530 



RctrospcSlhe Fictc of Hijiorical 



[Jan, I, 



free of liberty planted in its place : — the 

 battalion ot ilia Cote-d'Or, couliftitii; 

 I)rineip;Jly <>i Burguiuliuns, weve tLe 

 txccutors i>r his r.oimuaniis. 



Never would a tiee ot liberty heen 

 efeciod here, had the .Swifi buriie in 

 iniiid one ti'utli of Ha'ler's, in liisGeiMuan 

 itifcripti(;aiccotdin:>: this victoi-y • namely, 

 thiit the power or" their Itato did not con- 

 fill in nunihcrs find amriciiil weapons, 

 Imt in uniti/. — In the yciir 14< i3, we lind 

 the Zinifhers hal'teninu tliroii'^h the rain 

 and durknels of the niaht, t(j the rcliet 

 <si -their cont'cderatcs, the Bernele ; and 

 ill the year 1798, their delcendants (e- 

 cretly rejolciiii:, and perhaps alietting, in 

 their ruin. Bat in 180'J, !;rowii wil'cr 

 by CNpeiieuce, they combined tOi^ctiier 

 a^nin to build up wh.at they liad allowL>d 

 tu be pulled down. In tliefe very fields 

 of Murten, tlic troops of the ncu llil- 

 vctic i:ovcrn)iient were att;vckcd by the 

 old Swifs, aiienibled from all tiie cxw- 

 ttiii.s. The foniier were totally routed, 

 and tlieir party aimihilated. If ever 

 there were a miion of irill in uni/ 

 tuilion, it was in Switzerland iit this pe- 

 riod, vviieo rifing up ii^ainll this nioueni 

 dtrpotlfin in Helvetia. The infurrctlion 

 met with the hearty concurrence of every 

 citizen, froin the llhinc to theLano .MaL.- 

 gioro. Univerfal opinion charged the jio- 

 V eminent witli bclno; tiie authors of every 

 m.ichief to wliich their country had been 

 lubjeCl ; and cveiy to;i'.:ue pronounced 

 theni dcferving tfie puiiiihineiit which at- 

 tendb the violatorsof iaivsand the diflurb- 

 cr.s ol' peace. For, with all the party I'pirit 

 /till olifLrvablc in this country, there is 

 one truth, in which men of every faction 

 and religion are airreed, thiil Switzerland 

 was happy before 1798. 



Here ends my journey into this un- 

 happy country : to-morrow I (hall let otf 

 from hence, and hope in a. lliort time to 

 communicate to you in pcrfon what f 

 have omitted in iny letters. Ix. 



For the Monlldij Magazine. 



OBSr.RVATION"S OK thc WRITINGS of HIS- 



ToniAXs of alt AC-r.s anrf couNTniF.s, 

 c/iifjh/ uitk rt \\v.\v to the accvracy 



of l/ni?- Mir.ITARY DF.SCIITPTIOSS, fwd 



i.'ici?- KNOwiF.ncF- of t/>c aiit of wai;. 



I'jy GKNEBAr. ANOKTOSSI. 



1' JllINXF, MAURICE of Na(\au, and 

 I'redeuick Hf.krv, his brother 

 and fuccellbr, liavijig been educated in 

 the fiudy of the ancients, revived afpirit 

 of difcpline and inancjeuvre which had 

 been luui: ucfilccLcd. This i;ave birth to 



a renewcrl art of war; they gradually. 

 uiiii)l(lcd the prineipjes of niarcliiiig anil ■ 

 encauipiug ; they explored the fcienee of 

 lortilication, niid eilablilhed plaus of at- 

 tack and defence v.anantetl by experi- 

 ence. The Dutch army became, under 

 their command, the moll fcienlilic fchool 

 in Lurope, during the lout; war inaia- * 

 tallied by that republic in fupport of its 

 independence. The military reputation 

 of tlioib illultrious brothers attracted thc 

 brave of all nalious to their banners; 

 and A\itli them Turcnnc dicw his un- 

 tlcdficd inord. 



i'rincu iMainice was, in the judgment 

 of Folanl, the belt infantiy othcer known 

 lluce the days of tiie Konuins; and his 

 lirother added conliderably to his repu- 

 tation by notes he made during the 

 whole of his coinmaiid, from 1621 to 

 ItJ-Jo, the a'la whence the Dutch date 

 their independence. 



(■uoiiis, in an excellent work wliich 

 reminds us of the ftyle anil uiaiiner of 

 T'acitus, purfucs, with incrcaled talent, 

 the progrefs of that art w liich the united 

 genius of JMaurice and William polilhed 

 from I lie rnll of former barbaiilin, and 

 made fubieixient lo the moll enlightLiicd 

 iniprovenient. '1 his was, in reality, the 

 period of reluli itation in the theory of 

 the anticnts ; and Grotius has done hi- 

 finite juliice to the intcrefting and inliruc- 

 live detail. 



I'reviuus to tlie reign of Fhancis T. 

 annals were nioie common in France 

 than hiftories : to the i'ormer very bttlc 

 coniidencc attaches. 



(>'ri,ooiiy ue Tours, and Alcuin, 

 fcarcely deferve to be cited. 



^lAitcvLiT. is fomething lietter, and 

 gives foine little information on tiie in- 

 ternal politics of France under her liilt 

 nioiiarciis : Init the whole of them haic 

 fo jumliled fabulous matter with a cor- 

 fufion of more correct inaterivUs, that 

 their accounts are in no eltimatioii. 



Egi.miakd was more of a military 

 hiftoritin. Having been educated at the 

 court of C'harlenias;nc, he was enabled 

 to leave a well-writicii life of that ]iriiHc. 



Towards the dole of the eleventh 

 century, A i. MI o.\' or. Fi.eiry wrote fouie 

 unintereltjng tmiials, to which little con- 

 iidencc can be given. 



JoiNViJ.LK, whofe ilylc is fimpic yet 

 impreirive, wnite the Life of Louis IX- 

 troin perfonal obler\'atioii. In the kiiii:,'s 

 expedition to Egypt, .Joinville was ono 

 of the molt diltinguillied among his pai- 

 ti/.ans ibr bravery and conduct in the 

 licld, which ciicumlUuite conhdcrablj 

 heiiilitejij 



