no 



ANNUAL REGISTER, 1794. 



that a nation submitting to those 

 burthens they requircj should be 

 certain of obtaining those ends for 

 which it is willing to bear them ; 

 or diat the object for which it is 

 contending, should not be an il- 

 lusion. It is sufficient that such a 

 nation is jiersuaded of the reality 

 of that object and of those ends, 

 to act a part which no other cause 

 could possibly effect ; to astonish 

 the world by events beyond all 

 the rules of probability, and al- 

 most of possibility, and to set, as 

 it were, at defiance the conjec- 

 tures of wisdom and the experience 

 of ages. Such now was the spirit 

 and temper of a people always fa- 

 mous for the brilliant characters it 

 often exhibited, both in arms and 

 arts ; but which, though highly 

 elevated in the system of EuropCj, 

 was never thought capable of fa- 

 -cing alone all the nations around. 

 But the time was come,owing to the 

 causes enumerated, that the combi- 

 nation oi all the European monar- 

 chies would be found insufficient 

 to reduce that natioH to the terms 

 intended to be imposed upon it. 



Among the countries of which 

 the powers were inimical to France, 

 there was none wherein the French 

 had for a succession of ages met 

 with so many disappointmenls as 

 in Italy. The ambition of their 

 monarchs bad frequently led them 

 into that country ; but their suc- 

 cesses had always been transitory; 

 and it was proverbially denomi- 

 nated the buiyir.g-ground of liie 

 French, from tb; constant over- 

 throw and destruction of their ar- 

 mies, it was of course expected, 

 that the same destiny would again 

 nttend them 5 and that, should they 

 invade it, they would, as heretofore, 

 be finally expelled. On this pre. 



sumption, their entrance intoltaly 

 was viewed without much alarm in 

 the native powers. Nor did they 

 at first seem to thieaten much dan- 

 ger to those princes w^iose territo- 

 ries they invaded. But the French 

 having succes^fully got over the 

 first trial of the strength bnught 

 against them by the coalition, and 

 terminated with advantage a cam-, 

 paign which they began with the 

 gloomiest prospects, they now de« 

 rived from thence such hopes, that 

 they determined to leave no 

 means untried to realize them. 



They formed accordingly a mul- 

 tiplicity of plans for the attack of 

 tht-ir different enemies, e<,. ally 

 daring and sagacious J hat which 

 was proposed for Italy promised 

 to compensate for the disappoint- 

 ments of the last campaign there j 

 and their success in the outset ex- 

 cited their most sangu ne expec- 

 tations. Among the possessions re- 

 maming to the King of Sardinia 

 on the sea coast, tl e only one of 

 any consequence was the town 

 and harbour oT Oneglia. It was 

 noted for being the receptacle of a 

 number of privateers, which com- 

 mitted mc',ny depredations on the 

 comn-iercial shipping of the French 

 sea-ports in its neighbourhood. Jt 

 was resolved, for that reason, to 

 commence the campaign by the 

 siege of that place. As it v. as en- 

 circled by the territories of Genoa, 

 it became necessary to calm the dis- 

 quietude that might arise from 

 marching through these to attack 

 thai town. The fortune of France 

 had net at that time declared itself 

 in such a manner as to render the 

 French inattentive whom they of- 

 fended ; and tliey were particularly 

 desirous to commit no violations of 

 the treaties subsisting between them 



and 



