his hair was short, without powder, and his 
 tawny complexion, acquired by the sun of 
 Egypt, gave him a greater appearance of man- 
 liness and strength than he possessed previous 
 
196 THE HISTORY OF NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 
 
 to his departure from Europe. His visit be- 
 ing concluded, he waited upon the ministers of 
 war, marine, and the other high officers in 
 the service of the repubUck. 
 
Bonaparte's appointment to the First Consul- 
 ship, 
 
 BONAPARTE first saw Moreau at the 
 house of Gohier, president of the dh-ectory, 
 a few days after his arrival in Paris. " Ge- 
 neral," said he, " I had several of your lieu- 
 tenants with me in Egypt, and they are very 
 distinguished officers." 
 
 Three days elapsed before he met Sieyes, 
 which supports the opir.ion of those who assert 
 that the subseqitent events were not the effect 
 of a plan concerted previous to his return. 
 Bonaparte was very cautious in all his inter- 
 course with the politicians, but to the army 
 he was affable and condescending. He dis- 
 covered his country's situation to be very un- 
 pleasant. ...the armies were suffering through 
 want, and every where defeated.... public cre- 
 dit was injured, and the government was dis- 
 united, rash and imbecile to a degree. 
 
 Bonaparte's presence kindled a spirit of en- 
 thusiasm inexpressible ; all parties looked to 
 him as the cause of some unknown good to 
 the republick ; they trusted unreservedly in 
 him for peace and every other blessing :.... 
 his courage, military art, affability of man- 
 
198 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 ners ; his acuteness, penetration, coolness, 
 vigour and presence of mind; his boldness 
 in design, and intrepidity in execution ; his 
 firmness, activity and perseverance ; his 
 unparallelled sublime genius, which dis- 
 tinguished difficulties from impossibilities, 
 and improved every event to his own 
 advantage. ...his former letters, speeches and 
 actions, and his almost miraculous return 
 from Egypt, having escaped through a swarm 
 of English, Turkish and Russian ships of war, 
 all proclaimed him to be the man who was 
 appointed to redress the grievances of the 
 nation, and excited the unbounded confidence 
 of the people. 
 
 Although the republick was surrounded by 
 victorious enemies, and involved in war ; and 
 although the last campaign had been very 
 unsuccessful, Paris at this eventful crisis was 
 filled with generals.... Bonaparte and Moreau 
 were attended by Berthier, Lefebre, Serru- 
 rier, Macdonald, Murat, Berryer and others : 
 their presence which at another time would 
 have occasioned jealousy and dissatisfaction, 
 was now hailed with ecstasy ; and every pas- 
 sion, every principle seemed lost in the con- 
 templation of Bonaparte^ their idol, and the 
 admiration of the v/orld. 
 
 Sieyes and Bonaparte quickly adjusted a 
 change in the form of government.. ..the former 
 had long been contriving it, but having no force 
 to execute his schemes, it had been delayed; 
 the return of that general was propitious to 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 199 
 
 the plan, and his talents were exactly suited 
 to perfect the whole. 
 
 The directory ordered a feast in honour of 
 Bonaparte and Moreau, and on the 16 th 
 Brumaire, November seventh, it was observ- 
 ed. The temple of victory v/as adorned 
 in the most magnificent manner : the walls 
 were decorated with the standards taken in 
 battle from the enemies of the republick....the 
 president of the council of ancients was at the 
 head of the table. ...Gohier president of the di- 
 rectory, was on his right hand.. ..Moreau on 
 his left. Then followed Lucien Bonaparte, 
 president of the council of five hundred, Na- 
 poleon, &c. Gohier gave for his toast 
 " Peace ;".... the latter " The Union of all 
 Frenchmen." An air of constraint and si- 
 lence was evident throughout the whole feast 
 
 the ceremony continued about three 
 
 hours, and served no other purpose than to 
 solemnize the union of Bonaparte and Mo- 
 reau, and that of all parties. 
 
 When he returned to the house appointed 
 for his residence, he found Madame La Fay- 
 ette and her daughter waiting to express their 
 sense of his kindness in delivering her hus- 
 band from the Austrian dungeon. 
 
 On the evening of the day after the feast, 
 a small number of the members of both 
 councils assembled at Lemercier's house, who 
 had been elected president of the council of 
 ancients. This party consisted of Bonaparte, 
 Sieyes, Lemercier, Lucien Bonaparte, Bou- 
 
200 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 lay de la Meutlie, Courtois, Cabanis, Reg- 
 nier, Fargues, Villetard, Chazal, Barillon, 
 Botteville, Cornet, Vimar, Delecloy, Fre- 
 geville, Le Hatry, Goupil, Preselyn, Rous- 
 seau, Herwyn, Cornudet. These legisla- 
 tors, after swearing to maintain secrecy, de- 
 parted to secure the support of all their 
 friends to aid in the execution of the scheme ; 
 while the proper officers were charged to 
 prepare plans of jacobin conspiracies, in case 
 the occasion should demand them. 
 
 The translation of the residence of the le- 
 gislative bodies by the vote only of the coun- 
 cil of ancients was an article of the constitu- 
 tion, and became the main spring of the in- 
 tended revolution. At four o'clock in the 
 morning of the 18th Brumaire, November 
 ninth, the committee of inspectors sent mes- 
 sages to 150 members of the council of anci- 
 ents, most of them ignorant of the measure, 
 to meet at eight o'clock in the Thuilleries. 
 
 When the assembly was formed, and near- 
 ly 100 of the violent jacobins were absent, 
 Cornet ascended the tribune, represented the 
 dangers which threatened the country, and 
 the necessity of speedy and effective mea- 
 sures for its deliverance from them. 
 
 Regnier then declared the remedy which 
 had ' been proposed ; to transport the 
 legislative bodies to a commune near Paris> 
 where they might deliberate in security on 
 the best means to extricate the country, as- 
 suring them also that general Bonaparte was 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 20 i 
 
 ready to execute their decree ; he therefore 
 moved that the council should be translated 
 to St. Cloud; that this translation should 
 take place on the following day ; that Bona- 
 parte should be charged with its execution, 
 and take the necessary measures for the se- 
 curity of the national representation ; that he 
 should be invested with the general command 
 of all the troops in Paris, including their own 
 and the national guards ; that he should be 
 called into the council to take the requisite 
 oaths ; and that a message containing the re- 
 solution of the council should be sent to 
 the directory, and to the council of five hun- 
 dred. 
 
 An address was voted to the people, stat- 
 ing their right to remove the legislature, and 
 the motives which actuated, this step : they 
 alledged that their object was to repress in- 
 subordination, faction and commotion, and 
 to obtain a speedy peace, internal and exter- 
 nal. These reasons in conjunction with their 
 confidence in Bonaparte, sufficed to calm the 
 Parisians, who patiently waited to see the is- 
 sue of these extraordinary measures. 
 
 The decree was notified to Bonaparte 
 whilst surrounded by a numerous staff. He 
 obeyed the summons, accompanied by Mo- 
 reau, Berthier^ Lefevre, Macdonald and 
 others. Being informed by the president 
 Gc 
 
202 THE HISTORY or 
 
 of his appointment, he addressed the repre- 
 sentatives thus : 
 
 " Citizens lle}irese7itatives, 
 
 " The republick was on the brink of ruin, but your decree 
 has saved it. Woe be to those who wish for anarchy. As- 
 sisted by my brave companions, I will arrest their course. Let 
 us not seek in the past, examples to justify the present. No- 
 thing in history resembles t!ie close of the 1 8th century, nor 
 is any thing in it like the present moment. 
 
 " Your wisdom has issued the decree ; our arms shall put 
 it in execution. We will have a republick founded on the 
 right basis, on civil liberty and national representation : we 
 will have it, T swear ! I swear it in my own name, and in that 
 of my brave comrades '." 
 
 " I swear it," was immediately returned 
 by the other generals, and the sitting was dis- 
 solved amid the cries of " Vive la Repub- 
 lique /" 
 
 The Ancients message being read by the 
 council of Five Hundred, the deputies who 
 were not in the secret, or who favoured the 
 Jacobin party, were astonished and silent. 
 The law which had been passed by the An- 
 cients was read, and the council adjourned, 
 some crying '■'-Vive laRepublique ! others Vive 
 la Constitiition .'" 
 
 The members of the councils having de 
 parted, the committees of inspectors remain- 
 ed in the room belonging to the Ancients, to 
 concert measures according to the urgency of 
 affairs, Bonaparte's staff being assembled 
 at the same place to preserve tranquillity, and 
 tb remove the councils to St. Cloud. 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 203 
 
 Tne walls of JPans were immediately co- 
 vered with proclamations which had been 
 previously prepared : in one Bonaparte an- 
 nounced that the council of ancients had 
 commissioned him to take measures for the 
 safety of the legislative body ; that its remo- 
 val to St. Cloud was necessary, to guarantee 
 it from the danger with which it was threat- 
 ened by the disorganization of every part of 
 the administration. In another he informed 
 the soldiers that he had taken the command 
 of the army to execute measures devised 
 solely for tiie benefit of the people. " In 
 what state," said he, " did I leave France ? 
 In what state have I found it ? I left you con- 
 quests, and the enemy are passing your fron- 
 tiers ! I left you arsenals well supplied, and 
 you are without arms : your cannon have 
 been sold ; robbery has been reduced to a sys- 
 tem, and the resources of the state are drain- 
 ed : recourse has been had to vexatious 
 means, repugnant alike to justice and pro- 
 priety : the soldier has been left without de- 
 fence. For two years past the republick has 
 been badly governed ; you have hoped that 
 my return would put a stop to such a train of 
 evils ; you have celebrated it by an union 
 whicii imposes on me the obligations which I 
 am attempting to fulfill. You will do your duty ; 
 you will second your general with that firmness 
 and confidence which I have ever remarked in 
 you. Liberty, victory and peace, will again esta- 
 blish the French republick in the rank which it 
 
204 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 held among the nations of the earth, and 
 which could only have been lost by folly and 
 treason." 
 
 These proclamations were accompanied by 
 two notices, exhorting the citizens to pay no 
 attention to the suggestions of those who love 
 disorder, and informing them that the mea- 
 sures which would be adopted were intended 
 to re-establish interior order, to restore liber- 
 ty, and to fix the republick on sure foundati- 
 ons. His address to the officers of the nati- 
 onal guard was particularly emphatical. " A 
 new order of things is about to take place ; 
 the council of ancients will save the repub- 
 lick; whoever opposes it shall perish by the 
 bayonet of the soldier." The conferring the 
 chief command on Bonaparte, and its conse- 
 quences immediately followed each other. 
 The garden of the Thuilleries was instantly 
 filled with 10,000 infantry and cavalry. The 
 principal posts in and around Paris, the 
 bridges, the Luxembourg, the hall of the 
 council of five hundred, the military school, 
 the invalids, St. Cloud and Versailles, were 
 entrusted to Marmont, Serrurier, Lasnes, 
 Macdonald, Berthier, Murat, Andreossi, 
 and other generals. Bonaparte had formed 
 his dispositions and harangued his troops in 
 the court, three of the directors and all the 
 rest of Paris being ignorant of every part 
 of the change. ...Sieyes and Ducos waited the 
 result of the meeting : the former was 
 walking in the garden of the Luxembourg, 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 305 
 
 and the latter was in his apartments, when 
 they received ihe message from the ancients, 
 upon which they repaired immediately to the 
 committees of the inspectors at the Thuille- 
 ries. Barras was the first of the three other 
 directors who became acquainted with the 
 change- He was invited to give in his resig- 
 nation in the morning ; he hesitated for some 
 time, but at length found it unavoidable. 
 
 Gohier, who was to have breakfasted with 
 Bonaparte, rising late on the following day, was 
 surprised to find the decree of the council 
 of ancients on his table. He repaired to the 
 audience chamber of the directory, where 
 Moulins met him, equally ignorant and as- 
 tonished. Their perplexity was increased, 
 when on inquiring for Sieyes and Ducos, they 
 heard that they were gone to the Thuilleries, 
 and that Barras refused to join in their delibera- 
 tions. The secretary was then called to write 
 the arrets which they were about to form ; but 
 their agitation was excessive when he observed, 
 that two members could not form a majority, 
 and that it was impossible for him to do as 
 they requested. Moulins now ordered the house 
 of Bonaparte to be surrounded, but it was 
 discovered that the guard had deserted, and 
 gone to the Thuilleries. General Lefevre 
 was then summoned to appear before them ; 
 he came, but bowing answered, that an ir- 
 revocable decree which had just been issued 
 by the council of ancients, invested general 
 Bonaparte with the supreme command of all 
 
206 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 the troops in Paris ; that he was now a subal- 
 tern only, and that he could not march a sin- 
 gle man without his permission. 
 
 Whilst Bonaparte was engaged in conver- 
 sation with Sieyes and Ducos, on the sub- 
 jects under consideration, Augereau ap- 
 proaching, addressed him with all possible 
 cordiality, " General, you did not send tor 
 me, but I have come unsought, to join you." 
 The directorial palace was soon invested by 
 a troop of soldiers, and Moulins did not wait 
 to be arrested, but jumping out of the win- 
 dow, escaped across the garden of the Lux- 
 embourg. Gohier repaired jto the Thuille- 
 ries, where, as president of the directory, he 
 put the seal to the decree for the translation 
 to St. Cloud, which had already been signed 
 by Sieyes and Ducos ; he persisted in neither 
 resigning his station, nor delivering the seal 
 of state, and returned to the Luxembourg, 
 where he was under guard until the next 
 evening ; when perceiving that the power of 
 the directory was destroyed, a new govern- 
 ment formed, and the consuls in office, he 
 quietly retired to his house at St. Chaumont, 
 
 Immediately after Gohier had signed the 
 decree, Sieyes and Ducos resigned their of- 
 fices, and Barras speedily followed their ex- 
 ample. He sent his secretary Botot to Bona- 
 parte, himself remaining in his carriage near 
 the Thuilleries, until he returned with the 
 report of his interview. Bonaparte was in 
 the inspector's apartment when Botot desired 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 207 
 
 to speak with him. He was introduced by 
 Coiirtois, and having presented the letter, 
 wished to know if Bonaparte had any answer 
 for Barras. " Tell him," said Bonaparte, 
 " that I desire to hear no more of him, and 
 that I trust I shall ever make the authority 
 respected which is entrusted to me." Then 
 raising his voice, he said: " The army has 
 cordially united with me, and I cordially act 
 with the legislative body. What have you 
 done with the country which I left so flou- 
 rishing ? I left you peace and I have found 
 war. I left you victory and I have found de- 
 feat. I left you the treasures of Italy, and 
 I find nothing but oppression and poverty. 
 Where are the hundred thousand heroes, my 
 companions in arms, whom I left covered 
 with glory ? What is become of them ? Alas, 
 they are no more ! This state of things can- 
 not last long ; in three years it will end in 
 despotism. But we are for a republick, 
 founded on the basis of equality, civil liber- 
 ty and political toleration. If you believe 
 the assertions of the factious, we are the ene- 
 mies of the republick; we who have strength- 
 ened it by our labours and cemented it with 
 our blood ; but we wish for no better patriots 
 than the brave men who have suffered in its 
 service." When he had finished his ha- 
 rangue, the most extravagant acclamations 
 and applause followed, and Bonaparte re- 
 quested Botot to tell Barras " that he was in- 
 violably attached to him, and would protect 
 
208 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 him against his enemies." Barras alarmed 
 for his personal safety, immediately withdrew 
 to Gros Bois, his country house, guarded by 
 a detachment of cavalry, whom Bonaparte or- 
 dered to attend him. Sieyes and Ducos pass- 
 ed the night at the Thuilleries with the in- 
 spectors. 
 
 On the 19th of Brumaire, November 
 tenth, before break of day, multiplied de- 
 tachments of infantry and cavalry occupied 
 all the posts and the neighbourhood of the 
 palace of St. Cloud. The legislature arri- 
 ved there about noon, with Sieyes and Du- 
 cos, who were soon followed by Bonaparte, 
 Berthier, Murat, Marmont and the staff. 
 The court of the castle and the village were 
 filled with spectators. At half past two the 
 council of ancients formed in the chamber 
 called the gallery. A motion was made to 
 inquire into the cause of their removal, but 
 this was superseded by a demand to know if 
 the directory and the council of five hundred 
 were also assembled, as by the constitution 
 they must reside in the same commune. La- 
 garde, the secretary, replied, that four of the 
 directors had resigned, and that a fifth was 
 under military guard.. ..this letter was 
 transmitted to the other council. At this in- 
 stant Bonaparte entered the hall, and the 
 whole council listened to him with profound 
 silence. " Your solicitude," said he, " for 
 the salvation of your country, has called mc 
 before you. I will not dissemble, .for I will 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 209 
 
 Speak always with the frankness of a soldier. 
 You stand on a volcano, but you may depend 
 on our devoted attachment. I have come 
 here with my brave companions in arms. 
 Crowned as they are with victory, they pre- 
 sent to you that security which is the result 
 of the services v/hich they have done their 
 Country. To what purpose is it to talk of 
 Ceesar or Cromwell, and of a military govern- 
 ment? If we are invited by your confidence, 
 we shall know how to justify it. It is also 
 proper to declare to you that vigorous mea- 
 sures are necessary. Plots are at this mo- 
 ment in existence ; crimes are hatching; nor 
 are your dangers those alone with which you 
 are immediately threatened. The minister of 
 police has just received the most disastrous 
 news from La Vendee, announcing the pro- 
 gress of the rebels^ and the reduction of se- 
 veral townsi Let us not be divided. Asso- 
 ciate your wisdom to the force which Sur- 
 rounds me. I will be nothing but the devo- 
 ted arni of the tepublick." One of the mem- ^ 
 bers added, " And of the constitution!" 
 " The constitution," resumed Bonaparte, 
 " Does it become you to invoke the constitu- 
 tion ? Have you not trodden it under your 
 feet? The constitution! Is it any thing else 
 than a pretext and cloak for all manned of 
 tyranny? Has not every species of tyranny 
 been exercised in its name from the day of 
 its establishment ? Who can in future be gua- 
 
 D D 
 
250 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 ranteed by it ? Is not its insufficiency attest- 
 ed by the numerous outrages committed un- 
 der its sanction by the very people who are 
 swearing a contemptuous fideUty to it? All 
 the rights of the people have been atrocious- 
 ly violated under the mask of a regard for 
 the constitution ; it is for your wisdom and 
 firmness to re-establish' those sacred rights, 
 and to use means for the salvation of the 
 country. The time for putting a period to 
 these disasters is now come. You have 
 charged me to present you with the means. 
 Had I harboured personal designs, or views 
 of usurpation, I should not have waited until 
 this day in order to realize them. Before 
 my departure, and since my return, I have 
 foeen solicited by the heads of different parties 
 to take possession of the pviblick authority. 
 IBarras and Moulins proposed to me to seize 
 the government, but I repulsed such over- 
 tures, because liberty is dearer to me than 
 life, and because I wish to serve the French 
 people only. I could make discoveries 
 which would instantly confound the greater 
 part of my calumniators, but it is unnecessa- 
 ry ; I only declare to you that as soon as the 
 danger shall be past, I will abdicate the com- 
 mand which has been confided to me. I will 
 be the supporting arm only of the magistracy 
 whom you may think proper to nominate." 
 
 Bonaparte now retired from the hall and 
 addressed the soldiers and people : " Turn'* 
 said he, " your bayonets against me, when- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 2 1 1 
 
 ever you find me an enemy to liberty, but if 
 any person dare pronounce against me the 
 words " Hors la loi^''^ the thunder of war 
 shall crush him instantly : remember that I 
 march accompanied by the divinity of Fortune 
 and the God of War." Having returned to the 
 hall, he declared that if it were necessary he 
 would name the conspirators. " It is time to 
 speak out," said he, " and I have no designs 
 which I wish to keep secret. I am not the 
 instrument of any faction, I am the servant 
 of the French people. The constitution too 
 often violated, is utterly inadequate to the 
 salvation of the people. It is indispensably 
 necessary to have recourse to means fitted to- 
 carry into execution the sacred principles of 
 the sovereignty of the people, civil liberty, 
 freedom of speech as of thought ; and in a 
 word, the realization of ideas hitherto only 
 chimerical. Since my arrival," continued 
 Bonaparte, " every magistrate, and every 
 publick functionary with whom I have con- 
 versed, have given me the most perfect con- 
 viction that the constitution, so often violat- 
 ed, and continually disregarded, is on the 
 brink of ruin ; that it offers no guarantee to 
 the French, because it has no diapason. Eve- 
 ry faction is persuaded of this truth, and 
 each is disposed to take advantage of the fall 
 of the present government ; all have had re- 
 course to me, all have been anxious to gain 
 me over to their respective interests. I have 
 thought it my duty to join myself to the coun^ 
 
212 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 cil of ancients alone, the first body of the 
 repubhck. I repeat that this council cannot 
 take too speedy measures, if it be desirous 
 to stop the movements which in a moment, 
 perhaps, may destroy liberty. Recollect 
 yourselves, citizens representatives, I have 
 just spoken openly to you truths which no 
 one has ventured to whisper. The means of 
 saving the country are in your hands. If 
 you hesitate to make use of them, if liberty 
 perish, you will be accountable for its de- 
 struction to the world, to posterity, to your 
 own families, and to France." 
 
 Having concluded his address, Bonaparte 
 withdrew, leaving them to deliberate on what 
 he had said. At 4 o'clock the council was 
 resolved into a committee, and at 5 adjourn- 
 ed until 9 the same evening. 
 
 The council of five hundred opened 
 its sitting in the Orangery, about one 
 o'clock, P. M. of which 45 members only 
 were absent. The proces verbal being read, 
 Gaudin rose and moved that a commission of 
 seven members should niake a report on the 
 situation of the state, propose such measures, 
 as should be deemed necessary for the pub- 
 lick interest, and that the council should sus- 
 pend all deliberations till the report was pre- 
 sented. No sooner had he finished his 
 speech, than the jacobin members began to 
 vociferate : a bas les dictateurs ! la consfituti' 
 on de Van 3, ou la mort ! les baioimettcs tie. 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 
 
 nous effi'ayent pas : nous saurons inourir a no- 
 ire paste ! do%vn with the dictators ! the con- 
 stitution of the third year, or death ! bayonets 
 do not affright us : we know how to die at our 
 postP^ some of them moving for a message to 
 the council of ancients, to know the motives 
 of the translation; others for the renewal of 
 the oath of fidelity to the constitution. When 
 the first tumult had ceased, the proposition 
 for the renewal of the oath was formally 
 made by Grandmaison, and carried; the 
 whole of the members rising and exclaiming 
 ^' Five la Constitution .'" When the swear- 
 ing was finished, which occupied nearly two 
 hours, the secretary read a letter from Ber- 
 goeng, who sent in his resignation ; and two 
 messages from the council of ancients, in-- 
 forming the council of five hundred of their 
 being installed, and of their suspending 
 their deliberations till they received similar in- 
 formation from themselves. A motion was 
 then made and adopted, that notice of the in- 
 stallation of the council at St. Cloud should 
 be sent to the directory. 
 
 The council of five hundred had just 
 finished individually taking an oath to. 
 defend the constitution, when Bonaparte 
 presented himself at the door of the assem- 
 bly, without a hat and unarmed, accompani- 
 ed by a few officers and four grenadiers with- 
 out arms. He advanced a few paces into the 
 room, as if wishing to address the council :. 
 the whole of them was instantlv ill motion. 
 
S14 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 He was assailed by cries from different parts 
 of the chamber of, a bas le tyrant ! hors la 
 loi ! a bas le dictateur ! tuez le ! tuez le ! down 
 with the tyrant ! out-law him ! down with the 
 dictator ! kill him ! kill him ! Lucien Bona- 
 parte, president, with great difficulty at last 
 obtained leave to speak: " The general," 
 said he, '' has undoubtedly no other intention 
 than to inform the council of the present situ- 
 ation of affairs:" here he was interrupted by 
 clamours and threats. A great number of 
 the members started from their seats, rushed 
 towards the door, and loaded him with re- 
 proaches. Several of them were armed with 
 daggers. While some were pushing him back 
 and menacing his life, Aj-ena, one of the 
 council, made a blow at him with a poignard, 
 which Thome a grenadier parried, and there- 
 by received a wound in his arm. Upon this 
 general Lefevre, and the grenadiers who 
 were behind him, advanced, calling out, Sau^. 
 vons mtre general ! gathered round him, and 
 led him out of the room. As soon as he was 
 gone, Lucien left the chair, and descending 
 to the tribune : " After the services," said 
 he, " my brother has rendered to the re-: 
 publick, it is abominable to suppose he has 
 any views hostile to liberty. What French- 
 man has given greater pledges of his attache 
 ment to the state ? He came, no doubt, to 
 give some important information relative to 
 the present circumstances ; I demand that he 
 be called to the bar of the council." The 
 
NAPOLEON Son AP AUTE . 215 
 
 tumult drowned his voice ; numberless moti- 
 ons succeeded each other ; some for annul- 
 ling the decree of the ancients, which named 
 Bonaparte general; others for leaving St. 
 Cloud, and repairing to Paris ; others for 
 naming another general to take the command 
 of all the troops, who should be called the 
 guard of the councils : some reproached the 
 soldiers who remained at the door, and others 
 continued their invectives against the pre si-* 
 dent. Lucien Bonaparte, after attempting 
 in vain to speak, deposed his robe, cloak and 
 scarf on the the table, declaring that he di- 
 vested himself of the presidency. This rais- 
 ed the jacobins to a higher pitch of exaspe- 
 ration; several members of that party ga- 
 thered round him and presented pistols, ta 
 force him to resume his robe. Amidst this 
 disorder, twenty grenadiers sent by Bona- 
 parte, appeared at the foot of the tribune, 
 and placing him between them, conducted 
 him in safety to the court of the palace. The 
 president found the general on horseback ha- 
 ranguing his soldiers. " Soldats," said he, 
 " une trentaine de factieux ont leve sur moi 
 leurs poignards ; ils ont voulu me mettre hors 
 la loi ! Hors la loi, moi que tous les rois con- 
 jures de I'Europe n'ont jamais pu y mettre !" 
 " Soldiers, thirty factious members have 
 raised their poignards against your general, 
 and threatened to out-law him ! Me whom 
 the combined kings of Europe have not been 
 able to reach with their arms !" The soldiers 
 
216 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 heard him with interest and attention ; they 
 all seemed disposed to serve him, and the pre- 
 sence of Lucien, on horseback, and who 
 addressed them, increased and legalised this 
 disposition. " Soldiers of the republick," 
 said Lucien Bonaparte, with great animati- 
 on, " the immense majority of the council of 
 five hundred are, at the moment I am speak- 
 ing, under terror from a few representatives 
 armed with poignards, who are besieging the 
 tribune, and threatening their colleagues with 
 death ! These desperate ruffians have risen 
 in rebellion against the council of ancients, 
 and dared to menace with oudawry the gene- 
 ral who was charged with the execution of 
 their decree. I confide to you warriors, to 
 whom I speak, the care of delivering the 
 majority of your representatives from the op- 
 pression which they are under, that they may 
 deliberate peaceably on the destiny of the re- 
 publick. General, and you soldiers, you 
 will acknowledge as legislators of France none 
 but such as shall rally around me. As for 
 those who remain in the Orangery, let force 
 expel the mad assembly; they are no longer 
 representatives of the people, but represen- 
 tatives of the poignard." He terminated his 
 harangue with the shout of Five la Republiqiie ! 
 which was re-echoed by the soldiers and all 
 the spectators. The speech of the president 
 of the council had created stronger emotions, 
 and furnished more determined motives to the 
 soldiers, than that of the general ; who per- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 217 
 
 ceiving their alacrity, and being sanctioned 
 by the president, ordered a corps of grena- 
 diers to march forward, who instantly obey- 
 ed him. The council of five hundred was 
 at that moment listening to a motion for the 
 recall of the president, when the voice of the 
 speaker was drowned in the sound of the 
 drums beating the pas de charge. The spec- 
 tators instantly rushed out of the doors and 
 windows. The members rose, a great ma- 
 jority of them vociferating, " Vivent la Re- 
 publique et la constitution de Van 3me. Long 
 live the republick, and the constitution of the 
 3d year ! The soldiers entered the hall, car- 
 rying their arms, and halted. A chief of 
 brigade of cavalry invited the members to 
 withdraw, saying, Citizens representatives, I 
 invite you to retire: there is no longer any safe- 
 ty in this place : I have orders to clear the halL 
 The grenadiers then advanced, and filled the 
 first half of the hall. The other half was 
 occupied by the deputies who had not yet re- 
 tired. The military halted a moment to per- 
 mit them to walk out. An officer seeing their 
 hesitation, mounted the tribune, and ex- 
 claimed : Citoyens representans, je vous i?ivite 
 a vous retirer ; le general Bonaparte a donne des 
 ordres : Citizens representatives, I invite you to 
 retire ; general B&naparte has given the order. 
 The constitutionalists stood firm, and one of 
 them exclaimed, " What are you, soldiers ? 
 You are the guardians only of the national 
 
 Ee 
 
218 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 representation.. ..and you dare to menace its 
 safety and independence ! Is it thus you tar- 
 nish the laurels which you have acquired? I 
 conjure you in the name of liberty, not to fol-. 
 low yotir leaders, who aim at the destruction 
 of the republick. Murat immediately called 
 out. Grenadiers Jo rward! The pas de charge 
 was renewed, the grenadiers advanced, and 
 drove the members with the bayonet through 
 all the avenues, v/indows and doors of the 
 hall. At night both the legislative bodies 
 assembled again at St. Cloud, but of the 
 five hundred scarcely two thirds were present. 
 The latter at last decreed " that the directo- 
 ry had ceased to exist ; that the provisional 
 government of the state should be committed 
 to Sieyes, Roger Ducos and general Bona- 
 parte, who should bear the title of consuls ; 
 arid that 25 members, chosen from the two 
 legislative bodies before their adjournment, 
 should be added to them as a subordinate 
 council of state." At 1 o'clockof thenext morn- 
 ing the council of ancients announced their 
 approbation of the decree. The three con- 
 suls were then introduced and took the oaths 
 of fidelity to the sovereignty of the people. 
 
 The following proclamation had been issu- 
 ed whilst the councils were sitting : 
 
 PROCLAMATION OF GEN. BONAPARTE. 
 
 " Ten at night. 
 *' On iny return to Paris, I found a division reigning amongst 
 all the .constituted authorities. There was no agreement biit 
 on this single poiot...,th8kt the constitution was half destroyed^ 
 
NAPOLEON- BONAPARTE. ^19 
 
 and could by no means effect the salvation of our liberties. 
 All the parties came to me, confided to me their designs, un- 
 veiled their secrets, and demanded my support, I refused:to 
 be a man of any party. The council of ancients invited me» 
 and I answered to their call. A plan of general restoration had 
 been concerted by men in whom the nation is accustomed to 
 see the defenders of its freedom and equality, and of property. 
 This plan demanded a calm and liberal examination, free from 
 every influence and fear. The council of ancients resolved in 
 consequence, that the sittings of the legislative body should be 
 removed to St. Cloud, and charged me with the disposition of 
 the force necessary to secure its independence. I owed it my 
 fellow-citizens, to the soldiers who are perishing in our armies' 
 and to the national glory, acquired at the price of their blood 
 to accept of the command. The councils being assembled at 
 St. Cloud, the republican troops guaranteed their safety from 
 without ; but within, assassins had established the reign of 
 terror. Several members of the council of five hundred, arm- 
 ed with poignards and fire-arms, circulated around them nothing 
 but menaces of death. The plans which were about to be de- 
 veloped were laid aside, the majority was disorganized, the 
 most intrepid orators were disconcerted, and the inutility of 
 every .wise proposition was made evident. I bore my indigna" 
 tion and my grief to the council of ancients, I demanded of 
 them to insure the execution of their generous designs. I 
 represented to them the maladies of their country, from which 
 those designs originated. They joined themselves with me, 
 by giving new testimonies of their uniform wishes. I then re- 
 paired to the council of five hundred without amis, and my 
 head uncovered, such.as I had been received and applauded by 
 the ancients. I wished to recall to the majority their wishes, 
 and to assure them of their power. The poignards which threat- 
 ened the deputies, were instantly raised against their deliverer.! 
 Twenty assassins threw themselves upon me, and sought my 
 breast. The grenadiers of the legislative body, whom 1 had 
 
220 THE HISTORY- OF 
 
 left at ihe door of the hall, caine up and placed themselves be- 
 tween me and iry assassins. One of these brave grenadiers, 
 named Thome, had his clothes stuck through with a dagger. 
 They succeeded in bearing me away. At this time the cry of 
 *' Outlaw !" was rai;:ed against the defender of the law. It was 
 the ferocious cry of assassins against the force which was des- 
 tined to restrain them. They pressed around the president, 
 threatened him to his face, and with arms in their hands, or- 
 dered him to decree me out of the protection of the law. Be- 
 ing informed of this circumstance, I gave orders to rescue him 
 from their power, and six grenadiers of the legislative body 
 brought him out of the hall. Immediately after, the grenadiers 
 of the legislative body entered at the }ias de charge into the 
 hall, and caused it to be evacuated. The factious were inti- 
 midated, and dispersed themselves. The majority, released 
 from their blows, entered freely and peaceably into the hall of 
 sitting, heard the propositions which were made to them for 
 the publick safety deliberated, and prepared the salutary reso- 
 lution which is to become the new and provisional law of the 
 republick. Frenchmen ! you will recognize undoubtedly 
 in this conduct, the zeal of a soldier of liberty, and of a citi- 
 ten devoted to the republick, The ideas of preservation, pro- 
 tection, and freedom immediately resumed their places, on 
 the dispersion of the faction who wished to oppress the coun- 
 dls, and who in making themselves the most odious of men> 
 never cease to be the most contemptible. 
 
 « BONAPARTE." 
 
 The consuls returned to Paris about 4 o'clock 
 in the morning of the 20th, eleventh, and were 
 received with every testimony of satisfaction 
 and applause ; they imm^ediately entered up- 
 on their functions : the republican seal was 
 changed, newspapers printed and sent to all 
 the departments, detailing these events, and 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 221 
 
 an address to the same purport with that 
 promulged in the evening at St. Cloud, read 
 by torch-Hght. 
 
 During Bonaparte's address to the anci- 
 ents, when he said " We will have a repub- 
 lick and liberty," he was interrupted by a 
 voice exclaiming, " Who will answer for it?'* 
 " Grenadiers," said he, turning to the sol- 
 diers, " Did I ever deceive you when I pro- 
 mised you victory ?" The phrase which he 
 used in one of his addresses...." Fortune and 
 the God of War," made an unfavourable im- 
 pression upon the ancients...." I had worked 
 up my passions," said he, " and I concluded 
 with a bad phrase. The French are judges 
 of propriety : I had no sooner pronounced 
 the words, than a murmur made me feel 
 them. But what could I do ? I was spoiled 
 on the road: they so often repeated these 
 words to me all the way from Marseilles to 
 Paris, that I could not obliterate them." Imme- 
 diately after the 19th, tenth, several officers of 
 the navy, and in the naval department, were pre- 
 sented to Bonaparte and Ducos : the former 
 remarked ; " The seamen are brave and ex- 
 perienced. The misfortunes with which 
 they have met, are to be attributed to the 
 bad management of the naval department on- 
 ly ; the captains have not sufficient means to 
 cause their authority to be respected; too 
 much lenity has encouraged insubordination 
 in the crews. On land undisciplined valour 
 may sometimes be victorious ; at sea, never." 
 
THE HI STOP. Y OF 
 
 The consuls were sooii presented wTtli'a 
 pattern of a^new di^ss. - It was composed of 
 a-coat of white velvet embroidered with gold, 
 buttoned to the waist, light blue pantaloons, 
 the sword belt over the icoat, the sword to 
 hang perpendicularly to the side, with red 
 boots -ivnd cap. It was observed to Bonaparte 
 that a red cap would not become him, he re- 
 plied, " No more than red heels." 
 
 On the 21st Brumaire, November twelfth, 
 \Bonaparte" entertained Thome, at his own ta- 
 ble, to dinner; and Madame Bonaparte pre- 
 sented him with a diamond worth 2,000 
 crowns. The provisionary government abo- 
 lished the odious and oppressive laws rela- 
 ting to forced loans and hostages ; adopted a 
 new system of finance; repealed the decrees 
 against the priests, and annulled the code of 
 laws vv^ith respect to prizes, neutral vessels, 
 -:&c. Fifty-nine of the jacobin deputies were 
 ordered to be banished, but this was changed 
 lo placing them, under the care of the police, and 
 not long after was altogether abrogated. ...the 
 emigrants confined in the castle of Ham were 
 .liberatedi...the body of the old Pope, which 
 remained unburied at Valence, was ordered 
 to be interred with all the honours due to his 
 rank»...and a variety of lenient, mild and just 
 measures were executed, which presaged the 
 happiest effects from the operations of the new 
 government. The policy which was evinced 
 in the interment of the Pope, and the intrinsic, 
 merit of the decree, demands its insertion :.«> 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 225 
 
 DECREE- TO BURY THE POPE. 
 " The consuls of the republick considering that for the last 
 six months, the body of ; Pitis .6th has been deposited in the 
 city of Valence, without giving to it the honours of sepulture 
 ....that though this old man, reputable for his misfortunesy 
 was for a moment the enemy of France, he was so only frora 
 being seduced by the counsels of those who surrounded him 5 
 and that it belongs to the dignity of the French nation, and is 
 conformable to the sensibility of the national character, to 
 give some marks of consideration to a man who occupied one 
 of the first stations on earth. ...Decree 1st, that the minister 
 of the interior take care that the body of Pius 6lh be interred 
 with the honours due to his rank.. ..2d, That there be erected 
 at the place of his sepulture, a simple monument, making; 
 known the dignity with which he was invested." 
 
 The commissions and consuls were also 
 employed in the formation of a new consti- 
 tution, which was adopted on the 23d Fri- 
 maire, December thirteenth, and published 
 at Paris on the 25th, fifteenth ; by this con- 
 stitution the whole direction of public affairs 
 was delivered to Bonaparte, and his power 
 was unrestrained and illimitable. He was 
 declared first consul, Cambaceres and Le- 
 brun were his associates in the consulship.... 
 Talleyrand became foreign minister.. ..Berthier 
 minister of war, and Fouche of the police. 
 The palace of the Thuiiieries, in which 
 Louis XVI. and Marie Antoinette had figur- 
 ed, was now filled by the consul, who resi- 
 ded in the same apartments. Sieyes and Du- 
 ces, Cambaceres andLebrun, nominated the 
 senate. ...their choice was une;icepdoaable. 
 
224 THE HISTORY OF NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 
 
 The tribunate and legislative body were im- 
 mediately selected, and the council of state 
 was appointed by Bonaparte himself: the in- 
 tegrity and talents which distinguished this 
 body, gave ample proof of the consul's dis- 
 crimination and judgment. 
 
Bonaparte during his Consulate. 
 
 THE consuls having entered upon their 
 duties under the new form of government, 
 officially notified that circumstance to the con- 
 servative senate on the 7th Nivose, December 
 twenty-seventh. Previous to which Bona- 
 parte addressed the following letter to the 
 king of Great-Britain :.... 
 
 French Republick... .Sovereignty of the pEbPLie* 
 Liberty.. , .Equality, 
 
 BoviAPARfE^ First Consul of the Kefiublick^ to his Majesty the 
 King of Great-Britain and Ireland. 
 
 Pai'is, 5th Nivose, December twenty-fifth^ 
 8th year of the Republick. 
 
 " Called by the wishes of the French nation to occupy the 
 first magistracy of the republick, I think it proper on enter- 
 ing into office, to make a direct communication of it to your 
 majesty. Must the war, which for eight years has ravaged 
 the four quarters of the world, be eternal ? Are there no 
 means to bring it to an issue ? How can the two most enlight- 
 ened nations of Eiirope, powerful and stron>i; beyond what 
 their safety and independence require, sacrifice to ideas of 
 vain greatness the benefits of commerce, internal prosperityj 
 
 E E 
 
'225 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 social and individual liappiness ? Can they not feel tliat peace 
 is as glorious as it is necessary? These sentiments cannot be 
 foreign lo the heart of your majesty, who reigns over a free 
 nation, and Avlth the sole view of rendering it happy. Your 
 majesty 'vvill see only in this overt\ire, my sincere desire to 
 contribute efficaciously for the second time to a general pacifi- 
 cation, by a step, , speedy» entirely of confidence, and disen- 
 gaged fi-om those forms which, necessary perhaps to disguise 
 the dependence of weak states, prove only in those which 
 are strong, the mutual desire of deceiving each other. France 
 and England, by the abuse of their strength, may still for a 
 long time, for the misfortune of all countries, retard the perf- 
 od of their being exhausted ; but I will venture to say, that 
 the fate of every civilized nation is attached to the termination 
 of a war which involves the whole world in its destructive vor- 
 tex. 
 
 BONAPARTE." 
 
 The answer of lord Grenville to this note 
 was evasive.. ..it departed from general princi- 
 ples.. ..and evinced pedantry, passion and pe- 
 tulance. Its substance was that Bonaparte 
 was not a person with whom the British 
 could treat; that he should declare himself 
 an usurper; retract the principles which he 
 asserted, and resign the station which he 
 held to the Bourbon family. A similar at- 
 tempt to negociate proved ineffectual, and it 
 was evident that the war must be continued. 
 Bonaparte, with his usual energy, prepared , 
 to conquer a peace, as it could not other- 
 wise be attained. 
 
 The war in La Vendee, which had assum- 
 ed ah alarming aspect, received the consul's 
 attentipn, and a force which consisted of 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 227 
 
 nearly 60,000 men, under general Brune, 
 was sent to quell the disturbances ; the most 
 decided measures were at once adopted, and 
 the Chouans immediately proposed an accom- 
 modation. The consul addressed the insur- 
 gents in the following manner : 
 
 BONAPARTE, FIRST CONSUL. 
 
