HISTORY OF EUROPE. 
who had risen in arms for the pur- 
pose of repelling the invasions that 
had been made on. their privi- 
leges by the house of Austria, in 
violation of an express compact 
called the Joyous Entry, between 
the sovereign and the people. The 
Emperor Joseph, confiding in his 
arbitrary power, attempted to im- 
pose on the Belgians innovations 
in their religion; and at the same 
time to deprive them of those fun- 
damental privileges, on the con- 
dition of which they had origi- 
nally put themselves under the 
protection of the house of Aus- 
tria. This brave and constant 
people, though overpowered by 
the imperial arms, persevered still 
in claiming their rights and pri- 
vileges. Lhough they had been 
unable to vindicate their claims 
by arms, the persisted still in their 
appeal to justice. The Austrian 
government, without contesting 
the legality or justice of their 
claims, had hitherto refused to 
grant their request, for no other 
apparent reason than the tyranni- 
cal pleasure of exercising uncon- 
troulled authority. But after the 
battle of Jemmappe, and the con- 
sequent reduction of Mons, when 
all was fear and confusion at Brus- 
sels, and the Archduchess Mary 
had removed with her court to 
Ruremonde,* she addressed two 
manifestoes to the Belgian people ; 
one announcing her intention to 
hold her court at Ruremonde ; 
the other to communicate to them 
the confirmation of the charter of 
their liberties, the Joyous Entry. 
The gratitude of the Belgians for 
this:concession, must no doubt have 
been nota little diminished by the 
_ time and circumstances in which it 
was made. 
[125 
The rapid progress of the French 
arms, not yet disgraced by pillage, 
outrage, and oppression, was a sub- 
ject of joy and exultation to vari- 
ous parties of men, in various parts 
of Europe; and animated with new 
hope their efforts to obtain the 
redress of grievances. The Bel- 
gian patriots, as they were styled, 
triumphed in the success of their 
new masters. A similar party in 
Holland sought in the same source 
an alleviation of their grievances 
against the overgrown power of 
the Stadtholder, which the arms of 
Prussia, under the command of the 
Duke of Brunswick, in 1789, had 
increased. In England, the friends 
and supporters of a parliamentary 
reform, beheld, as they conceived, 
in the progress of the French in- 
fluence and power, an earnest of 
greater popular influence and po- 
litical power in their owr country. 
In Scotland, the disappointed bur- 
gesses, who had so long persevered 
in fruitless endeavours to obtain a 
restoration of ancient rights, looked 
up to the successful invasion of the 
Netherlands for a correction of the 
abuses that had crept into the royal 
burghs. In Ireland, the Roman 
Catholics claimed a total emancipa- 
tion from the penal Jaws; and what 
may appear very singular, perhaps, 
to some, not only were so fortunate 
as to escape the invectives, but even 
to obtain the countenance and fa- 
vour of that great enemy, of late, 
to popular claims and all innova- 
tions, Mr. Burke. In the same 
kingdom, a great party among the 
dissenters connected the destruc- 
tion of one abusive government, of 
mighty importance in the scale of 
the European nations, with the 
destruction of every government, 
founded on abuse and usurpation, 
* Her husband, the Duke of Saxe Teschen, was with the army. 
in 
