638 



Month)/ Review of Literature, 



[DEC. 



soul for the skill of the warrior, the saga- 

 city of the statesman, and the energy with 

 which the sovereign swayed the wills of his 

 cotemporaries ; his profound contempt 

 rather than a liberal allowance for the 

 foibles of the man, whose vanity made him 

 pride himself on the gentility of his birth- 

 take the tone and insignia of a legitimate 

 despot ally himself with an ancient dy- 

 nasty make kings and queens of his bro- 

 thers and sisters. Here it is that he ex- 

 hibits the military system of Britain, with 

 a correctness of detail, beyond the usual 

 reach of a foreigner, and with a severity of 

 judgment which none but a foreigner is 

 ever likely to exercise. " In the eyes of an 

 English general," says he, " the perfection 

 of the art consists in bringing into the field 

 fresh and well-conditioned troops, in post- 

 ing them advantageously, and there coolly 

 waiting for the enemy's attack. Yes, 

 doubtless, he continues (glancing at the 

 Duke of Wellington) the instinctive deter- 

 mination which, even when it errs, is bet- 

 ter than skilful hesitation ; the strength of 

 mind which no danger can appal, the te- 

 nacity which carries off the prey by sticking 

 to it to the last these are rare and sub- 

 lime qualities, and where these are suffi- 

 cient to secure the triumph of national in- 

 terests, it is but justice to load with honours 

 the privileged possessor of them. But the 

 thinkers of all ages will not take upon trust 

 the exaggeration of a glory so confined ; 

 they will point out the interval, which sepa- 

 rates the man of the profession from the 

 man of genius. Great generals were al- 

 ways great, without accessories, without 

 attendants [this no doubt is miserable tran- 

 slation but we have not the original at 

 hand,] and they will remain great in spite 

 of adversity : they borrow not their lustre 

 from institutions which existed before them, 

 and which will live after them quite the 

 contrary, it is they who infuse lofty ideas 

 into the minds of the multitude. Equal to 

 themselves in the display of all the powers 

 of the human mind, no species of elevation 

 escapes from their immensity ; such ap- 

 peared, with different destinies, Hannibal 

 and Caesar among the ancient, Frederick 

 and Napoleon among the moderns." 



There is sound observance as well as 

 good satire, in the advice which was ironi- 

 cally given to the commander-in-chief in a 

 volume entitled " Advice to the Officers 

 of the British Army." " Nothing is so com- 

 .menclabls as generosity to an enemy. To 

 .pursue him vigorously after a victory would 

 be taking advantage of his distress. It is 

 enough for you to shew that you can beat 

 him whenever you think proper. You 

 should always act openly and candidly with 

 both friends and enemies. You should be 

 cautious, therefore, never to steal a inarch, 

 or lay an ambuscade. You should never 

 attack the enemy during the night. Recol- 

 lect what Hector said, when he went to 

 fight with Ajax * Heaven light us, and 



combat against us.' Should the enemy re- 

 treat, let him have the start of you several 

 days, in order to shew him that you can 

 surprise him when you please. Who knows 

 if so generous a proceeding will not induce 

 him to halt? After he has succeeded in 

 retreating to a place of safety, you may 

 then go in pursuit of him with your whole 

 army. Never promote an intelligent officer ; 

 a hearty boon companion is all that is ne- 

 cessary to execute your orders. Any officer 

 who has a grain of knowledge beyond the 

 common, you should look upon as your 

 personal enemy, for you may depend upon 

 it he is laughing in his sleeve at both you 

 and your manoeuvres." 



Of the war itself, General Foy's history 

 extends only to a few months of the first 

 year. That period embraces the invasion of 

 Portugal by Junot, who took possession of 

 Lisbon on the 30th of November 1807, to 

 the battle of Vimiera, on the 21st of August 

 1808, and the immediate evacuation of Por- 

 tugal. The cotemporaneous events in 

 Spain are also detailed, from the entrance 

 of the French armies in the spring of 1808, 

 to the defeat of Dupont at Baylen, in July, 

 and the consequent retreat of Joseph to- 

 wards the Pyrenees. The details are greatly 

 too much those of the soldier to be very 

 agreeable to the unprofessional reader. It is 

 too full of the minutiae of warfare, and of 

 the employments and conduct of particular 

 and even subordinate officers. The author 

 shews himself and his opinions at every 

 turn. He is an uncompromising republican, 

 and more inclined to condemn Napoleon, 

 and give all his policy the worst construc- 

 tion, than any French officer whose writings 

 we have hitherto met with. His antipa- 

 thies and prejudices respecting England and 

 its government are occasionally quite absurd, 

 and altogether unworthy a man of so en- 

 lightened a cast as Foy undoubtedly was. 

 There is notwithstanding a general fairness 

 in the history, and a fullness and particu- 

 larity, and accuracy of information, very 

 rare and very valuable, and which nothing 

 but personal acquaintance can give; but 

 most readers, we believe, will turn with 

 more pleasure to the more judicious and 

 quiet, though diffusive, and perhaps par- 

 tial statements of Southey's Peninsular 

 War. 



We are tempted to sketch the military 

 career of the writer, which was one of sin- 

 gular activity. Foy was born in 1775, and 

 educated in the military school of La Fere, 

 and made sub-lieutenant of artillery in 

 1792. He was present at the battles of 

 Valmy arid Jemappe, and, in 1793, obtained 

 a company promotion was rapid in those 

 days. In all the subsequent campaigns he 

 was actively employed under Dumourier, 

 Pichegru, Moreau, Massena, &c. In 1803, 

 he was colonel of the 5th regiment of horse 

 artillery, and refused, from political prin- 

 ciple, the appointment of aide-de-camp on 

 Napoleon's assumption of the imperial 