 Paris ^ JVivoee 5(h, December tnventy.-Jifth^ 
 ^th year of the Re^iublick. 
 " An impious war threatens, a second time, to inflame the 
 departments of the west. It becomes the duty of the first ma- 
 gistrates of the republick to arrest its progress, and effectually 
 to extinguish it. But they are loath to employ force until they 
 have exhausted the means of persuasion and justice. The au- 
 thors of those troubles are the senseless partisans of two men 
 who have no honour, and who neither derive their rank from 
 their virtues, nor their misfortunes from their atchievements. 
 They are farther traitors sold to the English, or robbers who 
 foment civil discord as th«* only means of sheltering them from 
 the punishment du^ to their crimes. — With such men it is not 
 the duty of government to keep any measures, or to make any 
 declaration of its principles. It is to citizens dear to their 
 country, who are seduced by their arts : it is to these, citizen* 
 that the light of the truth is due. 
 
 « Uujust laws have been promulgated and executed ; ar- 
 bitrary acts have alarmed the security of the citizens, and the 
 liberty of conscience. Every where random inscriptions on 
 the list of emigrants have struck citizens, who had never quit- 
 ted their country or even their homes. In a word, the great 
 principles of social order have been violated. 
 
 "It is to remedy fully these acts of injustice, and these 
 errors, that a government founded on the sacred basis of liber- 
 ty, equality, and a system of representation, has been pro- 
 claimed and recognized by the_ nation. The constant in- 
 
228 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 clination, as well as ihe interest and the glory of the first ma- 
 gistrates, whom the nation has given to itself, will be to close 
 all the wounds of France : and never yet has this disposition 
 been falsified by any act originating with them. 
 
 " The disastrous law of the forced loan, and the still more 
 disastrous law of hostages have been repealed. Individuals 
 exiled without trial have been restored to their country and to 
 their families. Every day has been and shall be marked, by 
 deeds of justice. The council of state labours incessantly for 
 the reformation of bad laws, and for a better arrangement to 
 raise the publick contributions. 
 
 *' The consuls declare, moreover, that the liberty of religi- 
 ous worship is guaranteed by the constitution ; that no magis<« 
 trate dare to offer it any violence ; that no man dares to say 
 to another^ — you Sihall exercise such and such a mode of wor- 
 ship, on such and siich a day. 
 
 "The law of the twentieth of May, 1795, which leaves ta 
 the citizens the free use of the edifices destined to religious 
 purposes, shall be faithfully fulfilled. All the departments 
 ought to be equally under the authority of general laws. But 
 the first magistrates will extend their especial cares, and take 
 a particular interest in the agriculture, manufactures and com- 
 merce of those who have suffered the greatest calamities. 
 Government will pardon and shew grace to the penitent. Their 
 forgiveness and indulgence will be unlimited. But it will strike 
 those who, after this declaration, shall dare to resist the sover* 
 eign will of the nation. 
 
 « Frenchmen? inhabitants of the departments of the west, 
 rally round the constitution! which invests the magistrates 
 whom it has created with the power, and made it their duty 
 to protect their citizens j which secures them equally from 
 the instability of the la,ws, and from their severity. Let those 
 who wish the prosperity of France separate themselves from 
 those who persist in their efforts to seduce them, that they may 
 deliver tiiein over to the chains of tyranny and the doiuinatiota 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 229 
 
 of the stranger. Let the good inhabitants of the country re- 
 turn to their fire-sides, and resume their useful labours. And 
 let them be on their guard against the insinuations of those who 
 would throw them again into feudal slayery. If, after all the 
 measures just taken by government, there should yet be found 
 men daring enough to provoke a civil war, there would remain 
 to the chief magistrates the melancholy lut necessary duty on- 
 ly of subduing them by force. But we even all of us, will 
 henceforth feel only one sentiment : the love of our country. 
 The ministers of the god of peace will be the first movers of 
 reconciliation and concord. I^et them speak to their hearts the. 
 language which they have learnt in the school of their master. 
 Let them repair to the temples, again opened to them, to offer, 
 together with their fellow-citizens, the sacrifice which will ex- 
 piate the crimes of war, and the blood which has been shed." 
 
 On the same day Bonaparte issued a pro- 
 clamation to the soldiers : 
 
 <' In promising peace to the French nation, I was your organ , 
 I know your valour. You are the men who have conqured 
 Holland, the Rhine, Italy, and made peace under the walls of 
 terrified Vienna. 
 
 " Soldiers it is no longer your business to defend your fron- 
 tiers : you are now to invade the states of your enemies. 
 There is not one among you who has made different campaigas, 
 but who knows that the most essential duty of a soldier, is 
 with patience and constancy to suffer privations. Several years 
 of a bad government are not to be repaired in one day. 
 
 " It will be a pleasure to me, in the character of first ma- 
 gistrate, to proclaim to the nation the corps, which by its dis- 
 cipline and valour, shall best deserve to be hailed aa the sup- 
 port of its country. 
 
 " Soldiers, in due time, I shall be in the midst of you ; and 
 ^tonished Europe shall recollect that you are a race of brave 
 men." 
 
-2f^^^^-"- - "THE HISTORY OE.:r-^,-^, -..-.. 
 
 ;^p^^ .,J*fM;senat^ 'd was involved in 
 
 . ., . .a contest with Bonaparte, respecting the sur- 
 , render of Napper Tandy iand his companions 
 ,, ., , to the British govejnment. ...they wrote him a 
 submissive letter, filled with apologies, ex- 
 penses 3,|iid congratulations... .his^ reply was 
 dated Niyose 10th, December 30th. 
 
 « We have received your letter, gentlemen. It is no justi- 
 
 •fication of your conduct. It is by virtue and courage that states 
 
 ? t r .4irei|>reserved5:' cpwardipe and vice prove their ruin. You have 
 
 ..'.Tji'k' violated the laws of hospitality ; such a violation vi^ould not 
 
 -'<3 IH hate taken place among the barbarian hordes of the desert. 
 
 ,!v'rf-;Your? ftllowvcitizens will impute it to you as an eternal re- 
 
 , pj'oach. 
 
 " The two unfortunate men, whom you have given up, will 
 die illustrious ; but their blood will be a source of greater evils 
 to their persecutors than could be bi'ought upon them by a 
 whole army." 
 
 The departments not being perfectly traii- 
 X]uii, Bonaparte addressed them again on the 
 22d Nivose, January eleventh, 1800: 
 
 fSroj « Every thing that reason could suggest, the government 
 
 has done to restore peace and tranquillity to your dwellings. 
 After long forbearance, still farther time has been granted for 
 i'epentancel A great number of citizens have been brought 
 to a sense of their errors, and ha:Ve rallied round the govern- 
 ment, which, without hatred qr revenge, without fear or sus- 
 picion, protects all citizens alike, and punishes those who des- 
 pise their duty. There no longer remain any in arms against 
 France, except some men without jFaith, as withput country, 
 somepei^dious instruments pf a. forjei§njF(j)e,_ pr brigands, black 
 with guilt, whom indulgence itself knows not how ,jtp pardon. 
 The safety of the state, and the security of the citizens require 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 231 
 
 that such'nieh should perish by t4e.swmxlr *iid,ial^.undev -the^^^^^„^^^^^^ 
 axe of natural justice. A loiiger forbearan^fo: would be a tri- 
 umph to the enemies of the republic. — A vaiianr, fome Waits 
 the signal only to disperse and destroy thfese brigands, if that 
 signal must be given. National guards join th^fQiPce'qflybCfv 
 arms to that of the troops of the line. If you know among 
 you any partisans of the brigands ai'restthem. Let tbem no r 
 where find an asylum against the soldier who pursues them. 
 And if there be any traitors who should dare to receive and 
 defend them, let them perish along with them ! Inhabitants of 
 the departments of the west, on this last effort depend the 
 tranquillity of your tountty, the safety of your families, and ! 
 the security of your property. By the same blow you v/ill 
 destroy those wretches who strip you, and the enemy who 
 purchase and pay for their crimes.'* 
 
 The army and the royalists opposed each 
 other m a few skirmishes,, btit the latter were 
 always unsuccessful, and on the 27th Pluvi- 
 ose, February fifteenth, a general pacificati- 
 on was concluded.... and by the execution of 
 Frotte, the only chief who was not included 
 in the convention, and who was soon after ^^ 
 discovered in an old castle.. ..the royalist par- 
 ty was entirely annihilated. 
 
 The installation of the consuls took place 
 on the IstVentose, February nineteenth, with . 
 immense pomp.. ..the termination of the rebelli- 
 on and the rejection of Bonaparte's pacificover- 
 tures by England and Austria, were announc- 
 ed at the same time. The following procla- 
 mation, which was published a few days af- 
 ter the, ceremony, evinced that the war was to ' 
 be- continued with unparallelled vigour: 
 
533 THB HISTORY OF 
 
 PROCLAMATION 
 
 Of the Consuls of the Refiublick to the French. 
 
 " Pai-ia, Ventose 17, March seventh. 
 
 «' FueifCHMEH) 
 
 <* You are desirous of peace ; your government are desirous 
 of it with still greater ardour. Their first wishes, their perse- 
 vering measures have been for peace. The English minister 
 repels it : the English minister has betrayed the secret of his 
 horrible system of politics. To ravage France, to destroy her 
 ports ; to efface her from tlie map of Europe, or to degrade 
 her to the rank of a secondary power ; to keep all the nations 
 of the continent divided, that she may get possession of the 
 commerce of all, and to enrich herself by their spoils ; it is 
 to obtain these frightful successes, that England is prodigal of 
 gold, profuse of promises, and that she multiplies intrigues. 
 
 But neither the gold, nor the promises, nor the intrigues of 
 England, will chain to her views the powers of the continent- 
 They have heard the wish of France ; they know the modera- 
 tion of tJ'iC principles which guide her ; they will listen to the 
 voice of humanity, and the powerful voice of their interest. 
 
 Were it otherwise, the government which has not feared to 
 offer and solicit peace, will remember that it is for you to 
 command it. To command it we must have money, iron and 
 soldiers. 
 
 Let all make haste to pay the tribute which they owe to tlie 
 common defence ; let the young citizens march. It is no 
 longer for factions.... it is no longer for the choice of tyrants 
 that they are going to arm ; it is for the guarantee of all which 
 is most dear to them; itis for the honour of France, and it is for 
 the sacred interests of humanity and of liberty. Already have 
 the armies resumed that attitude, the promise and the pre- 
 sage of victory... at the sight of them. ...at the sig-ht of the 
 whole nation united in the same interests and in the same wish- 
 es, be assured Frenchmen, that you will have no more 
 enemies upon the continent. The first consul has promised 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 23$ 
 
 peace ; he will go and conquer it at the head of those warriors 
 whom he has more than once led to victory. With them he 
 will know how to find again those fields still full of the remem* 
 brance of their exploits ; yet in the midst of battle, he will 
 still invoke peace, and he swears to fight only for the happi- 
 .iiess of France, and the repose of the world 1" 
 
 A decree was also published, that an ar- 
 .my of reserve should be raised; that it should 
 ^consist of sixty thousand conscripts, and as- 
 ;semble at Dijon, the conaul .himself being 
 •commander in chief. 
 
 The campaign of 1800 was a combined 
 operation and included the war both in Ger- 
 .many and Italy. General Moreau command- 
 ed on the Rhine, and by the success which 
 accompanied his exertions, and the skill 
 which he displayed during that contest, he has 
 immortalized his memory,„;the ;h^ro of Ho- 
 henlinden hastened the peace of Luneville. 
 
 The different bodies of troops intended for 
 the army of reserve immediately marched, 
 ,and were speedily united in one bpdy : on. 
 the 1st rioreal, April twentieth, Berthier 
 assumed the coroimand until Bonaparte's arri- 
 -val.i.. this army ivas composed of 50,000 men, 
 and was intended to overthrow thieprepon^ 
 derance which the Austrians had acquired in 
 Italy. At the commencement of the campaign 
 the troops under Massena who had been ap- 
 pointed to the command of that station, ,were 
 diminished by sickness and desertion, to 
 about 25,000 men.. ..whilst Melas, the Ausiri- 
 
 Gg 
 
254 THE HISTORY OT 
 
 an general, was at the head of 70,000 infan» 
 try and a large body of cavalry. The French 
 general concentrated his forces near Genoa, 
 the possession of which was of the last im- 
 portance. ...but after a series of bloody conflicts, 
 with the immense superiority of force against 
 which he contended, he retired into the city 
 and its neighbouring forts ; and although 
 blockaded by lord Keith's fleet on the water, 
 and obliged to combat the Austrians without 
 cessation, and by which defence he has ele- 
 vated himself to a very exalted rank among 
 the terrifick sons of Mars, he resisted every 
 summons and attempt until Melas converted 
 the siege into a blockade : here he continued 
 until his provisions were entirely exhau-sted, 
 the horses and dogs almost consumed, and the 
 army a;nd inhabitants nearly two hundred 
 thousand souls, perishing for want of food. 
 
 Massena at length I'eceived a letter from Me- 
 las, inviting him to an interview with lord 
 Keith, and the generals Otto and St. Juliany 
 who off'ered him a capitulation on the most 
 honourable terms. To this first overture he 
 replied, that he would consider of the proposal. 
 On the day after he received another message 
 with the same terms: upon which he sent adju- 
 tant-general Andreaux, under pretence of 
 some business relating to the prisoners, to 
 Rivoli, to receive their message, and to en- 
 ter without any farljier delay into a negoci- 
 ation. 
 
NAPOLEON BOM APAl^TE. 235 
 
 The first article of capitulation proposed 
 by the allies was, that the army should re- 
 turn to France, but that the general should 
 remain prisoner of war....'' You, sir," said 
 lord Keith to Massena, " Are worth 20,000 
 men.'^ But Massena said, " that no nego- 
 ciation could be commenced if the word capi- 
 tulation were once introduced." On the 
 fourth of June the allied generals, having de- 
 parted from their first proposal, resumed the 
 negociations, and the principal articles for the 
 evacuation of Genoa were agreed onbetweeri 
 the parties. It was settled that the chiefs of the 
 opposite armies should meet on the day after, 
 being the 5th of June, to ^ign a definitive 
 treaty. Here lord Keith, general Otto, 
 with general St, Julian, were met by Massena. 
 l^ach of these parties were accpmpanied by 
 only two or three gentlemen. 
 
 In this conference Massena displayed 
 much finesse under the cloak of an apparent 
 gaiety, which formed a complete contrast 
 with the gravity of the other cor^tracting parr 
 ties, and was attended with this advantage, 
 that it did not appear as if he were greatly 
 alarmed for the situation of his army: and 
 it is perhaps owing to His ease and gaiety 
 of manner that he eventually obtained all 
 which he demanded. A degree of misunder- 
 standing had ^j^isted for some time be- 
 tween the English and the Austrian com- 
 manders. Tne former reproached the lat- 
 ter witb the great length to which the siege 
 
236 THE HTSTORTOF 
 
 had been protracted. Massena endeavoured 
 to widen and to take advantage af this want 
 of harmony, by flattering the pride of one par- 
 ty at the expence of the self-love of the other. 
 He said to lord Keith, " Do you my lord, 
 only permit a little grain to be carried into Ge- 
 noa, and I give you my word that these gen- 
 tlemen (looking at the Austrian generals) 
 shall never set foot there." Toward the end 
 of the conference he again addressed lord 
 Keith, personally : " My lord, if France and 
 England could only understand one another, 
 they would govern the world." In the whole 
 of this conference, lord Keith treated Masse- 
 na, as the geneneral often acknowledged, in 
 a very polite and handsome manner. His lord- 
 ship disclaimed all hard conditions. He al- 
 ways said, " General^ the defence which you 
 have made has been so heroic, that it is impos-. 
 sible to refuse you any thing which you ask." 
 In the evening Massena signed the treaty for 
 the evacuation of Genoa, and the contracting 
 parties mutually gave hostages, The sub- 
 Stance of the treaty was, that the French ar- 
 my, the commander in chief and staff should 
 leave the city with their arms and baggage : 
 and Massena was allowed to send a couriei: 
 to Bonaparte to aniiounce its surrender. 
 
 During the siege of Genoa, Bonaparte 
 had left Paris, and having ordered the army 
 of reserve to march and Wait for him at Ge- 
 neva, he joined it on the 22d Floreal, May 
 eleventh, and on the following day reviewed 
 
NAPOLEON B0:N-AP ARTE. ^af. 
 
 the vanguard under Lasnes. He halted three 
 days only, which were employed in prepar- 
 ing for the passage of the Alps, the most as- 
 tonishing march performed by a large army 
 which is recorded in history. 
 
 At Geneva Bonaparte visited Madame 
 Saussure, the widow of the celebrated mi- 
 neralogist, and at the Prefect's- house, where 
 he supped, he remained standing two hours, 
 amusing the company with intei'esting Egyp- 
 tian anecdotes. 
 
 The army passed by Martinach, proceeded 
 to St. Bronchier, and thence ascended to St. 
 Pierre, where the park of artillery was as- 
 sembled. The great guns were dismounted, 
 placed in hollow trees and dragged by a cer- 
 tain number of soldiers acording to their 
 weight : the wheels were born upon men's 
 shoulders fixed to polfes ; the axle-trees and 
 waggons were placed upon sledges, and the 
 ammunition packed in boxes, was carried by 
 mules. From 600 to 1000 livres were pro- 
 mised to each party of soldiers and peasants 
 who transported a cannon ; but the former 
 nobly refused the reward : the baggage was 
 conveyed by the soldiers. The path across 
 the mountain is so narrow that two persons 
 cannot pass at the same time without the 
 danger of being buried in the snow. The 
 troops were so fatigued and exhausted, that 
 they frequently stopped to eat their biscuit, 
 moistened in nothing but snow water. They 
 reached the convent of St. Bernard, on the 
 
238 THE HISTOHY OF 
 
 summit of the mountain, after a march of five 
 hours, where each man received some re- 
 freshment, and a glass of wine prepared for 
 them by the monks, at Bonaparte's expence. 
 Arrived at this spot, they had surmounted 
 but half their difficulties. ...eighteen miles of a 
 rapid descent were yet to be conquered ; im- 
 mense chasms' formed l:)y the melting of the 
 snow, interrupted their prpgres at every step; 
 the horses were with great care preserved 
 from being precipitated into the abyss below, 
 and a fevv^ were lost ; the men also were not 
 ^ble in some instances to maintain their standi 
 ing, and when such an accident occurred, it 
 required all possible exertion to preserve 
 themselves and their horses in the path, and 
 to save themselves from the gulph, the ap- 
 pearance of which was inexpressibly tremen- 
 dous. 
 
 Bonaparte rested an hour in the convent, 
 but his horses and mules had accompanied 
 the army. Some of the foot soldiers had dis- 
 covered a short path.. ..as he wished to rejoiu 
 the army immediately, he followed their track 
 until they found themselves on the brink of a 
 precipice two hundred feet deep, and nearly 
 perpendicular. The consul gaye the exam- 
 ple of a new military mode of descending into 
 Italy.. ..seating himself on the snow, at the 
 edge of the descent, he glided down, accom- 
 panied by his staff and attendants, and in a 
 few minutes landed in safety at the bottom. 
 The arm^ occupied ten hours in performing 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 239 
 
 the march. On the 27 th Fioreal, May six- 
 teenth, Lasnes with the advanced guard took 
 possession of Aosta, after a slight skirmish 
 with an Hungarian battaUon which was sta- 
 tioned therein, and which immediately evacu- 
 ated it. They continued their niareh to Cha- 
 tillon, where the Austrians were preparing 
 to oppose the French at the passage of a 
 bridge thrown across the precipice ; but the 
 attack was so vigorous that they were soon 
 driven from their post, and enclosed them- 
 selves in Bard, a fort built on an inaccessi- 
 ble rock, in the shape of a sugar loaf, the 
 pass at its foot defended by the deep and ra* 
 pid Doria, and on the opposite side a large 
 steep rock. There was no alternative. i.;the 
 fort must be secured, or another passage 
 sought. It was defended by five hundred 
 men and twenty-two pieces of cannon : the 
 suburb was instantaneously filled by French 
 grenadiers, and at night the assault was 
 made; the assailants climbed up the roeks and 
 over the palisades, amidst a shower of balls, 
 but were obliged to retreat. By the rock Al- 
 baredo another passage was discovered, but 
 the artillery could not be transportedo...it was 
 therefore resolved to pass the carriages " 
 throug^h the suburb. Notwithstanding litter 
 was spread to destroy the sound, and to remove 
 suspicion, the garrison anticipated the de- 
 sign, and many were killed by each discharge. 
 This induced Bonaparte to raise a cannon up- 
 on the top^of the diureh, v/hich so efiectual* 
 
;i^40 titE HISTOtlY OF 
 
 -ly battered the gate-tower, that the garrison 
 ^surrendered at discretion. It was on this oc- 
 icasion that Bonaparte was so overcome with 
 ■fatigue, as to be forced to repose himself up- 
 •on the ground, wher-e he slept for two hours ; 
 -the troops filing beside him with as little 
 noise a;s possible, that he might not be dis* 
 curbed, expres ♦'ng only their most unbound- 
 'fed and enthusiastick adriiiration and .devotion 
 Jto him. Except a flying contest at St. Mar- 
 tin, the army experienced no obstruction un- 
 tilthey arrived at Ivrea about 24 miles from 
 Turin ; that town was captured with 14 
 pieces of cannon, by Boudet's division, on the 
 4th Prairial, May twenty-third, ere the main 
 body had' joined them. Bonaparte instead of 
 proceeding to Turin, according to expectati- 
 on, marched to Romagno, where 6,000 Aus- 
 trians were intrenched behind the Sesia. 
 General Lasnes attacked them in their positi^ 
 on, and after an obstinate engagement, forced 
 them to retreat with great loss. On the 7th, 
 twenty-sixth, two divisions marched towards 
 Turin, the vanguard advancing to Chiusel- 
 la and the Po. General Turreau, who was 
 detached from Biancon to join the consul, at- 
 tacked the Austrians at Suza, by which he 
 gained possession of that town, and Brunetto, 
 with 1,500 prisoners, 800 muskets, and a large 
 quantity of provisions and ammunition. Mu- 
 rat with a division of cavalry immediately en- 
 tered Vercelli, where immense army supplies 
 of -all kinds were stored. Lasnes with the 
 
K^APOLEON BONAPARTfi. 941, 
 
 van-guard arrived at Chivasso on the 7th, 
 twenty-sixth, and procured an abundance of 
 rice and corn from the boats which were na- 
 vigating the Po. Here Bonaparte visited 
 that division, whilst they were enjoying a lit- 
 tle repose after their fatigue ; expressed his 
 satisfaction with the courage which they 
 had exhibited in the combat at the Se- 
 sia, and ordered the chief of brigade to 
 say to the 12th regiment of chasseurs : 
 *' That he was very much satisfied with 
 their behaviour ; that it was owing to the im- 
 petuosity of their charge at Chatillon that 
 the battle was won ; that the cavalry would 
 soon be united ; and that at the next bat- 
 tle he wished them to charge the enemy's ca- 
 valry, to cure them of their pride and vain 
 boasts of being superior to the French ia 
 manoeuvres and bravery." 
 
 He said to the 28th of the line, " As a 
 proof that their good conduct was highly 
 pleasing to him, he would march at the head 
 of the van-guard in the next encounter. For 
 two years past, said he, you have been pass- 
 ing and repassing these mountains, and you 
 are stedfast in your duty without murmuring ; 
 this is the first quality of a soldier. I know 
 that eight months pay was due to you a week 
 ago, nevertheless you have not made the 
 least complaint." 
 
 The army immediately improved the ad- 
 vantages which it had attained ; the French 
 Hii 
 
24S THE HISTORY OF 
 
 occupied Santhia, Crescentino, Brila, Tri- 
 no and Masserano, in the plains of Piedmont 
 ».„they were united with 20,000 men, under 
 Moncey, whom general Moreau had detached 
 from the Rhine, and who traversed Mounts 
 Simplon and St. Gothard, to assist the ope- 
 rations of the army of reserve. 
 
 Murat having hahed a short time at Ver- 
 celli, proceeded to No vara, which surrender- 
 ed with little resistance. On the 10th, May 
 twenty-ninth, he received orders to cross the 
 Tessino ; which he effected in presence of 
 the first consul, after a severe action. The Au- 
 strians retired to the village of Turbigo, where 
 general Monnier attacked them with great 
 impetuosity, and carried it at the point of the 
 bayonet. 
 
 The night of the 1 1th, thirtieth, was 
 employed in constructing portable bridges, 
 on which the next day all the divisions of the 
 army passed over, directing their march to 
 Milan. General Murat arrived the same day 
 before the gates of that city, received the 
 keys, and immediately invested the citadel. 
 
 A few hours before the blockade of the 
 citadel and the capture of the city, the Aus- 
 trian commander persuaded the prince De 
 Rohan an emigrant, to depart with his corps 
 for Mantua, as he was in so much danger of 
 being made a prisoner by the French. " As- 
 sured of the honour of Bonaparte," replied the 
 prince, " and that of his army, I will aban- 
 don myself to fortune.'* 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 24S 
 
 Three hours afterwards, Bonaparte and 
 the whole of his staff entered Milan, sur- 
 rounded by an immense crowd of people, con- 
 tinually exclaiming, " Long live Bonaparte / 
 Long live the French /" 
 
 The second entry of Bonaparte into Milan, 
 was equally brilliant with his first : and the Au- 
 strians being extremely unpopular in that city, 
 he endeavoured by his measures to increase 
 the aversion.. ..all those who had been im- 
 prisoned for their attachment to the French 
 were liberated, and the property which had 
 been confiscated, was restored to its owners, 
 A Te Deum was appointed to celebrate their 
 deliverance from the Austrian yoke, and on 
 this occasion Bonaparte remarked to the con- 
 suls, " Notwithstanding what the atheists of 
 Paris may say, I shall to-morrow attend the 
 Te Deum to be performed in the metropolitan 
 church of this city." The army rested se- 
 ven days in Milan.. ..general Duquesne then 
 took possession of Lodi ; the Cisalpine legi- 
 on seized on Cassano, whilst Lasnes marched 
 to Pavia, which' fig captured with 500 pieces 
 of cannon and an immense quantity of 
 ammunition, on the 17th Prairial, June fifth, 
 on which day Genoa surrendered to the 
 Austrians, although Qtt had received orders 
 to raise the siege immediately. General 
 Melas was so confident of the weakness of 
 the French that he would not believe Bona- 
 parte to be in Italy ; he said, that it was im- 
 possible he could have- passed the Alps with 
 
SU THE HISTORY OF 
 
 an army, when he was not many days be- 
 fore in France, and in an intercepted letter 
 written to his mistress at Pavia, observed, 
 *' They say in Lombardy, that a French ar-. 
 my has entered Italy ; but do not be afraid, 
 and on no account leave Pavia." This letter 
 was written 12 hours only previous to the en^ 
 try of the French army. 
 
 General Melas left Turin on the 12th 
 Prairial, May thirty-first, to concentrate his 
 troops between the fortresses of Piedmont. 
 He detached a large body to Placenza, ano-. 
 ther to Chivasso, and a third to the Tessino. 
 In these positions the French army prepared 
 to meet him. 
 
 Murat with his cavalry and one division of 
 infantry, hastened to the first bridges of Pla- 
 cenza, whilst Lasnes was ordered to effect 
 the passage of the Po opposite Stradella. 
 The commander of the Cisalpine legion had 
 entered Brescia, and nearly captured general 
 Laudohn, who was indebted for his safety 
 solely to the courage of his escort, In that 
 city was found thirty thousand weight of pow- 
 der, and a great quantity of military stores. 
 Another division of the army occupied Crema 
 and Orci-Nuovi, and closely invested the for-^ 
 tress of Pizzighitone. 
 
 On the 17th Prairial, June fifth, Moncey 
 
 arrived before Placenza and took possession of 
 
 the bridge ; but the Austrians defending that 
 
 passage with heavy artillery, he was obliged 
 
 ■to continue his march. With the aid of Uoata 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 245 
 
 two brigades passed the river, with which he at- 
 tacked that city, and took possession of it on 
 the l3th, sixth. He found there considerable 
 jnagazines, and six hundred prisoners. He 
 then defeated a corps of a thousand men 
 who were inarching with all dispatch to gar- 
 rison the citadel of Placenza. After these 
 two actions he ordered the bridge to be re- 
 paired. 
 
 The same day Lasnes attained the banks 
 of the Po opposite to Stradella. The porta- 
 ble bridges having been totally destroyed, the 
 general found no remains but a few boats 
 which the enemy could not burn, and with 
 which he effected a passage for ct brigade and 
 a half. At three o'clock, two Austrian regi- 
 ments, covered by some pieces of artillery 
 assailed the troops which were landed, with 
 the greatest impetuosity. The combat was 
 obstinate, but the Austrians were at length 
 defeated, leaving three hundred killed and 
 wounded, and three hundred prisoners. 
 
 During these events, Bonaparte issued 
 the following proclamation to the army : 
 
 Milan^ 17 th Prairial, June fifths ^thyear. 
 
 ** Soldiers ! One of our departments was in the power of 
 tlie enemy ; and consternation prevailed through the whole 
 south of France. 
 
 " The greatest part of the territoTy of Liguria, the most 
 faithful friend to the republick, was invaded. 
 
 " The Cisalpine republick, annihilated by the last campaign, 
 was become the sport of the ancient feudal system. 
 
 f^ You began your march, soldiers .'....and already the French 
 
216. THE HISTORY OF 
 
 ^^zr- .... ■ .•f„ —l:— 1 : 1-1-1- , I , -.n , 
 
 terrilovy is libtn-uted I. ...Joy and hope, in our country, succeed 
 to consternation and dismay. 
 
 " You £^;ive liberty and independence to the people of Ge* 
 nda. They will be forever deliverid from their enemies. 
 « You aie now iu the capital of the Cisalpine rcpublick. 
 " The enemy dismayed aspire only to re{;ain their frontiers*^ 
 you have captured their stores, their mai^azines and their re- 
 served artillery. 
 
 " The first act of the campaip;n is terminated. 
 " Millions of men are every day manifesting their gratitud® 
 for your services, 
 
 " But, shall the enemy be suffered to violate the French 
 territory with impunity ? Will you permit the army to es» 
 cape which has spread terror amongst your families ? No, you 
 hastened to arms '.....Well then, march to j>;ive them battle ; 
 oppose their retreat ; snatch from them the laurels which thejr 
 have gained ; and thereby inform the worUl, that the ctirse of 
 wiisfortune is sure to fall on those senseless beings, who dare 
 to insult the territory of tb.e great nation. 
 
 " The result of your efforts will be unclouded glory, and so* 
 lid peace." 
 
 « BONAPARTi:.'* 
 
 Whilst Lasnes with his division was at- 
 tempting to pass the Po, the Cisalpine legion 
 entered Lecco ; and Duhesne with his troops 
 occupied Cremona : he found therein consider- 
 able magazines, on which Melas depended 
 for the victualling of his army, 
 
 Murat intercepted at Placenza several cou- 
 riers from general Melas, with some impor- 
 tant dispatches ; in which he complained of 
 negligence in not furnishing with provisions 
 the fortresses of Piedmont, Lombardy, and 
 particularly Alexandria, the only points from 
 
NAPOLEON BON APAl^TE. Uf 
 
 g-' ■' ' ■ ■ ■ ■ ' ■ '■' _"• 
 
 which his army could draw subsistence, and 
 with having been deceived in the real force 
 of the French army. 
 
 The van-guard of the French was attacked 
 near Montebello by a body of 18,000 Austri- 
 trians on the 20th, eighth, and a most san- 
 guinary contest ensued : the Austrians were 
 greatly superior to the French in numbers and 
 in cavalry ; but general Watrin arriving with 
 his division joined Lasnes and speedily decid- 
 ed the day ; Montebello belonged to the 
 French, and the Auslrians retreated to Vog- 
 hera, having lost 6,000 prisoners, 12 pieces 
 of cannon and a great number killed and 
 wounded. 
 
 Bonaparte was present at the battle of Mon- 
 tebello. He departed from Milan on the 
 morning of the 20th Prairial, ninth, for 
 Pavia, where he staid an hour, then mount- 
 ed his horse and passed the Po, to rejoin the 
 van-guard already engaged with the Austrians. 
 A few hours after the battle, Dessaix arriv- 
 ed at the head quarters at Brenno. Bona- 
 parte immediately gave him the command of 
 two divisions. 
 
 The day after the battle of Montebello, the 
 head-quarters were removed to Voghera; 
 All the army passed through that town to 
 proceed to Tortona, before which they took 
 positions, whilst the van-guard invested 
 the fortress. The Austrian army had also 
 arrived from Genoa, and estabhshed their 
 head-quarters at Alezandria. 
 
245 *rHE HISTORY OF 
 
 On the 24th Prairial, twelfth, the ar- 
 my quitted its position before Tortona, and 
 inarched towards Alexandria, where general 
 Melas was concentrating his forces. 
 
 The Austrians were driven across the Bor- 
 inida by Murat, and general Melas having 
 united his divisions determined to give battle 
 to tiie French, who hitherto successful were 
 not prepared for that event. 
 
 Bonaparte with his horse-guards and one 
 piece of light artillery, hovered about Ma- 
 rengo ; and traversing the plain examined the 
 ground with great attention ; about eleven 
 o'clock in the evening the army reached St* 
 Juliano. 
 
 On the 25th Prairial, June thirteenth, at day 
 break, some discharges of cannon against the 
 van-guard roused a part of the troops to arms. 
 The French army was formed in two lines, 
 having its wings supported by strong bodies 
 of cavalry, and the Austrians displayed them- 
 selves successively in three columns : the 
 French force at Marengo before the battle 
 commenced, consisted of 47,000 infantry, 
 3,000 cavalry, and thirty pieces of cannon ; 
 the Austrians were 45,000 infantry, 15,000 
 cavalry, and 100 pieces of cannon. Having 
 passed the river on three bridges, the right 
 ascended by the bank, the centre marched to 
 Marengo and the left towards Castel Ceriolo. 
 The action began at eight in the morning ; 
 the discharges of grape-shot were inGessant; 
 the sabre and bayonet were used alternately; 
 
N\POLF.ON BONAPARTE. S^4t 
 
 m -I I i ix JJ.3 1 ^ - j i ■ , _ ' _^ ■ 
 
 the firing of small arms increased, and tne 
 horse and foot were constantly charging. Bo- 
 naparte mounted his charger at 11 o'clock, 
 and hastened to the scene of action. Ber- 
 thier having brought up the centre and van- 
 guard, who were encouraged by Bonaparte to 
 resist the fury of the Austrians, withstood 
 four different assaults, and stedfastly repell- 
 ed the attack. The Austrian line extended 
 six miles along the Bormida, which was for* 
 dable in many places. The Austrians direct- 
 ed an astonishing fire towards the bridge ; 
 but the principal point of action was at St. 
 Stephano's, whence they might gain Voghera 
 before the French, and cut off their retreat. 
 Orders were given to the troops of reserve 
 stationed in the rear, to advance with all 
 speed ; but the divisions under Dessaix werci 
 still at a great distance* At noon general 
 Melas by one bold attempt determined to 
 secure the victory : with 10,000 infantry, 
 supported by a large body of cavalry and ar- 
 tillery, he attacked the right wing of the- 
 French in the plain of St. Juliano ; the consu- 
 lar guard resisted the shock, but the Austri- 
 an horse and artillery having manifested a de- 
 sign to turn that body, they formed a square 
 battalion around their standards and wound- 
 ed, and having expended all their cartridges, 
 arrived in the rear of the army with as 
 much order as if they had been on the parade. 
 The village of Marengo being carried, the 
 
 I I 
 
250 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 troops became disordered, and die French 
 line was broken ; the left wing under Victor 
 first retreated, and the same measure was 
 adopted by the van-guard under Lasnes. 
 
 Bonaparte, informed that the reserve un- 
 der general Dessaix was not yet ready, in- 
 stantly appeared before the division of Lasnes 
 to slacken its retreat ; but the Austrians con- 
 tinuing to advance, he commanded different 
 movements with the seventy-second brigade, 
 and even wished to charge the enemy in 
 flank, placing himself at the head of the de- 
 mi-brigade ; but a cry was heard from every 
 rank, " JFe will not permit the first consul to 
 expose himself.'^ The retreat was made in 
 squares, though exposed to the fire of 80 
 pieces of cannon, which preceded the Austri- 
 an battalions, and vomited in the ranks show- 
 ers of shot and shells. Berthier now inform- 
 ed the consul that the army was in disorder ; 
 " General," said he, '' you do not announce 
 this news with coolness !" The retreat being 
 sounded in every point, the centre fell back ; 
 the^Austrians dislodged and turned the wings ; 
 to the right they appeared to be very suc- 
 cessful, and on the left had an opportunity of 
 cutting them off from their head-quarters, 
 whilst the garrison of Tortona perceiving 
 ihe discomfiture, made a sortie, so that thejr 
 were nearly surrounded. 
 
 Bonaparte always in the centre, encourag- 
 ed the remainder of the troops who defended 
 the road, and a defile, which they were pass- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. tn, 
 
 ing, inclosed on one side by a wood, and on. 
 the other by a very lofty and thick vineyard, 
 the village of Marengo flanking it to the left. 
 Thirty pieces of cannon well served roared 
 through the valley, destroying every thing 
 within their reach. At four o'clock in the af- 
 ternoon, within a radius of six miles, there re- 
 mained but six thousand infantry present with 
 their standards, a thousand horses, and six 
 pieces of cannon only fit for service. A third 
 of the army had not been engaged ; want of 
 waggons to remove the wounded occasioned 
 above a third to be employed in that service, 
 the riflemen had lost the direction of their 
 corps, and the remainder of the army was 
 employed in defending the defile. At this 
 moment when the field around was strewed 
 with the dead and dying, Bonaparte braved 
 death in the midst of myriads of balls which 
 rooted up the earth under his horses feet, and 
 whilst his soldiers were every instant falling 
 around him, he gave orders with his accustom-? 
 ed coolness. All who perceived him, forget.- 
 ting the danger which menaced themselves, ex^- 
 claimed, " Alas, should he be killed ! Why 
 does he not retire ?" The Austrians not being 
 able to force the defile occupied by the greatr 
 est part of the French effective force, had 
 drawn up a strong line of artillery, under cor 
 ver of which they placed the infantry in the 
 vineyards and woods. The cavalry waited ia 
 order of battle to watch the moment of disor* 
 d^r, and to destroy the dispersed ranks. 
 
8S5 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 General Melas was so ceftain of a complete 
 victory, that he dispatched couriers to the dif- 
 ferent cities of Italy to inform them of his 
 success. ...at the same time Bonaparte was 
 animating his troops, and assured them, 
 " that he was determined according to his cus- 
 tom to sleep on the field of battle." The ob- 
 stinacy of the French increased with their diffi- 
 culties, for in this defile they were resolved 
 to conquer or perish, and being invigorated 
 by the presence and addresses of Bonaparte, 
 who expected the immediate arrival of Des- 
 saix, they repulsed every attempt to force 
 their position. Four times had the retreat 
 been sounded, when the consular guard was 
 stationed in the plain of St. Juliano : against 
 this body, every movement of cavalry, infan- 
 try and artillery was directed, but each at- 
 tack failed, they were united as one man, 
 and sustained every assault with incredible 
 firmness, until they were joined by the other 
 divisions. Dessaix and Monnier's divisions, 
 although they had performed a forced march 
 of 30 miles, and although they had met the 
 army flying and dispersed, did not relax in 
 their ardour, but arrived in order of battle, 
 being flanked on the right by 12 pieces of 
 cannon under Marmont, and on the left by a 
 body of cavalry under Kellerman. Melas, 
 perceiving all the difficulty in the centre, ex- 
 tended his wings to surround the French, and 
 to cut off" their retreat ; this circumstance 
 hindered him from observing the reinforce-. 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 25S 
 
 ment which had been received. Bonaparte 
 immediately availed himself of this error ; 
 for as soon as Dessaix's division had reached 
 the front, it was formed into close columns ; 
 he placed himself at the head of the troops, 
 passed through the ranks, inspired them with 
 the greatest enthusiasm, and although 
 a whole hour was employed in making prepa- 
 rations for the. termination of the combat, and 
 the Austrian artillery maintained an inces- 
 sant fire, the effect was imperceptible : at 
 length every movement being arranged, Bo- 
 naparte ordered the charge to be beaten, upon 
 which the army advanced against the Austri- 
 an line, and the defile was conquered in an 
 instant ; but the assailants were twice repuls- 
 ed, and Bonaparte himself dismounted ; al- 
 though in the most dangerous part of the ac- 
 tion, he maintained his position, and notwith- 
 standing the repeated vociferations of his 
 troops, urging him to retire, he encouraged 
 them by his presence and example, manifest- 
 ing the most exalfSd courage and intrepidity. 
 The generals issued from the defile, and the 
 divisions being arrayed in conjunction with the 
 artillery which wasformed in battery, exhibited 
 a formidable front. These measures forced the 
 Austrians to recede, which immediately led 
 the cavalry to the charge ; but the grape, 
 small shot and bayonet arrested their progress, 
 whilst Murat with his cavalry and the centre 
 advanced and aided to check them. At this 
 instant Kellerraan, with his divisions, after 
 
J54 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 having routed a body of the Austrian ca- 
 vahy, surrounded 6,000 Hungarian grena- 
 diers, and obliged them to surrender their 
 arms. These successes broke the first of the 
 Austrian Hues, which retired to the second, 
 and both advanced to charge the French with 
 the bayonet, but without effect : Dessaix hke 
 a torrent on the left, engulphed all which 
 he saw ; every thing submitted to him ; hedg- 
 es, ditches and mounds were passed with 
 unexampled rapidity. Victor captured Ma- 
 rengo, and to cut off the Austrian retreat, 
 pressed on to the Bormida.... turning oblique- 
 ly to San Stephano, Dessaix dissevered the 
 Austrian left wing ; at this triumphal moment, 
 after having his horse killed under him, he 
 received a wound from a musket bail, which 
 was the cause of his immediate dissolution. 
 *' Cachez ma mort aux soldats," said he to 
 his aides-de-camp ; and soon after, as he was 
 expiring, he added to the younger Lebrun 
 who fought beside him : " Allez dire au pre- 
 mier consul, que je meurs avec le regret de 
 ne pas avoir assez fait pour la posterite :" or 
 as others represent the sentence, " Je finis ma 
 carriere, avec le seul regret de n'avoir pas assez 
 fait pour vivre dans la posterite ! " " Tell the first 
 consul that I regret only that I have not lived 
 long enough to be known to posterity." Bo- 
 naparte was in the heat of the battle, when 
 Le Brun informed him of Dessaix's death ; 
 his reply was, " Why is it not permitted me 
 to weep!" The French army enraged at his 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. ^SS^ 
 
 loss, concentrated their force, and instanta- 
 neously attacked with the utmost fury the 
 Austrian third Une, which hitherto re* 
 mained firm. Lasnes supported by Ver- 
 tim, Boudet and the consular guards 
 with Marmont, Murat's cavalry, and Bes- 
 siers' horse grenadiers, assailed the line with 
 such irresistible impetuosity that it was bro- 
 ken at once, and this produced the defeat ; 
 the cavalry, infantry and artillery fied in the 
 utmost confusion to the Bormida, where the 
 rear guard in protecting the passage of the 
 main body was entirely destroyed. This bat- 
 tle was peculiarly distinguished for the obsti- 
 nacy of the combatants, and the important 
 events which it produced. The loss of the 
 Austrians amounted to 17,000 men, including 
 7,000 prisoners, 15 standards and 50 pieces of 
 cannon.... the French must have suffered very 
 much, as the armies v<iere engaged many <r 
 hours within musket shot, and it is probable ^ 
 that their loss could not have been less than 
 half that of the Austrians, although the whole 
 has been computed at 5,000 men. 
 
