they were intituled to claim. He treated them altogether with marked lenity, in order, doubtlefs, to prepare the way for a ready fubmiffion, on the part of thofe cities and diftricts, in the Imperial territories, which, in the course of hoftilities, he would fhortly be neceffitated to reduce to his obedience. After the reduction of thefe two towns, a body of French was difpatched to take poffeffion of Triefte, the only fea port belonging to the emperor, on the Adriatic. It fell into their hands on the twentythird of March. Here, and in its vicinity, they found an immenfe booty. The In the mean time, general Guieux and Maffena were advancing, from the different quarters, to the borders of Carinthia. The former attacked the Auftrians intrenched at Pufero, a ftrong pofition at the entrance of the narrow paffes of Caporalto, into which he drove them with confiderable lofs. latter poffeffed himself of Tarvis, a place on the oppofite fide of thofe paffes; by which motion the Auftrians, driven from Pufero, were inclosed between the two French divifions. A large body of Auftrians marched from Clagenfurth, in Carinthia, to their relief, and affailed Maffena at Tarvis, where a most obftinate battle was fought: but the Auftrians were entirely defeated. Three of their generals were taken, and a celebrated regiment of Cuiraffiers, almoft deftroyed. General Guieux, 'had, in the mean while, pushed the Auftrians in the defile, as far as Lachinfa, a ftrongly fortified poft, which he carried, however, after a refolute defence. They endeavoured to make a retreat; but were inter rupted by the victorious divifion, under Maffena. The loss of the Auftrians on this occafion, besides the flain, amounted to five thousand prifoners, among whom were four generals, thirty pieces of cannon, and four hundred waggons with all the baggage. This was a fatal day to the Imperial arms. It closed, in a manner, the hopes that had ftill remained of better fortune, under the aufpices of the archduke Charles, and raised the opinion entertained of Buonaparte to the highest fummit. What principally alarmed the court of Vienna was the proximity of the French army to the Hungarians, a people that had not forgotten the ftruggles of their forefathers, againft the ufurpation of the house of Auftria, and the danger, left a fimilar fpirit of refistance should be regenerated among them, especially as they had fuch recent causes of difcontent. A fpecimen of the unconquerable, and, in truth, it may be faid, infolent fpirit, infufed by the republican principles current among the French, had been exhibited by their prifoners in the hereditary states, during the laft fummer. On the tenth of Auguft, the day whereon the unhappy Lewis the fixteenth, was dethroned, a number of them, confined at Clagenfurth, the principal town of the province of Carinthia, celebrated this event, with marked exultation, in defiance, as it were, of the Auftrian government. The formalities, that accompanied the obfervance of this day, were all calculated to manifeft their hatred of royal power, and their attachment to republicanifm, and especially to that equality of rank which admitted of no diftinction among men. but but that which refulted from virtue and merit. The uninterrupted continuance of the French commander's good fortune grew daily more alarming. That part of his army, which had penetrated into the Tyrol, had kept equal pace with that under his own infpection. Joubert, who commanded it, had, with his ufual activity and fuccefs, made himself master of moft of the ftrong pofts in that country; and, feconded by the many expert officers under him, had The French prifoners, in the Imperial dominions, were alike everywhere, in this refpect, and feemed, in truth, to court the notice of the fubjects of Auftria, by the unreftrained liberties they affumed upon all occafions of this nature. Their fpeeches, their fongs, their devices, all tended to fhew in what contempt they held all people that fubmitted to the government of kings, and obtained fome fignal advantages. how firmly they were determined never again to admit them into France. This demeanor of the French, under the very eye of the Auftrian government, and in the heart of the empire, occafioned no fmall uneafinefs to those who reflect with how much facility fuch notions might be propagated among the multitude, foured with the feverity of their rulers, and oppreffed with the manifold burdens laid upon them, for the maintenance of a war, which the majority of people difapproved in fecret; though the dread of being punifhed, for a manifeftation of their fentiments, compelled them to feign approbation. It was now become unfeafenable and dangerous to attempt the fuppreffion of these fentiments among the great number of French difperfed in the towns on the borders of the prefent theatre of war. The approach of Buonaparte, and his victorious army, had filled them with additional boldness; and strong fufpicions were entertained, by the Imperial miniftry, that in Hungary, and in Auftria itself, they had adherents to their principles, numerous enough to form themfelves into a Strong party, were occurrences to favour their fecret inclinations. He furrounded a large body of Imperialifts, on the Lavifio, where they had taken poffeffion