 General Melas proved himself to be,^ ^^ji^ 
 able officer in this battle ; he had two horsfes 
 shot under him, but Bonaparte was his oppo- 
 nent ^notwithstanding he still commanded a for- 
 midable army^ his position was very disagree- 
 able ; he was enclosed in a mountainous dis- 
 trict between the Bormida and the Tanaro, ^ 
 destitute of provisions, and without any -9, 
 means of procuring supplies.... a ware that he 
 
256 THE HISTORY OV 
 
 was in the situation of a beseiged town, he 
 sent a trumpet to Bonaparte with proposals 
 for an armistice, which was granted, and al- 
 most the whole of the Italian fortresses deli- 
 vered to the French. 
 
 Bonaparte in the battle of Marengo wore a 
 grey great coat, andaltliough exposed to every 
 kind of death, he and his attendants escaped 
 without injury.. ..when this was observed to 
 him, " They were with me," he replied, 
 " My fortune preserved them." Returning 
 from the field, he met a great number of 
 wounded, " It is impossible not to regret be- 
 ing wounded like them," said he, " that we 
 might better partake of their pain." The 
 Hungarian grenadiers, who were prisoners, 
 recollected Bonaparte in his former Italian 
 campaign, and could not refrain from exclaim- 
 ing, as he passed by them, " Bonaparte fore-* 
 ver !" General Melas towards the latter part 
 of the action, sent to the consul this message, 
 " Stop the effusion of blood, and I will con- 
 sent to any thing!" Bonaparte's answer is in 
 conformity with every act of his life, with all 
 addresses and with his character. " The 
 trian army shall immediately retire within 
 tlie line which it should occupy, according to 
 the treaty of Campo Formio." He sent a 
 Turkish sabre which he had brought from 
 Egypt as a present to general Melas, who 
 said to his aide-de-camp when he delivered it, 
 " I am sorry peace is so long delayed ; I 
 shall contribute my efforts to obtain it, that I 
 
 '^m- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. SST 
 
 inay see general Bonaparte at Paris* 1 would 
 see him were he even in Egypt." 
 
 One of the French officers who had been a 
 prisoner at the commencement of the battle, 
 said on his return, " Since I have been a sol- 
 dier I have seen many defeats, but never any- 
 similar to that." The confusion and hurry 
 were so great at the Bormida, that in cross- 
 ing the bridge he was carried 500 paces with- 
 out setting his feet on the ground. 
 
 After the battle of Marengo, Bonaparte 
 dispatched general Kellerman to Massena^ 
 ordering him to look carefully to the surren- 
 der of Genoa, and prevent the English wha 
 were masters of the port, from carrying oJBF 
 any pieces of cannon, and from damaging 
 the city and fortifications. He again visited 
 Pavia, and on the 28thPrairial, June sixteenth, 
 arrived at Milan : he was received in that ci- 
 ty amid the acclamations of an immense con- 
 course of people, who regarded him as the 
 liberator of Italy. On the 29th, seventeenth, 
 he attended at the cathedral with Berthier 
 and the staff, where a Te Deiim was chaunted 
 in honour of the deliverance of Italy and the 
 glory of the French armies. Fie re-org1^Mi^^ V 
 ed the Cisalpine republick ; created a consul* 
 ta, charged with making regulations and 
 forming laws for the different branches of 
 the publick administration ; established in Mi- 
 lan a minister extraordinary of the French go- 
 vernment to transact business with the Cisal'- 
 
958 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 pine republick, and formed a provisionary 
 government, exercised by an extraordinary- 
 commission of nine members, who united all 
 the powers of the republick, except those of 
 judicature and legislation. 
 
 Bonaparte on the 7th Messidor, June 
 twenty -fifth, entered Turin, amidst the shouts 
 of " Long live Bonaparte ! long live the First 
 Consul!'^ After visiting the citadel he de- 
 parted, traversed Mount Cenis, and arrived 
 at Lyons on the 9th, twenty-ninth. The 
 news of his arrival soon spread through the 
 town, and immediately the people, merchants 
 and all classes of citizens assembled, filled 
 the quays, bridges and roofs of the houses^ 
 exclaiming, "/if is Bonaparte !'^ The festivity 
 continued till night, intermingled with mill-* 
 tary music and vollies of artillery. 
 
 The prefect, generals, principal publick 
 functionaries and members of the institute^ 
 hastened to welcome him ; and on the next day 
 Bonaparte, with a splendid retinue, and 50,000 
 Lyonese, visited Belle-Cour, to survey it pre- 
 vious to the re-building of the celebrated 
 fronts which had been demolished after the 
 siege. During the night of his stay they had 
 contrived to strike a medal in brass : it was 
 presented to him the instant before he laid 
 the first stone of the building : he then de- 
 posited the medal in a leaden box under the 
 foundations of the new edifice. 
 . The medal on one side represented the ef- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 2 St 
 
 figy of Bonaparte, with the following inscrip* 
 tion: 
 
 TO BONAPARTE, 
 
 RE-EDIFIER OF LYONS, 
 
 VERNIAC, PREFECT, 
 
 In the name of the grateful fieo/ile of Lyons, 
 
 On the Other side a wreath of oak, in the 
 middle of which was written : 
 
 THE VICTOR AT MAREJVGOi 
 
 TWICE 
 
 CONQUEROR OF ITJLYf 
 
 LAID THIS STONE, 
 
 On the \Oth Messidor, in the eighth year of the Refiubltckf and 
 first of his Consulate. 
 
 On the 13th Messidor, July third, at half 
 past two in the morning, Bonaparte entered 
 Paris. On the preceding evening the two 
 consuls had invited the council of state, the 
 two prefects, the ministers, generals, officers 
 of the staff and mayors, to repair to the Thuil* 
 leries in full uniform by 9 o'clock the next 
 morning, and to go in a body as far as Ville- 
 juif, to present their respects to the first con- 
 sul.. ..Bonaparte was aware of this reception, 
 and eluded it, for at the moment his carriage 
 entered the Thuilieries, the two consuls and 
 the citizens were asleep. When they visited 
 him in the morning, his first words were, 
 "Citizens, here we are again! Have you 
 done a great deal of business since I left 
 you?" The answer was, " Not so much as you 
 general." He talked for an hour of his cam= 
 paign, of the conduct of the French and A^s^ 
 
26» THE HISTORY OF 
 
 trian troops, of the dispositions of Italy with 
 regard to France, and of circumstances which 
 gave reason to hope for peace. The day af- 
 ter his return, general Cafarelli presented 
 him with a sealed box, which five ladies 
 whose names were unknown, charged him to 
 remit to the first consul. On opening it he 
 found a crown of laurel, interwoven with im^ 
 mortals, and the following verses :.... 
 
 Dleu des combats, sois-liii toujours fidele ! 
 Dieii de la paix, couronne ce guerrier ! 
 A son genie appartient I'immortelle, 
 A sa valeur appartient le laurier. 
 
 On the following day he received the con- 
 gratulatory addresses of the constituted au-. 
 thorities, of the national institute, and the se-^ 
 veral administrations, and distributed rewards 
 and honours among the soldiers wno had, 
 signalized themselves in Italy. General 
 Davigneau, who, with a part of his divi- 
 sion, had remained inactive at the battle of 
 Marengo, was broken. The consuls then is- 
 sued a decree against general Foissac-Latour, 
 who had surrendered the city of Mantua 
 to the Austrians. 
 
 The Consuls of the Reliublick to the Minister at nmr. 
 " The consuls are informed, citizen minister, that citizen 
 I'oissack-Latour returned from Austria, dishonours by 
 ■\vearing it, the dress of a French soldier. Let him be told, 
 that he was no lpn.u;er in the service of the republick from the 
 ^ay on which he so basely svuTfendered Mantua ; and express- 
 ly forbid his wearing any kind of uniform. His conduct at 
 Majitiia is rather to be judged by opinion than by the tribu-^ 
 
 m .1. 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. S6I 
 
 n^i. ; besides, government wish to hear nothing more of that 
 shameful siege, which will long leave a blemish on our arms. 
 Citizen Foissack-Latour will find in public contempt the great" 
 est punishment that can be inflicted on a Frenchman." 
 
 Plays and other amusements in celebra- 
 tion of this great victory were given in all the 
 theatres of Paris, and every house was 
 illuminated five nights in succession. The 
 exultation was general, and all were in great 
 hopes for the future. The splended victories 
 which were obtained by Moreau in Germany, 
 increased the hopes of a general peace. On 
 the 14th of July, the anniversary of the re- 
 volution, all seemed enraptured with their 
 victory and victorious leader. The revoluti- 
 on and its object were entirely forgotten. 
 Grand processions, entertainments, prize- 
 fighting, running matches, &.c. attracted the 
 attention of the Parisian multitude. Bona- 
 parte and his whole family were among the 
 spectators. The first stone of a national mo- 
 nument in remembrance of the most impor- 
 tant occurrences during the revolution, was 
 laid on this day, as was likewise that of a mo- 
 nument in memory of General Dessaix. 
 
 Bonaparte, indefatigable in the cabinet 
 as in the midst of his armies, ratified a 
 treaty of peace with the United States of. 
 America. At a brilliant entertainment given 
 at Morfontaine by Joseph Bonaparte, presi- 
 dent of the commission of ministers employ- 
 fid to negociate with the envoys of the Unit- 
 
362 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 ed States, the peace between the countries 
 was magnificently celebrated. 
 
 The first consul joined them at three o'clock, 
 when the minister for foreign affairs presen- 
 ted him with the convention signed on the 
 9th of Vendemiaire, September thirtieth, 
 between the French and American ministers. 
 After dinner.... Bonaparte gave as his toast, 
 " To the manes of the French and Americans 
 who were killed on the field of battle for the in- 
 dependence of the new world." On the next day 
 the American ministers took leave of the first 
 consul, and told him, " they hoped that the 
 convention signed on the ninth, would be the 
 basis of a lasting friendship between France 
 and America, and that they would themselves 
 leave nothing undone to accomplish that end." 
 Bonaparte replied: " the disputes which have 
 taken place between us being now terminat- 
 ed, we should consider them but family quar- 
 rels, and forgive them accordingly. The liber- 
 al principles consecrated in the convention, 
 on the subject of navigation, ought to be tlie 
 foundation of the friendship of the two nations, 
 as well as of their interest. Under the pre- 
 sent circumstances, it becomes more neces- 
 sary than ever that the two nations should 
 adhere to it." During their stay at Morfon- 
 taine, on the same day, the perfect of the de- 
 partment of the Oise presented Bonaparte 
 with several golden medals recently found by 
 some peasants within his jurisdiction. They 
 were inclosed, with many others, in a small 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 26S 
 
 ■j.,f ..,•.•.. . . ■ ■ ' — •' ''' 
 
 earthen vessel ; the whole being worth about 
 600,000 livres. They were in a very perfect 
 state, and of several different dates ; some as 
 far back as the Roman republick and others 
 of the time of the emperors. The prefect in- 
 formed the first consul, that it had been very 
 difficult to obtain the pieces, as those who 
 found them were afraid of being put to some 
 trouble on account of the discovery. ''Ac- 
 cording to the ancient laws," continued he, 
 " any treasures found belonjy to govern- 
 ment.".... At present," replied Bonaparte, "go- 
 vernment do not wish to dispute with the 
 good fortune of a citizen ; besides we must be 
 careful that these medals, which may be in- 
 valuable monuments to the historian, be not 
 melted down ; buy as many of them therefore 
 as you can.. ..Perhaps," added he, after a mo- 
 ments reflection, " these are only a part, and 
 you may easily procure more." The first 
 consul then approached one of the Ame- 
 rican ministers, and said to him, " Here 
 are some Roman medals which have been 
 just found in France ; do me the favour to 
 take them to America." 
 
 On the 18th Vendemiaire, October ninth, 
 some persons formed a plot to assassinate the 
 first consul. They had chosen the opera, as 
 the place to execute their scheme ; but were 
 discovered by the minister of police, who 
 arrested them in the same place where 
 they intended to have committed the mur- 
 der. They had met and fixed both the day 
 
2^4 THE HISTORY Of 
 
 and the hour. The minister, informed of 
 these particulars, invited the consul, to re- 
 ceive his orders on the subject...." These ar6 
 not my affairs," replied he, " they are yours" 
 ...."Will you go to the Opera?"...." Undoubt^ 
 edly." 
 
 After the armistice concluded with the- 
 emperor, general Moreau arrived at Paris on 
 the 26th Vendemiaire, October seventeenth; 
 ht immediately visited the first consul at the 
 council of state. Before he left the saloon 
 the minister of the interior introduced 
 a superb brace of pistols of exquisite work- 
 manship, and enriched with diamonds. The 
 directory had ordered them as a present to one 
 of the foreign princes, and they had since 
 remained at the house of the minister of the 
 interior. " They come very a-propos," said 
 the first consul, presenting them to general 
 Moreau; then turning towards the minister 
 of the interior...." Citizen minister," said he, 
 " let some of the battles which general Mo- 
 reau has gained, be engraved on them ; but 
 not all.. ..they would occasion too m.any dia- 
 monds to be taken away ; the general indeed 
 attaches no great value to these, but the de- 
 sign of the artist must not be wholly de- 
 ranged." 
 
 The first consul escaped death in De- 
 cember by a very remarkable preservation. 
 A number of dissatisfiad characters had con- 
 certed a scheme by which they intended to 
 destroy him on his way to the national insti- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 265 
 
 tute of rausick. The machine which they 
 had manufactured for this purpose, has been 
 usually known by the appellation of infernal. 
 Fouche, at the head of the police, was ac- 
 quainted with this conspiracy from its first 
 conception, and by his vigilant agents was 
 informed of the daily progress made in the con- 
 struction of this destructive instrument, of 
 the plan of which he had even a copy. The 
 conspirators proceeded with perfect confi- 
 dence and security. Three days before it 
 was completed and ready for its purpose, 
 from some surprise or dread of detection 
 they changed their place of meeting, and iri 
 one night removed the machine from the spot 
 in which it had been usually deposited. The 
 penetrating eye of the police lost sight of them, 
 Fouche and his followers pursued and at- 
 tempted to discover it in vain : he then waitied 
 upon Bonaparte, to whom he had regularly- 
 imparted the result of every day's informati- 
 on respecting it, arid told him that he could 
 no longer trace the traiterous instrument of 
 his assassination, and requested him as he was 
 convincedit must be completed by this time, not 
 to go to any publick places, until he had re- 
 gained a knowledge of it. Bonaparte replied^ 
 that fear only made cowards and conspirators 
 brave, and that he had unalterably determin- 
 ed to go with his accustomed equipage to the 
 national concert that very evening. At the 
 usual hour the first consul departed undis may- 
 
 L i< 
 
C^66 THE HT^TOllY OF 
 
 «d from the ThuiUiers ; a description of the 
 machine, which was made to resemble a water 
 cask, having been first given to tlie coachman, 
 servants and guards. As they proceeded, the 
 advanced guard passed it unobserved, but the 
 coachman discovered it just as the consul's 
 carriage was on a parallel with it ; the 
 driver instantly lashed his horses into 
 a gallop and turned the corner of the 
 Rue Marcem. In one moment after the 
 terrible machine exploded, and covered 
 the street with ruins. The thunder of its 
 discharge shook the houses of Paris and was 
 lieard at a considerable distance in the coun- 
 try. The first consul arrived in safety at the 
 hall of musick, and with every appearance of 
 profound serenity entered his box amidst 
 the acclamations of the crowded multitude. 
 
 The treaty of peace which was concluded at 
 I^uneville on the ninth of February 1801 be- 
 tween France and Austria produced tranquil- 
 lity on the continent. Bonaparte's answer to 
 the proposal of peace made by the Emperor, 
 was thus couched : " The left bank of the 
 *' Rhine shall be the boundary of the French 
 *' republick : she makes no pretensions to the 
 *' right bank : the interest of Europe does not 
 *' permit the emperor to pass the Adige : the in- 
 *' dependence of the Helvetick and the Batavi- 
 *' an republicks shall be insured and guaran- 
 *' teed. Our victories add nothing to the pre- 
 *' tensions of the French people. Austria 
 ^ ought not to expect from her defeats what 
 
NAPOLEON BON APATITE. 261? 
 
 *' she would not have obtained by her victories. 
 *' Such are the invariable principles of the go- 
 *' vernment : it is for the welfare of France 
 *' to restore tranquillity to Germany and Italy ; 
 *' her glory to deliver the continent from the 
 *' avaricious and destructive genius of En- 
 *' gland." 
 
 After the ratification of the treaty of Lune- 
 ville, Bonaparte addressed the nation :.... 
 
 '* The continental p^ace has been sij^ned at Luneville. It 
 is such as the French people desired. Their first wish was the 
 boundary of the Rhine. Reverses never shook their resoluti- 
 on : victory never added to their pretensions. 
 
 " After h^ivinj^ re-established the ancient limits of Gaul, they 
 had to give freedom to the people who were united to them by 
 •ne common origin, as well as by a community of interests and 
 •f manners, 
 
 « The liberty of the Cisalpines and of Liguria is secured. 
 
 *' After this duty, there was another which justice and 
 generosity imposed. 
 
 « The King of Spain had been faithful to our cause and 
 suffered for it. Neither our reverses, nor the perfidious insi- 
 nuations of our enemies could detach him from our interests t 
 he shall have a just recompence— a prince of his blood is to sit 
 on the throne of Tuscany. 
 
 " He will remember what he owes to the fidelity of Spain 
 and to the friendship of France : his roadsteads and his ports 
 will be shut against our enemies, and vf'M. become the asylum 
 of our commerce and our ships, 
 
 *' Austria, and it is this which is the pledge of peace, Au- 
 stria hencefoith separated from the republick by vast regi- 
 ons, will no longer feel that rivalry, those heart-burnings which 
 lor so many ages have occasioned the torment of these tWQ 
 powers, and the calamities of Europe, 
 
268 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 " By tU'is treaty every thing is settled with respect to France j 
 it will no lon,Qrer have to struggle against the forms and the in- 
 trigues of a congress. 
 
 ♦' The government owes the expression of its satisfaction to 
 the minister plenipotentiary who has conducted the negociati- 
 on to this happy termination. T^ei'e remain neither interpret 
 tations to be feared nor explanations to be demanded, nor those 
 equivocal arrangements in which the diplomatick art deposits 
 the seeds of a new war. 
 
 " Wherefore was not this treaty the treaty of a general 
 peace I This was the wish of France ! This was the constant 
 object of the efforts of the government ! 
 
 " But its efforts were vain. All Europe knows that the 
 British minister has endeavoured to frusti'ate the negociations 
 at Luneville. 
 
 " In vain did an agent authorised by the government de= 
 clare to him on the 9th of October 1800, that France was 
 ready to enter into a separate negotiation. This declaration 
 produced a refusal only, under the pretext that England could 
 not abandon her ally. Since then^ when this ally consents to 
 treat without England, that government seeks other means toi 
 delay a peace so necessary to the woild. 
 
 " It violates conventions which humanity had consecrateda 
 and declares war against miserable fisher»ien. 
 
 *' It raises pretensions contrary to the dignity and the rights, 
 of all nations. The whole commerce of Asia, and of immense 
 colonies, does not satisfy its ambition. All the seas must sub= 
 mit to the exclusive sovereignty of England. It arms, against 
 Russia, Denmark, and Sweden ; because Russia, Denmark, 
 and Sweden have secured, by treaties of guaranty, their so- 
 vereignty and the independence of their flags. 
 
 " The powers of the North unjustly attacked, have a right 
 to reckon upon France. The French govjernment will avenge 
 with them a commpii injury to all nations ; without ever losing 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 269- 
 
 sight however, that it ought to fight only for peace and for 
 (he good of the world." 
 
 The following anecdotes of general Mo* 
 reau and the Arch-duke Charles are so cha- 
 racteristick and honourable to them, that they 
 merit preservation. When the Arch-duke 
 was travelling from Bohemia to take the com^ 
 mand of the army in Germany ; as he ap^ 
 proached the scene of action he perceived 
 numbers of wounded and dying, abandoned 
 by their companions for want of horses to 
 draw the carriages in their retreat. He im- 
 mediately ordered the horses to be unyoked 
 from several pieces of cannon, saying, 
 " That the relief of the men was an object 
 far nearer his heart than the preservation of 
 cannon." When general Moreau heard of. 
 this benevolence, he ordered the cannon 
 which had been captured by him to be res- 
 tored to the Austrians, remarking, " That he 
 would retain no cannon which had been aban-^ 
 doned from such humane motives." 
 
 At Passau there was a repository of clothes 
 and provisions destined for the poor of that 
 city. This magazine on the retreat of the 
 Austrians to the Trafen, was possessed by 
 the French : the Arch-duke immediately 
 wrote to Moreau, to acquaint him with its 
 destination, and intreated him to spare it : the; 
 clothes and the provisions were distributed, 
 among the poor, and Moreau returned for an-*- 
 ^weij " That he would never appropriate ta* 
 
2^0 THE HTSTOl^Y Of 
 
 his own use that which had been intended for 
 the rehef of indigence." 
 
 During the summer of 1801, the army 
 surrendered Egypt and returned to France; at 
 the same time that this event was known, and 
 after a negociation which had been continued 
 nearly nine months, and conducted with pro- 
 found and admirable secrecy, preliminaries 
 of peace between the English and French go- 
 vernments were concluded in London on the 
 1st of October, and immediately after ratified 
 by the contracting parties. The manifesta- 
 tions of joy in both countries were unbound- 
 ed and in many instances amounted almost to 
 frenzy : the definitive treaty of peace was sign- 
 ed on the 27th of March 1802 at Amiens, by- 
 Joseph Bonaparte and Marquis Cornwallis. 
 
 A civil code was one of the greatest wants 
 of France ; Bonaparte therefore in order to 
 provide for these pressing necessities of the 
 people, charged the minister of justice 
 immediately to appoint a committee to en- 
 quire into the nature of the different existing 
 civil codes, to decide upon that which it 
 would be most proper to adopt, and to dis- 
 cuss the principal bases of legislation in civil 
 affairs. The minister named Portalis, Tron- 
 chet, Bigot, Preameneau, and Maleville, 
 who some time after, published the project 
 of a civil code, prefaced by a long and able 
 introduction, explaining the principles on 
 which they had proceeded, derived from^ the 
 established laws and customs of society, and 
 
NAPOLEON BON AP ARTE. nn 
 
 applicable to the present times. The result 
 of their studies was also officially communi- 
 cated to the tribunal of cassation and to the 
 tribunals of appeal, who returned it to the 
 minister of justice with their remarks, which 
 were also published. After this project had 
 been the subject of jmblick and private discussi- 
 on for six months, it was revised and drawn up 
 afresh in the council of state, by the section 
 of legislation, and then presented to the le* 
 gislative body, and by them to the tribunate* 
 The chief consul had himself attended to the 
 particulars of this code during the whole 
 time which it had been before the council oF 
 state ; several of its articles passed peaceably 
 throLigli the assemblies, though not entirely 
 without opposition, yet none of them were 
 rejected. 
 
 The concordatum between Bonaparte and 
 the Pope was signed on the twenty-sixth of 
 July 1 80 1 and raiified on September t jnth, but 
 it Was not adopted until April 180-2. By this 
 agreement the management of the Gallican 
 church was delivered to the consul alone. 
 When objections were made to the measure, 
 he said, " Make you no account then of a 
 clergy who will pray every day for the safety 
 of the repubiick, and of bishops who will be 
 obliged by their oath, to reveal all plots 
 against it I" 
 
 Bonaparte during the sittingof the congress 
 at Amiens visited Lyons to meet the Cisal- 
 pine deputies who had been commissioned to 
 
272 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 offer him the sovereignty of that repubUck. 
 He left Paris on the ninth of June, and reached 
 Lyons on the 1 1th. He was accompanied on 
 his journey by madame Bonaparte, Chaptal 
 the minister of the interior, and many other 
 personages of the first distinction in France. 
 Upon his approach to Lyons, he was met and 
 Escorted by a brilHant troop of 150 volun- 
 teers, all natives of that town, young men 
 of fortune and fine appearance. Thus accom- 
 panied, he entered the city about ten o'clock 
 in the evening amidst the loudest acclamati- 
 ons and the most rapturous expressions of 
 universal joy. 
 
 On the grand staircase of the palace, ap- 
 pointed for his residence, the following most 
 flattering inscription met his eyes : 
 
 \lt/i January, an. 10, 
 BONAPARTE, 
 
 VANQUISHER ANE PACIFICATOR, 
 
 Arrived in this city and lodged in this palace } 
 
 IIVE HUNDRED CISALPINE DEPUTIES ATTENDED HIK, 
 
 To fix under his auspices, 
 The laws and destinies of their country. 
 
 AT HIS VIEW THE ARTS AWOKE IN THIS GITV3 
 COMMERCE RESUMES ITS ANCIENT SPLENDOUR, 
 
 : And the grateful Lyonese forming for him, 
 The same tvish that their ancestors did for jdntonine, 
 Have said, 
 « 3 fay his hafifMiess be equal to his glory." 
 
 The first consul employed his time for the 
 ensuino- fortnight in visiting the different ma- 
 nufacto^ries and establishments of Lyons and 
 m conferring with the principal Cisalpine de- 
 
• NAPu^. ....-— .,'S 
 
 puties. The people of Lyons, who had suf- 
 fered, perhaps, more by the revolution and 
 the war than any other city in France, were 
 charmed with the attention of the first consul 
 to their commercial interests, and his promis- 
 es of protection and encouragement. At the 
 hall, where the consulta met, a splendid 
 chair was prepared for Bonaparte, adorned 
 with military trophies ; the room was deco- 
 rated with various ornaments emblematick o£ 
 his victories, and inscribed with mottos ap- 
 plicable to him and his fortune. The meet- 
 ings of the consulta were private, and they at 
 length appointed a committee of thirty to pre- 
 pare a report of the actual state of the Cisal- 
 pine nation, and the means necessary for its 
 future prosperity and happiness. This com- 
 mittee accordingly presented a report, declar- 
 ing it absolutely necessary that Bonaparte 
 himself should undertake the sole and exclu* 
 sive management of their affairs. 
 
 The report of the committee was entered 
 in the proces verbal of the consulta, and un- 
 animously agreed to by the Cisalpine depu- 
 ties. A special committee was appointed to 
 wait on Bonaparte with the report, which in-. 
 vited him, not in his capacity of first consul 
 of France, but personally as general Bona* 
 parte to accept of the government of theic 
 country. 
 
 On the 26 th of January, the first consul, 
 accompanied by the minister for foreign affairs, 
 and the minister of the interior, four counsel- 
 M M 
 
gr4 The history op 
 
 lors of state, twenty prefects of departments^ 
 and a vast train of general officers, took his 
 seat at the Cisalpine consulta, and pronounced 
 m his native language Italian, a speech to 
 the following effect : 
 
 " That the Cisalpine republic, acknowledged since the treaty 
 of Campo Formio, has already experienced many vicissitudes. 
 
 " The first efforts made to constitute it have not succeeded. 
 
 ♦' Invaded since by hostile armies, its existence seemed no 
 longer probable, when the French people, a second time drove 
 by force of arms, your enemies from your territories. Since 
 that time every means have been tried to divide you. ...The 
 protection oi France has pj-evailed, you h&ve been recognized 
 at Luneville. 
 
 " Increased one fifth, you exist more powerful, more con* 
 aolidated, and with better hopes ! 
 
 " Composed of six different nations, you are now going to 
 be united under a constitution more adapted to your manners 
 ^d to your circumstances. 
 
 *' I have assembled you around me at Lyons, as being the 
 principal inhabitants of the Cisalpine. You have given me the 
 necessary information to fulfill the august task which my 
 duty imposed upon me, as the first magistrate of the French 
 people, and as the man who has most contributed to your ere-* 
 ation. 
 
 " The choice whic:h I have made to fill the first magisterial 
 offices in your country are completely independent of all idea 
 of party, of all spirit of locality. 
 
 <' As to that of president, I have not found any body among you^ 
 ^vho would have sufficient claim to the public opinion, who 
 would be sufficiently independent of the spirit of locality, and 
 who in fine had rendered great services enough to his country 
 to intrust it to him. 
 
 '^ The proces verbal which you have caused to be transmitted 
 
srj 
 
 to me by your committe of thirty, in which are analyzed with 
 equal precision and truth, the internal and external circum- 
 stances of your country, have made a lively impression upon 
 me. I adhere to your wish. I shall still preserve, as long as 
 circumstances may require it, the great care of your affairs. 
 
 " Amid the continual cares which the post that I occupy re- 
 quire, every thing which may relate to you and consolidate 
 your existence and your prosperity, shall not be foreign frotu 
 the dearest affections of my heart. 
 
 *^ You have had as yet oilly particular laws ; in futufe yot> 
 must have general laws. 
 
 " Your people have only local habits ; they must assume na- 
 tional habits. 
 
 " Finally, you have no army ; the pov^ers who might be- 
 come your enemies have strong armies : but you have that 
 which can produce them, a numerous population, fertile count 
 tries, and the example which has been given in all the essen- 
 tial circumstances by the first nation in Europe." 
 
 On the 17th of April, the proclamatiofjl 
 with respect to the concordatum was issued 
 and the solemn celebration of that event fix- 
 ed for the next day in the church of Notre 
 Dame. 
 
 Previously however, to the publica;tion o£ 
 this new religious code, the cardinal Caprara 
 the Pope's legate had a formal audience of 
 the first consul : the government carriages 
 were sent to his eminence, who went in state 
 to the Thuilleries ; he was preceded by a detach- 
 ment of grenadiers, and of gens d'armes^ 
 with trumpets, &c. There were in his traiu 
 ten carriages full of ecclesiasticks, and th« 
 procession was closed by a body of 200 caval- 
 ry. The legate and suite descended at the 
 
276 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 principal entrance of the palace : the cross 
 was as usual carried before the legate, and 
 during the ceremony was placed at the door 
 of the council chamber. At this council, the 
 ministers and members of the council of state 
 attended. The cardinal delivered a flattering 
 address to the consul, in which he compli- 
 mented him both on account of his victories 
 and his zeal for religion ; among the many- 
 remarkable expressions which it contained 
 was the following : 
 
 « The same hand which gained battles and which signed 
 peace with all nations, restoi'es splendour to the temples of the 
 true God, re-edifies his altars, and re-establishes his worship.'' 
 
 After the conclusion of his speech, the car- 
 dinal signed the formula of an oath in the 
 Latin language, by which he engaged to ob- 
 serve the constitution, laws, statutes and cus- 
 toms of the republick. 
 
 To this address the first consul made the 
 following answer : 
 
 ■ j " On account of the apostolick virtues by which you are dis- 
 tinguislied, cardinal, I behold you with great satisfaction, the 
 possessor of an extensive influence on the conscience of man. 
 " You draw from the gospels the rules of your conduct, and 
 consequently you will contribute much to the extinction of ani- 
 mosity, and the establishment of union in this vast empire. 
 The French nation will long have reason to rejoice at the haj>- 
 py choice that I and his holiness have jointly made of you. The 
 result of your mission will be for the Christian religion which 
 in all ages has produced so much good among mankind, afresh 
 subject for exultation. The enlightened philosopher and the 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. sr? 
 
 true friend to man, will express his satisfaction at this appoint- 
 ment." 
 
 The magnificence of the fete which esta- 
 blished and proclaimed the catholic religion in. 
 France, was far greater and more brilliant 
 than had attended any solemnity since the re- 
 volution. The restoration of the national 
 religion was not only effected with the utmost 
 splendour on the part of the government, but 
 was received by the people at large with uni- 
 versal and sincere pleasure. The ceremony 
 was performed with great pomp. The an- 
 thems and the appropriate musick were the 
 work of the first composers in France, and 
 the execution was by no means inferior : eve- 
 ry lustre that consuls and cardinals, bishops, 
 arch-bishops and the Pope's legate could 
 give to the re-establishment of the Roman 
 catholick religion in France was most pro- 
 fusely lavished on this occasion. 
 
 Immediately after this event Bonaparte was 
 desirous that the colours of his regiment should 
 be consecrated by the cardinal, and expressed 
 his wishes to the troops ; in the course of a 
 few days, a deputation waited upon him, 
 with this reply...." Our banners have already 
 been consecrated by the blood of our enemies 
 at Marengo, the benediction of a priest can- 
 not render them more sacred in our eyes, nor 
 more animating in the time of battle:" the 
 consul was obliged to submjt. 
 
 About this time Bonaparte gave a grand 
 dinner to the metropolitan Arch-bishop and 
 
278 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 to several of his brethren. After the enter- 
 tainment Bonaparte addressed the Arch-bi- 
 shop observing that as he had given directi- 
 ons for the repairing of the archi-episcopal pa-» 
 lace, he should very much like to take a ride 
 in the Arch-bishop's carriage, to see the pro- 
 gress which the workmen had made. Thq 
 prelate bowed to the first consul, and inform- 
 ed him that he had no carriage, otherwise he 
 should be much flattered by conducting him 
 thither, Bonaparte good humouredly saidt 
 *' How can that be ? Your coach has been 
 waiting at the gate this half hour," and imr 
 mediately led the venerable Arch-bishop 
 down the steps of the Thuilleries, where he 
 found a plain handsome carriage, with a va- 
 luable pair of horses, and a coachman and 
 footmen, dressed in the livery which Bona-; 
 parte had just before informed him would be 
 allotted to him when his establishment was 
 completed. The whole was a present from 
 the private purse of the first consul. Upon 
 their arrival at the palace, the Arch-bishop 
 was agreeably surprised, to find that the 
 most minute and liberal attention had beer; 
 paid to his comfort and accommodation. 
 
 The tribunate now began to agitate the 
 question, " What mark of national gratitude 
 js due to the hero who has done so much for 
 France ?" It was at first proposed to elect him 
 consul for five years.. ..this was afterwards 
 exchanged to ten years. ...when this election 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPAI^TE. 27$ 
 
 was notified to him by the cojiservative senate, 
 he thus addressed them : 
 
 « The honourable testimony of your esteem, expressed in 
 your late deliberations, shall be forever engraven on my 
 heart. The suffrages of the people have invested me with thg 
 supreme magistracy. I should not lopk upon myself as as- 
 sured of the national confidence, if the act that was to conti- 
 nue me in that high office were not again sanctioned by the same 
 suffrage. During the three years which have just elapsed, for- 
 tune has smiled propitiously on the republick : but fortune iii» 
 inconstant ; and how many are those on whom she has lavish- 
 ed her favours, that have lived a few years too long ! The in- 
 terest I feel for my glory and my happiness would seem to 
 have marked the term of my publick life at the moment that 
 the peace of the world was proclaimed. But every attention 
 to the glory and the happiness of a citizen should cease to ope- 
 rate when the interests of the state or the publick kindness 
 call upon him. You think that I owe a new sacrifice to the 
 people ; that sacrifice I will make^ if the wish of the people 
 command what is authorised by your vote." 
 
 Two days after, the consuls offered a ques- 
 tion upon which the people were to be con- 
 sulted : " Shall Napoleon Bonaparte be de- 
 clared consul for life ?" Which was decided 
 in the affirmative and to this honour was ad- 
 ded the privilege of appointing his successor. 
 During this election the following incident 
 occurred. Upon the JSrst appearance of the 
 election book of the first consul in one of 
 the departments, some wag instead of sub- 
 scribing his name, immediately under the ti- 
 tle of the page, " Shall Napoleon Bonaparte 
 
230 tHE HISTOTlY OF 
 
 ' ' -^ 
 
 be first consul for life ?" Wrote the following 
 words, " I cannot tell." 
 
 Barthelemy the president of the senate, at- 
 tended by that body, waited upon the consul 
 '^at the Thuilleries when he was holding a le- 
 vee at which all the foreign ambassadors 
 were present ; after a long address he declar- 
 ed Bonaparte's appointment to the consulship 
 for life : Bonaparte replied ; " To the life of 
 *' a citizen, his country has a just claim. 
 " The French people demand, that I shall 
 " devote myself to their service ; I obey 
 " their will. In giving me now this pledge of 
 " their confidence, they impose upon me the 
 " sacred duty to establish the system of their 
 *' laws on principles of wisdom, liberty, 
 " and equality, so that the welfare of France 
 " may be secured against all vicissitudes." 
 
 Since the peace with England in 1802, the 
 French government has maintained an un- 
 successful war against the blacks in St. Do- 
 mingo, and notwithstanding great efforts 
 have been made to reduce the island to obe- 
 dience, they have been ineffectual.. ..the blacks 
 still possess the principal part of the colony, 
 and little probabillity remains that it will 
 again submit to a foreign yoke. 
 
 The affairs of Switzerland at the conclusi- 
 on of the war, very deeply interested all Eu- 
 rope. The adherents to the old form of go- 
 vernment were opposed by a strong party 
 who had imbibed the notion of uniting the 
 whole nation under one government, thereby 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. sel 
 
 ^ ' . .. ■ - 
 
 destroying that federa.1 principle upon which 
 they had so long been associated. A general 
 diet assembled at Berne in September 1801, 
 to deliberate upon the state of the cantons 
 and to form a new government, the former 
 constitution having been destroyed amidst the 
 agitations which convulsed all Europe. The 
 democratick cantons were decidedly against 
 the doctrine of indivisibilityj but it at length 
 prevailed through a scheme which the French 
 party conceived, and by which ha.ving entire- 
 ly dispossessed their opponents from all part 
 in their proceedings, they proclaimed a con- 
 stitution which was exactly suited to the? 
 views of the minister Verniac who resided at 
 Berne. 
 
 General Turreau soon after was stationed 
 in the Valais which was during the summer; 
 separated from its a.lliance with the Sv/iss can- 
 tons. Aloys Reding, president of the pro vi- 
 sionary government which had been appoint- 
 ed until the diet should conclude its sittings 
 and the government acting u.nder the autho- 
 rity of the constitution commence its operati- 
 ons, had visited Paris, and the Consul had 
 assured him, " that the democratick cantons 
 should enjoy their ancient laws" which ani- 
 mated them in their opposition to this new 
 form of government; hence three of the can- 
 tons Schweitz, Uri and Underwalden deter^ 
 mined to separate from the Helvetic repub- 
 lick, and form a new confederacy ; they ac- 
 
THE HISTORY OF 
 
 cordingly addressed the French mmister, da- 
 ted Schweitz, July 13th> 1802. 
 
 '*' We have ineifectually endeavoured, for four successive 
 tears, to tear fi'om us a constitution, which from its origin, 
 and still more from tlie violence with which it was establish- 
 ed, could not fail to be odious and insupportable. It is in vain 
 that we have constantly hoped that the Helvetic government 
 instructed by the sorrowful events of four unfortunate years, 
 ^ould at length find that our separation from the republick 
 \fas that which was most wise and suitable for both parties, 
 and that the wish which we have so often and so strongly ex- 
 pressed for our ancient liberty, would have induced them to 
 Set aside all hope that those three cantons would ever volunta- 
 rily accept any other constitution than that which has ever 
 been considered as the only one suited to these states, and for 
 reasons so highly prized by ourselves and our ancestors. Our 
 re-union with Helvetia, which has been stained with so much 
 innocent blood, is perhaps the most cruel example of con* 
 Straint which history can offer. 
 
 « In the conviction therefore that for a forced and unfortu- 
 fiate marriage, divorce is the only reasonable remedy, and 
 that Helvetia and oui'selves cannot recover repose and content, 
 except by the dissolution of this forced tie, we are firmly resolv- 
 ed to labour at that separation with all possible activity ; and 
 we think it best to address that authority, which, for four 
 years past has united us in spite of ourselves, to the Helve- 
 tic republick. As to any thing further, we only wish to pre- 
 serve good harmony in our commercial relations, as becomes 
 bi'ave Swiss. In listening to ©"ur just demands, the Helvetic re- 
 publick will acquire in us brothers and faithful neighbours.'* 
 
 The Trench troops havmg evacuated Swit- 
 zerland, the parties recurred to violence, and 
 the confederates were completely successful. 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 28$ 
 
 In beptember the members of the old govern^ 
 ment assembled at Berne and resumed their 
 functions.. .at this crisis Bonaparte addressed 
 them in that remarkable composition into 
 which is infused every trait of his characr 
 ter:.... 
 
 EoifAPAHfB, First Consul of the French Refiublkk, President 
 
 of the Italian Republick, to the Eighteen Cantons of the Helve-f 
 
 tick ReptLblick. 
 
 St. Cloud, Sep^. 30, 1802. 
 
 Inhabitants of Helvetia, 
 YOU have afforded for two years, an afflicting spectacle. 
 Opposite factions have successively taken possession of the so- 
 vereign authority ; they have signalized their temporary rule 
 by a system of partiality which proved their unskilfulness and 
 weakness. Inthe course of the year 10 your government desired 
 that the small number of French troops in Helvetia should be 
 withdrawn. The French government willingly availed them" 
 selves of that opportimity to honour your independence ; but 
 soon afterwards your different parties began to be agitated by 
 fresh fury ; the blood of the Swiss was shed by the hands of 
 Swiss. You have been disputing for three years without com? 
 ing to any understanding ; if you are left longer ta yourselves, 
 you will be killing each other for three ygars, without coming 
 to a better understanding. Your history proves besides, your 
 intestine wars could never be terminated but by the efficacious 
 intervention of France. It is true that I had determined not to 
 interfere at all in your affairs ; I had constantly setn your dif- 
 ferent governments ask advice of me, and not follow it, and 
 sometimes abuse my name, according to their interests and 
 their passions ; but I neither can nor ought to remain insen- 
 sible to the misery pf which ycu are the victims. I recall my 
 determination... .7 w;// be the mediator of your differences, but 
 |ny mediation shall be efficacious, such as befits the great peo? 
 
284 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 pie in whose name I speak. Five days after the notif 
 the present proclamation, the senate e/ia// assemble ; 
 Every magistracy that shall have been formed at Be 
 the capitulation shall be dissolved and shall cease met 
 exercising any authority. The pi'efects shall repaii 
 posts. All the authorities which may have been fori 
 cease meeting. Armed assemblies shall disperse. 
 and 2d Helvetic demibrigades shall compose the ga 
 Berne. The troops who have been on service for up 
 six months, shall alone remain in coi'ps of troops. 
 
 all individuals disbanded from the beUigerent armies, _ 
 
 are now in arms, shall deposit their arms at the municipality 
 of the commune where they were born. The senate shall send 
 three deputies to Paris ; each canton may also send deputies. 
 All citizens who, for the last three years, have been landam- 
 snen, senators, and have successively occupied places in the 
 central autliority, may repair to Pai'is, to make known the 
 means of restoring union^and tranquillity, and conciliating all 
 parties. On my part, I have a right to expect that no city, no 
 commune, no corps, will do any thing contratry to the dispo- 
 sitions which I make known to you. Inhabitants of Helvetia, 
 awake to hope I I I.... Your country is on the brink of a preci- 
 pice ; it shall be immediately drawn from it ; all men of good 
 intentions will second this generous plan. But if, which I 
 cannot believe, there be among you a great number of indivi- 
 duals who should have so little virtue as not to sacrifice their 
 passions and their prejudices to the love of their country, peo- 
 ple of Helvetia, you will have indeed degenerated from your 
 forefathers '. There is no sensible man who does not see that 
 the mediation which I take upon myself is a benefit to Helvetia, 
 from that providence which, in the midst of so many shocks, 
 has always watched over the existence and independence of 
 your nation, and that this mediation is the only means of sav- 
 ing both. For indeed it is time you should see, that if the 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 285 
 
 patriotism and union of your ancestors founded your republick, 
 the bad spirit of your factions, if it continue, m\\ infallibly 
 destroy it ; painful would it be to think, that at a period when 
 several new republicks have arisen, destiny had marked out 
 the termination and fall of one of the most ancient. 
 
 BONAPARTE. 
 
 ANSWER 
 
 Of the Diet of Schweitz to the Proda-mation of Bo7iaparte» 
 
 Citizen First Consul, 
 THE proclamation which you did us the honour to send to 
 us on the 30th of September, by citizen Rapp your adjutant- 
 general, arrived at Schweitz on the 6th of October. We could 
 have wished that the letter we took the liberty of sending you, 
 general first consul on the 30th of Septembei', could have 
 reached you sooner ; it contains a faithful exposition of the pre- 
 sent state of Switzerland. Permit us to send you inclosed a 
 duplicate of it, and to entreat you to receive it favourably. It 
 will prove to you that the movements which have taken place 
 in Switzerland are not the result of a spirit of party, and that 
 the Swiss nation has no other object in view than to make use 
 of the right which she claims of giving herself a central and 
 cantonal constitution, founded on her position and her wants.... 
 a sacred and precious right, which you deigned yourself to 
 insure her by the treaty of Luneville. Switzerland would long 
 since have been tranquil if the members of the Helvetic go- 
 vernment, those obscure metaphysicians, had consulted the 
 real state of affairs, instead "of obstinately attaching themselves 
 to theoretick attempts, as erroneous as they are expensive. The 
 violence with v/hich they have tried to impose their system 
 upon the democratick cantons, then against all Sv/itzerland.... 
 the unexampled severity with which they have done it, has 
 produced a discontent equally general and just, and a deter- 
 mined and avowed will to shake off this insupportable yoke. 
 Jt is not then, general first consul, an affair of party, it is the 
 
386 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 ' ■ ' ■■ ' -^ 
 
 sacred cause of humanity, it is the general wish of the whole 
 nation, which has given us our power and our instructions, of 
 a nation which you yourself wished to be free, and which has 
 been ill-treated and irritated, contrary to your intentions. Yet 
 that nation, we render ourselve^^ guarantees, will never abuse the 
 liberty which it claims. The Swiss have nothing more at heart 
 than to attain a state of repose, in which, under the shield of 
 a mild and just government, each inhabitant may enjoy his 
 property and existence- We are convinced that we shall ar^ 
 rive at that essential object of all social order, from the mo- 
 ment that our Mill and our efforts shall be no longer fettered. 
 General first consul, all Europe admires in you the supreme 
 head of an immense power and empire, which withdUt doubt* 
 according to your own views, will be directed to the good of 
 humanity ; your magnanimity assures us, that you will not 
 make use of it against a people who desire only what you have 
 made them hope, and who wish only what they believe them-t 
 selves authorized to do by yourself. Penetrated with eternal 
 gratitude, the Swiss nation will do its endeavour to deserve 
 the good will of the French governmeat, and will fulfill all 
 the duties which arc imposed upon it by the desire of cultiva* 
 ting good neighbourhood. 
 
 " It is with the most distinguished respect that we remainj 
 general first consul, 
 
 Tlif defiuties of the Hclvetick Diet. 
 
 " Schweitz, October 8, 1802. 
 
 The following was immediately issued:.... 
 
 PROCLAMATION 
 
 Gf the Cou7icil of War of the S^uiss League to their Brothers i^ 
 
 Arms. 
 
 " Basle, October 12, 1803; 
 " Friends and Brothers^ 
 " When you separated yourselves from your wives, your 
 children, your fathers, and your friends, to conquer for your 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. n7 
 
 children, liberty, independence and prosperity, you abandon- 
 ed with alacrity and courage your cottages and your flocks. 
 This idea, " the God of our fathers is with us, and protects 
 us," gave you force to brave all the dangers and to despise the 
 fatigues of v/ar. You quitted with songs your mountains and 
 your valleys to enter into the field and defend the cause of li- 
 berty ai>d your country. The Alnnighty blessed your arms, 
 and heard the just wishes of a nation know^only by its rec- 
 titude, and which had armed for its liberty and independence. 
 Our enemies, our oppressors, the aoi-dinant Helvctick govern- 
 ment with its fecljle party have been chased almost to tlic 
 frontiers of the confederate cantons. But brothers and friends, 
 we have received a notification that if we did not by our con- 
 duct give proofs of an entire confidence in the first cons\4l of 
 the powerful nation of France, wlio has caused a declaration 
 to be made by his envoy general Rapp to our fathers assem- 
 bled at Schweitz, that he wishes to interpose as mediator in 
 the war which we are carrying on against the odious Helve, 
 tick government, we should be compelled to it by the victori- 
 ous arms of the French warriors. Brothers, friends, confede- 
 rates, who among us could conceive the thought of menacing 
 ourselves with the numerous and experienced armies of 
 France ? No, friends, no ; we wish to await peaceably the de- 
 termination of ^he fiist consul ; and with that order, that mo- 
 deration, and that discipline, which have hitherto guided your 
 flteps, you will receive, we are convinced, tlie orders of your 
 superiors, of your general ; and even, if it should be necessa- 
 ray, you will return to your residences, in order that our coun- 
 try may not be exhausted by the entrance of foreign troops ; 
 that we may not be deprived of the scanty harvest of this year, 
 which we hoped to consume with our children ; and that we 
 may not be plunged into indigence and misery. It is only the 
 Helvctick government, directed by its passions and its private 
 interest, that could call in the aid of foreign troops ; we, who 
 
288 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 took up arms only for our country and tranquillity, have no 
 need of troops to attain our object. But, relying on our con- 
 duct, we dare to hope, that the first consul of France, wha 
 has guaranteed our independence, and who has been deceived 
 by false reports, will as soon as he shall have been informed 
 of the true state of things take measures, which will secure 
 our honour, and the prosperity and independence of our coun- 
 try. May the Almighty deign to grant this, who has caused 
 us to make an important step towarks oui* future happiness, and 
 crowned our arms with benediction." 
 
 The French troops having entered Swit- 
 zerland, the league was dissolved, and the 
 new government reinstated in office. ...the can- 
 tons and principal towns were required to 
 send delegates to Paris to form a new consti- 
 tution, which was arranged under the imme- 
 diate inspection of the consul. 
 
 The peace between Great-Britain and 
 France was not destined to be of long 
 duration.... the rancour vv^hich was displayed 
 in the publick prints of both countries, and 
 the non-fulfillment of the conditions of that 
 treaty by the English ministry, manifested 
 that a rupture was not very distant. The de- 
 cision and firmness of Bonaparte during the 
 discussion in which the two governments 
 were involved previous to the commencement 
 of the present war, were a great contrast to 
 the wavering indeterminate spirit which fill- 
 ed the British councils. The contest com- 
 menced in May 1803, and it cannot be dis- 
 puted that Bonaparte is indebted for his pre- 
 sent preponderance to the regret which the 
 
■NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 289 
 
 British government felt, that they should have/ 
 acceded to the treaty, of Amiens. The threat 
 of invasion which Bonaparte had personally 
 delivered to lord Whitworth the English am- 
 bassador, roused the spirit of all ranks of 
 his countrymen, who prepared to resist the 
 attempt v/ith unanimous ardour. On the 
 other hand Bonaparte within a few days af- 
 ter the declaration of war, commanded Mor- 
 tier to take possession of the electorate of 
 Hanover, which with a slight opposition sub- 
 mitted to the French general. The English 
 captured a few of the West-India islands, ex- 
 cepting which the two nations continued iri 
 statu quo, the one raaking immense prepara- 
 tions under the pretext of invading Great- 
 Britain, and the other waiting the assault, 
 until the commencement of the late continen- 
 tal war, which was finished in the short space 
 of less than three months, including from Bo* 
 naparte's joining the army to the treaty of 
 Presburg. 
 
 To support the government which he had 
 formed, the consul established the legion of 
 honour, into which all ranks of people were 
 admitted whose talents and services had rais- 
 ed them to eminence in the republick. But 
 the most interesting event to Bonaparte indi- 
 vidually, which has occurred among the vi- 
 cissitudes of the present war was the con- 
 spiracy concerted by the English ministry and 
 which was to have be.en carried into effect 
 by Georges, Pichegru and others j that the 
 O a 
 
290 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 design was laudable none can allow but those 
 who consider " killing no murder:" the con- 
 sequence of its being discovered was the 
 death of the principals, and the appointment 
 of various punishments for those who assisted 
 in the scheme. ...Picnegru's fate excited much 
 commiseration, because his former ardour and 
 success in the republican cause had procured 
 him the respect and esteem of all those who 
 had existed during the terrifick scenes of the 
 tevolution....but his delinquency and prema- 
 ture death were absorbed in the louder sym- 
 j)athy which every tender heart indulged on 
 behalf of Moreau, that hero and patriot 
 whose name will adorn the history of France 
 and of the age, of whom every tongue 
 speaks with rapture, and whose character 
 every man contemplates with unalloyed de- 
 light: that he was guilty of any design to 
 disturb Bonaparte in the exalted station to 
 which he was raised is so preposterous ar^ 
 idea as to require no refutation : but his per* 
 sonal situation, and the state of the world at 
 that juncture, will justify the adoption of an 
 cpinion to which the general will fully assent, 
 that the generosity of his heart, the urbanity 
 of his temper, his politeness and the remem- 
 brance of his former intimacy with Piche- 
 gru combined, led him into a dilemma from 
 which he could not extricate himself, and 
 which forced him to submit to those painful 
 circumstances in which he was afterwards in- 
 volved, though his conduct can barely deserve 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPAHTE. 291 
 
 •St rmm , i T» i ,11., , — ■ ,- — ■i,,w.--*.»i I. ■ ,i.». M ■■ ■, ■,.. — ■^— .. . I II I. ■^« M P>j_— ii..,i. im j t 
 
 to be deemed an indiscretion ; Georges, Pi- 
 chegru, and about forty others were commit- 
 ted to the Temple, and a warrant was imme- 
 diately issued to apprehend Moreau. He was 
 arrested in his carriage on the 15th of Fe- 
 bruary, 1804, on the road from his country 
 seat Gros Bois, to Paris: when Moncey,' 
 who was accompanied by 50 gens d'armes, 
 ordered the coachman to stop, the general 
 looked out of the window, and with the ut- 
 most coolness requested his coachman to 
 drive him to the Abbey ; his servant replied 
 with indignation and warmth, " No, general, 
 they may conduct you there that will, not I ;'* 
 upon which he left the boK, and one of the 
 soldiers performed that duty. He continued 
 in the Abbey three days only, being removed 
 thence to the Temple, and it must be acknow- 
 ledged that his confinement was most unjus- 
 tifiably rigorous ; and here may it not be ask^ 
 ed, have any government the right to divest 
 a man of the tenderness and solace of his fa^ 
 mily and friends, even supposing him to be 
 guilty of the crimes v/ith which he is charge 
 ed, at the time when he most needs their at^ 
 tention ? but in this case the fact is indispu- 
 table, that the French government were pert 
 fectly convinced of Moreau's innocence, as 
 all civilized nations are at this moment. 
 
 On the 30th of May, 1804, after an im- 
 prisonment of more than three months, he 
 was arraigned and tried with the other state pri? 
 §Qnets,. Of tb^ advocate § whp offered tQ 
 
592 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 plead for him, he accepted the services of 
 Chaveaux Lagarde, a man of uncommon elor 
 qiience. The curiosity and anxiety of the 
 pubhc were so strongly excited, that the 
 doors of the palace of justice were crowded 
 by break of day, and the neighbouring streets 
 filled with persons eager to hear the tri^l....he 
 was dressed in the clothes which he wore at 
 the battle of Hohenlinden. The indictments 
 were read ; the crimes alledged against him 
 were: Not having denounced Pichegru in 
 the year 5, at the detection of his criminality 
 ,...a reconciliation and culpable relation with 
 Pichegru in England, through the agency of 
 David and Lajolais... .having engaged to es- 
 tablish the princes of the house of Bourbon 
 upon the throne of France. ...having had inter- 
 views with Pichegru at Paris, and rejected 
 certain overtures, but substituted others 
 which had for their object the overthrow of 
 the consular government. ...and of not having 
 denounced the conspiracy. 
 
 Plis counsel most ably defended him against 
 these several charges, proving their futility 
 and absurdity: whilst he was arguing the im- 
 propriety of introducing the first allegation 
 against him, Moreau interposed and said, " If 
 *' I erred, it was an error against the directo- 
 " ry, which has since been suffiiciently expi- 
 " ated by my having gained thirty battles and 
 " saved two armies." Lagarde having con- 
 cluded his defence, a profound silence pre- 
 vailed for several minutes, when the general 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. ?-92 
 
 rose with all the firmness of conscious inno- 
 cence, and delivered that exquisite address to 
 the court, which is infinitely superior to all 
 eulogy :.... 
 
 " Gentlemen, 
 
 " In presenting myself before you, I have to beg that you 
 will favour me -with a personal hearing for a few minutes. My 
 confidence in the counsel whom I have retained is unbound- 
 ed ; to them I resigned without reserve, the defence of my 
 innocence ; and through their medium alone did I wish to ad- 
 dress the court ; but my feelings tell me I must now my- 
 self say something to you and to the nation. 
 
 " Some events in the life of the most virtuous men living 
 maybe obscured by unfortunate circumstances, effected either 
 by chance or by malevolence. Finesse and artifice may do 
 away suspicion from a criminal, and may seem to prove his 
 innocence ; but the surest way to judge an impeached man is 
 by the general tcnour of his conduct through life. In this way 
 then, I shall speak to my persecutors. My actions liave been 
 publick enough I conceive, to be well known. I shall call to 
 your recollection but a lev/ of them ; and the witnesses whom I 
 desire to bring forward on this occasion are the French peo- 
 ple themselves, and the nations whom France has conquered. 
 
 " At the commencement of the revolution, which was to 
 establish our independence, I v/as devoted to the study of the 
 law ; but the scene was now changed, and I became a soldier,' 
 It was not from motives of ambition that I enrolled my name, 
 among the defenders of liberty. I engaged in the profession 
 of arms to defend the rights of the nation, and became a war- 
 I'ior because I felt myself a citizen. This character I carried 
 with me into the ranks, and I preserved it free from blemish. 
 The more I became enraptured with independence, the more 
 xeadily I submited to discipline. 
 
594 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 " My promotion, though rapid, was not procured by fawn- 
 ing to the committees, and by overleaping the customary- 
 grades. It was the gradual reward of services rendered to my 
 country. When I obtained the chief command, when victory 
 prepared our way through hostile nations, my principal care 
 was to impress on them respect for the character of the 
 French people and a dread of their power. War, under my 
 direction, was a scourge only in tlie field of battle. This, our 
 enemies in the midst of their ravaged plains, have done me 
 the justice to acknowledge ; which perhaps, has been of 
 n^ore use to the nation than victory itself, 
 
 *' Such a line of conduct, at a time when contrary maxim* 
 seemed prevalent in the committees of the government, never 
 once exposed me to the persecution or calumny of either par- 
 ty. Previous to the lOth of Fructidor, no cloud had arisen to 
 obscure the laurels which I had won. The most active of 
 those who v.'ere employed in the events of that too memorable 
 day reproached me with tardiness in denouncing a man whora 
 I regarded as a brother in arms, as long as by the evidence 
 of facts I was not fully convinced that he was unjustly accus- 
 ed. The directory, to whom alone the particulars of my cpn- 
 duct were sufficiently known to draw conclusions from them, 
 and who, it is well known, were not much inclined to indul?- 
 gence, loudly proclaimed me free from fault. They again em- 
 ployed me in the field ; not indeed in a very brilliant capg,- 
 city, but in one which soon became ostensible. 
 
 " The nation, I dare presume, has not yet forgotten how 
 faithfully I discharged the trust reposed in me. It has not 
 forgotten with how much readiness I took a subordinate com- 
 mand in Italy, and conquered my feelings upon the occasion. 
 It has not forgotten that I was re-established in the chief com-? 
 inand by the ill success of our armies, and that I was again 
 made a general, in consequence of our misfortunes. It undoubt? 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 295 
 
 edly remembers that I twice supplied the wants of the army 
 trith the spoils of the vanquished, and that after having twice 
 placed it in a condition to cope with the Russians and Austriansj 
 I twice resigned the command of it, to take another of much 
 greater responsibility. 
 
 " At that period of my life I was not a more determined re- 
 publican than I had been before, but I appeared so by becom- 
 ing more conspicuous. On me alone the notice and confidence 
 of such as could at pleasure give the government that bias which 
 they pleasird, seemed to be entirely placed. They proposed 
 to me as it is very well known to become the head of a popular 
 commotion similar to that of the 18th Brumaire ; so that my 
 ambition, had it aspired much, could have easily clothed it- 
 self in all the appearances, nay even in the glory of the most 
 refined sentiments of patriotism. 
 
 " The proposals were made to me by characters who stood 
 very high in the annals of the revolution, as ardent lovers of 
 their country, and as men of eminent talents in our national 
 assemblies. Their offers however, I disdained to embrace; 
 for although I felt myself adequate to the task of commanding 
 the armies of the republick, I had no wish to command the 
 republick itself. 
 
 " I was at Paris on the 1 8th of Brumaire, ftnd that revolu- 
 tionary epoch which had been brought about by others, and to 
 which I was a total stranger, could not in the least alarm my 
 conscience. As it Was directed by a man whose fame was 
 emblazoned in the most brilliant characters, it had naturally 
 brought my mind to hope for favourable results, and I there- 
 fore seconded his endeavours to the utmost of my power ; al- 
 though opposite parties v/ere eagerly soliciting me to avow 
 myself his opponent. I obeyed the orders of Bonaparte at 
 Paris, and by so doing I assisted in raising him to that de- 
 gree of power which circumaVaAces seemed to jusiify. 
 
295 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 " Some time after, when he offered me the chief command 
 of the army on the Rhine, I accepted it from him with as 
 much devotioh as if it had been giveii me by the republick. 
 Never were my mihtary successes more rapid, more nume- 
 rous, or more decisive, than at that period ; the splendour of 
 which was reflected on tlie government by which I am now 
 accused. 
 
 '^ Wlien I returned from the scene of so many triumphs, 
 the chief advantage of whicli was the estabhshment of a conti- 
 nental peace my journey was cheered in every quarter by- 
 shouts of national gratitude. 
 
 « Was this then a moment to become a traitof, even if my 
 mind had been capable of entertaining such a design ! No one 
 is insensible of the attachment which armies have to favoui'ite 
 leaders who have led them to victory. Suppose one of these 
 were an ambitious traitor, would he not have taken advantage 
 of the time when he had an hundred thousand victorious 
 troops at his disposal to execute his projects, instead of re- 
 turning to the bosom of a nation still in a state of ferment, 
 and uncertain as to the form and duration of its political ex- 
 istence ? 
 
 " My only wish was to disband the army, and bury myself 
 in the retreats of civil life. 
 
 " In that repose, which I am far from thinking inglorious, 
 I certainly preserved my honour, of which no human power 
 can ever deprive me. I enjoyed the remembrance of my past 
 actions, the testimonies of my conscience, the esteem of my 
 fellow-citizens and foreigners, and I dare presume the voice 
 of posterity will declare the uprightness of my conduct. 
 
 " I was in possession of a fortune which could be tliought 
 great only as my desires were moderate, and my consci- 
 ence could not accuse me of having acquii'ed it unfairly. I 
 fully enjoyed the emoluments granted me on my retreat from 
 the army. I was indeed content with my lot, for I never en- 
 vied the lot of any man living. I was surrounded by friends, 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 29 
 
 who had no more to expect from my credit and fortune, but 
 who still adhered to me from motives of personal attachment. 
 My mind was so completely occupied by these blessings the 
 only ones which I was ever enabled to value highlyj that no 
 ambitious desire could possibly intrude. How then should it 
 be suddenly open to criminal designs ? 
 
 " So well was my way of thinking known, so totally di- 
 verted wei-e my ideas from the paths of ambition, that from 
 the victory of Hohenlihden to the day of my alTest, no one 
 could accuse me of any other crime than that of talking free- 
 ly, and indeed my conversation was often favourable to the 
 measures of government. But if by accident it were not al- 
 v/ays so, how could I imagine that to be a crime in a nation 
 which had so often decreed the liberty of thought and speech, 
 and which even under its kings had so fully enjoyed that pri- 
 vilege ! 
 
 *' I must confess that as I was born with an openness of 
 disposition which characterises the country in which I first 
 drew breath, I could not easily lose it in camps where every 
 thing conspires to heighten its effects or in a revolution, 
 where it was so often extolled as a virtue in individuals, and 
 recommended as a duty to citizens at large. But do conspi- 
 tators talk loudly on matters which they disapprove ? Can can- 
 dour and fair dealing be connected with the mysterious and 
 dark machinations of intriguing men ? 
 
 " If I had v/is'hed to carry any secret plans into execution, 
 I should have dissembled rny real sentiments, and courted an 
 employment which v/ould have given me the command of the 
 national forces. I had instances enough of success in under- 
 takings of such a nature, to miake me sanguine. I knew that 
 Monk, in the execution of his designs, did not withdraw from 
 the reach of his army, and that Brutus and Cassius approach- 
 ed the heart of Cssar only to pierce it. 
 
 P P. 
 
S58 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 " Mat^istrates, 1 have nothing more to say. Such has beeii 
 my character, and such my conduct through life. I solemnly 
 call heaven and earth to witness the innocence and integrity of 
 jny intentions. You know your duty. France awaits your 
 decision ; Europe contemplates your proceedings ; arid poste- 
 rity will determine the propriety of your judgment." 
 
 The general was adjudged to be imprison- 
 ed for two years, which sentence was com- 
 muted to retirement from France : he chose 
 the land of liberty as his future abode, and 
 arrived in the United States on the twenty -fifth 
 of August 1805 : although secluded from the 
 world he is not forgotten ; and all those sen-* 
 timents of respect and admiration which can 
 inflame the heart, are still, and always will 
 \>e predominant in every bosom, when his 
 virtues, talents and excellence are contem- 
 plated. 
 
 On the ninth of June Madame de Polignac 
 waited upon the emperor at St. Cloud, and 
 in all the agony of distress importunately sup- 
 plicated him for the pardon of her husband. 
 She ha.d been from six in the morning with 
 the empress, who in the kindest and most af- 
 fectionate manner, had not only supported and 
 encouraged her, but had contrived the means 
 of an interview with the emperor. The em- 
 peror regarded her with attention, and seem- 
 ed to be very much moved by her attitude and 
 tears. '' 1 am astonished^" said his imperi- 
 al majesty, " that monsieur de Polignac,- 
 whom I remember as the companion of mj 
 youth at the military school, should have en- 
 
NA , E. 29§» 
 
 gaged in such an odious transaction. But 
 as the attempt was made against my own Hfe, 
 I may be justified in pardoning him ; and I 
 pardon him accordingly." On the eleventh 
 of June, the sister and aunt of Monsieur dc 
 Riviere went to St. Cloud, to implore the 
 clemency of the emperor in favour of their 
 unhappy relative condemned to death. The 
 emperor granted to the tears of his family 
 the pardon w^hich it solicited : and on the 
 following day Mademoiselle Lajolais went 
 alone to express her despair to Madame 
 Louis Bonaparte. Her imperial highness 
 received her with that goodness of heart of 
 which the empress had given such an aifect- 
 ing example. She conducted the weeping 
 girl immediately to St. Cloud. Her tears and 
 supplications obtained the pardon of her fa- 
 ther. When his majesty observed that this 
 was the second time her father had been guil- 
 ty of a crime against the state, " Sire," replied 
 Mademoiselle Lajolais, in the accents of in- 
 genuousness, her voice interrupted with sobs 
 and tears...." The first time, my father was 
 without doubt innocent, but now I suppli- 
 cate of you his pardon." The pardon of M, 
 Bouvet de Lozier was granted the same day 
 to Mademoiselle Bouvet his sister, under the 
 auspices of the princess Murat. 
 
 Whilst these trials were pending, the duke 
 d'Enghien was seized in the territories of 
 the margrave of Baden by a body of French 
 troops who had been dispatched for that 
 
300 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 purpose, and conducted to Paris. At the tem- 
 ple they found an order to proceed to Vincen- 
 nes, where a mihtary commission was as-^ 
 sembled to try him. ...this farce hke most 
 other mihtary examinations, for they can sel- 
 dom be dii>;nilied with the name of a fair im- 
 partial scrutiny being ended, he was sen- 
 tenced to death. The castle clock having 
 struck two, the drum beat to arms, as a sig- 
 nal for the execution ; he was led to the great 
 oak of St. Louis by the light of torches, and 
 encountered death with undismayed fortitude. 
 That the duke was a very active member of the 
 conspiracy which was atthat crisis formed to as- 
 sassinate Bonaparte, and consequently to over- 
 throw the existing government will not admit 
 of a doubt ; but that the means which the consul 
 used to secure him, and the premature death 
 which he suffered were in any respect consist- 
 ent either with the law of nations, or with that 
 justice which is due to every man, it would be 
 extremely difficult to demonstrate : although 
 blood demands blood, and the conspiring to 
 kill another is part of the crime of murder, 
 yet human life must not be lightly sacrificed ; 
 the clearest evidence of the fact should be 
 made indispensably requisite, and the punish™ 
 ment of death ought not to be inflicted, but 
 after the most serious research ; which seems 
 hardly possible in those temporary courts of 
 military men, who are judges and jury both, 
 and who certainly never ought to be allowed 
 to award a sentence of death without the 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 801 
 
 approbation of twelve others of their coun- 
 trymen, solemnly delivered after the usual 
 patient investigation of a court of justice. 
 
 On the first of May 1804, the tribunate 
 decreed, " That the government pf the re- 
 publick should be intrusted to an emperor, 
 and that the office should be hereditary in 
 the family of Napoleon Bonaparte." The 
 senate decreed and published the new consti- 
 tution on the eleventh : and on the twentieth, 
 he was proclaimed " Emperor of the 
 French*" 
 
Bonaparte exalted to the Imperial dignity^ 
 
 IMMEDIATELY after the consul was 
 proclaimed emperor of the French, every me-^ 
 thod was adopted to give stability to the new 
 form of government ; all the splendour and 
 appendages of royalty, the etiquette of courts, 
 and the magnificence of its ofiicers were 
 introduced without delay, and to perpetuate 
 the important events of which Bonaparte had 
 been the principal mover, a new festival 
 was appointed, his birth-day, which has 
 been constantly celebrated on its annual re- 
 turn with the most unbounded pomp. - 
 
 The ceremony of his coronation was splend^ 
 id beyond all conception ; to authorize and 
 sanction his imperial dignity, the Pope was 
 requested to visit Paris, and to be present at 
 his formal elevation to the first rank among 
 the monarchs of Europe. ...it was solemnized 
 on Frimaire 1 1th, Sunday December second 
 1804: the coronation ornaments of Charle- 
 magne were born before him in his proces-- 
 sion to the church of Notre Dame. He en^ 
 
THE HISTORY OF NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 503 
 
 tered the cathedral with the crown placed 
 previously upon his head by himself : the 
 horses which drew the emperor's coach belong- 
 ed formerly to the king of England at Hano- 
 ver. At the moment their majesties entered 
 the porch, .the Pope descended from the 
 throne, and advancing to the altar, sang Veni 
 Creator ! The emperor and the empress offer- 
 ed prayers upon their cushions ; his holiness 
 bestowed a triple unction on the head of the 
 one, and on the two hands of the other. 
 He then performed mass ; after the mass, 
 the Pope read prayers separately over both 
 crowns, the sceptre, the sword, and the 
 hand of justice. When all these were conse- 
 crated, Bonaparte replaced them, and him- 
 self crowned the empress. The Pope fol- 
 lowed the emperor to the throne, where, af- 
 ter kissing him on the cheek, he cried aloud 
 to the audience, " Fivat Imperator in ceter- 
 num /" After the elevation of the host, and 
 the Agnus Dei, Bonaparte, with the crown 
 upon his head, and his hand upon the gos- 
 pel, pronounced the oath ; when, the chief 
 Herald at arms proclaimed, in a loud tone of 
 voice : " The most glorious and most august 
 emperor Napoleon, emperor of the French, 
 is crowned ! Long live the emperor !" 
 
 Aware of the popularity, which would ne- 
 cessarily arise to him from a repetition of that 
 measure which when Consul had so material- 
 ly exalted his character, under the impressi- 
 on of his moderation and love of peace ; he re- 
 
304 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 solved to make another attempt to dissipate 
 the clouds which portended the most fearful 
 effects to the two contending nations. With 
 this view he dispatched a letter written by 
 himself to the king of England, and defying 
 the narrow policy which demands a formality 
 not useless only, but also pernicious, he ar- 
 gues like a man who coiild lose nothing by 
 war, but to whom the comfort of those 
 whom he governed was an object supremely 
 interesting to his heart : the answer which 
 was returned by the British minister was un- 
 satisfactory, unmeaning, and evasive. As a 
 correspondence between these dignified per- 
 sonages, is a very rare occurrence, the letters 
 are too valuable to be omitted. 
 
 xetter from the emperor to the king of england. 
 " Sire my brother, 
 
 " Called to the throne of France by Providence, by the suf- 
 frages of the Senate, the people and the army, my first sen- 
 timent is the wish of peace. France and England are destroy- 
 ing their prosperity ; they may contend for ages. But their 
 governments, do they fulfill faithfully the most sacred of their 
 duties ? And so much blood shed unnecessarily and without 
 any prospect of an end, does it not accuse them in their own 
 consciences ? — I attach no dishonour to making the first step. 
 I hav€ siifBciently I think, proved to the world that I fear 
 not any of the chances of war ; it offers me nothing of which 
 I ought to be afraid. Peace is the wish of my heart ; but 
 war has never been adverse to my glory. I conjure your ma- 
 jesty not to refuse to yourself the happiness of giving peace to 
 the \Yoxld ; let not this sweet satisfaction be left to your chil- 
 dren. For in short, there never existed a fairer opportunity, 
 ©r a more favourable moment, to put an end to all the passi- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. SOS 
 
 ons, and to listen only to the sentiments of humanity and of 
 reason. This moment once lost, what term of duration can 
 be assig;ned to a war which all my efforts shall have been un- 
 able to bring to a close ? Your majesty has gained more in 
 territory and in riches during the last ten years, than the 
 whole extent of Europe ; your nation is at the highest pitch 
 of prosperity. What is she to expect from war ? To coalesce 
 some of the powers of the continent ? The continent will re- 
 main tranquil. A coalition would only increase the preponde- 
 rance and continental grandeur of France. To renew the 
 troubles in the interior ? The times are no longer the same- 
 To destroy our finances ? Finances founded upon a good 
 agriculture can never be destroyed. To deprive France of her 
 colonies ? The colonies are with France a secondary object 
 only ; and does not your majesty possess already more thati 
 you can maintain ? If your majesty will think seriously, you 
 will perceive that the war is without an object, and without 
 any presumeable result. Alas 1 what a melancholy prospect, 
 to make men fight for the sake of fighting ! The world is 
 large enough for our two nations to live in, and reason is suf- 
 ficiently powerful to find out the means of reconciliation if a 
 suitable disposition to be reconciled exist on both sides. I 
 have meanwhile fulfilled a duty holy and precious to my heart. 
 May your majesty believe in the sincerity of the sentiments 
 which I have just expressed to you, and in my desire of giv- 
 ing you proofs of it. 
 
 Paris, \2thjVivose, year 13, Jan. 2, 1805. 
 
 »' BONAPARTE." 
 
 LETTER 
 
 From Lord MuLGRAVE to his cxcellmcyM.de Talletrand^ 
 minister of foreign affairs . 
 " His majesty has received the letter which has been ad- 
 dressed to him by the chief of the French government, dated 
 the second of the present month. 
 
306 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 " There is no object which his majesty has more at heart 
 than to seize the first opportunity of procuring anew to his 
 subjects the advantages of a peace founded on a basis not in* 
 compatible with the permanent security and the essential in- 
 terests of his states. His majesty is persuaded that this object 
 cannot be obtained but by arrangements which must at the 
 same time provide for the future safety and tranquillity of Eu- 
 rope, and to prevent the renewal of those dangers and misfor- 
 tunes by which she has found herself surrounded. 
 
 " Conformably to this sentiment, his majesty feels it impos- 
 sible to reply more particularly to the overture which has been 
 made to him, until he has had time to communicate with those 
 powers of the continent with whom he is engaged in confiden* 
 tial intercourse and connection, and especially with the empe- 
 I'or of Russia, who has given the strongest proofs of the wise 
 and dignified sentiments with which he is animated, and of 
 the lively interest he takes in the safety and independence of 
 Europe. 
 
 « MULGRAVE." 
 
 Doivning'Street, lith January, 1805. 
 
 A short time only had elapsed after this 
 overture for peace was made, previous to the 
 attendance of a large deputation from the le- 
 gislative body at the French court, and who 
 with the customary forms through the medium 
 of their president Fontaines, delivered their 
 address, to which the French emperor replied* 
 
 Gentlemen deputies from the legislative body, 
 « When I resolved to write to the king of England, I made 
 a sacrifice of the most dutiful sentiments, and the purest mo- 
 tives. I was influenced by a desire to spare the blood of my 
 people. I shall always be ready to make the same sacrifices : 
 ily fame, toy happiness, I have placed in the welfare of the 
 present geijeration. I was desirous, as far as lay in my powf 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE." 30/ 
 
 er, lo render philanthropick and magnanimous ideas, the pre- 
 valent ones of the present age. It belongs to me, whoses 
 sentiments cannot be ascribed to weakness, it belongs to us, 
 to the most humane, the most enlightened, and most benevo- 
 lent people, to remind the nations of Europe, that they make 
 together but one family, and every undertaking which they ex- 
 ecute in their civil divisions, militates against the general war-? 
 fare. Gentlemen of the legislative body, I depend upon your 
 assistance, as well as upon the valour of my army." 
 
 On the eighteenth of March, the members 
 of the consuha visited Bonaparte at the 
 Thuilleries, who received them on his throne> 
 in the presence of the princes, and the great 
 officers of state. The vice-president Mr, 
 Melzi briefly addressed him, and then read 
 to him the resolutions of the consuka, where- 
 by he was declared king of Italy with the 
 throne hereditary in his male descendents ; 
 but that the two crowns could be united irE 
 his person only, as no future emperor o£ 
 France could be king of Italy : to this they 
 added the right to appoint his successor and 
 even to resign his crown whilst living ; and 
 requested his acceptance of the new dignity. 
 To their wish he consented, remarking 
 ^^ That he would keep the crown until he 
 '^ should be able to transfer it to a younger 
 " person who would continue his work, and 
 *' be ready to sacrifice his life to the happi- 
 " ness of the people over whom providence, 
 *^ the constitution, and his wiU should call 
 ^* him to reign, "^ 
 
SGg THE HISTORY OF 
 
 The following note was received by Mr. 
 Livingston the American ambassador a short 
 time previous to his departure from Paris, and 
 was addressed to him by the emperor's order : 
 
 « Paris^ Aliril 1805. 
 *' I have thought it would be particularly agreeable to you, 
 to be able to encourage in your own country a taste for the 
 arts, and with this view I have the honour to send you a col- 
 lection of the old and new Calcography of the fathers and bro- 
 thers Piranisi. These engraved and coloured designs will be 
 advantageously placed in the museum of New York, and will 
 moreover demonstrate the intei-est with which you have inspir- 
 ed us for whatever may contribute to the instruction and ac- 
 complishment of your young countrymen. 
 
 " I intreat you, Sir, to accept the assurances of my high 
 
 consideration. 
 
 « C. M. TALLEYRAND." 
 
 This valuable collection which Mr. Li- 
 vingston brought with him to the United 
 States consisted of 24 folio volumes of prints, 
 with several port folios, containing copies in 
 oil and water colours from Raphael and from 
 Antiques, views of Constantinople, Cairo, 
 &c. &:c. 
 
 The coronation of the emperor as king of Ita- 
 ly was performed in Milan on the twenty-third 
 of May, with every degree of brilliancy ; 
 the presence of the principal officers of the 
 French court increasing the effect which it 
 was intended to produce : the trappings of 
 monarchy were instantaneously added.... the 
 great state officers were appointed with pro- 
 fuse salaries, and the whole regime definitive- 
 ly established. 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. S»» 
 
 The French and Russian courts had been, 
 negociating during the whole year, thereby 
 to avert the war with which the British go- 
 vernment were endeavouring to inflame the 
 European continent ; but their discussions, 
 were closed on the tenth of July ; the Russian, 
 minister being ordered to return to Peters-, 
 burg, although he had arrived at Berlin on 
 his way to Paris. During the whole year 
 large bodies of troops had been collecting by 
 France and Austria.. ..the former stationed in 
 June 25,000 men near Marengo ; 32.000 in 
 Lombardy and Mantua, 12,000 in Piedmont, 
 16,000 in the kingdom of Naples, 20,000 in 
 Genoa, Tuscany, and the Papal dominions ; 
 besides 15,000 Italian regulars: the troops 
 of the latter amounted to 60,000 men in Ty^ 
 xol and the Venetian states, whilst the Rus- 
 sians and English formed a body of 20,000 
 in the Mediterranean. 
 
 About the latter end of August, the war- 
 like preparations on the part of Russia and 
 Austria were so evident that Bonaparte vi- 
 sited Boulogne to direct the march of the 
 soldiers from the coast to the Rhine : thirty 
 thousand fresh troops were likevv'ise ordered 
 to be immediately raised, and the army of re-, 
 serve was directed to actual service. 
 
 The Austrian army was increased to 
 100,000 men encamped at Wels : on the 
 fourth of September general Mack was ap- 
 pointed commander in Germany, the Arch-? 
 ^uke Charles in Italy and Tyrol, and the, 
 
310 THE HISTORY OT 
 
 Arch-duke Ferdinand to the army of the Vo- 
 ralberg. 
 
 That short but unparallelled campaign 
 was begun by the Austrians, who on the se- 
 venth of September, crossed the Inn at 
 Burhausen in two colums ; one column ar- 
 rived on the tenth at Landshut, the other 
 inarched towards Munich. The Austrians 
 after crossing the Inn, took possession of 
 nearly the whole of Bavaria, and garrisoned 
 all the principal cities on the Danube.... the 
 Bavarian troops immediately retired to Wurtz- 
 burg, whither the elector had retired with 
 his court and the whole army was assembled 
 in that city. 
 