of advantageous ground, with an intention to difpute the entrance of the inner country. This body was chiefly compofed of Tyrolean riflemen, famous for their dexterity in that manner of fighting. The combat was long and bloody, but terminated in the total overthrow of the Imperialius: two thoufand were killed, and four thousand made priloners. The remainder withdrew higher up the river, towards Botzen. They halted at Tramin, a fituation of ftrength, where they made a vigourous defence. But notwithstanding the bravery and conduct of general Laudohn, their commander, they were at length completely worsted, their retreat to Botzen cut off, and all that could efcape, forced to take refuge in the neighbouring mountains. After fecuring Botzen, Joubert directed his march to Claufen, where the Auftrians had aflembled a great force. Here a furious conflict enfued, and fuccefs long remained doubtful, fo ftrongly were the Imperialifts pofted. The centre of the French, headed by Joubert in perfon, fucceeded at laft, after repeated efforts, in breaking the ene my's line. This at once decided the day. The Imperial troops were wholly routed, and fifteen hundred captured, befides the flain. They fled in diforder from Claufen to Brixen, clofely purfued by the French, who took poffeffion of this important place, which the enemy abandoned with precipitation. In thefe feveral actions, particularly of Tramin, general Dumas, at the head of the French cavalry, did fignal fervices. Here he first broke the enemy, and took fix hundred prifoners, which led the way to their entire defeat. The victories obtained by Buonaparte's generals, or thofe wherein he prefided in perfon, had now brought him to the borders of Carinthia. Defirous of reconciling the inhabitants of this province to the entrance of the French, and no lefs in order to avail himself of the opportunity to direct an addrefs, through them, to all the people of Germany, he iffned a proclamation, wherein he difclaimed all purposes of conqueft over the empire. The fole aim of the French government, he faid, was to terminate this calamitous war; but the Imperial court had refused to attend to the propofals of peace offered to it, Corrupted by the gold of England, the emperor's minifters betrayed both him and his fubje&s, and rendered them the tools of that power. He was confcious, he faid, that the war was contrary to the fenfe of both his German and Hungarian fubjects. He, therefore, invited them to enter into terms of amity. He required no contributions: all he afked of them was, that they would furnish provifions to his army, for which they fhould be indemnified, by being difcharged from all the impofts they were used to pay to the emperor. This proclamation, as well as the many others, iflued occafionally by the French commander, made little impreffion upon thofe to whom they were addreffed. But they served as manifeftos to the politic world, and, in the opinion of many, juftified the French in their endeavours to force their enemies to accede to a peace, which, had these been victorious, they would have dictated to the French, as peremptorily, at leaft, as thefe did to them. The clofe of March was approaching. Since the tenth, the Auftriaus had not only been expelled from their pofts, in the territory of Venice, but had loft the most confiderable of thofe upon their own frontiers. The province of Carniola was nearly in the poffeffion of the French, who had entered Carinthia, and encamped on the fouthern fide of the Drave, at fome diftance from Clagenfurth, the capital of this province. General Maffena's divifion puthed forward, on the twenty-ninth, towards that city. The main body of the Auftrians was drawn up before it, to receive him; but, after a flight refistance, and the lofs of fome hundreds, killed and taken, it retired with all speed, and the archduke abandoned that place, which, being his head-quarters, the lofs of it caft a damp on the whole Imperial army. French now crossed the Drave, and advanced beyond it to Freifach, a poft of importance. While their central divifion was thus gaining ground, the left, under Joubert, was making no lefs progrefs in the Tyfol. He had been reinforced by a body of cavalry, commanded by ge The neral neral Zajouzeck, one of those Polish officers who had taken up arms with Kofciufko, for the deliverance of their country; and, fooner than fubmit either to the Ruffians or the Auftrians, had preferred a voluntary exile, and entered into the fervice of the French republic. The Imperialifts had pofted themselves in the defiles, leading to Infpruck, the capital of the Tyrol. Here they were attacked by Joubert, on the twentyeighth of March. As they confifted of veterans, detached from the Rhine, purpofely for the defence of this province, it was hoped they would have been able to guard its acceffes: but the charge of the French, feconded by their artillery, was fo impetuous, that the paffes were forced, and the Imperial troops routed, with the lofs of fix hundred prifoners, exclufive of thofe who fell in the action, together with the whole of their baggage. The divifion of the right, under Bernadotte, was equally fuccefsful. It completed the reduction of the province of Carniola, by the capture of Laubach, its capital, on the firft of