 The commencement of hostilities by the 
 Austrians produced increased exertions on 
 the part of the French government, so that 
 in less than a month, the encampment at Bou- 
 logne which had been formed for the alledg- 
 ed purpose of invading England disappear- 
 ed, and the whole army in that interval 
 inarched through the kingdom, and arrived 
 with all their military stores, equipage, &c, 
 on the Rhine, where Bonaparte assumed the 
 command. Massena was appointed command- 
 er in chief in Italy : he arrived at the head- 
 quarters Valeggio, on the 10th Fructidor, 
 August twenty-seventh : having examined 
 the fortifications of Mantua and declared 
 them impregnable, he waited for the com- 
 mencement of hostilities with his whole force 
 stationed along the Adige. The grand army 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 3H 
 
 having reached Strasburg, Bonaparte pre- 
 pared to join them : previous to his depar- 
 ture he assembled the senate, and deUvered 
 the following address : 
 
 . Senators : 
 
 « In the present circumstances of Europe, I feel the neces- 
 sity of appearing in the midst of you, and of making known 
 to you my sentiments. 
 
 « I am about to quit my capital to put myself at the head 
 of my army, to carry a speedy succour to my allies and to de- 
 fend the dearest interests of my people. 
 
 " The wishes of the eternal enemies of the continent are 
 accomplished; war has begun in the heart of Germany. 
 Austria and Russia have united with England, and our gene- 
 ration is drawn anew into the calamities of war. A few 
 days ago, I still hoped that peace would not be distui-bed ; 
 menaces and outrages found me impassible ; but the Austri- 
 an army has crossed the Inn, Munich is invaded, the Elect- 
 or of Bavaria is driven out of his capital ; and all my hopes 
 are vanished. 
 
 " It is at this instant that the wickedness of the enemies of 
 the continent has unveiled itself. They wei'e yet apprehen- 
 sive of the manifestation of my profound love of peace ; they 
 were apprehensive lest Austria, at the sight of the abyss which 
 they have dug under her footsteps, should return to sentiments 
 of justice and moderation ; they have hurxned her into war. 
 I am grieved at the blood which it will cost Europe ; but the 
 French name will obtain new lustre from it. 
 
 " Senators, when at your desire, at the voice of the whole 
 French people, I set the imperial crown upon my head, I re- 
 ceived from you, from every citizen, the engagement to 
 maintain it pure and unsullied. My people have given me in 
 every circumstance, proofs of their confidence and thtir love. 
 
!12 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 They -vvill fly under the colours of the emperor and of his ar- 
 my, which in a few days will have passed the frontiers. 
 
 " Magistrates, soldiers, and citizens, all wish to maintain, 
 the country free from the influence of England, who, if she 
 prevailed, would grant to us a peace characterized by ignominy 
 and shame only, and the principal conditions of which would 
 be the burning of our fleets, the filling up of our ports and 
 the annihilation of our industry. 
 
 " All the promises which I have made to the French people I 
 have kept. The French people, in their turn, have made no 
 engagement with me which they have not surpassed. In this 
 circumstance so important for their glory and mine, they will 
 continue to merit that name of great people, with which I sa- 
 luted them in the midst of the field of battle, 
 
 " Frenchmen, your emperor will do his duty, my soldiers 
 will do theirs, you will do yours." 
 
 Bonaparte left Paris on the twenty-fifth of 
 September, on the same day that the French be- 
 gan to cross the Rhine. At this juncture the 
 contending armies were thus situated. The 
 Austrian hne extended from the borders of 
 Hungary to Switzerland, including Italy and 
 Bavaria, with a body of reserve in Bohemia. 
 The whole amounted to 200,000 men, 70,000 
 of which were to act in Italy, and the re- 
 mainder against Bonaparte. The Russians 
 amounted to 110,000 men in Galiicia, who 
 v/ere divided into two corps and were march- 
 ing with all speed to form a junction w-ith the 
 Austrians. The French troops were stated 
 at 140,000 men, under the immediate directi- 
 on of Bonaparte, and 70,000 commanded by 
 Massena in Italy. The Austrians hastened 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 
 
 through Bavaria to oppose the progress of 
 the French army v/hich had crossed the 
 Rhine, and who were aided by the co-opera- 
 tion of the elector of Bavaria, the duke of 
 Wirtemberg, and the margrave of Baden, 
 
 Previous to the commencement of mihtary 
 operations, Bonaparte issued this proclama- 
 tion :.... 
 
 Soldiers ! ^^.. 
 
 « The war of the third coalition has begun.... the Austrian 
 army has passed the Inn, violated treaties, and has attacked 
 and driven our ally from his capital. You yourselves have 
 been compelled to advance by forced maixhes to the defence 
 of our frontiers. Already you have passed the Rhine. We 
 will not stop until we have secured the independence of the 
 Germanick body, assisted our allies, and confounded the pride 
 of unjust aggressors. We will not again make peace v/ithout 
 a sufficient guarantee. Our policy shall no more give way to 
 our generosity. 
 
 " Soldiers I Your emperor is in the midst of you ; you are 
 ^.the advanced guard only of a great people. If it should be 
 necessary they will all arise at my voice to confound and dis- 
 solve this new league, which has been formed by the hatred 
 and the gold of England. 
 
 '' But Soldiers, we shall have forced marches to make, fa- 
 tigues and privations of every kind to endure. Whatever ob- 
 stacles may be opposed to us, we will overcome them, and we 
 will take no rest until we have planted our eagles on the ter- 
 ritory of our allies. 
 
 « NAPOLEON." 
 
 Immediately after the French army had, 
 crossed the Rhine, its different divisions ad- 
 vanced with the utmost rapidity into Suabia 
 R R 
 
314 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 and the heart of Germany. On the 14th 
 Vendemiaire, October sixth, Souh's division 
 by a forced march arrived at Donawerth, and 
 after a shght skirmish with a body of Austri- 
 ans took possession of the bridge over the 
 Wernitz....Murat the next morning, arrived 
 with his dragoons, hastened to the Lech, 
 charged the Austrians who were stationed to 
 defend the passage of that river, forced 
 them to retreat, and secured the bridge. 
 Souh with his corps continued their march 
 towards Augsburg, whilst St. Hilaire ap- 
 proached that city on the opposite bank. On 
 the 16th, eighth, Murat with a squadron of 
 cavalry proceeded to cut off the road between 
 Ulm and Augsburg : on arriving at Wertin- 
 gen, they were opposed by a corps of Au- 
 strian infantry.... Murat instantly surrounded 
 the whole body, and being soon after joined 
 by Lasnes, who accompanied the cavalry in 
 their march, an engagement commenced 
 which continued two hours, and ended in the 
 capture of the whole corps, 4,000 privates, 
 the colours, cannon, baggage, and the grea- 
 ter part of the officers. Col. Maupelet, who 
 began the attack at Wertingen, was mortally- 
 wounded during the action.. ..dying, he utter- 
 ed this encomium upon the regiment which 
 he commanded: " Let the emperor be in- 
 " formed that the ninth regiment of dragoons 
 " proved itself worthy of the reputation 
 " which it has acquired ; that it attacked and 
 " conquered amidst the cries of ^ Long live 
 I' the Emperor." 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 315 
 
 On the twelfth of October, Bonaparte 
 wrote to the prefect and the other officers of 
 the city of Paris :.... 
 
 " Messieurs the Prefect and Mayors of our good city of PariSf 
 " Our troops having at the battle of Wertingen defeated 
 twelve battalions of grenadiers, with the flower of the Austri- 
 an cavalry, all their artillery remaining in our hands, as also 
 a great number of prisoners and eight stand of colours, we 
 have resolved to make a present of the colours to our good ci- 
 ty of Paris, and of two pieces of cannon to remain at the Ho- 
 tel de Ville. We desire that our good city of Paris recog- 
 nise in this memorial and token the love that we bear her, 
 which will be so much the more precious to her as it was her 
 governor who commanded our troops at the battle of Wertin- 
 gen. This letter having no other object, we pray God to take 
 you into his holy keeping." 
 
 Soult entered Augsburg on the 17th, ninth, 
 Davoust entered Neuberg, Bernadotte was 
 posted at Ingolstadt, and Murat stationed 
 himself at Zusmerhausen, where he was 
 soon after joined by Lasnes and his corps : 
 here Bonaparte reviewed the dragoons. One 
 of the dragoons named Marente was present- 
 ed to him as a brave man who at the crossing 
 of the Lech had saved the life of his captain, 
 although he had on the day before deprived 
 him of his commission; the courage and 
 magnanimity which this act displayed, induc- 
 ed Bonaparte to present him with the Eagle of 
 the legion of Honour.. ..upon which Marente 
 replied, " I did nothing more than my duty...,, 
 my captain disgraced me for neglect of dis.- 
 cipline, but he knows that I have always becB 
 a good soldier." 
 
316 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 The vv^hole of the army continued upon a ^ 
 forced march during these events ; Bonaparte 
 himself was their example ; to him night and 
 day were similar ; wherever his presence was 
 needful he was instantaneously to be found ; 
 he rode forty miles daily, and unattended re- 
 posed in the meanest accommodations. 
 
 The rapidity with which Bonaparte exe- 
 cuted his design, reflects great credit on him 
 in his military capacity. His object was to 
 destroy the Austrian army previous to its 
 junction widi the Russians, v/ho were repre- 
 sented to be on their march with all possible 
 expedition to unite with general Mack, whose 
 forces were concentrated at Ulm, and with 
 the exception of 15,000 men under prince 
 Ferdinand, who had been detached towards 
 Bohemia, commanded the whole of the army 
 destined to act in Germany. On the day af- 
 ter the battle at Wertingen, the armies en- 
 countered each other at Gunzburgh ; the con- 
 test was exceedingly obstinate ; the Austrians 
 made a very vigorous resistance on the bridge, 
 but it was carried by the French, and six 
 pieces of cannon taken; the loss of the Aus- 
 trians amounted to 2/500 men, of whom 1,200 
 were prisoners. 
 
 When Marmont's army crossed the Lech, 
 Bonaparte was present ; he desired each re- 
 giment to form in a circle, and then address- 
 ed them on the situation of the Austrians, 
 the approach of a general engagement, and 
 expressed unbounded confidence in their bra- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. Sir 
 
 very. Although there was a heavy fall of 
 snow at the time, the roads knee deep in 
 mud, and the weather extremely cold, the 
 army evinced the ardour which had before 
 distinguished them, and by their animation 
 presaged the victory which was to follow. 
 These various movements of the French 
 troops, which rendered their situation almost 
 inexpugnable ; entirely severed the commu- 
 nication of the Austrian army, and left them 
 insulated in a small district from which there 
 V\^as no escape but by forcing their way 
 through the m.ain body of the French army. 
 By a march through the Prussian territory of 
 Anspach, Bernadotte had advanced to Mu- 
 nich, whilst the army extended from Mem- 
 mingen to Augsburg, Burgaw, Newburg, 
 Ingolstadt and Donawert, forming a cordon 
 which totally separated the Austrians from 
 all relief except by a complete victory, as 
 they v/ere surrounded without any possibility 
 or means of retreating. In this situation Bo- 
 naparte wrote to the empress, requesting her 
 to be tranquil, and assuring her that she 
 might anticipate a short but brilliant cam- 
 paign. The French emperor perceiving all 
 the difficulties which attended the situadon of 
 the Austrian army, forced the bridge of El- 
 chingen, and thereby secured his position. 
 Soult endeavoured to hinder prince Ferdi- 
 nand from reaching Bohemia, but he was 
 too late to effect that object : Murat had 
 combated him at Langenau and made 3,000 
 
S18 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 prisoners, and continuing his progress ad- 
 vanced to Neresheim, where he conquer- 
 ed another thousand. 
 
 Bonaparte was noticing a crowd of those 
 who had been captured, when an Austrian 
 colonel expressed his surprise to see him wet, 
 fatigued and dirty : one of the aides-de-camp 
 explained to him what the officer said, upon 
 which Bonaparte replied : " Your master 
 " wishes to make me recollect that I was a 
 " soldier : I hope he will allow that the 
 " throne and the imperial purple have not in- 
 *' duced me to forget my first profession." Ulm 
 was four times stormed ; and on the four- 
 teenth and fifteenth, the siege by sap had 
 been carried on with so much vigour and ef- 
 fect, that the whole of the curtain on two 
 faces of the works, and the principal re- 
 doubts must have been destroyed : Bonaparte 
 therefore having gained possession of the 
 heights Avhich command Ulm, sent for the 
 Prince de Lichtenstein, who was among the 
 generals inclosed in that city, and informed 
 him of his wish, that the army should capi- 
 tulate, and as the position of the Austrians 
 was not defensible, that they ought to sur- 
 render : to which after some discussion gene- 
 ral Mack consented, and the whole Austrian 
 army became prisoners of war. 
 
 During the evening before the surrender 
 of Ulm, Bonaparte issued the following 
 address to the army : 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 3l» 
 
 " Soldiers I 
 
 " A month ago we were encamped on the shores of the Ocean 
 opposite to England ; but an impious league compelled us to fiy 
 towards the Rhine. 
 
 " It is but a fortnight since we passed that river, tho 
 Alps of Wirtemberg, the Necker, the Danube, and the Lech ; 
 those celebrated barriers of Gerrnany have not retarded our 
 march a day, an hour, or an instant. Indignation against a 
 Prince whom we have twice re-seated on his throne, when it 
 depended entirely on our pleasure to hurl him from it, sup- 
 plied us with wings. The enemy's army deceived by our 
 manoeuvres and the rapidity of our movements, is completely- 
 turned. It now fights for its safety only. It would gladly 
 embrace an opportunity of escaping and returning home ; but 
 it is now too late. The fortifications which it erected at a 
 great expence, along the Iller, expecting that we should ad- 
 vance through the passes of the Black Forest, are become 
 useless, since we have approiaehed by the plains of Bavaria. 
 
 " Soldiers, but for the army which is now in front of you, 
 we should this day have been in London ; we should have a- 
 venged ourselves for six centuries of insults, and restored the 
 freedom of the seas. 
 
 " But bear in mind to-morrow, that you are fighting against 
 the allies of England ; that you have to avenge yourselves on 
 a perjured Prince, whose own letter bi^eathed nothing but 
 peace, at the moment when he was marching his army against 
 our ally ; who thought us cowardly enough to suppose, that 
 we should tamely witness his passage of the Inn, his entry in- 
 to Munich, and his aggressions against the elector of Bavaria. 
 He thought we w^ere occupied elsewhere ; let him, for the 
 third and last time learn, that we know how to be present in 
 every place where the country has enemies to combat. 
 
 " Soldiers, to-morrow will be an hundred times more cele- 
 brated than the day of Marengo, I have placed the enemy in 
 the same position. 
 
 IN! 
 
 H 
 
320 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 *' Recollect that the most remote posterity will remark the 
 conduct of each of you on this memorable day. Your proge- 
 nj', five hundred years hence, who may place themselves un- 
 der those eagles around which we rally, will know in detail 
 every thing which your respective corps shall atchieve to-mor- 
 row, and the manner in which your courage shall confer on 
 them eternal celebrity. This will constitute the perpetual 
 subject of their conversation ; and from age to age, you will 
 be held up to the admiration of future generations. 
 
 " Soldiers, if I wished to conquer the enemy only, I should 
 not have thought it necessary to make an appeal to your 
 courage and your attachment to the country and to my per- 
 son ; but merely to conquer him is doing nothing worthy of 
 you or your emperor. It is necessary that not a man of the 
 enemy's army should escape ; that that government which has 
 violated all its engagements, should first learn its catastrophe 
 by your arrival under the walls of Vienna ; and that, on re- 
 ceiving this fatal inteUigence, its conscience, if it listen to the 
 voice of conscience, should tell it, that it has betrayed both its 
 solemn promises of peace, and the first of the duties be- 
 queathed by its ancestors, the power of forming the rampart 
 of Europe against the irruptions of the Cossacks. 
 
 " Soldiers, who have been engaged in the affairs of Wer- 
 tingen and Guntzburg, I am satisfied with your conduct. 
 Every corps in the army will emulate you, and I shall be able 
 to say to my people...." Your emperor and your army have 
 done their duty, perform your's," and the 200,000 conscripts 
 whom I have summoned, will hasten by forced marches, to 
 reinforce our second line." 
 
 « NAPOLEON." 
 
 On the seventeenth of October the capitu- 
 lation was signed, and on the twentieth the 
 Austrians evacuated Uhii : in the town were 
 27,000 men, 3,000 horses, 18 generals and 
 
 Ir 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 331 
 
 70 pieces of cannon. On the eighteenth 
 M. LocateUi surrendered his dragoons to 
 general Fauconnet, and on the following day 
 general Werneck with his division submitted 
 to Murat. The whole number of Austrians 
 who became prisoners of war in this short 
 space of time amounted to 60,000 men, with 
 all their cannon, ammunition, See. Bonaparte 
 addressed the Austrian generals for whom 
 he sent, as their army was filing by him, in 
 the following terms : " Gentlemen, your 
 master carries on an unjust war....I tell you 
 plainly, I know not what can be required of 
 me. It is not in this army alone that my re- 
 sources consist, though were this the case, 
 still my army and myself would make consi- 
 derable progress. But I shall appeal to the 
 testimony of your own prisoners of war who 
 will speedily pass through France; they will 
 observe with their own eyes the spirit which 
 animates my people, and with what eagerness 
 they flock to my standard. This is the ad- 
 vantage of my nation and my position. At a 
 single word, 200,000 volunteers crowd to the 
 colours, and in six weeks become good sol- 
 diers ; whereas your recruits march from 
 compulsion, and do not become soldiers but 
 after several years service." 
 
 " I would give my brother the emperor of 
 Germany one further piece of advice ; let 
 him hasten to make peace ; this is the mo- 
 ment to recollect that all empires have an 
 S s 
 
m THE HISTORY OF 
 
 ^ ,—— ^M^M I •• ■ ■^■«M^^M— I I — I ■ — ^ II I - I ■ M » m m . ■■■,■■. 1 1 ■— I — — M— i I I M .ij 
 
 end ; the idea that the end of the dynasty of the 
 house of Lorraine may have arrived, should 
 impress him with terror. ^^ 
 
 " I desire nothing upon the continent. I 
 want ships, colonies, and commerce ; and it 
 is as much your interest as mine that I should 
 have them." 
 
 M. Mack replied, *^ That the emperor of 
 Germany had not wished for war, but was 
 compelled to it by Russia." " If that be the 
 case,'^ said the emperor, " then you are no more 
 a power. '^ 
 
 The Austrian prisoners, when defiling before 
 Napoleon I. testified an extreme eagerness 
 to see him, and the utmost satisfaction at 
 contemplating him: they said that one day, 
 at the army of Italy, vipon a similar occasi- 
 on, whilst the prisoners were marching be- 
 fore him, when he saw some with wounded 
 men, Bonaparte took off his hat, saying, 
 " Honour to courage in misfortune ;" he held 
 it in his hand, and made all the generals 
 and officers around him do the same, during 
 the whole passage of this sad procession. 
 The French soldiers never exceeded in regu- 
 larity of behaviour, and magnanimity, their 
 conduct during this march through Germany. 
 
 On the eighteenth of October, the empe- 
 ror sent to the senators a note with a large 
 quantity of colours, &c. the trophies of the 
 success which had attended the French ar- 
 my. The note was read to that body by Jo- 
 seph Bonaparte grand elector :.... 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 334 
 
 " Senators — I send you forty stands of colours, which my ar- 
 my has conquered in the different actions which took place 
 since that at Wertingen. It is a homage which I and my ar- 
 my pay to the sages of the empire. It is an offering made 
 by children to their father. Senators, accept it as a proof of 
 my satisfaction for the manner in which you have always as- 
 sisted me in the most important concerns of the empire. 
 And you Frenchmen, cause your brothers to march, let thetft 
 hasten to combat by our sides in order that, without shedding 
 blood, without extraordinary exertions, we may repel far from 
 us all the armies created by the gold of England, and over-, 
 vrhelm with confusion the allies of the oppressor of the seas. 
 Senators, a month is not yet elapsed since I told you that 
 your emperor and his army would do their duty. ...I am impa- 
 tient to say my people have done theirs. Since I began the 
 campaign, I have dispersed an army of one hundred thou* 
 sand men ; I have almost taken the half of them prisoners j 
 the rest are killed, wounded or deserted, and reduced to the 
 greatest consternation. These brilliant successes I owe to the 
 affections of my soldiers, and to their patience in supporting 
 fatigue. I have lost 1 500 men only in killed and wounded J 
 Senators, the first object of the war is already fulfilled. The 
 elector of Bavaria is re-established on his throne. The un- 
 just aggressors have been struck, as if by lightning, and with 
 the help of God, I hope in a short space of time, to be able to 
 triumph over my other enemies. 
 
 "From my imperial camp at Elchingen, 26 Vendemaire 
 
 October eighteen. 
 
 "NAPOLEON." 
 
 The Austrian army having been thus an- 
 nihilated without much labour or fatigue for 
 the Trench troops, the emperor animated 
 his soldiers by this address :.«. 
 
S2i THE HISTORY OF 
 
 Imfierial head-quarters at Elchingen, 29 Vendemiaire, October 
 twenty Jirstj 
 « Soldiers of the grand army... .In a fortnight we have finish- 
 ed a campaign. We have accomplished our purpose. We 
 have expelled the troops of the house of Austria from Bavaria, 
 and re-established our ally in the sovereignty of his states. 
 That army, which with equal ostentation and imprudence, 
 had posted itself on our frontiers is annihilated. But what 
 does that signify to England ? Her purpose is accomplished. 
 We are no longer at Boulogne, and the amount of her subsi- 
 dy will thereby be neither increased nor diminished. 
 
 « Of 100,000 men who composed that army, 60,000 are 
 prisoners ; they will go to take the place of our conscripts in 
 the labour of our fields. Two hundred pieces of cannon, 
 their whole park, 90 stands of colours, and all their gene- 
 rals, are in our hands.... there have not escaped of this army 
 15,000 men. Soldiers I announced to you a great battle 
 ....but thanks to thebad combinations of the enemy, I have been 
 able to obtain the same success, without running any risks and 
 whatisunexampledin the history ofnations, soimportanta result 
 has not diminished our force more than fifteen hundred men. 
 *'Sokiiers, you owe this success to your unbounded confidence 
 in your emperor. ...to your patience in bearing fatigues and 
 privations of every description, and to your singular intrepi- 
 dity. 
 
 "But we will not stop here. You are impatient to com- 
 mence a second campaign. We are about to make that Rus- 
 sian army, which the gold of England has transported from 
 the extremities of the universe, undergo the same fate. 
 
 " In this contest is more particularly implicated the honour 
 of the infantry. It is this which will a second time, decide 
 the question, already resolved in Switzerland and Holland.... 
 whether the French infantry be the second or the first in Eu- 
 rope ? Here there are no generals in combating whom I caqi 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. S25 
 
 have any glory to acquire. All my care shall be to obtain the 
 victory with the least possible effusion of blood — my soldiers 
 are my children. 
 
 »' Given at my imperial camp of Elchingen, 29th Vende- 
 miaire, Uth year, October twenty -first, 1805." 
 
 General Werneck having surrendered his 
 division, prince Ferdinand with 1000 horse, 
 and some artillery, fled into the Prussian ter- 
 ritory, and marched by Gunzenhausen for 
 Nuremberg. Murat followed and overtook 
 him, which occasioned a battle in the night 
 of the twenty-first of October ; by this skir- 
 mish the French possessed themselves of 
 200,000 florins, the remainder of the cannon 
 and all the baggage, but did not capture the 
 prince. 
 
 Bonaparte immediately seized the advan- 
 tages of the immense preponderance which 
 his success had procured him, and did not 
 delay the consummation of his design, which 
 was to humble the Austrian family. He left 
 Ulm, and on the 2d of Brumaire, October 
 twenty-third, arrived at Munich. ...on the fol- 
 lowing day the French army crossed the Isar, 
 and hastened with all possible expedition to 
 the Inn, where Bernadotte, Marmont and 
 Davoust, with their divisions, posted them- 
 selves on the 5th, twenty- sixth. The ad- 
 vanced part of the Russian army were stati- 
 oned behind the Inn, and appeared to be dis- 
 posed to dispute the passage of that river 
 but the French divisions being joined by Mu- 
 rat's cavalry, and having succeeded in erect- 
 
S26 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 ing the bridges, the alHed troops began to 
 reth'e, and immediately retreated from Brau- 
 nau, a strongly fortified town, which was de- 
 livered to Lasnes without opposition.. ..a very 
 large quantity of provisions, ammunition and 
 other military stores were the reward of that 
 celerity which marks all the movements of 
 Bonaparte ; and Braunau, from the excel- 
 lence of its situation, and its other advanta- 
 ges, became the depot of the head-quarters 
 of the army. On the 9th, thirtieth, Murat 
 pursued the flying Austrians, and at Lam- 
 bach on the road to Merobach, encountered a 
 body of 6,000 men; but night soon hindered 
 the combatants from perceiving each other, 
 and in the morning the whole body of the 
 Austrians was dispersed, except 500 prison- 
 ers. The weather at this time was very un- 
 favourable ; the cold was great, the snow a 
 foot deep, and the roads almost impassable ; 
 notwithstanding all these disadvantages, Bo- 
 naparte made forced marches, and encourag- 
 ed the army to submit to every difficulty with- 
 out a murmirr.... desirous to counteract the 
 intention of the Austrian and Russian em- 
 perors, who anticipated a complete discomfi- 
 ture of the French army could they have 
 joined their forces so as to act with ener- 
 gy, he admitted nothing to impede his 
 progress, and sacrificing his own perso- 
 nal comfort and ease, he was intent up- 
 on one object only, and to that he made 
 every thing submit. The French army^ 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 327 
 
 now began to draw near to the Russians, 
 who under the command of Kutusow were 
 cantoned from Instatt upon the Danube, 
 along the right bank of the Inn to the mouth 
 of the Salza, where general Meerfelt was 
 posted with the wreck of the Austrian army* 
 Murat who commanded a detached body 
 which was destined to act as the vicissitudes 
 of the campaign might require, and which 
 by the rapidity of its movements, was deno- 
 minated the flying army^ allowed the confe- 
 derates no leisure : continuing his pursuit he 
 passed through Lambach, and on the lOth^ 
 November first, took possession of Wels.... 
 he was immediately followed by Lasnes, Da- 
 voust and Soult, who posted themselves at 
 Wels, Lintz and Lambach. At Lintz, the 
 Austrian army chest, containing several hun- 
 dred thousand florins was part of the spoil ; 
 and at Lambach, very valuable magazines 
 of salt belonged to the victorious array. 
 Whilst these divisions had been employed in 
 marching to Vienna with little or no oppositi- 
 on ; Bernadotte detached Keilerman with 
 the advanced guard to cut off the retreat of a 
 body of the Austrians who were retiring 
 towards Carinthia. At the fort of Passling, 
 which covered the Austrian troops, in the 
 defile of Coiling, the combatants met, and af- 
 ter a severe but short confiict, the Austrian 
 column was discomfited, 5,000 of them were 
 prisoners and the rest dispersed.. ..the capture 
 of a very Urge quantity of arras increased 
 
S2S THE HISTORY OF 
 
 the value of the victory. On the 12th, se- 
 cond, the French army advanced to Steyer, 
 and the cavahy under Murat proceeded to 
 Ebersberg, in which city a small body of 
 troops had been posted to prevent the passage 
 of the Traun : but the artillery on the bank 
 covering the ferry.... the French in boats 
 crossed the river, and carried it at once with 
 their usual impetuosity. Passing on to Vi- 
 enna the com-batants met at Asten,' and after 
 a slight skirmish the Austrians fled in great 
 disorder. On the 13th, third, the victo- 
 rious army passed the Ens, and the indefa- 
 tigable Murat attacked the Russians on the 
 heights of Amstetten which produced an ob- 
 stinate contest : but the latter were driven 
 from all their posts, with the loss of 400 
 men dead in the field, and 1,500 prisoners. 
 Davoust also continued his march, and esta- 
 blished himself at Wahidoffen. Whilst 
 these events occurred in one part of the ar- 
 my, the Bavarians had encountered the x\us- 
 trians at Lovers. ...the latter occupied a defile 
 of peculiar difiiculty and almost inaccessible, 
 it being flanked on two sides by perpendicular 
 mountains ; but the Bavarians after a vigorous 
 resistance completed the rout, and captured a 
 small number of the Russians, upon which 
 the rest fied, and left the Bavarians masters 
 of the field. 
 
 Immediately after the battle of Amstetten, 
 the Russians accelerated their retreat and de- 
 stroyed all the bridges upon the Ips, but this 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. S29, 
 
 ^-» . ' ■ ' — — * 
 
 precaution was ineffectual ; Murat on the 16th, 
 seventh, established himself in the Abbey of 
 Molk, and on the 17th, eighth, Marmont 
 marched towards Leoben ; upon his arrival at 
 Wezer, he was opposed by an Austrian regi- 
 ment, who after the first charge surrendered 
 themselves prisoners of war to the conque- 
 rors. Davoust in the mean time was march- 
 ing by the high road leading directly to Vien- 
 na ; on the 17th, eighth, the advanced guard 
 being at the distance of a few leagues from 
 Marienzell, encountered the Austrian army 
 under general Meerfelt, who was hastening 
 to Neudstadt to cover the capital ; a vigorous 
 conflict ensued, which like every other en- 
 gagement during the campaign, ended in the 
 total rout of the Austrians....the French pur- 
 sued them twelve miles, and at its conclusion 
 discovered that they were masters of three 
 .stands of colours, 16 pieces of cannon and 
 4,000 prisoners. 
 
 The emperor of Germany, the empress, 
 the court, and the grandees, began now to 
 prepare for their departure from Vienna, and 
 early in November retired to Brunn ; on the 
 eighteenth, the emperor of Russia was in* 
 troduced to the German court at Olmutz, 
 whither they had proceeded, as soon as the 
 Trench army entered the capital. Whilst at 
 Brunn, after his flight from the seat of go- 
 vernment the emperor of Germany publish? 
 ed this proclamation :.... 
 T T 
 
330 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 PROCLAMATION. 
 
 «' His majesty the emperor and king had never a higher 
 wish than the maintenance of peace, Thia wish lay in the 
 principle of his government as well as in his heart. With- 
 out any, even the most distant project of enlarging his states? 
 or of procuring an indemnification for the sacrifices which he had 
 made at Luneville and Ratisbon to the tranquillity of Europe,, 
 he desired nothing but that the emperor of France^ actuated 
 by a similar spirit of enlightened and humane policy, should 
 return within the limits prescribed by the Treaty of Luneville. 
 Whoever with a clear understanding took an interest in the 
 fele of Europe, felt the justice and moderation of this desire,. 
 
 " True to his principles, his majesty, in the progress of the 
 present war, was ready every moment to hold out his hand 
 to peace, and amid the most brilliant victories, he would have 
 thought and acted in the same way as under the influence of 
 contrary occurrences. 
 
 " His majesty believed that the great and happy montient of 
 fliis reconciliation, and of returning happiness to his peoplej^ 
 was not far distant, as the emperor of Fi'ance had on several 
 occasions publickly manifested corresponding dispositions, and 
 expressed himself with precision in the same spirit to Austri- 
 an general officers, whom the fortune of war had made pri- 
 soners. 
 
 « Full of confidence in such manifestations, and animated 
 by an earnest wish to avert the approaching danger from the 
 capital of Vienna, so dear to his heart, and in general, to free 
 his good and faithful subjects from the pressure of a longer 
 war, his majesty sent his lieutenant field marshal the count de 
 Guilay, to the head quarters of the French Emperor, in the 
 name of himself and his allies, to obtain a confirmation of these 
 pacifick dispositions, to learn the further overtures which the 
 emperor Napoleon might make on this occasion, and to treat 
 for an armistice as preparatory to negociations for a general 
 peace* 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. m 
 
 " But the hopes of his majesty were not fulfilled. As the 
 basis of an armistice limited to a few weeks> the emperor of 
 France demanded : 
 
 ^' That the allied troops should return home ; that the Hun- 
 garian levies should be disbanded; and that the duchy of Ve- 
 nice and Tyrol, should be previously evacuated to the French 
 armies. 
 
 " All Europe will feel the inconsistency' between such de- 
 mands, and the foregoing manifestations of the emperor. His 
 majesty the emperor and king had, by this first step, ful- 
 filled a sacred duty which his heart had dictated^ 
 
 " But he would have thought himself grievously injuring 
 his own person, the honour of his monarchy, the dignity of his 
 house, the reputation of the good and great nation over whichhe 
 rules, and the highest interests of the states, in the eyes both, 
 of the present and of future generations, if notwithstanding 
 the duty incumbent on him to preserve all these entire, he had 
 yielded to the severe, but passing pressure of the moment^ 
 and assented to conditions which would have been a death- 
 blow to his monarchy, and a breach of the relations m which 
 he stood with all friendly states. 
 
 " His majesty wished for peace :....he wishes for it still, with 
 sincerity and earnestness. But he never could, and never will 
 place himself in a defenceless state, where he and his people 
 will be delivered over to the imperious and arbitrary decisi- 
 ons of a mighty foe. 
 
 " In such circumstances nothing remains to his majesty, 
 but to cleave to those great and unexhausted resources which 
 he finds in the hearts, in the prosperity, in the loyalty, in the 
 strength of his people : and in the as yet undiminished forc^ 
 of his high allies and friends, the emperor of Russia, and king 
 of Prussia; and to persist in this firm and intimate connection 
 till the emperor of the French, with that moderation which is 
 the brightest gem in the crown of a great monarch, consents to 
 
332 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 conditions of peace which are not purchased by a sacrifice of 
 the national honour and independence of a mighty state." 
 
 The Russian army effected its retreat to 
 Krems, by recrossing the Danube, anticipa- 
 ing the impossibiUty of a return, if Mortier, 
 who was marching with great velocity on the 
 left bank of the Danube should advance be- 
 yond him to any considerable distance. The 
 Austrian army after the capture of Ulm, 
 appears in all its conduct to have been so 
 terrified as to have lost all prudence and 
 skill. The country between the Inn and the 
 Danube is intersected with several rivers, 
 over which wooden bridges only have been 
 constructed ; and nearly the whole distance is 
 one immense pine forest, forming the best 
 possible security to an army acting on the de- 
 fensive, and affording opportunities of stati- 
 oning troops in strong positions, from which 
 they could not be forced. Nevertheless, with 
 all these advantages, the Austrians and Rus- 
 sians seemed to be solicitous respecting their 
 personal safety only, and retreated with so 
 much disorder as to leave money, arms, am- 
 munition, and military stores of every kind 
 to be seized by the French without the trou- 
 ble of a contest. Soult continued to advance 
 and to surmont every thing which was op- 
 pressed to him ; the haste which he made 
 forced the Austrians under general Meer- 
 felt, to divide themselves into small parties 
 that a battle might be avoided, and thus the 
 whole corps by degrees were prisoners to 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. S33 
 
 that division of the French army.... the vari- 
 ous skirmishes between the two armies after 
 they crossed the Inn, added 10,000 prison- 
 ers to those who had been before captured- 
 On the 18th, ninth, the Russian army cross- 
 ed the Donaw to secure their retreat, as die 
 French had constructed a new bridge at 
 Linz, and stationed a body of troops on the 
 right bank of the Donaw ; in the evening of 
 the 19th, tenth, they forced all the advanced 
 posts, and were pursuing the Russians when, 
 night obstructed their progress. 
 
 On the 20th, eleventh, Mortier marched 
 to Stein, expecting to find the Russian rear- 
 guard only ; but the Russian army maintain- 
 ed its post there, and perceiving the whole 
 extent of the French troops, commenced the 
 battle of Diernstein. Although the differ- 
 ence in numbers was very great, the combat 
 continued from six in the morning until four 
 in the evening, and the Russian superiority 
 was lost in the vigour with which the French 
 repelled their various attacks. The Russi- 
 ans at length carried Leoben, and conscious 
 of the small force of which the French con- 
 sisted, not above half their own number, by 
 a forced march endeavoured to turn the 
 French by attacking them in the rear ; but 
 Mortier had anticipated the design, and hav- 
 ing posted two regiments to interrupt 
 the execution of this manoeuvre, the. 
 Russians were obliged after a very sanguina- 
 ry contest to , continue their retreat with im- 
 
534 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 mense loss, 3,000 Russians were killed or 
 wounded, and 1,300 made prisoners ; the 
 French division suffered also very considera- 
 bly, of three or four of the regiments who 
 were engaged on that day not above one half 
 survived the batde....but the effect was im- 
 mediate, the Russians were under the neces- 
 sity of retiring into Moravia without delay.... 
 the French army marched into the capital of 
 Germany on the 22d5 thirteenth; and on the 
 following day Bonaparte with his staff entered 
 Vienna. This was fulfilling the extraordina- 
 ry declaration which the emperor of the 
 French m.ade duripg the latter part of the pre- 
 ceding August :...»at one of the levees when 
 the Austrian minister was present, Bonaparte 
 observed, " Your master wants war, does 
 he ? Tell him from me, that if he obliges me 
 to go to war, I will sleep in his bed before 
 Christmas !" 
 
 When the " six weeks" campaign, as it 
 has been denominated, is duly contemplated, 
 the activity and skill which were manifested 
 by the French emperor are superior to all en- 
 comium. ...the army if it had not been delay- 
 ed an hour by any opposition, had sufficient- 
 ly laboured in marching from Boulogne to 
 Vienna, a distance of nearly 1,000 miles in 
 the short space of ten weeks ; a dispatch in 
 the execution of military movements unex- 
 am!pledin the history of the world: and as it 
 is without a parallel with respect to itself, so 
 the effects which have been produced by it 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. S55 
 
 are of more importance than any which the 
 European continent has witnessed since the 
 peace of Westphalia* 
 
 Whilst the grand army had thus immorta- 
 lized itself in military annals, the troops un- 
 der Massena had emulated them in the ener- 
 gy with which they opposed the Austrians, 
 who commanded by the arch-duke Charles, 
 contended for every step, and maintained, 
 their positions as long as they were tenable. 
 Previous to the surrender of Ulm, Bona- 
 parte wrote to Massena, " The Austrians 
 continually retire before the grand army; 
 they will be beaten step by step as well as the 
 Russians, if we shall encounter them. I am 
 sorry that our movements and success dimi- 
 nish the number of troops which you com- 
 bat.. ..there remain less for you to conquer.'* 
 The news of the emperor's having begun 
 the campaign, and the success v/hicli attend- 
 ed all his movements having been conveyed 
 to Massena, he prepared to act upon the of- 
 fensive, and made arrangements to pass the 
 Etch, which induced the Austrians to retire 
 from Luiniano on the 22d Vendemiaire, Oc- 
 tober fourteenth ; nevertheless they disputed 
 the passage of the river, but without success, 
 as the French division established itself on 
 the opposite bank and seaured 700 prisoners 
 with four cannon. The French army was as- 
 sembled at Zevio, and appeared to be pre- 
 paring for an attackupon the Austrians through 
 the whole line. ...this feint confused the 
 
336 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 Arch-duke, upon which Massena on the 
 26th of Vendemiaire, October eighteenth, 
 commenced a battle at the bridge of the old 
 castle at Verona : having destroyed the wall 
 which defended the middle of the bridge by 
 means of a train of powder, Gardanne's di- 
 vision rushed across the bridge, and routed 
 the Austrians who were stationed to impede 
 their progress ; the contest continued from 
 four o'clock in the morning until six in the 
 evening, and was supported with great vi- 
 gour; but the French obliged their oppo- 
 nents to fly from all their positions, and des- 
 troyed the intrenchments : several cannon, 
 and 1,400 prisoners were their reward for 
 this victory. Some days elapsed whilst the 
 French crossed the Adige, and arranged the 
 pursuit of the Austrians ; but all being ready, 
 Massena ordered Seras to pass the Adige at 
 Polo ; Verdier to manoeuvre between Ronco 
 and Alabro, whilst Gardanne attacked the 
 heights of the Val Pantere, which forced 
 the Austrians to evacuate Veronetta : in ad- 
 vancing to St. Michael the Austrians in a 
 large body of infantry and cavalry, with se- 
 veral cannon, defended the road, and it was 
 not until after various charges of cavalry that 
 they retreated ; these movements had been 
 supported by Molitor who proceeded to St. 
 Martin, and the whole army took position at 
 Vago....The Austrians lost on this day 1,600 
 prisoners. On the 8th of Brumaire, October 
 thirtieth, the French army assailed the whole 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 337 
 
 extent of the Austrian line ; Caldiero was 
 carried amidst tiie shouts of " Long live the 
 emperor !" at half past four in the evening 
 the arch-duke directed his reserve to advance 
 and the combat became exceedingly severe ; 
 the cavalry charged incessantly, and the bay- 
 onet decided the day : thirty pieces of well 
 served artillery poured their thunders from 
 the Austrian intrenchments, but notwith- 
 standing the energy with which they resist- 
 ed the French attack, the Austrians were ob- 
 liged to retreat with the loss of 3,500 prison- 
 ers, and a great number of killed and 
 wounded ; these were so numerous that the 
 two armies consented to a truce whilst the 
 dead were interred : the French troops also 
 being much diminished. The success of the 
 attack at Caldiero joined with the movement 
 made by Seras, separated a corps of 5,000 
 Austrians, and left them no possibility of re- 
 treating through the vallies or uniting with 
 the main army. Whilst they were marching 
 to the heights of St. Leonard, Massena sent 
 an aide-de-camp to summon them to surrender, 
 but the general answered that it was his in- 
 tention to defend Mmself ; upon which the 
 whole body were surrounded at the castle of 
 San Felice, and forced to deliver their arms 
 and baggage ; seventy three officers besides 
 the commander were also captured. The 
 arch-duke immediately hastened his retreat, 
 and the French advanced to Montebello^, 
 U u 
 
53S THE HISTORY OF 
 
 On the 14th Brumaire, November fifth, the 
 French pursued the Austrians to Vicenza, 
 whose gates had been walled ; it was sum- 
 moned, and the troops within refused to eva- 
 cuate it ; but the passage by that city being 
 indispensable, it was bombarded and the 
 French entered it at break of day. They 
 found a thousand wounded soldiers and a 
 quantity of military stores at their disposal, 
 which the precipitate departure of the Au- 
 strians would not permit them to remove. 
 The French army continued its march, and 
 at St. Pierre in Gu, were opposed by a bo- 
 dy of Austrians ; but the combat ended in 
 their retreat, having lost 600 prisoners : this 
 afforded the French a clear passage to Cas- 
 tel Franco and Albaredo, whence they march- 
 ed to the Tagliamento, where the arch-duke 
 waited the approach of the French army. 
 He posted a large body of troops to obstruct 
 the passage of the river, and added 30 pieces 
 of cannon. The French general immediately di- 
 rected eighteen cannon to be brought to the 
 bank of the river and a cannonade commenc- 
 ed which was continued throughout the day 
 ....in the mean time he had dispatched 
 a large force to pass the river in three differ- 
 ent parts to turn the arch-duke's army, but 
 the latter anticipated the design and in the 
 night retreated to Palma Nuova : on the left 
 bank of the river the French found a large 
 number of Austrians who had fallen in the 
 course of the day. The two armies continu- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 339 
 
 cd to skirmish hourly ; the rear of the Au- 
 strians and the advanced guard of the French 
 were so near to each other that they were en- 
 gaged during the whole of the retreat : they 
 continued their course to Gradiska, the Izon* 
 so and Gorizia....the magazines at Udine and 
 Palma Nuova were left for the French. 
 Whilst these successes attended the princi- 
 pal body of the French army, the prince de 
 Rohan descended from the mountains of the 
 Tyrol to join the arch-duke at Leybach, 
 from whom he had been separated by the ra- 
 pidity of the French army's march. Masse- 
 na had dispatched St. Gyr to reconnoitre and 
 oppose the prince : on the 3d Frimaire, No- 
 vember twenty -fourth, Regnier marched to 
 Castel Franco, which rendered the situation 
 of the Austrians very dangerous, the latter 
 therefore commenced a furious attack upon 
 the French division, but they received them 
 with so much skill and courage as to render 
 every charge unavailing : St. Cyr whilst the 
 Austrians were engaged with Regnier in 
 front, assailed their rear, and completely 
 turned them ; this induced them to fly, and 
 after perceiving no means of escape, those 
 who had not already surrendered offered to 
 capitulate, and the wnole corps delivered 
 their arms to St. Cyr. The prince de Rohan, 
 about thirty officers, 6,000 infantry and 1,000 
 cavalry, six colours, one standard, twelve 
 pieces of cannon, all their baggage and wag- 
 gons belonged to the French. The army in- 
 
340 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 stantaneously proceeded to Clagenfurth to 
 hasten their junction with the troops under 
 the immediate command of the emperor. 
 