April. This opened the way, on that fide, to an entrance into the province of Stiria, contiguous to Auftria itself. In thefe different expeditions, the French acquired an immenfe booty, in clothing, arms, and military ftores of all defcriptions, and in magazines, filled with all forts of provifions. On the fame day, Maffena's divifion, which, after taking poffeffion of Clagenfurth, had penetrated into the country beyond the Drave, marched in force to attack a large body of Imperialists, pofted in the defiles, leading to Neumark, and commanded by the archduke in per . fon. The encounter was obftinate; but the defiles were carried by the French, who pursued the Auftrians with fo much celerity, that these were compelled to halt, and form into a line of battle, for their defence. The fight was renewed, with increafed fury. The archduke had brought up eight battalions of thofe granadiers who had ferved under him at Kehl, and on whom he juftly relied for their valour and expertnefs. Malena encountered them with his own granadiers, who were alfo deemed the flower of his army. They formed the centre, on both fides, and charged each other with equal bravery: but the flanks of the Imperial granadiers, being fuddenly aflailed, by all the troops that Mafiena could detach for that purpose, and which came through narrow and unguarded paths, in the heat of action, they were thrown into diforder, and forced to abandon their ground, notwithstanding the formidable artillery that protected it. About fix hundred of them were taken prisoners, befides a great number of flain. Night coming on, they availed themfeves of it to haften their retreat, leaving the French mafters of the defile, and of all the country as far as Neumark, of which they took poffeffion the next morning, and where they found large quantities of ftores and provifions. The archduke, having collected his retreating troops, made a ftand at Hundfmark, in the vicinity of the river Murh, but, the French coming up with them, on the third, they were routed, after a short conflict; and their rear guard, confifting of four veteran regiments, from the army on the Rhine, loft near a thousand men, killed and taken. had been rested, had proved as un The lofs of the French, in both these engagements, was comparatively small, on a confideration of the advantages they obtained. The Auftrians were now fo difcouraged, by their conftant defeats, notwithftanding their courage, and conduct, that they seemed to have come to a determination to remain wholly on the defenfive, and to venture no encounters, but for the purpose of protecting a retreat. Their prefent pofition was fuch, indeed, as left them little hope of contending, fuccefsfully, with the French. These had, in confequence of the late action, occupied the strongest places in Carinthia. General Spork, an Auftrian officer of note, was on his march along the valley, on the fouthern banks of the Murh, at the head of a confiderable reinforcement, for the defeated army: but the French pofted themselves on his paffage, in fuch force, that he found it impracticable to advance beyond Murau, a town upon the river Murh, where his own fituation became dangerous. It was now evident, that all expectations of an effectual oppofition to the French were unfounded. The fifth army that had been levied by Auftria, to encounter them, was no longer in being. In the fhort lapfe of a month, twenty thousand men had been made prifoners, and the remainder had either fallen in battle, or taken refuge in a broken and fhattered condition, among the mountains and fafteneffes of the country. The recruits that were raifing could not fupply the place of veterans who had not themfelves been able to refift the French. The archduke, on whom fuch confidence fortunate as his predeceffors in command. The only refource left to the houfe of Auftria, was, in all appearance, to acquiefce in the terms of pacification offered by France. The confternation at Vienna was extreme: but the Auftria nobility, warmly attached to the Imperial family, with which it participated in all the dignities of the German empire, expreffed a zealous determination to fhare the fortune of its fovereign, and to defend his capital to the laft extremity. The remains of that body of young gentlemen, who had ferved as volunteers, in Italy, under Alvinzi, were again completed; and, by admitting the youth of all decent claffes, were augmented to eight thousand. The Hungarian nobles, and their vasfals, were called upon to arm, and repair to Vienna and all ablebodied men, in the hereditary states, were ordered to form themfelves into companies in their respective diftricts. Out of all these a formidable mafs of ftout and refolute men was to be raised. This, added to the regulars, affembling from all quarters, would, it was not doubted, conftitute a force, which, though it might not intimidate the victorious enemy, ftill might prove the means of inducing him to relax from the feverity of the terms he would otherwife infift upon. But thefe orders, and preparations, did not quiet the alarms of the generality. Numbers of the opulent, and even of the higher ranks, haftened to withdraw themfelves, and their effects, in appre henfion of a fiege. The emperor, himself, fignified his intention to quit |