 The French troops merely passed through 
 Vienna ; Souh, Davoust, Lasnes and their 
 divisions continued their march into Moravia, 
 and Milhaud after a slight skirmish with a 
 corps who were retreating with an hundred 
 pieces of cannon to join the Russian army, 
 captured the whole, all the provision wag- 
 gons and 600 prisoners ; and an immense 
 quantity of clothes, shoes and boots were 
 found at Stockerau by Lasnes. Vienna be- 
 ing the only arsenal in the emperor of Ger- 
 many's hereditary dominions, the possession 
 of that city aiforded the French, cannon, am- 
 munition, and every kind of military stores 
 and equipage to the full extent of their de- 
 mands. Bonaparte occupied the palace of 
 Schoenbruh, the residence of the empress of 
 Germany, every apartment of which is de- 
 corated with the portrait of the celebrated 
 Maria Theresa. Although in possession af 
 the capital of the German dominions, Bona- 
 parte was aware that his situation was inse- 
 cure unless he conquered the Russian force 
 which had retired into Moravia : the French 
 troops were therefore in motion, and follow- 
 ed the retreating army with the utmost rapi- 
 dity. At Hollabrun, Murat encountered part 
 of the Russian army, but a skirmish only 
 ensued as the latter retreated before the con- 
 test became serious. The Russian general 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 341 
 
 now offered to retire from Germany, but Bo- 
 naparte would not consent to the terms pro- 
 posed unless the Russian emperor became a 
 party to the treaty, which finished the confe- 
 rence ; in the mean time the Austrian troops 
 had separated from their allies, and Hunga- 
 ry had subrriitted to the French division under 
 Davoust. The correspondence between Da- 
 voust and the commander of Presburg the 
 chief city of Hungary, demands preserva- 
 tion : 
 
 LETTER 
 
 From general Count De Paffi. 
 General, 
 HIS royal highness the arch-duke Palatine, in his quality of 
 supreme, civil and military chief of Hungary, has charged the 
 undersigned to declare, that his royal highness has establish' 
 ed along the western frontier of this kingdom, a cordon of 
 troops, supported by small detachments of cavalry, compos- 
 ed of invalids and recruits, with the sole view of arresting 
 the marauders of the Austrian army, who may be found there. 
 It cannot therefore be supposed that he has any hostile views, 
 these detachments having positive orders to retire on the 
 approach of the French troops to the frontiers. 
 
 As these small detachments, which should not be consider- 
 ed otherwise than as scouting parties, are to fall back on the ap- 
 proach of the French army, his royal highness has given orders 
 to the hospitals, to the houses of education, to the pensionary- 
 officers, and to the individuals employed in arranging the ac- 
 counts of the x'egiments and military hospitals, to remain in 
 their places, persuaded that the general or commander of the 
 French troops will not refuse to grant them the necessary pro- 
 tections, and that he will give orders that the detachments 
 of the French army which shall enter Hungary, shall not 
 
342 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 commit any exc:;sscs, provided Ho kind of opposition be made 
 to them. ...and that in consequence of this declaration, the un- 
 dersigned will have many important points to discuss with the 
 general or commander of the French troops. 
 
 He requests him to grant a meeting on parole in a boat la 
 the middle of the Danube. 
 
 He waits his answer and has the honour to be his very hum- 
 ble servant, 
 
 LeopOLDy count Pciffi, commandant at Presburg, 
 
 ANSWER 
 Of Marshal DAVousf to general Count De Pjffi. 
 
 General, 
 I have laid before his majesty the letter which you address- 
 ed to the commandant of my light cavalry. His majesty has 
 charged me to make known through you, to his I'oyal high- 
 ness the Arch-duke Palatine, that he is ready to respect the 
 neutrahty of the Hungarians, and to forbid his army to enter 
 the frontiers of Hungary, if on his part his royal highness 
 the Arch-duke Palatine and the Hungarian people are willing 
 to withdraw their troops, to make no insurrection, to continue 
 to supply Vienna with provisions, and in fine to conclude be- 
 tween thetn, the Arch-duke Palatine and his majesty the em- 
 peror of the French, a; convention tending to maintain harmony 
 between the two countries. I am authorised to permit any 
 officer to pass, whom his royal highness the Arch-duke Pala- 
 tine may wish to send to my sovereign, to treat upon this basis. 
 I shall feel myself happy in thus having an opportunity of do- 
 ing a favour to your countrymen, and promoting the ^f'elfariS 
 of a people possessed of so many estimable qualities. 
 
 I have the honour to be, M. General, 
 
 Your very humble servant, 
 
 DAVOUST. 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 543 
 
 A corps of Austrians had intrenched 
 themselves at Waldemunchen ; Baraguay 
 d'Hilliers marched against them, upon which 
 they immediately abandoned their post: hav- 
 ing advanced as far as Pilsen in Bohemia and 
 fulfilled the object of his mission, he rejoined 
 the army. Whilst the grand array was has- 
 tening into Moravia, Ney was dispatched to 
 the Tyrol: the forts of Scharnitz and New- 
 sturk quickly capitulated to him, 1,800 men 
 and eighteen field pieces belonged to the vic^ 
 tors : continuing his march he entered In- 
 spruck, v/here he found an arsenal filled with 
 artillery, 16,000 muskets and an immense 
 quantity of powder : in Haile, of which ho 
 took possession on the same day, large ma- 
 gazines destined for the arch-duke John's ar- 
 my were also secured, but be escaped leaving 
 200 Austrians sick in the hospital at Inspruck, 
 whom he recommended to the generosity of 
 the French general. During the last war the 
 76th regiment lost two standards in the Gri- 
 ,sons, which were found in the depot at In- 
 spruck ; they were instantaneously recognis- 
 ed and surrounded by the soldiers : Ney restor- 
 ed them to that corps with the usual ceremo- 
 nies ; he next occupied Brizen, Clausen and 
 Botzen. At this juncture general Klein was 
 ordered to make an incursion into Bohemia, 
 where he was not opposed in his progress ; 
 and on the 23d Brumaire, November four- 
 teenth, the Austrian army of the Voralberg, 
 commanded by field-marshal Jellachich, whose 
 
S44 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 retreat had been intercepted, submitted to 
 Augereau, with all their horses, artillery, 
 baggage, ammunition and military stores. 
 
 As the two emperors did not sanction the 
 treaty which had been signed by Murat and 
 Kutusow, the Russian army left its position 
 and began to march by Znaim that it might 
 escape without a battle. ...Murat perceiving 
 this movement, arranged his troops for an 
 attack upon the Russian rear guard, who 
 made a vigorous but short resistance at Zunt- 
 ersdroff, but speedily fied with great precipi- 
 tation, leaving 1,500 prisoners, 100 baggage 
 waggons and tv/elve pieces of cannon in the 
 possession of the French. But the sudden- 
 ness of their flight was occasioned by a ma- 
 noeuvre of Lasnes, who charged them in 
 front whilst they were engaged with Murat, 
 and having turned them on the left, Soult 
 assailed them on the right, which induced 
 the corps to hasten their retreat to avoid be- 
 ing entirely surrounded. The head-quarters 
 of the French were removed to Znaim on the 
 26th Brumaire, November seventeenth, in 
 which town was found an extensive magazine 
 of flour and oats. Sebastiani with a brigade 
 of dragoons harrassed the retreat of the Rus- 
 sians, and on the 27th, eighteenth, conquer- 
 ed several detached corps, amounting in the 
 whole to 1,500 prisoners: Murat entered 
 Brunn on the same day, and the Austrian 
 court retired to Cracow in Poland : in Brumi 
 the French procured sixty pieces of cannon, 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 84?r 
 
 6,000 muskets, 300,000lbs. of powder, 
 wheat, flour and clothing in vast quantities. 
 Whilst pursuing the Russian army in its 
 retreat, and advancing towards Olmutz, the 
 French made a great number of prisoners ; 
 and at some distance from Brunn, where the 
 roads meet, 6,000 Russians were posted to 
 obstruct the French troops in their progress 
 to that city : general Walther was di- 
 rected to attack them without delay, which 
 service he performed with great intrepidity ; 
 the Russians perceiving their position to be 
 msecure, retreated and stationed themselves 
 near Olmutz. The victorious army after this 
 skirmish was permitted to retire into quarters, 
 the weather being exceedingly rigorous : the 
 van was supported by Brunn, to which town 
 the head-quarters had been removed. Whilst 
 the grand army were enjoying a little repose, 
 Massena was hurrying to join them, and the 
 arch-duke having heard of the total destruction 
 of the Austrian army at Ulm, had determin- 
 ed to continue his march, to concentrate his 
 force under the walls of Vienna, and to de- 
 fend that city with the whole of the Austrian 
 and Russian troops ; he had therefore in con- 
 formity with this plan, collected the scattered 
 divisions of his army, and forced his march- 
 es, until he discovered that his movement 
 was futile, and that ihe French were already 
 in possession of nearly all the Austrian do- 
 minions, and that the army under Bonaparte 
 
 X .X 
 
346 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 was cantoned in Moravia. This obliged him 
 to make new arrangements and to retire to 
 the frontiers of Hungary, where he continu- 
 ed until he was informed of the armistice 
 which had been concluded between Berthier 
 and the prince de Lichtenstein. 
 
 On the 6th Frimaire, November twenty- 
 seventh, M. de Stadion and M. count de 
 Guilay were presented to the French empe- 
 ror, as plenipotentiaries to conclude and sign 
 a definitive treaty of peace between France 
 and Austria : Bonaparte immediately offered 
 an armistice until the former should be ar- 
 ranged ; but the emperor of Germany confi- 
 dently relying upon the support and success 
 of the Russian army, intended it as a feint 
 only, for if he had been serious in his em- 
 bassy he would not have permitted the Rus- 
 sian troops to have commenced military ope- 
 rations. As soon as it was understood that 
 the French army had discontinued its pursuit 
 of the Russians, and had been quartered in 
 and near Brunn, Kutusow directed the Rus- 
 sian cavalry and the Cossacks to attack the 
 French advanced posts.. ..on the 7th, twenty- 
 eighth, a large body of them surrounded 
 Wischau, of which they took possession and 
 the party of French who defended it, surren- 
 dered themselves prisoners. The emperor of 
 P.ussia advanced to that town on the same 
 day, behind which his whole army encamp- 
 ed. Bonaparte having heard of the arrival 
 of the Russian monarch,, dispatched Savary 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. S47 
 
 ■i ' ' 
 
 to compliment him ; that general continued 
 three days at Wischau, which time was em- 
 ployed in investigating the characters of those 
 who attended Alexander. His observations 
 and the report which he made to Bonaparte 
 upon his return, determined him if the allied 
 emperors persisted, to try the fate of a gene- 
 ral engagement. With this view he ordered 
 his troops to retreat nine miles in the night, 
 as if he had experienced a total defeat, or as* 
 if he were terrified at the vicinity of the Rus- 
 sians, and having chosen the best position 
 which the country afforded, the whole army 
 was engaged in fortifying it and erecting bat- 
 teries. Bonaparte immediately proposed an 
 interview with the emperor Alexander, who 
 sent his refusal by prince Dolgorouki ; every 
 thing which this officer saw whilst with the 
 French army, the numbers of the guards, 
 the fortifications which were constructing with, 
 so much haste, and the appearance of the sol- 
 diers indicating timidity, all tended to mis- 
 lead him ; and he returned to the Russian em- 
 peror convinced that the French were aware 
 of their ruinous situation, and that they were al- 
 ready conquered; and in the Russian council of 
 war it was not inquired by what means the 
 French were to be overcome, but the most 
 certain mode of turning and capturing their 
 whole force. The Austrian generals who were 
 present assured them that it was not so easy 
 an operation to vanquish the French army ; 
 that thp officers and tropps of which it was 
 
348 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 composed were of the first merit, men whose 
 courage was indisputable, and who had been 
 engaged in actual service diiring the whole 
 revolution ; and that their commander pos- 
 sessed resources and expedients which were 
 almost an insuperable obstacle to success, 
 even had he been involved in difficulty.. ..but 
 in the present situation of the armies all the 
 advantages belonged to the French. Not- 
 withstanding this representation the Russian 
 generals confiding in the enthusiasm which 
 Alexander's presence would excite in the 
 Russian army, resolved to endeavour to sur- 
 round the French and secure them prisoners, 
 Bonaparte was reconnoitring the allied arr 
 jny when Savary returned from his visit to 
 Alexander, and combining every information 
 wiiich he could collect with the Russian em- 
 peror's non-compliance with his request, he 
 determined to delay every movement until 
 the Russian general should commit some er- 
 tor, and instantaneously to profit by it. 
 
 The two armies remained in this situation 
 until the 10th Frimaire, December first, 
 when Bonaparte perceived from his bivouac 
 the Russian army marching to turrt the 
 French right wing ; upon which he remark- 
 ed, " Before to-morrow evening that army 
 will be in my power." The Russian army 
 defiled whilst marching, within pistol shot of 
 some of the French advanced posts, and ex- 
 tended twelve miles before the French troops, 
 whg were ordered not to move j and the 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 349 
 
 Russians were so exhilarated that they were 
 (Concerned only lest any of their opponents 
 should escape. To encourage this delusion, 
 Murat commanded a small body of cavalry 
 to advance into the plain ; who suddenly re- 
 turned, as if astonished at the immense force 
 of the Russians. Bonaparte immediately di- 
 rected this address to be dispersed throughout 
 the camp : 
 
 " Soldiers, 
 
 *' You see before you tha Russian army come to avenge the 
 Austrian army of Ulm. They are the same battalions whom 
 you have beaten at Hollabrun, and whom you have constantly 
 pursued to this place. 
 
 " The positions which we occupy are formidable, and whilst 
 they march to turn my right, they will present me their flank. 
 
 " Soldiers, I shall direct in person all your battalions ; I 
 shall keep far from the fire, if with your accustomed bravery 
 you carry disorder and confusion into the enemy's ranks ; but 
 if victory be for a moment uncertain, you will see yoqr empe- 
 ror expose himself to the first charge, for victory cannot hesif 
 tate on this day especially, v/hen the honour of the French in- 
 fantry which imports so much to the character of the whole 
 nation is at stake, 
 
 "Let not your ranks be thinned under pretext of carrying off 
 the wounded, and let each man be well penetrated with the 
 thought, that we must vanquish these pensionaries of Eng- 
 land, who are animated with so great a hatred against our na-s, 
 tion. 
 
 « This victory will finish our can^paign, and we may take 
 «p our winter quarters, where we shall be joined by the new 
 armies now forming in France, and then the peace I shall 
 make will be worthy of my people, of you, and of me. 
 
 «' NAPOLEON.'^ 
 
350 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 Bonaparte having resolved to seize the fa- 
 vourable opportunity of ruining the Russian 
 array, which the indiscretion and infatuation 
 of his opponents had given him, prepared 
 for a general, decisive and final engagement, 
 and fixed it for the morrow, the anniversary 
 of his coronation : in the evening he disguis- 
 ed himself that he might in person and in- 
 cognito visit the night guard to prevent any 
 surprize; he had proceeded a short distance 
 only ere he was recognized; this condescen- 
 sion and concern for the safety of his troops 
 excited the utmost enthusiasm in the camp, 
 and the whole army by torch light presented 
 themselves before him as he passed, with un- 
 bounded acclamations :....oneof the oldgrena- 
 diers advanced and addressed him; " Sire, 
 " you need not expose yourself. I promise 
 " you in the name of the grenadiers of the 
 *' army, that you shall only fight with your 
 " eyes, and that we will bring you to-morrow 
 " the standards and artillery of the Russian 
 " army to celebrate the anniversary of your 
 " coronation." The bivouac in which Bona- 
 parte remained during this night, was a straw 
 hovel without a roof, which the grenadiers 
 had hastily constructed: having returned 
 from his advanced posts, upon his entrance 
 into the hut, he said, " This is the most bril- 
 *' liant evening of my life ; but I regret that 
 " I must lose a number of these brave men." 
 
 The allied army on this occasion was 
 superior in numbers and cannon to the French, 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 351 
 
 'a'..;. '.. i' " ., , . . - I 
 
 and elated with their anticipated success, 
 they also determined upon the following day 
 to place all their hopes on a combat, which 
 should decide the fate of the house of Aus- 
 tria, and finish the continental war. The 
 number of soldiers may be computed at 
 80,000 men in each army, besides the Aus- 
 trians who had joined their allies ; but the 
 park of Russian artillery was considerably 
 greater than that of Bonaparte. Having ar- 
 ranged his movements, he gave orders to 
 make immediate preparations for battle. He 
 dispatched Davoust to the convent of Rag- 
 gern, with one of his divisions and a body 
 of dragoons, that upon a given signal the 
 whole left corps might be enveloped. Lasnes 
 commanded on the left, Souit on the right, 
 Bernadotte in the centre, and Murat who had 
 assembled all the cavalry in one point, was 
 directed to act as the exigencies of the con- 
 flict might require. The former was strength- 
 ened by the Santon, a fortified post defend- 
 ed by eighteen pieces of cannon : and the 
 cavalry were supported by twenty-four pieces 
 of light artillery. Legrand guarded the 
 ponds and villages of Sokolnitz and Calnitz, 
 whilst Gudin was ordered to march very ear- 
 ly in the morning from Nicholsburg, to inter- 
 cept any part of the Russian army which 
 might stretch beyond the French right wing. 
 Bonaparte himself, with Berthier, Duroc, 
 Junot, and the staff, was attended by the ten 
 battalions of his guards, and ten battalions 
 
S52 THE HISTORY OP 
 
 under the command of Oudinot.,..this body of 
 reserve was drawn up in two lines in co- 
 lumns, accompanied by forty pieces of can- 
 non served by the artillerymen of the guards, 
 and v/as intended to act where Bonaparte 
 might conceive his own presence necessary to 
 secure success. Every arrangement having 
 been completed, the emperor mounted his 
 horse at one o'clock in the morning of the 
 1 1th, second, to re-inspect the posts, to re- 
 connoitre the fires in the Russian camp, and 
 to procure from the guards all the information 
 which they had collected concerning general 
 Kutusow's movements. Whilst Bonaparte 
 was thus actively employed, the Russian 
 troops were buried in profound sleep, the 
 consequence of festivity and tumult excited 
 by inebriety ; he was informed however, 
 that a corps of Russian infantry had appear- 
 ed before the village of Sokolnitz, which in- 
 duced him to send a strong reinforcement to 
 that post. In this state the armies passed 
 the remainder of the night. 
 
 At the dawn of day, Bonaparte was sur- 
 rounded by all his generals, and continued 
 to give his directions until the sun appeared 
 above the horizon.. ..his last orders were then 
 delivered, and the marshals assumed their 
 stations. To animate the men in the execu- 
 tion of the arduous duty before them, the 
 emperor rode along the front of his army ; 
 " Soldiers ! We must finish this campaign by 
 a clap of thunder which shall confound the 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. SSi 
 
 pride of our enemies." To the 28th of the 
 line he said ; " I hope that the Normans will 
 distinguish themselves to day." And to the 
 57th, " recollect that it is many years since I 
 surnamed you the Terrible :" these various 
 addresses to the different regiments were an- 
 swered by rapturous shouts of " Long live 
 the emperor !" which became the signal to 
 commence the direful, eventful day. At se- 
 ven o'clock the Russians in four columns 
 marched to the rear of Austerlitz ; and the 
 battle began at the extremity of the French 
 right wing,- v/here the Russian advanced 
 guard had been opposed in its further pro- 
 gress by Davoust : at eight the first column 
 of the Russians descended into the valley, 
 passed through Angest, and forced the 
 Trench to retire to Zelnitz, where the latter 
 maintained a longand vigorous combat which, 
 ended in the overthrow of the Russian divi- 
 sion: a short time only elapsed after this 
 movement vtntil the battle became general 
 throughout the whole line ; Soult filed off to- 
 wards the heights of Pratzen, to deceive the- 
 Russian right wing, whilst Murat and Lasnes 
 charged the first column, and though the^ 
 were received with every degree of coolness 
 and intrepidity, the shock was too great to be 
 withstood, and the disorder of that part of 
 the Russian army was very evident. The 
 cannonade was speedily ordered in both ar- 
 mies, and 200 pieces of cannon vomited their 
 
 Y r 
 
354 THE HISTORY OT? 
 
 riii __: — — — — ■ — — — J 
 
 murderous contents upon the combatants. 
 Not more than an hour subsequent to the be- 
 ginning of the battle the communication be- 
 tween the centre and left of the Russian ar- 
 »iy was entirely destroyed, and their right 
 wing had forced its retreat to Austerlitz ; up- 
 ©n which the emperor of Russia dispatched 
 his s^iards to restore the intercourse, who 
 attacked a French battalion with so much fu-* 
 ty as to rout them, at once; Bonaparte per- 
 eeiving this movement directed the invincible^ 
 to march, which produced one of the most 
 interesting scenes in the battle : on the one 
 side was Bonaparte watching the manoeuvres, 
 ©f this corps and waiting for its triumph, and 
 ©n the other the emperors of Germany and 
 Russia desiring that success should attend 
 their courage ; but the attempt to unite the 
 several Russian columns was unpropitiousy 
 the guards being obliged to leave the scene 
 and to fly in great disorder : the three empe- 
 rors were all viewing this part of the battle* 
 When the commander of the artillery which 
 supported the Russian imperial guard had 
 been forced to surrender his pieces, he has- 
 tened to the emperor, " Sire," said he, weep-^ 
 ing, " let us fight with muskets ; I have lost 
 my cannon." " Young man," answered 
 Alexander, ** I highly value your tears ; my 
 army may be vanquished, but we have a 
 claim to glory." Two bodies of 4,000 Rus« 
 sians each, now surrendered their arms, and 
 thereby contributed very much towards the 
 
NAPOLEON BONAP ARTE. 355 
 
 event of the day. The wings of the two ar- 
 mies had hitherto been most severely engag- 
 ed, and for a considerable time with various 
 ■success.... after these corps had surrendered, 
 Bonaparte directed Bernadotte to advance 
 against the Russian centre, which he assail- 
 ed with so much impetuosity, that the troops 
 began to retire, and general Kutusow foun4 
 it absolutely necessary to sound a retreat, Xq 
 preserve the wreck of his army. 
 
 This is that scene in the battle which the 
 plate represents ; upon the overthrow of the 
 fourth battalion by the Russian imperial 
 guard, Bonaparte A. appears in the fore 
 ground, on the heights above Brunn, with 
 twenty pieces of cannon, attended by Ber- 
 thier, Junot, Duroc, Oudinot, Savary, &;c. 
 and in the act of ordering marshal Bessieres 
 M. to assist the right win^ with his invinci- 
 bles, and particularly to oppose the Russian 
 guards-. The French artillery which were 
 stationed to cannonade the retreating Russi- 
 ans are designated by B. and C. : immediately 
 before Bonaparte is the French reserve, who 
 had not been engaged in the action. The al- 
 lied emperors v/ho were posted on the hills 
 above Austerlitz the turret of which ap- 
 pears in the back ground, to observe the pro- 
 gress of the battle, are on the eminence D, 
 with their aides-de-camp, whilst the Russiaa 
 artillery are exhibited at E. the troops hav- 
 ing deserted them to the victors. ...at the bot- 
 tom of the hill from which the two empe- 
 
SS6 THE HTSTORT OF 
 
 rors are scrutinizing the battle, are the French 
 invincible s by a flank march rushing upon 
 the Russian guards at F. who were endea- 
 vouring to re-establish the communication be- 
 tween the battalions of the Russian centre and 
 left wing. This body G. G. was commanded 
 by general Bu'xhowden, and extended to the 
 town of Gording H. having the ponds L. 
 and villages of Sokolnitz and Calnitz to im- 
 pede their retreat, and to obstruct their uni- 
 on with the main body of the army.,. .the si- 
 tuation of the former village v/hich had been 
 reinforced early in the morning, and was a 
 strong position, having several powerful bat- 
 teries, is distinguished by I. the vicinity of 
 which is renownd for the most bloody part of 
 the combat. At this juncture also the centre 
 of the French force commanded by Berna- 
 dotte, advances against the Russian centre 
 and completes the rout : the French centre 
 is discovered at K. in the front of the town 
 of Austerlitz, whilst the Russians are dis- 
 played by K. in the plain, with the French 
 artillery B. and C. raised above them, and 
 dispersing destruction amongst the discomfit- 
 ed and retreating army. 
 
 The cannonade had considerably ceased by 
 one o'clock, and the retreat became general. At 
 this moment Bonaparte advanced to the front 
 of the reserve corps, " I have fought thirty 
 " battles similar to this, but I never saw one 
 " in which the victory was more decisive, and 
 '' the event more certain." The foot guards 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 357 
 
 of the emperor had not been engaged ; they 
 were disappomted, and demanded to be per- 
 mitted to shew their valour: " Rejoice," said 
 Bonaparte, " that you have not been in the 
 " action; you are the reserve: and it is so 
 *' much the better that they do not want you 
 *' to day." The French emperor directed 
 twenty pieces of cannon to advance, and to 
 keep up an incessant fire against the Prussian 
 left, which bad been separated from the other 
 columns. ...general Buxhowden, who com- 
 manded it, with some of his officers and a 
 small party of horse, had the good fortune to 
 escape the carnage, and rejoined the army, 
 v/hich marched frora Ausierlitz through 
 Czeitch to Gording on the road to Hungary ; 
 whilst prince Eagrathion with the rear-guard 
 covered their retreat by his position before 
 Urschitz. After the action Bonaparte sent 
 Dallemagne to course the field of battle, 
 and to collect all the Russians who remained 
 ....he returned with several stands of colours 
 and 1,000 prisoners. The loss of the French 
 in this bkttle did not exceed 8,000 men, of 
 whom 3,000 were wounded.... to at of the Rus- 
 sians is incalculable. ...one general died at the 
 end of the battle ; seven were wounded, and 
 fifteen were prisoners. ...the Russian knap- 
 sacks, and an immense quantity of baggage, 
 with a considerable sum of money belonged 
 to the French. ...the captured cannon amount- 
 ed to 170, with forty-five stands of colours. 
 If all the§e circumstances combined, be duly 
 
558 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 contemplated, and the proportions between 
 the general offiicers, standards, cannon and 
 the privates of an army be compared, it can- 
 not be disputed that the Russian army must 
 have been diminished at least one-third, in 
 killed, wounded and prisoners : the two offi- 
 cial accounts of the combat are so complete- 
 ly at variance that little dependence can be 
 placed upon either ; yet the effects which were 
 produced by the battle of Austerlitz, incon- 
 testably prove that the Russian army was at 
 the mercy of the French emperor, and that 
 to his forbearance alone was the remnant in- 
 debted for the privilege of revisiting their na- 
 tive country. 
 
 The French artillery very essentially con- 
 tributed to the glory of the day.... the general 
 of the staff having related to Bonaparte how 
 much they deserved of him for their conduct 
 in the battle : " Its success gives me pleasure," 
 he replied, " I have not forgotten that it was 
 in this corps I began my military career." In 
 the evening, and for several hours during the 
 night, the French emperor examined the 
 field of battle, and directed that all the 
 wounded should be removed without delay 
 into the moveable hospitals. Although tor- 
 tured with the agony of their wounds, the 
 mutilated troops seemed for a moment to for- 
 get their sufferings ' in the recollection of this 
 consummately splendid victory, and recog- 
 nizing their commander, some addressed him, 
 " the victory is certain j" others, ^' I have 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 
 
 suffered during eight hours, and since the be- 
 ginning of the battle have been abandoned, 
 but I have performed my duty;" whilst ano- 
 ther would tell him, " that he ought to be sa- 
 tisfied with his soldiers for their conduct on 
 that day." The appearance of the army in- 
 dicated general gaiety, and the most unbound- 
 ed delight.... the officers of the staff and the 
 aides-de-camp were incessantly asked by the 
 soldiers " has the emperor been satisfied with 
 us to-day ?" 
 
 Thus ended the battle of Austerlitz ; a bat- 
 tle which has no parallel in the history of the 
 world, whether we consider the effects which 
 have resulted from it, the character of the* 
 parties who were engaged in it, three empe- 
 rors having headed the contending troops, or 
 the extent of the defeat. That two armies, 
 one of which was certainly inferior to the 
 other, should have experienced in the short, 
 space of six hours such a different fate, is 
 unexampled.. ..the ignorance, incapacity, pre- 
 sumption and blindness of the Russian gene- 
 ral, are exceeded by the skill, talents, cool- 
 ness and perspicacity only of the French em- 
 peror ; and these are not equalled except by 
 the additional power which Bonaparte ac- 
 quired, and the degradation of his two Im- 
 perial brothers. 
 
 Upon his return from the field of battle, 
 Bonaparte congratulated his army for the 
 victory which they had obtained, in this ad- 
 dress :... 
 
360 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 « Head-quarters at Austerlitz^ December second} 
 ten o'clock at night. 
 Soldiers of the Grand Army, 
 
 " Even at this hour, before this great day shall pass away, 
 and be lost in the ocean of eternity, your emperor must address 
 you, and express how much he is satisfied with the conduct of 
 all those who have had the good fortune to combat in this me- 
 morable battle. 
 
 " Soldiers ! You are the first warriors in the Avorld. The 
 recollection of this day, and of your deeds, will be eternal I 
 Thousands of ages hereafter, as long as the events of the 
 universe continue to be related, will it be told, that a Russian 
 army of 76,000 men, hired by the gold of England, was anni- 
 hilated by you on the plains of Olmutz. The miserable re- 
 mains of that army, upon which the commercial spirit of a 
 despicable nation had placed its last hope are in flight, and 
 hasten to make known to the savage inhabitants of the North, 
 what the French are capable of performing ; they will like- 
 wise tell them, that after destroying the Austrian army at Ulm, 
 you said to Vienna, " That army is no more l",...To Peters- 
 burgh you shall also say, " The emperor Alexander has no 
 longer an army I" 
 
 " Soldiers of the Grand Army ! Four months have not yet 
 elapsed since your emperor spoke thus to you at Boulogne... 
 « We march to dissolve a coalition formed by the gold and 
 intrigues of England :" and the result has been the overthrow 
 of 300,000 soldiers, and of two great monarchies. 
 
 « Soldiers 1 You are worthy of immortality. What will 
 your I'elatives ; what will every Frenchman say ? They can ne- 
 ver cease to contemplate you with emotions of affection^ and 
 admiration : and when your work is completed, when you re- 
 turn to your own fire-sides, and to your families, all France 
 will exclaim...." These are our brethren, the heroes of Olmutz', 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 361 
 
 who out of an army of 76,000 men, made 10,000 prisoners, took 
 140 pieces of cannon, and left 26,000 men dead on the field. 
 
 " Soldiers ! You are my children : the events of this day 
 have been worthy of you and of your emperor. 
 
 " NAPOLEON." 
 
 At day break on the following morning, ad- 
 ditional praise for the battle of AusterlitZj 
 «ras bestowed by the French Emperor : 
 
 " jiusterlitz^ \-2ih Frimaire, December third. 
 "Soldiers, 
 
 <* I am satisfied with you. ...you have in the engagement of 
 AusteTlitz justified what I expected from your intrepidity. 
 You have decorated your eagles with immortal glory An ar- 
 any of 100,000 men commanded by the emperors of Russia 
 and Austria, has been in less than four hours cut to pieces 
 and dispersed ; those who have escaped our swords have been 
 drowned in the lakes. 
 
 " Forty pairs of colours, the standards of the imperial 
 guards of Russia, 120 pieces of cannon, 20 generals, and up- 
 wards of 30,000 prisoners are the result of this memorable 
 day. This infantry so much boasted and in superior numbers,' 
 lave not been able to resist your shock, and henceforth you 
 vill have no more rivals to dread. Thus in two months, this 
 tVird coalition has been vanquished and dissolved. Ppace can 
 nc longer be at a distance ; but, as I promised my people be- 
 fors crossing the Rhine, I will make a peace only which shall 
 givt us guarantees and secure rewards to our allies. 
 
 *' Soldiers, when the French people placed the imperial 
 crown on my head, I trusted to you to maintain it for ever in 
 that Jigh splendour of glory, which could alone render it va. 
 luable in my eyes. But the same moment our enemies 
 thought of destroyin'g and vilifying it ; and this iron crown 
 conquered by the blood of so many Frenchmeni they wished 
 
362 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 ~^ '- ■ — - ■ • ' ■ - t '-•' 
 
 to oblige me to place on the head of our most cruel enen^es ; 
 
 rash and sensless projects which on the very day of the anniver- 
 sary of your emperor's coronation, you have annihilated and 
 confounded. You have taught them that it is easier to brave 
 and to threaten, than it is to conquer us. 
 
 " Soldiers, when every thing necessary to insure the hap- 
 piness and prospei'ity of our country shall be accomplished, I 
 will conduct you back to France. There you shall be the object 
 of my most tender solicitude. My people will again behold 
 you with joy, and it will be sufficient for you to say, I was at 
 the battle of Austerlitz, for them to answer.. ..that is a brave 
 
 i»an. 
 
 " NAPOLEON." 
 
 Prince John de Lichtenstein visited Bo- 
 naparte at his head-quarters in a barn very 
 early on the morning of the 12th, third, to 
 propose an interview between the emperors 
 of France and Germany, which was speedily 
 adjusted ; but this did not preclude the French 
 army from enhancing its success : it harrass- 
 ed the retreat of the Russians, pushed its ad- 
 vanced posts to Olmutz, and on the same day 
 two skirmishes, one between Bagrathion and 
 the advanced guard of the French army a? 
 Urschitz, and the other between Davoust 
 and general Meerfelt at Cording-, rendered 
 the situation of the Russian army hopeless.... 
 as without artillery or baggage, they were 
 totally surrounded.. ..having neither the abili- 
 ty nor the means to continue their retreat. 
 
 The important period which was to esta- 
 blish peace on the European continent hav- 
 ing nearly arrived, in the afternoon of the 
 asth, fourth, Bonaparte left Austerlitz, and 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 3$^ 
 
 proceeded to his straw palace near Sarutchi, 
 where the emperor of Germany soon appear- 
 ed: their conversation was protracted until 
 two hours had elapsed.. ..they in person 
 agreed to an armistice, and on the principal 
 conditions of peace : the latter requested a 
 truce for the Russian army ; Bonaparte observ- 
 ed to him, " That they were entirely surround- 
 " ed, and that not a man could escape ;" " but," 
 added he, " I desire to do that which is 
 " agreeable to the emperor Alexander. , I will 
 *' permit the Russian army to pass; I will 
 " delay the march of my columns ; but your 
 " majesty must promise me that the Russian 
 " troops shall return to Russia, and evacuate 
 " Germany, Austria and Poland." " I cart 
 " assure you such is the intention of the em- 
 " peror Alexander," replied the emperor of 
 Germany ; " in the course of the night your 
 *' majesty may convince yourself of it by 
 " your own officers." When Bonaparte in- 
 vited his royal brother to approach to the fire, 
 he said, " I receive you in the only palace 
 " which I have inhabited during the past two 
 " months." The latter smilingly replied, 
 " Vous tirez si bonne partie de cette habita- 
 " tion, qu'elle doit vous plaire." " You de- 
 " rive so much advantage from this hut that 
 " it ought to please you." The prince de 
 Lichtenstein and prince Schwarzenberg hav- 
 ing been presented to Bonaparte, the mp- 
 iiarchs separated.. ..Bonaparte attended th^ 
 
364 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 German emperor to his carriage, and imme- 
 diately returned to Austerlitz. 
 
 General Savary accompanied the emperor 
 of Germany after the interview, to ascertain 
 whether Alexander would accede to the capi- 
 tulation and to the terms of the armistice 
 which the two emperors had concluded. 
 Prince Czatorinsky introduced general Sava- 
 ry, who conversed an hour with the emperor 
 of Russia. This monarch asked the detail 
 of the day : " You were inferior to me," said 
 he, " and nevertheless superior in all the 
 " points of attack." " Sire," answered ge- 
 neral Savary, " it is the art of war, and the 
 *' fruit of fifteen years glory ; it is the fortieth 
 " battle of the emperor." " This is true ; 
 " he is a great warrior : for my part, it is the 
 " first time I have seen fire ; I never shall have 
 " the pretensions to meet him in the field." 
 " Sire, when you have gained experience, 
 " you may perhaps surpass him." " Say to 
 " your master," cried the prince, " I will go ; 
 " he has this day performed miracles ; this 
 *' day has completed my admiration of him. 
 " I will return to my capital : I came to assist 
 " the emperor of Germany ; he says he is 
 " satisfied; so am I. May I retire with safe- 
 *' ty ?" " Yes, sir," answered general Savary, 
 *' if your majesty will ratify that which the 
 '' emperors of France and Germany fixed 
 "at their interview." "What is that?" 
 " That the Russian army should return home 
 " by the rout fixed by the emperor, and that 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 
 
 " it should evacuate Germany and Austrian 
 *' Poland. Upon this condition, I have or- 
 " ders from the emperor to go to our advan- 
 *' ced posts who have surrounded you, and 
 *' to protect your retreat ; the emperor wishes 
 " to respect the friend of the first consul.'* 
 " What guarantee must I give for , this ?" 
 " Sire, your word." " I give it." Savary 
 departed, quickly rode to marshal Davoust, 
 and gave him directions to desist from all mi- 
 litary movements. 
 
 On the 14th, sixth, the armistice was sign^ 
 ed by Berthier and the prince de Lichtenstein. 
 By this convention the whole of the Austrian- 
 states continued in the possession of the 
 T^rench army until the treaty of peace should 
 be signed.. ..the Russians were to evacuate the 
 Austrian dominions in the course of a month, 
 and no levies were tobe raised or foreign troops. 
 " permitted to enter the territory of the house 
 of Austria." General Valhuber died of his 
 wounds on the 15th, seventh; about an hour 
 before his death he sent a letter to Bonaparte : 
 " I wished to have done more for you ;" said 
 he, " in one hour I shall be no more ; I re- 
 gret it not, since I have participated in a vic- 
 tory which assures to you a happy reign* 
 When you shall think of those brave men, 
 who devoted themselves to vou, remember 
 me. It is enough for me to mention to you 
 that I have a family, I need not recommend 
 it to your protection." In conformity with 
 the tenour of the armistice, the Russian army 
 
366 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 : • • f ■■■. '■ 'm ■ _^ 
 
 began its march in three cokimns on the 16th, 
 eighth ; the first returned by Cracovia and 
 Therespal ; the emperor and duke Constan- 
 tine at its head, travelled post to St. Pe- 
 tersburg ; the second column marched by 
 Kaschaw, Lemberg and Bredi, and the third 
 by Cirsirau, Watrell and Husiatin. On the 
 same day, Bonaparte informed prince Rep- 
 :ain, whd was a prisoner, that he was at full 
 Hbei^ty to collect all the troops of the Russi- 
 an imperial guard who had been captured, 
 and to return with them into Russia. 
 
 At the time when Bonaparte was increas- 
 ing the splendour' of his own character as a 
 general, his power received much diminuti- 
 on from the naval combat at Trafalgar, which 
 occurred on the 21st' of October: Nelson, 
 who held the highiest rank among sailors, 
 commanded the British ships upon this occa- 
 sion ; the combined French and Spanish fleets 
 consisted of 43 sail, whilst the English fleet 
 was several hundred guns inferior to its op- 
 ponents, who were directed by Villeneuve 
 and Gravina. The action commenced at 12 
 o'clock; it was maintained with great spirit, 
 and the conflict was uncommonly severe : not 
 very long after the beginning of this tremen- 
 dous battle. Nelson, who was standing on 
 the quarter deck of the Victory, received a 
 shot which deprived him of life at forty mi- 
 nutes after four o'clock, at which time the 
 triumph was complete, nineteen Trench and 
 Spanish ships having surrendered to the Eng- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 36?' 
 
 lish....but a terrible gale which continued dur- 
 ing three days hindered the British from retain- 
 ing possession of the captured vessels : some 
 were destroyed on the shore, others v/ere 
 sunk by the victorious fleet, whilst a few dis- 
 abled, with the English who had been ap- 
 pointed to manage them, rolled into Cadiz* 
 This contest was one of the most important 
 events of the present war, and its effects 
 were very great.. ..it deprived the French em- 
 peror of a considerable proportion of his ma- 
 ritime force, and delayed the completion of 
 his designs in the Mediterranean, A very 
 remarkable circumstance has attended this 
 combat.. ..the English admiral died during the 
 engagement, the Spanish commander surviv- 
 ed a short tim.e only, and the French admiral 
 departed this life on his, return home. 
 
 The town of Nicholsburo' will be celebrated 
 in all succeeding ages, as in its castle were 
 assembled M. Talleyrand, the prince de 
 Lichtenstein, and the count de Guilai, to ar* 
 range a definitive treaty of peace ; the terms' 
 of which being finally adjusted, it was sign- 
 ed at Presburg on the twenty-sixth of De- 
 cember, and Bonaparte who continued at 
 Schcenbrun ratified it on the following day* 
 By this treaty, royal honours were confirm- 
 ed to the elector of Bavaria, and the duke of 
 Wirtemberg, and large portions of the Aus- 
 trian territory deUvered to them to enable 
 them suitably to maintain their new dignity. 
 The emperor of Austria renounced the Ve- 
 
368 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 netian states to the French, and admitted 
 their junction with the kingdom of Italy, and 
 a short time was stipulated to include the re- 
 turn of the victorious army to its own coun- 
 try.. ..Bfaunau, however, as the depot of 
 the army, and as the hospital of the sick, re- 
 mained in the possession of the French until 
 their property, &:c. could be removed. 
 
 Bonaparte notified the peace to his sol- 
 diers, by an address:.... 
 
 *' Soldiers, 
 
 « Peace between me and the emperor of Austria is signed. 
 You have in this late season of the year made two campaigns; 
 yovi have performed every thing which I expected from you. I 
 am setting out to return to my capital. I have promoted and 
 distributed rs-wards to those who have distinguished themselves 
 most ; I will perform to you every thing which I have promis- 
 ed. You have seen that your emperor has shared with you 
 all dangers and fatigues ; you shall likewise see him surround- 
 ed with all that grandeur and splendour which becomes the so- 
 yereign of the first nation in the world. In the beginning of 
 the month of May I will give a grand festival at Paris ; you 
 shall all be there, and we shall there see whether we are called 
 by the happiness of our country and the interests of our glory. 
 
 " Soldiers, during the three months which are necessary 
 for your return to France, be the example of all armies. You 
 have now to give examples not of your courage and intrepidi- 
 ty, but of strict discipline.. ..may my allies no more have to 
 complain of your behaviour ! Conduct yourselves, on your ar- 
 rival in that territory, like children in the bosom of their family. 
 My people will conduct themselves towards you, as they 
 lyiust ever do towards their heroes and their defenders. 
 
 « Soldiers, the thought that I shall sec you all in less than 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 369 
 
 half a year assembled round my palace, is pleasing to my 
 heart ; and I feel before hand the most delightful emotions. 
 We will celebrate the memory of those, who in these tAvo 
 campaigns have fallen in the field of honour. The world 
 shall see that we are ready to follow their example, and if 
 necessary, iii do still more than we have done against those 
 %vho attack our honour, or suffer themselves to be misled by 
 the gold of the eternal enemy of the continent. 
 
 « NAPOLEON.'* 
 
 The French armies being hberated in Ger- 
 many, Bonaparte resolved to add the king- 
 dom of Naples to his other Italian possessi- 
 ons ; and having a pretext for his conduct in 
 the duplicity which its court had exhibited, he 
 dispatched St. Cyr to conquer the Neapolitan 
 territories, and published his reasons in this 
 proclamation:.... 
 
 (( From my Imperial Camp at Schanbrunttf 
 December iiventy'^seventh, 
 « Soldiers ! For ten years I have done all which I could to 
 save the king of Naples : he has done every thing in his pow- 
 er to destroy himself. 
 
 « After the battles of Dego, of Mondovi, and of Lodi, he 
 could give me no effectual opposition. I placed confidence in 
 the word of this prince, and I behaved with generosity towards 
 him. 
 
 « When the Second coalition was dissolved at Marens:o, the 
 king of Naples who was the first to commence that unjust 
 war, abandoned at Luneville by his allies, remained alone, 
 and without protectionv He solicited my pardon, and I for- 
 gave him a second time. 
 
 " A few weeks ago you were at the gates of Naples. I had 
 sufficient reason to suspect the treachery which was intended. 
 A A a 
 
3/6 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 and to avenge the insults which 1 had received, still I -was «;e- 
 nerous. I acknowledged the neutrality of Naples ; 1 ordered 
 you to evacuate that kingdom, and for the third time, the 
 house of Naples was confirmed and saved. 
 
 « Shall we grant pardon for a fourth time ? Shall we, for a 
 fourth time, place any confidence in a court AV*i^hout truth, 
 honour or common sense I No I No ! The Neapolitan dynasty- 
 has ceased to reign ; its existence is incompatible with the re- 
 pose of Europe, and the honour of our crown. 
 
 « Soldiers I March, drive into the sea, if they will wait 
 your attack, those feeble battalions of the tyrants of the seas. 
 Shew to the world the manner in which we punish the perjur- 
 ed. Lose no time in informing me, that the whole of Italy is 
 subject to my laws or those of my allies ; that the finest coun- 
 try of the world is emancipated from the yoke of the most 
 perfidious of men ; that the sacredness of treaties is avenged, 
 and that the manes of my brave soldiers, who were massa- 
 cred in the ports of Sicily, on their return from Egypt, after 
 liaving escaped from the dangers of the sea, the deserts, 
 and a hundred battles, are at length appeased. 
 
 « Soldiers ! . My brother will lead you on ; he is acquainted 
 with all my plans ; he is the depository of my authority ; he 
 is in full possession of my confidence ; let him have yours. 
 
 « NAPOLEON." 
 
 The peace of the continent having been 
 finally arranged, with the exception of the 
 inarch of the French troops into Naples, Bo- 
 naparte left Schoenbrunn, in which he had con- 
 tinued to reside until the ratification of the 
 treaty. Previous to his departure from Vi- 
 enna, he ordered his farewell address to be 
 distributed throughout the city ; in which he 
 thanked them for their orderly behaviour, 
 whilst the capital was in possession of his 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. m 
 
 troops, and delivered to them the greatef 
 part of the arsenal : the contribution which 
 the Austrian states raised for the French ar- 
 my, amounted to j^. 1,250,000 sterling. The 
 French emperor, attended by Murat and 
 Duroc, returned by Passau, and on the 
 twenty-ninth of December, entered Munich, 
 On the first of January 1806, the elector 
 Palatine, and the duke of Wirtemberg were 
 proclaimed.. ..the former, king of Bavaria at 
 Munich, the latter, king of Suabia at Stut- 
 gard. Bonaparte gave to the former a large 
 quantity of cannon, which had been captur- 
 ed by the Austrians about an 100 years since 
 ....these were removed from the arsenal at Vi^ 
 cnna, and introduced into the capital with 
 great solemnity. Bonaparte continued in 
 this city until the latter end of January, 
 during which interval, on the fifteenth, 
 he married prince Eugene, his wife's son, 
 viceroy and the adopted king of Italy, 
 to Augusta, daughter of the king of Bava- 
 ria. The French troops now began to retire 
 from Austria, and many of them marched 
 into Italy. Bonaparte accompanied by the 
 empress, arrived at Paris on January the 
 twenty-seventh, and on the following day re- 
 ceived the congratulations of the constituted 
 authorities in great pomp. 
 
 Since the battle of Austerlitz, the situati- 
 on of the European continent has been entire- 
 ly changed. One of Bonaparte's brothers, 
 Joseph, is king of Naples \ another, LouiSi 
 
372 THE HISTORY OF NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 
 
 is king of Holland ; Murat is elevated to the 
 Duchy of Berg and Cleves, &c. &c. Thus it 
 appears probable that the Bonaparte dynasty 
 of potentates is as firmly established as any of 
 the ancient European hereditary monarchies. 
 
^BBEMJDA. 
 
 This chapter contains a variety of detach- 
 ed anecdotes, letters and other incidents, all 
 of which are necessary to be remembered 
 when we would make a due estimate of the 
 character of Bonaparte. 
 
 While at school Bonaparte thanked his 
 mother in one of his letters, for her great 
 care about his future advancement, he says, 
 " With my sword by my side, and my Ho- 
 mer in my pocket, I hope to find my way 
 through the world." 
 
 When with his regiment, the castle of a 
 certain nobleman in the vicinity of Grenoble 
 was attacked by a body of armed and irri- 
 tated peasants ; Bonaparte was sent with 
 a small force to defend it. On his arrival he 
 saw that the noble owner of the castle was 
 in imminent danger of being murdered ; he 
 therefore contrived immediately to secrete 
 him, and then addressed himself to the vic- 
 tors in nearly the following terms : " Are 
 
574 THE HISTOIlY OF 
 
 you Frenchmen," said he ; this question 
 touched them. " What ? Are you French- 
 men and without generosity ? No Frenchman 
 will ever persecute a fallen enemy." These 
 words disarmed them, and Bonaparte by this 
 means saved the unfortunate object of their 
 hatred and vengeance. 
 
 In his first Italian campaign, Bonaparte 
 wrote the following letter to the celebrated 
 Oriani, whom he invited to visit him. 
 
 " The pursuits of knowledge which do honour to the hu- 
 man understanding, the arts which adorn Hfe, and hand down 
 the memory of great exploits to posterity, must ever obtaia 
 j-espect in all free governments. All men of genius, all who 
 hold a distinguished rank in the republick of letters are 
 Frenchmen, be they of what country they may. Men of learn- 
 ing in Milan have never obtained the regard which they deserv- 
 ed ; living retired in their studies and laboratories, they 
 thought themselves fortunate if they were not persecuted by 
 kings and priests ; but this will be no more so ; freedom of 
 thought is naturalized in Italy, and it will allow no more in- 
 quisition, no more intolerance, no more despotism. I invite 
 all men of letters to impart to me their ideas as to the method 
 by which arts and knowledge may be revived. All learned 
 jnen who choose to visit France will be received by the go- 
 vernment with the utmost regard. A great mathematician, 
 a celebrated painter, or a man of merit in any line, is a more 
 valuable acquisition to France than the richest conquest. I re- 
 quest that you will make these sentiments known in Milan, to 
 all men of distinguished talents or superior merit." 
 
 An incident which occurred at the battle 
 of Castiglione, proves that Bonaparte is not 
 d,evoid of strong sensibility. At the mo- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. S75 
 
 ment when the ranks of the imperialists 
 were broken, and the heat of the pursuit 
 was in proportion to the obstinacy of the 
 contest, Bonaparte coming up to the spot 
 where the thickest of the combat had taken 
 place, where French and Austrians ia)^ strew- 
 ed in horrible profusion, perceived one living 
 object amidst those piles of corpses, which 
 was a little barbet-dog. The faithful crea- 
 ture stood with his two fore-feet fixed on the 
 breast of an Austrian officer ; his long ears 
 hung over his eyes, which were rivetted on 
 those of his dead master. Bonaparte, struck 
 with the piteous spectacle, stopped his horse, 
 called his attendants around him, and point- 
 ed out the subject of his speculation. " The 
 dog," says Bonaparte, " as if he had known 
 my voice, removed his eyes from his master, 
 and throwing them on me for a moment, re- 
 sumed his former posture ; but in that mo- 
 mentary look there was a mute eloquence 
 beyond the power of language ; it was re- 
 proach with all the poignancy of bitterness." 
 He gave orders to stop instantly the pursuit 
 and carnage. 
 
 The French troops having taken possessi- 
 on of Bologna, a lady of that city, seized 
 with a sudden panic for her safety, dismiss- 
 ed from her house a French priest whom she 
 had many years maintained. The poor man, 
 finding himself friendless and forsaken, be- 
 took himself to Bonaparte. " General," 
 said he, ", I am come to ask a favour of you." 
 
S76 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 '^ What is it ?" replied Bonaparte. " Tiiat 
 you will suffer me to be shot at the outside 
 of your camp." " What induces you," said 
 the general, " to make so singular a re- 
 quest ?" " I am a poor, forlorn, and wretch- 
 ed priest," said he, " who had no other 
 dwelling but in the house of a benefactress, 
 and she took it into her head that after the 
 arrival of the French army it was no longer 
 safe for her to keep me, and now I have no- 
 thing left but to die, but I can patiently en- 
 dure my lot." " Go," said Bonaparte, " to 
 the lady, and tell her from mc, that you 
 shall henceforth be her security." 
 
 Bonaparte is remarkable for a sort of keen 
 sarcastic point, bordering upon indifference, 
 which gives considerable force, in many in- 
 stances, to his replies. A soldier, during 
 this campaign, came up to him with a rag- 
 ged eoat and asked for a new one. " Oh no," 
 said he, " that v/ill never do, it will hinder 
 your wounds from being seen." 
 
 During the campaign in Italy, the general 
 always carried with him a small travelling li- 
 brary, which consisted of Caesar's Commen- 
 taries, Xenophon, Polybius with Folard's 
 notes, and the campaigns of Montecuculi : 
 he had also many maps, charts, and drafts, 
 from the royal library at Paris ; but his 
 favoTirite study was Ossian's Poems. 
 
 Whilst Bonaparte was pursuing his victo- 
 rious course, he had scarcely time to think of 
 his relations. His mother lived at Toulon, 
 
NAPOLEON BON AiP ARTE. 375r 
 
 ■ I > ■ ■■ ■ . ■ ■ ■ ' -... . ■ , ■ ■ , 
 
 and his brother Joseph was engaged in trade 
 at the same place, but he soon determined 
 to quit it and endeavour to profit by the good 
 fortune of his brother; accordingly he ap- 
 plied to his relation Salicetti, who gave him 
 a good office in the commissary department. 
 When Bonaparte heard of this he sent for 
 him and asked him if he wanted money. 
 *' If you do," said he, " tell me, and you 
 shall be welcome to the half of my purse ; 
 but I must request you to give up your place 
 immediately and leave the army, for I will 
 never have it laid to my charge that I have 
 used my influence improperly to provide for 
 my? family. Return to Toulon, and there 
 you may be always sure of advancing your- 
 self by trade." 
 
 Among the Austrian prisoners on the sur- 
 render of Mantua, Bonaparte heard the 
 name of Montecuculi, and he asked the offi- 
 cer who bore it, whether he was a descen- 
 dent of the great general of that name, to 
 which he answered in the affirmative:.... 
 " You have shewn yourself worthy of him," 
 replied Bonaparte, and immediately gave 
 him his liberty. 
 
 About this time the general procured the 
 release of La Fayette and his companions 
 from the dungeons of Olmutz. 
 
 To gain the affections of the people, Bo- 
 naparte has always endeavoured to conciliate 
 the clergy, for though he has done all in his 
 Bfib 
 
378 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 power to weaken their iniiuence as a body, 
 he has every where availed himself of the 
 efforts of individuals : to the military his con- 
 duct has been exactly the reverse, he has 
 been regardless of giving any offence to in- 
 dividuals, but constantly, as a body, court- 
 ed their support. His letter to the arch-bi- 
 shop of Genoa is one amongst many other 
 proofs of his policy towards the clergy :.... 
 
 « CirizENy 
 " I have just received your pastoral letter, in which I al- 
 most recognize one of the twelve apostles. It was thus, 
 without doubt, that St. Paul wrote. How respectable does 
 religion appear when it has such ministers as you are ; for you 
 are a true apostle, an evangelical apostle ; you obtain the es- 
 teem even of your enemies. Hov/ comes it that the clergy of 
 your diocese are animated by so different a spirit ? Jesus 
 Christ sought to act by means of conviction, and he chose ra- 
 ther to die than to employ violence in the propagation of his 
 doctrine. Wicked priests preach only revolution and blood- 
 shed { like Judas they «ell their people. I hope soon to be 
 in Genoa, where it will give me the greatest pleasure to con- 
 Terse with you. Bishops like Fenelon....like the arch-bishops 
 of Milan, Ravenna and Genoa, make rehgion moi'e amiable; 
 they not only preach virtue, but practise it. A good bishop is 
 the best gift which heaven can give to any city or country on 
 
 earth. 
 
 « BONAPARTE." 
 
 Bonaparte after the conclusion of the 
 peace at Rastadt, left Italy with the simple 
 equipage of a private gentleman, attended 
 by two generals only, two aides-de-camp, a 
 secretary and a physician. At Geneva he 
 dined, with the French resident, and having 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 37^ 
 
 been expected for some time, relays of horses 
 were waiting for him on the road, and im- 
 mense crowds of people were in earnest 
 expectation to behold him. At Mondon, 
 where he slept the night before, he had been 
 received with great honours by the celebrated 
 colonel Weiss, the bailiff of the place, a 
 man well known by his political and philoso- 
 phical writings, by his zeal for liberty and 
 admiration of Bonaparte. Near Avenche 
 his carriage broke down, and he was obliged 
 to walk for some miles. One among the 
 crowd of spectators who had assembled to 
 see him thus speaks of him :....'' I had art 
 opportunity of being very near to him, and 
 he appeared to me always to be talking to 
 those around him as if he were thinking 
 about something else : he has the mark of 
 great sense in his countenance, and an air of 
 profound meditation which reveals nothing 
 that is passing within him ; he seems con- 
 stantly big with deep thought, which will 
 some day or other influence the destinies of 
 Europe." A burgess of Morat observed 
 with astonishment the figure of the general. 
 " How small a stature for so great a man,'* 
 said he, loud enough to be heard by one of 
 the aides-de-camp. " He is exactly the 
 height of Alexander," said some one. 
 " Yes," replied the aide-de-camp, "and that 
 is not the only trait of resemblance." He 
 left Geneva on the twenty-second of Novem- 
 ber in the evening, and arrived the next 
 
386 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 night at Berne. At Faubroun, a small vil' 
 lage nine miles from Berne, he supped with 
 a large party who had. from curiosity and 
 respect accompanied his train; after which 
 he went on to Soleure. All the towns 
 through which he passed in the night wer6 
 illuminated. At Basle he stopped some 
 hours, walked round the town, and received 
 a long and flattering address from the burgo- 
 master. In passing through Lausanne they 
 haci prepared a grand fete for him, which he 
 did not appear to enjoy: three citizens stop- 
 ped his carriage and presented to him three 
 young ladies, who repeated some fine com- 
 plimentary verses ; an immense crowd as- 
 sembled around him, and testified great joy by 
 their shouts and acclamations. He thanked 
 them with great good humour ; but appeared 
 indeed every whdre to shew a profound con- 
 tempt for popular opinion and popular ap- 
 plause. He spoke very little to strangers 
 through his whole journey, and seemed to be 
 sensible that every word which he said 
 would be noted. 
 
 The government of Berne had sent a de- 
 puty to him at Milan, who accompanied him 
 on his journey and had a son with him, a boy 
 about thirteen years old, and of very quick 
 parts, much above his age. Bonaparte seem- 
 ed ahvays very fond of talking to him.'' He 
 found him one day with a map of Switzer- 
 land. " What are you looking at there ?" 
 S3.id the general. " Some parts of my owft 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 381 
 
 country which I am not acquainted with," re- 
 phed the youth. " Do you know that part?" 
 said Bonaparte, pointing to Porentrui. 
 " That does not belong to us," rephed the 
 youth. " We mean to give it you," return- 
 ed the general. " And what do you mean to 
 ask in exchange" ? said the boy. "Nothing," 
 said Bonaparte, " we will make you a pre- 
 sent of it." " Nothing ?" returned the youth 
 thoughtfully, " Ah! Timeo Danaos et dona 
 ferentes." .Bonaparte immediately threw his 
 arms about him in a rapture, and said to his 
 father, " Take care of this boy's education ; 
 he will be no common man some day or 
 other." 
 
 When he came near to the little village of 
 Faubroun, which is surrounded with thick 
 fir trees, he left his carriage and walked 
 to the inn, humming the tune of " Paisible 
 bois." He talked very freely to the landlord, 
 and asked him if he paid any taxes ? " No," 
 said the man, " we hardly know what they 
 are." " Have you no land of your own ?" 
 " Yes, about fifty pounds a year." "Do 
 you pay no taxes for that ''" " Yes, the tythes 
 and quit rent, which are no more than the 
 annual wages of one of my husbandmen ; I 
 reckoned that in the expence of working my 
 land, and I paid for it accordingly." " Does 
 your government levy no tax upon the 
 land ?" " None." " How then does it pay its 
 expences ?" " With the produce of its do^ 
 mains, which is not only sulficient for the 
 
382 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 purpose, but leaves a balance every year." 
 " You are very well satisfied with your go- 
 vernment then I suppose ?" "And so I ought 
 to be/' replied the landlord, " with a govern- 
 ment v/hich does great good to the poor and 
 no harm to the rich." " If all this be true," 
 said Bonaparte, turning to one of his offi- 
 cers, " these are the happiest people in the 
 world." " Aye," said the inn-keeper, " and 
 I wish all people were equally so." 
 
 Bonaparte, after his arrival at Paris, shun- 
 ned every opportunity of being noticed : he 
 lived in a small house and retired street ; 
 received very little company ; avoided all 
 crowded places, and never travelled but in a 
 plain carriage with two horses : he dined 
 sometimes with the different ministers of 
 state, and never appeared but twice at any 
 public meeting. 
 
 Tiie ceremony of his presentation to the 
 directory was attended with every degree of 
 splendour and parade. The great court of 
 the Luxembourg was the place chosen for 
 this superb spectacle ; it was covered v/ith an 
 extensive awning, and the walls were deco- 
 rated with hangings of the national colours 
 and military trophies ; at one end was an al- 
 tar surmounted with statues of liberty, equa- 
 lity and peace, and ornamented with the dif- 
 ferent standards which had been captured from 
 the enemy ; on each side of the altar were 
 seats in a semi-circular form, composing^ a 
 vast amphitheatre, and destined for the coa- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 283 
 
 stituted authorities and the conservatory of 
 music ; from the wails v/ere suspended the 
 colours of the diiferent armies of the repub- 
 lic ; an immense crowd Hned the court and 
 windows of the palace, and all the neigh- 
 bouring streets were filled with those who 
 could not gain admittance within; the air perr 
 petually resounded with their acclamations 
 and shouts of joy. At twelve o'clock at noon 
 the sound of cannon announced the com- 
 mencement of tlie fete, ana the procession, 
 which consisted of the directory, the ministers 
 of state and constituted authorities, began to 
 move from their different places of m.eeting 
 towards the Luxembourg; after they had ar- 
 rived and were all seated, the president of the 
 directory gave orders to inform the foreign 
 ministers, the minister of war, and the gene- 
 rals Bonaparte, Joubert and Andreossi, that 
 the directory v/ere ready to receive them. 
 The musick began a beautiful symphony, 
 which was soon interrupted by the sound of 
 repeated shouts rending the air with " Long 
 live the republick,"...." Long live Bonaparte,'* 
 ...." Long live the great nation." The noise 
 continued to increase, the crowd kept press- 
 ing forward, every eye sparkled with expec- 
 tation and curiosity, and turned towards the 
 great door: Bonaparte ente'red, the enthusi- 
 asm of the people was at its height, not a 
 single person was silent, but all cried out 
 with one impulse and v/ith one accord, " The 
 deliverer of Italy^"...." The pacificator of the 
 
584 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 continent." Bonaparte came forward with 
 calmness and dignity : he was accompanied 
 by the minister of foreign relations, the mi- 
 nister of war and his aides-de-camp ; the mu- 
 sick played the hymn to liberty, and every 
 one stood up uncovered. When he had ar- 
 rived at the steps of the altar he was present- 
 ed to the directory by Talleyrand, in a speech 
 suited to the occasion; after it was finished, 
 all seemed eager to hear the conqueror of 
 Italy, the simplicity and modesty of whose 
 appearance formed a fine contrast to the gran- 
 deur of his situation, and every one figured 
 him at the bridge of Lodi, at Areola, or at 
 Campo Tormio. A profound silence imme- 
 diately ensued whilst the great negociator 
 presented to the president of the directory 
 the emperor's ratification of the treaty, and 
 spoke as follows :-... 
 
 " Citizens Directors, 
 « The French people, in order to be free, had to combat 
 with kings ; to obtain a constitution founded upon reason, they 
 had to vanquish the prejudices of eighteen centuries. The 
 constitution of the third year and you, have triumphed over 
 all obstacles. Religion, feudality and royalty have successive- 
 ly governed Europe, but the peace which you have concluded 
 forms the jera of representative governments. You have or- 
 ganized the great nation whose vast territory is circumscribed 
 by the limits only which nature herself hath placed. You 
 have done more. The two most beautiful parts of Europe, 
 formerly so celebrated for the arts, the sciences, and the 
 great men whom they produced, see with renovated hope the 
 genius of liberty rising from the tombs of their ancestors. 
 These are the two pedestals on which the destinies have pla^^ 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 385 
 
 cd other nations. I have the honour to present the treaty- 
 signed at Campo Formio, and ratified by his Imperial niaiesty. 
 Peace gives the earnest of hberty, prosperity and glory to the 
 republick. When the happiness of the French people shall 
 rest on well-formed organick laws, all Europe will become 
 free." 
 
 The hero had scarcely finished when shouts 
 of acclamation on all sides seemed to reach 
 the clouds. " Long live the republick"..., 
 " Long live Bonaparte," were the general 
 cry. The president answered him in a very 
 long speech, and afterwards gave him the 
 fraternal embrace, in which he was followed 
 by the other members of the directory: this was 
 witnessed with great emotion by all present. 
 Bonaparte descended from the altar, and the 
 minister of foreign relations conducted him 
 to an arm chair which was prepared for him, 
 before the diplomatick body. The con- 
 servatory of musick then performed the 
 Chant du Retour, the words by Ghenier and 
 the musick by Mehul. The other generals 
 were next presented, and received and re- 
 turned addresses suitable to the occasion ; af- 
 ter which they took their different seats pre- 
 pared for them in front of Bonaparte, and the 
 musick played the Chant du Depart. The 
 directors then dissolved the sitting, and re- 
 turned to their palace with the rest of the pro-' 
 cession in the same order in which they 
 came. The spectators saluted Bonaparte' 
 with similar applause at his departure as 
 Cc c 
 
3B6 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 upon his entrance. A magnificent dinner was 
 given at the Luxembourg to the general and 
 an immense number of civil and military offi- 
 cers : the evening concluded with a ball at 
 the bouse of the minister of the interior. 
 
 On his arrival off Malta he sent this letter 
 to the bishop :.... 
 
 " To THE Bishop of Malta. 
 « I have learnt with sincere pleasure, good Mr. Bishop, 
 the kind conduct and reception which you have shewn to the 
 French troops. You may assure the people of your diocese 
 that the cathohck, apostohck and Roman religion shall not on- 
 ly be treated with regard, but its ministers especially protect- 
 ed. I know no character more respectable, or more worthy 
 of veneration, than a priest who, inspired by the true spirit of 
 the gospel, is persuaded that his duty ordains bim to render 
 unfeigned obedience to the temporal power, to maintain peace, 
 tranquillity and union in his diocese. I request you immedi- 
 ately to repair to the town of Malta, and to preserve, by your 
 influence there, harmony and tranquillity among the people. 
 I myself shall be there this evening. I request also, thatupon 
 my arrival you will introduce to me all the priests and other 
 chiefs belonging to Malta and the surrounding villages. Be 
 assured of the desire which I have to prove to you the esteems 
 and consideration which I have for you personally." 
 
 The sympathetic letter which Bonaparte 
 sent to the widow of admiral Brueys, who 
 died in the battle of the Nile, is a most beau- 
 tiful specimen of epistolary composition :.... 
 
 « Your husband was killed by a cannon ball whilst fighting 
 nobly for his country : he died without suffering for a moment, 
 and his death is envied by all good soldiers, I feel sincerely 
 ftr what you must suifer. The moment which separates tt^ 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. S87 
 
 from the person whom we love is terrible ; it insulates us from 
 every thing around us, and causes convulsions of agony : the 
 faculties of the soul are almost annihilated, and we hardly 
 preserve any connection with the world but in a dream. Men 
 appear to us more cold, more selfish, more wicked, and more 
 odious than they really are. We think in this situation, that 
 if *here was nothing which compelled us to live, it were better 
 for us to die ; but after these first emotions, when we press 
 our infants to our breast, tears and sentiments of tenderness 
 awaken nature within us, and we live again for our children. 
 Yes, madam, let me advise you to see them instantly ; let 
 them soften your heart to the tender impressions of melan- 
 choly ; you will weep over them, you will watch over their in- 
 fancy and cultivate their youth ; you will speak to them of 
 their father, of your ov/n sufferings, and of the loss which 
 they and their country have sustained. After having thus re- 
 attached yourself to the world by filial and maternal love, en- 
 deavour to set some value upon the lively interest which I shall 
 never fail to take in all that concerns the widow of my friend. 
 Be satisfied that there are at least some men in the workL how 
 few soever they may be, who deserve to be considered as the 
 only hope of the wretched, because they feel for their suffer- 
 ings with sensibility. 
 
 " BONAPARTE." 
 
 At the commencement of his last campaign 
 in Italy, Bonaparte evinced the most tender 
 regard for the memory of Virgil ...he wrote 
 to the commandant of Mantua : " The peo- 
 ple of the village of Andes, in which Virgil 
 was born, shall on that account be exempted 
 from all contributions ; and you will take care 
 that all the losses which they have sustained 
 during the siege of Mantua shall be repaid." 
 
 The poissards have been from time imme- 
 
$88 .THE HISTORY OF 
 
 morial accustomed upon any great and fortu- 
 nate event to send a deputation of their sis- 
 terhood to the kings and ministers of France, 
 and since the revolution to the various rulers 
 of the republick, to offer their congratulati- 
 ons, accompanied by a large bouquet of flow- 
 ers. Upon the elevation of Bonaparte to 
 the supreme authority of France, according 
 to custom, they sent a select number from 
 their body to present him with their good 
 wishes, and usual fragrant donation. The 
 first consul sternly received them, and after 
 rejecting their nosegay, commanded them to 
 retire, and in future to attend to their hus- 
 bands, their children and their fisheries, and 
 tiever more to attempt an interference in mat- 
 ters relating to the state. Upon which he 
 ordered the pages in waiting to close the door 
 upon them. 
 
 These formidable dames, so celebrated for 
 their ferocity, retired, chagrined and chap- 
 fallen, from the presence of the imperious 
 consul, and have not attempted to force ei- 
 ther their congratulations or their bouquets 
 upon any of the public functionaries since 
 that period. 
 
 The following anecdote is related in the 
 language of the Frenchman who published it 
 in Wilson's expedition :.... 
 
 « Bonaparte, notwithstanding his successes and fame, was 
 considered by those who knew him best, as not in himself pos- 
 sessing the great qualities ascribed to him. We regarded him 
 as indebted more to an extraordinary peculiar good fortune. 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 589 
 
 forcing- irresistible circumstances to his advantage, than to his 
 own abilities and exertions. After his repulse at Acre, our 
 opinion was confirmed, and we expected to see him return de- 
 jected, conscious of disgrace, his shame aggravated by the 
 recollection of his having sent a messenger with a dispatch, 
 and which was read in the Institute, in which he expressed 
 himself, " In three days I shall be in Acre ; when you open 
 this, be assured that Djezzar Pacha is no more."— The day 
 before he entered Cairo, we received orders, to our astonish- 
 ment, to prepare illuminations, triumphal arches, &c. in ho- 
 nour of the conquerors of Syria and of Djezzar Pacha. The 
 troops, who had despondingly anticipated a different recep- 
 tion, whose murmurs against the man who had planned their 
 expedition amounted to mutiny, whose expressions even me- 
 nanced death to him as an atonement for their seven thou- 
 sand comrades who had perished, saw with surprise the ho- 
 nours paid to them ; heard their chief and themselves styled 
 conquerors ; and, in the delirium of vanity, forgot their inju- 
 ries. The next morning Bonaparte, assured of the intoxica- 
 tion still continuing, assembled his army on parade, distribu- 
 ted rewards, then moved forwards a battalion of grenadiers, 
 whom he upbraided with having refused to make another as- 
 sault on Acre, and sentenced them to carry their arms slung 
 behind till their character was retrieved. It was then we 
 pronounced Bonaparte really a great man. We confessed 
 his knowledge of human nature, who in a few hours could so 
 improve his situation and rc-assume his influence, as to disgrace 
 those very men, who the day before would, with the applause 
 of their comrades, had he uttered a word of censure, have 
 instantlji assassinated him." 
 
 There are three charges alledged against 
 Bonaparte by his enemies, which it would be 
 improper not to notice ; all of them having the 
 same object, to prove, that as he is the most 
 powerful, so he is the most barbarous, cruel 
 
390 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 and unfeeling of the human race : the first 
 
 charge is thus stated :.... 
 
 " That he buried alive the dying and the wounded after the 
 battle of Salo ; he commanded all who were deemed no long- 
 er fit for service, to be thrown into the waggons among the 
 dead, and there either strangled or suffocated ; but in spite of 
 this precaution, the waggons seldom arrived at the burying 
 ground without sending forth the cries and groans of those 
 who were about to be buried alive ; they were conveyed to an 
 immense pit for the purpose, and immediately covered with 
 live loads of quick lime, which, thrown in upon their green 
 wounds, occasioned such exquisite pain, that the rector of 
 Salo positively died of the horror with which he was seized 
 upon hearing their cries. They were at length, however, 
 completely covered with earth." 
 
 This allegation rests entirely upon an ano 
 nymous letter, said to have been written by a 
 I^rench officer who had been wounded in the 
 battle of Areola, and was published by Pel- 
 tier: but it is impossible that such a crime 
 could have been committed ; for the soldiers 
 v/hom he commanded would not have retain- 
 ed their enthusiastick attachment to such a, 
 general, and afterwards have accompanied 
 him to Egypt. The only English author who 
 has mentioned the fact, although he manifests 
 every desire to believe it, admits that it wants 
 confirmation ; it must therefore be denominat- 
 ed an audacious falsehood. 
 
 The second and third charges are from 
 Wilson's expedition to Egypt, who affirms 
 that Bonaparte on the third day after the sur- 
 render of Jaffa, ordered 3,800 prisoners 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 391 
 
 whom he had captured in battle, to be mur- 
 dered m the vicinity of that town :.... 
 
 «' Bonaparte had in person inspected the whole body, annount- 
 ing to near 5,000 men, with the object of saving those who 
 belonged to the towns which he was preparing to attack. The 
 aged and noble physiognomy of a veteran Janissary attracted hi&, 
 observation, and he asked him sharply, ^^ Old man, what do 
 you do here ?" The Janissary undaunted, replied, " I must 
 ansvi^er that question by asking you the same ; your answer 
 will be, that you came to serve your Sultan; so did I mine.'* 
 The intrepid frankness of the reply excited universal interest 
 in his favour. Bonaparte even smiled. " He is saved," 
 whispced some of the aides-de-camp. " You know not Bona- 
 parte," observed one that served with him in Italy, " that 
 smile, I speak from experience, does not proceed from the 
 sentiment of benevolence, rentiember what I say." The opi- 
 nion was true. The Janissary was left in the ranks, doomed 
 to death, and suffered." 
 
 He next asserts that Bonaparte, by order- 
 ing opium to be administered in the food 
 which was given to the sick, poisoned 580 
 of his own soldiers ; and that after the return 
 of Bonanarte from Syria, the physician who 
 had refused to mix the opium charged him 
 in the sitting of the institute with this atro- 
 city, and added that he had directed a num- 
 ber of French and Copts, ill of the plague at 
 Rosetta, to be strangled. 
 
 » Bonaparte pleaded that he had ordered the garrison to be 
 desti'oyed, because he had not provisions to maintain them, or 
 strength enough to guard them ; and that it was evident if 
 they escaped, they would act against the French, since amongst 
 the prisoners were 580 of the garrison of El Arisch, who had 
 promised not to serve again, and that he destroyed the sick te 
 
393 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 prevent contagion, and to save them from falling into the 
 hands of the Turks." 
 
 The truth of these charges depends up- 
 on the credibihty of Sir Robert Wilson 
 alone; and if the former should be admitted 
 as fact, a short elucidation may place the 
 circumstance in its proper point of view. It 
 should be remembered however, that the 
 garrison were summoned to lay down their 
 arms ; that they were the same troops whom 
 Bonaparte had already liberated, upon con- 
 dition of not serving against the French ; that 
 they were a faithless sanguinary banditti, 
 who, if the general had dismissed them, 
 would have again been found in arms against 
 him ; and that Berthier's narrative states that 
 they were slain during the assault. Passing 
 over this incontrovertible evidence, it is pro- 
 per to shew that Bonaparte is justified by law 
 and by British examples. 
 
 The conduct of Edward III. at the siege 
 of Calais, and when the town offered to sur- 
 render, is familiar to every person in the least 
 acquainted with history: nevertheless his 
 barbarity is obliterated. After the battle of 
 Agincourt, when Henry V. was receiving ihe 
 congratulations of his nobles, it was reported 
 that his camp was attacked ; a small party of 
 French was endeavouring to plunder the bag- 
 gage.. ..they were surrounded by the English, 
 and Henry ordered them to be immediately 
 dispatched. At the siege of Rouen, which 
 was defended by the inhabitauts with the ut- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 393 
 
 most obstinacy, the same monarch erected 
 gibbets around the city, and regularly hung 
 all his prisoners. To preserve the stock of 
 provisions, 12,000 useless persons were dis- 
 missedfromthe city; who were refused a pas- 
 sage through the British camp, and were driven 
 back to the ramparts, where they remained 
 exposed to all the miseries of want, the in- 
 clemency of the weather, and the bails and 
 arrows of the besiegers and the citizens. 
 Having consented to the terms upon which 
 they would surrender, Henry, as soon as the 
 number to be immolated were delivered to 
 him, ordered the immediate execution of 
 Alain Blanchard, through whose efforts the 
 city had been excited so long to resist the 
 English army. But to recur to our own 
 times: Nelson during the attack upon Copen^ 
 hagen, captured some floating batteries, with 
 a considerable number of prisoners ; as his 
 situation was not very safe, he wrote to the 
 prince of Denmark the following note : 
 " Lord Nelson has directions to spare Den- 
 '' mark, when no longer resisting, but if the 
 " firing be continued on the part of Denmark, 
 " Lord Nelson must be obliged to set on fire 
 " all the floating batteries which he has tak- 
 *' en, without having the power of saving the 
 " brave Danes who have defended them." 
 If we could believe all that Wilson says of 
 the slaughter of the Turks at Jafl"a, it is not 
 comparable in cruelty to this threat ; for Bo- 
 DdcJ 
 
394 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 naparte's prisoners had forfeited their parole, 
 and by the merciless laws of war were liable 
 to death ; but Nelson's prisoners had made 
 no engagement, and consequently could 
 claim the rights which although captured 
 they possessed. But if Bonaparte had car- 
 ried these Turks from Jaffa to Acre, and 
 threatened to shoot them before the Butcher, 
 if he would not surrender the town, he 
 would have rejoiced at the sight of blood.... 
 and even Sidney Smith, in his letters, speaks 
 in terms of approbation of his mutilating the 
 French prisoners, and drowning them bound 
 in sacks. If Bonaparte were guilty of the 
 charge, as he undoubtedly is not, he may be 
 exculpated by general custom, his own si- 
 tuation, and the conduct of those with whom 
 he contended. These remarks are not de- 
 signed to justify any murderers ; every mili- 
 tary man acting on the offensive is accounta- 
 ble for all the lives which he may sacrifice. 
 We may be dazzled with the splendour of 
 victories, in which the talents and courage 
 of the general or admiral have been strong- 
 ly exhibited; hut truth speedily divests them 
 of this adventitious lustre, and declares eve- 
 ry man an enemy to humanity who inflicts in- 
 jury on our race ; and him who has occasion- 
 ed most misery to be the most unworthy of 
 
 esteem. Sed satis. 
 
 The third charge is so destitute of proba- 
 bility and authenticity, that it is truly won- 
 derful it should have been repeated. Every 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. S95 
 
 liberal English historian denies it as strongly 
 as it is asserted ; Stephens, the most candid 
 writer on the subject of the French revolu^ 
 tion, says:.... 
 
 " This diabolical policy, unjustly attributed to Frederick 
 the Great, has alo been imputed to Bonaparte. There can 
 be no doubt but that the accusation originated in his own 
 camp ; and it has been recently reiterated in a work just pub- 
 lished by an officer who served with the English army in 
 Egypt. 
 
 " It is but candid however to state, that nothing beyond bare 
 assertion has been as yet adduced, and that proofs of an ex- 
 culpatory tendency may be brought in favour of the first con- 
 sul. 
 
 " Desgenettes, the physician-general to the army, who is 
 «aid to have refused to participate in the horrid deed propos- 
 ed to him by Bonaparte, has borne ample testimony to his 
 tenderness and attention to his troops whilst afflicted with the 
 plague ; and he expressly states in his " Histoire Medicale de 
 I'armee d'Orient," that the general visited those who were 
 confined with that dreadful malady in person, and even assist- 
 ed in the most menial offices for their relief. 
 
 " Notwithstanding I am well aware that it may be easy for 
 an ambitious chief to feign that humanity which is foreign to 
 his heart, yet until something in the shape of proof be brought 
 forward, this accusation does not appear entitled to the sanc- 
 tion of history." ^ 
 
 Arthur Aikin, an author by no means friend- 
 ly to the excesses of the French revolution, 
 remarks thus :.... 
 
 « This affair of Jaffa, which appeared deplorable to the 
 French generals, supplied Sidney Smith with a story of the 
 inhuman massacre at Jaffa, and Mr. Morier with that of the 
 4,500 prisoners of war, who were made to .staiKj still while 
 
595 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 the soldiers murdered them by charge of bayonet, and which 
 has this poetical ending : *' To this day their skeletons, and 
 the sands steeped with gore, attest the barbarous act." It Is 
 lamentable to hear an ambassador's secretary, a man who 
 ought to know something of the calumnies to which publick 
 characters are exposed, bring all history into contempt by re- 
 lating such things as these ; but he goes on to say, that after 
 the siege of Acre, Bonaparte poisoned his wounded." 
 
 When the two last charges agamst the con- 
 sul were published, they were immediately 
 contradicted by the French generals, and the 
 identical physician to whom it was asserted 
 Bonaparte had applied to poison the troops, 
 denied the whole, and on the contrary re- 
 presented that on his return from Syria, to 
 expedite his march, and to secure the safety 
 of the sick and wounded, the general travell- 
 ed on foot, and frequently delivered his horse 
 for the service of the afflicted soldiers. The 
 truth of the original tale was again asserted 
 by Wilson in a letter published since the 
 commencement of the present war.. ..at a time 
 when the agents of the British government 
 were plotting to assassinate the consul and 
 to overthrow his authority, and when every 
 means were considered proper to excite in the 
 nation the strongest hatred to the French 
 people and their governors, and to nourish 
 the most enthusiastick determination to resist 
 the threatened invasion. What could have 
 been so well calculated to beget and to en- 
 courage this spirit in the British dominions, 
 as a demonstration of the truth of this state- 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 39f 
 
 ment? notwithstanding this imperious neces- 
 sity, which demanded indubitable evidence, 
 Wilson assures us of its truth " upon his ho- 
 nour'' only. Does that author suppose that 
 " his honour" can overcome the evidence of 
 a whole life, or that the denial in France is 
 not as weighty with the impartial observer, 
 as the affirmation in England. That Wilson 
 invented the story may be doubted, but that 
 he has pledged his reputation upon its truth 
 is incontrovertible. Why does he not bring 
 forward the evidence of which he says he is 
 possessed ? And considering that every atro- 
 city which can debase man, has been reported 
 of Bonaparte since the declaration of war in 
 1803, its not being substantiated except by an 
 individual's " honour," is very strong evi- 
 dence that the narrative is a fabrication. If 
 Bonaparte had murdered 580 of his own 
 sick, an event which must have been notori- 
 ous to all engaged in the expedition into Sy- 
 ria, would not the army at once have lost 
 their attachment to him ? Could he have re- 
 turned to Egypt, and disgraced one of his 
 battalions of grenadiers ? Could he have es- 
 caped the revenge of some individual among 
 the troops ? Could he have intimidated all 
 the soldiers who were with him in Egypt, so 
 that none should ever authenticate the com- 
 mission of the outrage? Could seven 
 years have rolled away, and nothing but as- 
 sertion be adduced to prove the truth of a 
 crime so great and indescribably barbarous P 
 
398 THE HISTORY OF 
 
 And must this statement be believed because 
 a military man of " honour" avows it ? If the 
 subject were not so grave, the calumny so 
 great, and the tale so preposterous, it would 
 almost excite a laugh to consider how easily 
 the world are duped, and from not investi- 
 gating the subjects proposed to their at- 
 tention, how quickly they believe the most 
 gross slander if it be boldly and impudently 
 affirmed, and when contradicted, persisted in 
 with the strongest asseverations. Whether 
 these charges against Bonaparte be true or 
 false, they cannot be credited until complete 
 proof be promulged, as they contradict the 
 whole life of the French emperor, are incon- 
 sistent with his general character, and the 
 perpetration of them would have evinced an 
 imprudence and a want of wisdom, with 
 which he is not in any degree chargeable. 
 The instances of sensibility, generosity and 
 kindness to his army, which are narrated in 
 this history, are a very strong evidence of the 
 untruth of these allegations, and united to 
 the other reasons in his favour, justify the 
 impartial historian and reader in the conclusi- 
 on, that the whole is a calumny, and 
 that the French emperor is innocent in these 
 respects ; and the solemnity with which this 
 tale has been published to the world, com- 
 pared with its falsity, authorize the opinion, 
 that he has likewise been injured in number- 
 less manufactured slanders which have no 
 other foundation than political legerdemain, 
 
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 
 
 a malevolent heart, and an unblushing coun- 
 tenance. 
 
 Bonaparte soon after his elevation to the 
 consulate, considering that the manners of 
 fashionable life in France, and especially se- 
 parate chambers, were not friendly to mo- 
 rals, determined by his example to lessen if 
 possible the general licentiousness. The 
 palace of St. Cloud was at this time prepar- 
 ing for him ; the principal architect requested 
 of him to point out in what part of the pa- 
 lace he would wish to have his separate sleep- 
 ing room. " I do not know what you mean," 
 said the consul, " crimes only divide the hus- 
 " band from his wife. Make as many bed- 
 *^ rooms as you please, but one only for me 
 " and Madame Bonaparte." 
 
 " The emperor's countenance, though grave 
 and serious, often relaxes into a smile of infi- 
 nite benignity. He has little relish for the 
 common pleasures of mankind, and seems 
 not to shew himself at publick places for the 
 sake of amusement. He is very fond of riding 
 and driving carriages ; hates large companies, 
 and has therefore abolished the state dinners 
 which he used to give when consul ; but he 
 sometimes relaxes in small parties, and plays 
 at cards for trifling sums, though he never 
 permits any thing like gaming in his pre- 
 sence ; he is fond of dancing in a small cir- 
 cle, , and sometimes requests the princess 
 JLouis to give him a ball, to which he names 
 the company to be invited ; they seldom ex- 
 
400 THE HISTORY OF NAPOLEON BONAPARTE. 
 
 ceed thirty. To supply the want of sleep, 
 and to refresh himself after fatigue, he fre- 
 quently uses the warm bath ; and that he may 
 lose no time by the operation, dictates letters, 
 receives dispatches, and gives audience to 
 his ministers in that situation : he retires soon 
 after to rest, and rises again as early as when 
 he lived at Nice." 
 
 " The success of Bonaparte has been 
 more singular than his talents. ...every thing 
 has conspired to promote his designs, and 
 no instance is to be found in history of any 
 man having risen from so low an origin to 
 such a height of power ; his character 
 therefore is the greatest phenomenon which 
 has ever appeared in the world. Csesar was 
 of a noble family ; Alexander was born a 
 prince ; Pompey never equalled him ; and 
 as to the savage conquerors of Asia and Eu- 
 rope, they are not to be compared to him, ei- 
 ther in extent of dominion or talents. The 
 barbarous Goths, and the still more barba- 
 rous Turks, triumphed not over great and 
 powerful nations, but over a luxurious 
 and enervated empire. Bonaparte contended 
 with the best disciplined and most vigorous 
 forces which Germany, in her best times, 
 ever sent into the field, and has surmounted 
 the most subtle statesmen in Europe." 
 
 FINIS. 
 
A COMPREHENSIVE VIEW 
 
 French Revolution^. 
 
 THAT immense change in the situation of the world, 
 which is owing to the French revohition, has excited the as- 
 tonishment of all civilized nations, and produced an invesliga- 
 tiou of the basis upon which so stupendous a superstructure 
 has been raised. 
 
 The revolution in America operated like an electiick si ock 
 upon the French people, who were burdened uith taxes, im-^ 
 poverished by perpetual exactions, and constantly troaning 
 under severe toil and incessant labour, for which they receiv- 
 ed little remuneration, being pinched by poverty ar.d dispi- 
 rited by want. But many domestick causes enccurrged that vi- 
 olent demand for liberty which was too irresistible to be deni- 
 ed by a government which had so long sway«d the nation 
 without controul, kindness or affection. 
 
 The disordered situation of the publick finrnces ; the zeal 
 of the parliaments ; the spirit ol defection which had become 
 general in the army, since the return of those tioops who un- 
 der La Fayette had visited the United States, and joined to 
 establish their independence ; and that inherent love of liber, 
 ty which distinguishes the French nation in every part of their 
 history, must have co-operated with much success to intro* 
 duce the change which soon followed. Besides these reasons, 
 the situation of the govei'nment was adapted, when the flame 
 began to rage, to increase it. and to hinder it fiom being ex- 
 tinguished. The French kings from the earliest ages have 
 
 * The former part of this sketch is much ind^bt<d to the iot*odu«« 
 tion prefixed to Stephens' wars. 
 
 E K e 
 
2 
 
 liurtured a warlike spirit in those whom they govern, and 
 this when stimulated, may be a defence to the government, 
 or the source of their punishment. The soldiers who return- 
 ed from America were filled with inefTable surprize, when 
 they saw the debased state of their countrymen, and recollect- 
 ed the independence of the citizens of the United States. 
 They had perceived in the latter, virtue, talents and publick 
 usefulness rewarded, and their contraries despised ; they had 
 discovered penury to be no disgrace, and wealth to be no re- 
 commendation : whilst at home they were robbed by a corrupt, 
 disorderly, dronish clergy, who seldom or never instructed 
 them, and whose sole object was to preserve their own benefi- 
 ces, and the gross darkness of the middle age among the 
 people ; their governors also were an hereditary aristo- 
 cracy, the cfTspring of opulerce and rieanness, splendid in 
 their appearance, disgraced by immense vices, and exalted so 
 high, as to have little connection with those who were become 
 *' hewers of wood and drawers of water," only to the privileg- 
 ed orders. 
 
 The frequent demands for the convocation of the states-ge- 
 neral had reached the ears of the army, who felt the strongest 
 dislike to that mechanical discipline which Louis XVIth had 
 introduced from Austria, Prussia and Russia, and whose pu- 
 nishments accompanied the non-performance of military duty; 
 and at this time there were very feAv men in the whole country 
 who had not served in the army, they were consequently inur- 
 ed to discipline and familiar with discipline. The troops in the 
 capital, who by their long residence therein, had contracted 
 an intimate acquaintance with its citizens, were the first who 
 felt the revolutionary spirit, and eventually fixed the fate of 
 that despotism, which, supported by all the nobles and clergy, 
 with an immense force accustomed to implicit obedience, aid- 
 ed by long custom, and strengthened by ancient pi'ejudices, 
 was now destined to sustain a complete overthrow. 
 
 Mr. Necker had persuaded the king to reform his immense 
 household establishment, which lessened the admiration that 
 the multitude had previously felt, and removed one incentive 
 to their obedience. Louis XVI. who had frequently opposed 
 with obstinacy the proceedings of the parliaments, submitted 
 to their firmness, and hence the prerogative was found to have 
 a resti'aint. The king himself was pitied, and by many des- 
 pised ; being voluptuous, weak, timid, unstable, and tyranni- 
 cal or yielding, accoi'ding to the preponderance of the raali 
 opinions of the queen, or his own irresolution. 
 
Marie Antoinette also acquired the dislike of the nation in 
 a considerable degree. Her manners were haughty, her ex« 
 pences incalculable, and her mode of life the subject of severe 
 reprehension. The people accused her of being more attach- 
 ed to Aubtria than to France, whilst htr want of decorum was 
 the perpetual complaint of the gay Parisians. The king's two 
 brothers and herself were at open variance ; hence a number 
 of court intrigues that would otherwise have been buried in ob» 
 livion were disseminated through Paris, which augmented ihe 
 disquietude of its inhabitants, and evinced the necessity of an 
 immediate reformation. The duke of Orleans, at the same 
 time, was striving for popularity : banished by the king, and 
 persecuted by the queen, he excited a spirit of opposition to 
 the measures of government m his partisans, and gave all his 
 influence to strengthen the revolutionary principles, and to 
 promote the dissatisfaction of the people. 
 
 The whole system of government was abusive and tyranni- 
 cal ; the feudal hierarchy was become oppressive in the high- 
 est degree ; and instead of being a barrier to the encroach- 
 ments of the sovereign, were his most servile adherents : 
 they enforced their sole right to the pleasures of hunting, &c. 
 they advanced old and intolerable claims to procure means to 
 gratify their luxury or avarice, and thus filled the minds of the 
 peasantry with an unconquerable aversion to their masters, and 
 with an insatiate desire for the approach of the day of retribu- 
 tion, when they might revenge the injuries to which they had 
 been obHged to submit. 
 
 The dignified clergy also were arrived at the acme of voluptu- 
 ousness, and having forgotten the grand design of the Christi- 
 an ministry, intrigued for offices and sinecures, and by the 
 most corrupt means obtained the highest rank in the church ; 
 but the art of printing, and the writings of a variety of au- 
 thors*, had lessened the superstitious reverence of the multi- 
 tude for their ghostly rulers ; whilst the immense revenues 
 of the church excited the envy of those who thought this sum 
 drawn from the labours of the poor, would tend much more 
 
 * Montesquieu, Mably, Raynal, Rousseau, and above all Voltaire, 
 taught the subjects of that most absolute monarchy, to think and to 
 speak as men :.. .BufFon, Condorcet, Bailly, Turcot, Didei-ot, 
 d'Alembert, all aided in this work by the boldness of their inquiries, 
 the freedom of their opinions, and the energy with which they com- 
 bated the ancient tyranny ; whilst Necfcer and Calonne, the for ner 
 by his strictures on the finances, and the latter by his opposition to the 
 privileged orders, must he allowed to have dispelled the ignorance of 
 the nation with respect to their poblick iiffiiurs. 
 
4 
 
 to the benefit of the nation if it were the reward Qf industry, 
 or ipp.!f.:d to the establishment of those buildini^s which ei- 
 ther diffuse knowledge, or give satisfaction and safety to the. 
 inliabitiints. 
 
 But the clergy to degeneracy added injustice. They left 
 their (iioceses entiiely to reside near the court, and appointed 
 the lower orders to admiinster the word of God, so much cor- 
 rupted by their superstitions; lhes,e men they pilfered of the 
 gratuitous kindness of their flocks, and thereby fostered that 
 dislike in the breasts of the lower clergy, which at length in- 
 duced them to oppose their superiors, and hastened the de- 
 struction of the established hierarchy. 
 
 An education more republican had become general throughout 
 the nation. The people read, and thought, and conversed 
 with great freedom on the subjects of government. They 
 ceased not to decry the abuses of the clergy, the corrupt ad- 
 ministraiion of justice, the arbitrary exactions of the nobles, 
 and the incessant demands which an improvident government, 
 m; le u.ion them to maintain its extravagances, and to supply 
 its expences. Paris was in perpetual agitation ; its great ricli- 
 es and vast population were of much influence in the popular 
 scale : and the comparisons which were made between the 
 wretchedness of poverty, and the splendour of the opuleqt, 
 conjoined to the want of occupation and nourishment, the cry 
 for hberty, the hopes of enjoying it, the addresses of some 
 admirtd speakers, and the never-ceasing stream of inflummf^T 
 tory productions which flowed throurh Paris like a torrent, 
 rendered a convulsion almost inevitable. 
 
 There was another species of injustice in the governmepti 
 which ali!-0'.)trh so lonir tolerated, animated the desire of 
 chant^e and quickened that spirit of opposition which mani- 
 fested itself in all parts of the nation. The Bastille and the 
 Leitres de Cachet were the instruments of carrying into effect 
 the vile oppressions under which the nation groaned. The 
 ven;dity of the crovernment in each of its departments hc«4 
 attained its summit A nobleman or rich man could secure his 
 adversary a residence iu thi^ Bastille, if he would pay a suffi- 
 cient price for a Lettre de Cachet, and they Avere sold with the 
 most open impunity. The judges and other administrators of 
 justice decided all causes in favour of those who rewarded 
 thtm; and females, denominated Les Soliciteuses, were em- 
 plo' ed to procure awards from the courts of law. 
 
 The excessive loAd of taxes, which fell almost exclusivel)? 
 upon the lower class of people, aided the general discontent ; 
 ihe exemptions claimed by the privileged orders, whieH werif 
 
increased by the sale af titles of nobility, and the feudal rir 
 gours which subsisted in all their power, filled up the measure 
 of national dissatisfaction. 
 
 In some districts the farmers were little superior to the boors 
 pf the north of Europe. Encliained by indigence to their native 
 soil, forced from home by the nobility, to whom they were 
 obliged to give their actual sei'vices, and maintaining a dissi- 
 pated clergy, their famili'^s knew nothing of worldly comfort ; 
 many perished in seasons of scarcity ; and previous to the re- 
 volution many were altogether enslaved. 
 
 " The people being thus left entirely destitute of redress ov 
 protection ; the royal authority paramount and unbounded ; the 
 laws venal ; the peasantry oppressed ; agriculture in a lan- 
 guishing state ; comn^crce considered as degrading ; the pub- 
 lick revenues farmed out to greedy financiers ; the puhlick mo- 
 ney consumed by a couvt wallowing in luxury, and every in- 
 stitution at variance with poHcy, justice and reason ; a change 
 became inevitable in the ordinary course of human events ; 
 and like all sudden alterations in corrupt states, was accompa- 
 nied with temporary evils and crimes, which made many good 
 men look hack on the ancient despotism with a sigh. But at 
 this period the cry of liberty resounded in every possible dir 
 rection from Paris, the city where the revolution was engen- 
 dered, to the Alps, the Pyrenees, the plains of P'landers, the 
 borders of the Channel, and the shores of the Mediterranean 
 &nd the Atlantick.'' 
 
 The states-general assembled at Versailles, May the 5thj 
 1789. Their proceedings were opened by Louis XVI. who 
 read to them an address, which was received with much sa- 
 tisfaction ; Mr. Varentin and Mr. Necker entered at large 
 upon the situation of publick affairs : after some time spent in 
 debating upon the junction of the nobility, clergy and com- 
 mons in one body, the king suspended their meeting, but not 
 without considerable opposition from the third estate, Avho 
 contended against this proceeding with all their influence. 
 They met again on the 22(1 of June, the commons having 
 been joined by one hundred and forty-nine of the clergy and 
 two of the nobility from Dauphine : the speech which was de- 
 livered by the king was very ungrateful to his auditors. After he 
 had withdrawn, accompanied by the nobles and the minority of 
 the clergy, M. de Breze intimated the king's orders that they 
 should retire, but they persisted in their former resolutions, 
 land declared the " persons of the deputies sacred and. inviola- 
 ble." Fprty-seven of the nobles, with the duke of Orleans, 
 joined the commons, and on the fourth day, by the express r©. 
 
commendation of the king, a measure which he had prohibit- 
 ed in his second speech, the remainder of the nobility and 
 clergy followed their example. Much joy was expressed on 
 account of this agreement, but on the part of the court it was 
 hypocritical, for at this crisis large bodies of foreign troops 
 were collecting ; thirty-five thousand were assembled in the 
 neighbourhood of Paris ; twenty thousand more were expect- 
 ed ; artillery were provided ; camps marked ; batteries rais- 
 ed ; military posts were established in the roads and on the 
 bridges ; and the marshal de Broglio appointed to the chief 
 command. 
 
 The city of Paris was roused to a very alarming degree by 
 these preparations ; the effect intended, to terrify the Parisi- 
 ans, was not produced ; and the orators who addressed them in 
 the gardens of the Palais Royal, excited their curiosity and 
 animated their zeal, until the cry of liberty became general, 
 and extended even to the blind supporters of the measures of 
 the court. 
 
 The military in the city of Paris made a comm^on cause with 
 the people, and those in the neighbourhood upon being order- 
 ed to attack the populace, who were releasing some soldiers 
 from prison for disobeying an order to fire upon the citizens, 
 laid down their arms and joined the insurgents. At this junc- 
 ture Necker was sent into exile, and a new administi'ation, all 
 the decided advocates of despotism were appointed, who had 
 fixed on the 14th of July to take possession of Paris, and 
 thereby to destroy the national assembly. 
 
 A trifling incident disconcerted every project of the court. 
 The Parisians were carrying the busts of Necker and Orleans 
 in triumph, when they were attacked by a patrole of the Roy- 
 al AUemande i*egiment, and several persons were wounded. 
 Soon after the alarm bell of each parish was rung ; the women 
 and children filled the city with their cries ; signal guns were 
 fired ; the citizens prepared their houses for defence, whilst 
 the populace seized all the arms in the different shops in the 
 city, and hastened to the town house. Being joined by the 
 guards they gave battle to the foreigners, gained the victory, 
 and forced all the regular troops to evacuate Paris and to re- 
 treat to Versailles, which filled the court with the most per- 
 fect dismay. 
 
 But the appearance of a banditti in the neighbourhood of the 
 city, who had already burnt several houses in the suburbs, and 
 who were hastening to Paris for provisions, of which there was 
 a scarcity, induced the immediate formation of a city militia ; 
 but arms being wanting, those who had enrolled themselves 
 
members of the nevntnilitia marched to the invalid hospital^ 
 took possession of the artillery, and secured about fifty thou- 
 sand pikes, sabres and muskets. Upon this occasion more 
 than sixty thousand were enrolled into companies ; the Ser- 
 jeants and grenadiers of the guards were elected officers ; can- 
 non were posted on all the avenues to Versailles ; and the Place 
 Diiuphine, being provided with a numerous artillery, became 
 the head-quarters of the militia, afterwards called the patrio- 
 tick army. 
 
 On the morning of the 14th of July, a circumstance occurred 
 which decided the superiority of the popular cause. Some 
 individual, vi hose name is not recorded, having engaged the 
 attention of the citizens, cried, " Let us take the Bastille." 
 Nothing could hate been so appropriate ; no motion so well- 
 timtd ; it resounded throughout Paris, and in a few minutes 
 an army was formed, which being speedily joined by all the 
 troops in the capital, perplexed and intimidated De Launay, 
 the governor. 
 
 The assailants beginning to attack the gates, the garrison 
 fired upon the people, and killed several upon the spot — this 
 kindled the rage of tlie multitude, which was satiated by the 
 capture only of the prison, after a contest of four hours. De 
 Launay was immediately beheaded, and the whole of the 
 garrison would have been immolated upon the altar of re- 
 venge, had not the French guards pt;titioned for them, mercy. 
 The national assembly, during these events, did not adjourn 
 for two days and two nights, until the capture of the Bastille 
 was announced. On the following morning the king ordered 
 the troops to retire, and the citizens elected Mr. Bailly mayor 
 of Paris, and de la Fayette commander of the national guards. 
 The Bastille, the object of first hatred, was demolished imme- 
 diately after these events ; the prisoners, amounting to seven 
 only in number, were liberated and carried in triumph through 
 the principal streets of Paris ; the torturous instruments were 
 exposed before the whole city ; and the strong hold of despo- 
 tism was thus destroyed, not one stone of it being left upon 
 another. 
 
 In consequence of the capture of the Bastille, many of the 
 princes and nobihty fled to Germany ; Mr. Necker was re- 
 called from Basle, to which city he had been exiled, and the 
 famous declaration of rights was adopted by the national as- 
 sembly and sanctioned by the king. On the 4th of August, 
 1789, the old feudal system was entirely abolished, and Louis 
 XVL received the title of " The Restorer of Liberty ;" but 
 soon after he sent a long letter, refusing his assent to some of 
 
s 
 
 the proceedings of the 4th of Auguist ; this added to the itft« 
 prudent conduct of the national militia, the Swiss troops, the 
 body guards, and the regitnent of T landers, who were exceed- 
 ingly hated in France, excittd the suspicions of the national 
 assembly, and at one of their meetings, Mirabeau denounced 
 the queen and the duke de Guiche. 
 
 On the fifth of October, the populace being joined by the 
 guards under La Fayette, proceeded to Versailles, and forced 
 the king and his family to return to Paris, that they might not 
 retire to the frontiers. The constitution having been now 
 formed, the grand meeting in the Champ de Mars was held, 
 ■where the king, the representatives, and great numbers of the 
 clergy took a solemn oath to maintain the constitution. 
 
 But the subsequent conduct of the khig produced much dis* 
 quietude. He fled from Paris with his family incognito, and 
 had arrived at Varennes ere he was recognised ; but Drouetj- 
 post-mastel' of St. Menehould, discovered him, and he was 
 escorted back to the capital. The legislature speedily after dis* 
 solved their body, and from theoOth of September sat no more. 
 
 The second legislative body were convened upon the disso- 
 lution of the former : the nobles and priests still continued to 
 fly, and Coblentz became the general rendezvous : the French 
 princes joined their countrymen in that city, the old court cere- 
 monies were established, and an army had begun to assemble, 
 ■when the national assembly, December 29, 1791, decreed that 
 the prince of Conde should forfeit his right to the regency, if 
 he did not return within two months ; that all the men uniting 
 at Coblentz were traitors, and sent their manifesto to the 
 different courts in Europe. 
 
 . At this time the king -was plotting a counter-revolution, al- 
 though he had most solemnly assented to the proceedings of the 
 national assembly. The political parties in France were nu- 
 mierous, and each had a large number of adherents. But tht 
 society v/hich made so much noise, and figured so strongly 
 from this time, in the affairs of the revolution, was the Jaco- 
 bins, whose influence was immense, and who might be said 
 frequently to decide the measures of the legislative body» But 
 the eminence which they had acquired was owing to the 
 queen's hostility to the constitution and liberty ; the foolish 
 conduct of the king ; the absurd precipitation of the foreign 
 powers ; and the war which was speedily announced. The 
 continental states judging that they could destroy all the 
 "vvOrk of reformation which had been begun in FVance, entered 
 into a coalition which, under the pretext of restoring Loitis 
 XVI. to the throne, was mtendedto partition France, as thejr 
 
liad divided Poland r./.-war being declared, a bloody ■manifesto 
 was promulged by the Duke of Brunswick, which surpasses 
 any sanguinary edict issued during the late war. On the tenth 
 of August, an insurrection occurred in Paris, which ended in 
 the death of many of the Swiss guards, who defended the king 
 in the Thuilleries....this event suspended the royal authority, 
 and produced the election of a national convention, to orga- 
 nize the distressed situation of publick affairs : previous to the 
 meeting of that body, Fayette deserted the command of the 
 army and Dumouriez was appointed his successor. The 
 Prussian army entered France in the latter end of August, 
 conquered Longwy and Verdun, and forced Dumouriez by 
 this success to post himself in the forest of Arg;onne, fi'om 
 •which he retired to the camp of St. Menehouid, and the 
 ■duke commenced the siege of Thionville. 
 
 The convention met in September, and on the 21st of that 
 month decreed the abolition of royalty, and the transiormatiori 
 of the form of government to that of a republick : they imme- 
 diately proceeded to excite all the latent energies of the nation, 
 that the progress of the allies might be checked, and the in- 
 vaders driven from the country. The king of Psussia per- 
 ceiving that neither glory nor advantage was to be derived 
 from a contest with the French, withdrew his troops, although 
 with numberless difficulties and privations, and u v/as owing 
 either to Dumouriez's remissness or treachery, that any of 
 them escapedt 
 
 The retreat of the allied forces delivered the French go- 
 vernment from all their anxiety, and determined tiiem to act 
 upon the offensive: their generals were ordered to advance in- 
 to Germany : Worms, Mentz and Frankfort were immediate- 
 ly captured, and an incursion was made into the dominions of 
 the prince of Hesse. Savoy was attacked at the same time : 
 Chambcrie, Nice and Montalbin submitted to the French, 
 and a grand fete was celebrated at Paris to testify the nation* 
 aljoy. 
 
 Whilst these movements insured the safety of the repub- 
 lick, the northern armies emulated the example of their com- 
 rades, and under the command of Dumouriez traversed the 
 Netherlands with great celerity in consequtnce of the battle 
 of Gemappe, which was so decisive as to enable the French 
 general to take possession of nearly the whole of Flanders, as 
 fast as his troops could inarch to their posts : Mens, Brussels, 
 Liege, Antwerp and Namur being garrisoned by French soldiers. 
 This short campaign havinsj; been so peculiarly successful on 
 behalf of the French, the army was permitted to retire int» 
 winter quarters. 
 
 F F f 
 
10 
 
 The commencement of the year 1793 completed the revo* 
 lution ; the convention, as the supreme authority of the nati- 
 on having- deposed their monarch, arraigned, tried and con- 
 demned him to ceath. He was guillotmed immediately after 
 his sentence, and to his execution may be attributed the long 
 and mei'ciless war which succeeded. The interest which 
 Bonaparte evinced, and the services which he performed for 
 the nation, have been already narrated in his life, hence his 
 part of the history will not be noticed ; but to connect the 
 whole woik, a cursory view of the changes of the republick 
 until the elevation of Napoleon I. to the consulate will be in- 
 troduced. 
 
 1 he news of Louis' death had no sooner reached London, 
 than the French ambassador was dismissed with the most pro- 
 found contempt ; war was declared ; a coalition was formed 
 which included all the European states except Denmark and 
 Sweden, and the mos^t vigorous preparations made to renew 
 the war. Anticipating the arrival of troops from England, 
 Dumouriez invaded Holland, captured Breda, Klundert, Sec. 
 but the duke of York's landing, with the success of the Au- 
 strians on the Rhine, induced the French armies to raise the 
 siege of Maestricht, and to retreat towards the frontiers: 
 much of this apparent defeat was the effect of Dumouriez's 
 baseness, who soon after deserted his army, and retired to 
 the allies ; upon which Dampierre was appointed his success- 
 or. The battles of Famars, where the French commander 
 was slain, Quievrain and St. Amand speedily followed ; these 
 forced the French to retreat, and Itft Conde, Valenciennes, 
 &:c. at the mercy of the allies, which fortresses, with Mentz, 
 were possessed by their troops. In the course of this summer 
 the convention decreed, '' That all the people of colour born 
 of free parents, were eligible to offices in the colonial tovem- 
 ment," and the British conquered Tobago, Miquelon, St. 
 Pierre, Pondicherry, and several other stations of value and 
 fm.portanre both in the East and West-Indies. Lord Hood 
 was appointed to the Mediterranean with a formidable- fleet, 
 and the misfortunes of Frt.nce seemed to be consummated ; 
 an internal commotion which ended in tlie death of Brissot 
 and twenty other deputies, was the ruin of Lyons, and con- 
 vulsed the republick through all its departments. But the Ja- 
 cobins, influenced by Robespierre, which party now held the 
 reins of government, immediately resorted to every measure 
 to recruit the armies, and instantaneously levied 300,000 men, 
 who with the troops already in active service, formed an Trn- 
 penetrable cordon from the British channel entirely round 
 France to the insurgent departments of La Vendee. Hou- 
 
11 
 
 chard having been nominated to the command of the northern 
 army, discomfited the EngUsh under the duks of York, 
 with immense toss, and had he not sold his country's mter- 
 ests, for which he was quickly guillotined, the wliole of the 
 allies engaged in the siei^'e of Dunkirk must have been prison- 
 ers of war. But the Austrians still maintained their superio- 
 rity, and drove all the French advanced posts into their in- 
 trenched camp at Maubeuge, and captured Quesnoy. Whilst 
 these events occurred in the north of France, Toulon was as- 
 sailed by lord Hood, and taken possession of by him ; but the 
 allies were driven from it after a siege of three months, and a 
 five days assault.... this success was almost entirely owing to the 
 exertions of Bonaparte- The campaign ended on the Rhine by 
 the conquest of Haguenau, Weissembourg, Spires, &;c. which 
 fortresses, after an incessant series of battles, submitted to 
 Pichegru ; this forced general Wurmser to cross the Rhine 
 with astonishing precipitation, and obliged the duke of Bruns- 
 wick to retreat to Mentz, wlieve he resigned his command. 
 
 The spring of 1794 commenced favourably for the allies, 
 who were sucsessful in several partial actions ; but Pichegru's 
 defeat of Clairfait, and the battle of Fleurus, which was 
 gained by Jourdan, left to one part of the combined forces no 
 other resource than to retreat from the Netherlands into Hol- 
 land, and to the other than to fall back upon the Rhine. These 
 reverses were succeeded by the surrender of Landrecies. Ques- 
 noy, Valenciennes and Conde, in which towns the French found 
 immense booty. The armies suspended all military operations 
 during the lapse ot two months, after which Jourdan proceed- 
 ed in his career, and conquered all the territories on the left 
 bank of the Rhine except Mentz. Pichegru invaded Holland, 
 and having forced all the forufied towns to surrender, crossed 
 with his army and artillery the rivers and dykes, drove the 
 stadtholder from his capital, and secured a squadron of men 
 of war frozen in the Zuyder Zee, by detaching a body of ca- 
 valry and artillery on the ice. The prosperity of the repub- 
 lick, although not so great on the Rhine, in Italy, and in 
 Spain, was very evident, and it required little foresight to state 
 what would be the effects of arming a powerful nation in self- 
 defence. This year was distinguished by the naval victory of 
 lord Howe, which materially injured the French maritime 
 force, and in a great measure ascertained the British superio- 
 rity on the ocean. The island of Corsica was invaded, con- 
 quered and as quickly restored by the English : and the greater 
 part of the French West-Tndies belonged to the British flec-ts. 
 At the commencement of the year 1795, the French repub- 
 iick exhibited a most formidable aspectj and her conqtiests 
 
12 
 
 had. so terrified some of the powers, that they concluded iC 
 sa' £t ',o H(;kno\vledt':e her and "to form treaties of peace.... 
 hence Spiin, Prussia, Tuscany, Hanover and Hesse seceded 
 from tiie coidition, and left those who had no more judgment 
 than to persist, to (eel aione all the direful consequences of 
 their inl'atuation. ' The campaign began in Flanders with the 
 capture of Luxembourg by tiie French, and the blockade of 
 >Icntz i immediattly uj)on which the armies crossed the Rhine, 
 but were obliged after mnny severe conflicts to I'e-pass that ri- 
 ver. In Italy the campaign was generally successful on the 
 part of the French uniil nearly its close, when the Austrian 
 emperor dispatched 25 000 troops to oppose their progress, 
 and the army retired inio winter quarters, in which situation 
 they coiitiiued until Bontiparte assumed the command. In 
 tlie mean time the convention had dissolved itself, a new con- 
 stitution was adopted, and the executive department was con- 
 fided to a dn-ectory. The naval campaiii;n produced nothing 
 of importance, the only actions were fought between Hotham 
 and Bndport, and two !• rench squadrons, but the efiects were 
 trifling. 
 
 The Italian campaign of 1796 has already been detailed, 
 The contest in tit-rmmy liad been so completely successful 
 that Moreau and Jourdan advanced into the heart of Germa- 
 ny, but the defeat of the latter obliged the former to retreat, 
 and this is the event in Moreau's military character which has 
 raised him to the very highest rank in his profession ; the fa- 
 mous retreat oi Xenophon being upon comparison with that 
 of the modern but the atchievements of a cadet. This year 
 also saw the conclusion of the war in La Vendee, which 
 Hoche had effected, and thus liberated the republick from its 
 jnost distressing enemy. In 1796 the Dutch possessions in 
 the East and West-Indies submitted to the British troops, 
 ■wl'.o appeared to be determined to procure indemnity abroad 
 for their disasters at home. 
 
 The campaiy;n of 1797 in Germany, was on the point of 
 commencing when tlie preliminaries at Leobtn were signed by 
 Bonaparte, and the armies were permitted to enjoy a state of 
 repose, whilst the temporary peace between France and Aus- 
 tria continued. Daring this year two naval battles v/ere fought 
 ....the first was a victory over the Spaniards by lord St. Vin- 
 cent, with the capture of tour large ships after a partial acti- 
 on ; the other, which was the most severe contest at sea 
 throughout the war, was a victory gained by lord Duncan, 
 and it must be admitted that had not admiral Storey with- 
 drawn his division from tlie Dutch fleet, it is very problemati- 
 cal to whom the superiority would have belonged. 
 
13 
 
 The congress of Rastadt met at the latter end of the yea^' 
 1797, to adjust all disputes between the Germanic potentates^ 
 -which had arisen fi-om numbers of them having made peace 
 Avith Moreau during his irruption into Germany in 1796 1 
 whilst that body was sitting, the directory declared war against 
 the Pope, and oblige:! him to submit to the terms which they 
 dictated, and the revolutionary fire having begun to extend it- 
 self in Switzerland, they detached a large body of troops to 
 that country to maintain peace, and to punish it as having 
 been the residence of all the intriguers during the war. Nel- 
 son's victory off Egypt induced the Porte to declare war 
 against France : a Russian fleet appeared in the Mediterra- 
 nean, and the king of Naples marched against Rome, which 
 Cciused the king of Sardinia to transfer his Italian possessions 
 to the directory. The British expedition to Ostend, in which 
 the whole army were forced to smn-ender, is the sole meniora- 
 ble event of the year 1798, on that part of the European con- 
 tinent. Circumstances having changed, the king of Naples 
 fled to Palermo, and the French proclaimed that kingdom a 
 repubhck : but the slowness of the proceedings at Rastadt, the 
 mui der of the French commissioners deputed to adjust the in- 
 demnifications, and the promised support of the Russians, ac- 
 tuated the German emperor to recommence the contest. Du- 
 ring the year 1799, the French armies were inferior to their 
 opponents ; they were depressed, and generally vanquished : 
 afier having been reduced to the most perilous situation, Mas- 
 sena forced that barbarous ruffian Suwarrow to return to Rus- 
 sia with the loss of 60,000 men during his short campaign, 
 and acquired the laurel which through the death of Joubert, 
 and some victories when contending with Moreau, the latter 
 had appropriated to himself: he retired mto obscurity, to die as 
 he had lived, the scorn of mankind, and the disgrace of human 
 nature; he perished without compassion, and his name is never 
 repeated without emotior s of horror. In the fall of this year, the 
 Enp;lish and Russians, commanded by the duke of York, in- 
 vaded Holland, but after three actions at Bergen, Alkmaar 
 and Baccum, they were obliged to purchase their departure at 
 a very high price : perishing with hunger, opposed by a pow- 
 erful and victorious army, with no possibility of embarking, 
 the royal hero was obliged to submit to very humiliating 
 terms, which general Brune, a printer, dictated. 
 
 At this crisis Bonaparte arrived from Egypt ; the republican, 
 armies were greatly diminished ; the Austrian emperor had 
 recovered iiis Italian possessions ; the sea vi'as the property of 
 British fleets and cruisers, and the French nation was unable 
 to assist its allies, and from its exhausted treasury to provide 
 
14 
 
 for its own necessities. The executive department was coa- 
 fided to the hero of Italy ; new energy was infused into 
 all parts of the nation ; the finances were restored to ocder ; 
 the armies were recruited, and again appeared formidable ; 
 publick confidence returned ; the treaties of peace signed at 
 Luaeville and Amiens, the consequence of a series of victo- 
 ries, were unwillingly concluded by the enemies of France, 
 and as if by enchantment, the French emperor is now ex.dted 
 to die controul of almost all the civdized parts of the Euro- 
 pean continent. 
 
 The licentiousness of the inhabitants has been repi'essed ; 
 the causes of the various excesses of the revolution have been 
 destroyed ; the facility of procurins? divorces abolished ; that 
 general contempt for the worship of God which had been en- 
 couraged by the Jacobins whilst they tacitly directed the af- 
 fairs of the republiclt, is gradually extinguishing, and the ut- 
 most liberty of conscience authorized. Whilst considerable 
 restrictions of a civil nature have been imposed upon the in- 
 habitants of France, and the afflictive scenes of the revolution, 
 may have rendered them in some measure necessary ; the 
 most unbounded rehgious liberty is enjoyed, and it is probably 
 a truth tliat vital religion is more perceptible at this period than 
 during the reign of Louis XVI. The French nation, not- 
 withstanding all the crimes which accompanied its late change, 
 is immensely meliorated ; the situation of the lower classes of 
 people is highly improved ; agriculture, commerce and ma- 
 nufactures, formerly despised, are encouraged by the empe- 
 ror, and all the ramifications of the government evince the 
 superintendence of their energetick, indefatigable and unpa- 
 rallelled chief. To prove how much superior the present state 
 of the nation is to its condition prior to the revolution, one 
 circumstance only is necessary to be adduced. After the con- 
 cordatum between the Consul and the Pope was promulged, 
 the protestants, whose numbers are greatly augmented in 
 consequence of thedestruction ofthe old hierarchy, fearing that 
 they might again be proscribed, addressed Bonaparte upon the 
 subject, his reply was perfectly congenial to the rights of con- 
 science. His exaltation to the imperial dignity and coronati- 
 on, induced the protestants to depute a body of their mini- 
 sters to express their obedience to him in his new character : 
 liis answer to their address, which shall conclude this sketch, 
 is full proof of the position advanced : ' t see with pleasure 
 assembled here, the pastors of the reformed churches of 
 France, and seize with avidity this opportunity to declare my 
 satisfaction with the fidelity and good conduct of the pastors 
 and citizens of the several protestant conjmunions. I wish it 
 
15 
 
 to be published, that my firm resolve and desire are to main- 
 tain the liberty of worship. The empire of the law ends 
 where the empire of conscience begins. Neither the law nor 
 the sovereign dare to diminish that liberty. Such are my 
 principles and those of the nation, and if any of my race, who 
 may succeed me, shall forget my coronation oath, and mis- 
 led by a false confidence, shall violate it, I devote him to pub- 
 lick animadversion, and authorize you to denominate him 
 Nero.'* 
 
 I'lJVIS, 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 Page. 
 Preface . • . • 3 
 Birth, education and employment of Bonaparte, until 
 his appointment to the command of the army of Ita- 
 ly, in the year 1795 . . . S 
 Campaign of 1796 and 1797 in Italy . . 28 
 Expedition to Egypt . . , . 136 
 Bonaparte's appointment to the first consulship . 197 
 Bonaparte during his consulate . . . 225 
 Bonaparte exalted to the imperial dignity . 302 
 Addenda . . . . . ^7S 
 A comprehensive view of the French revolution 401