His. OQ RY COFAE UR OWE. 
French were by this time arrived on 
the banks of the river, and the pas- 
sage was immediately commenced. 
"Pheir right and left, protected by 
a formidable artillery, were directed 
by Buonaparte, to cross the river, 
and to attack the enemy in flank, 
while the centre made its passage 
in their front. “His orders were ex- 
ecuted with the completest success, 
- Both the cavalry and infantry of the 
_ Austrians were drawn up with the 
~ utmost skill, and behaved with so 
_ much firmness in their respective 
pusitions, as for a while to balance 
the fortune of the day : but the pas- 
sage being at length effected every 
where, and the repeated charges“of 
the Austrians having failed to make 
that impression upon the French, 
which ‘was hoped, from the bravery 
of the soldiers, and the judgement 
of those who conducted them, it 
was found necessary to have re- 
course to a retreat. -The principal 
loss, in this affair, fell upon the of- 
fieers of the Imperialists: one of 
their generals was slain, and several 
officers of rank were made prisoners, 
with some hundreds of men, besides 
those that were slain. 
The defeat of the Austrians was 
_ chiefly owing to the superiority of 
the Frenchartillery. It struck them 
with such terror, that, after quitting 
the field of battle, they could not 
be prevailed on to make a stand. 
The archduke had taken an ad- 
vantageous post at a village, where 
he ptoposed to maintain his ground, 
‘and risk another combat, the next 
morning; but the discouragement 
of hismen, and the impetuosity with 
which it was assailedby the French, 
notwithstanding a dark and tem- 
pestuous night, compelled him to 
abandon his design. The Austrians 
were driven from their post, and it 
[25 
was with difficulty, that he effected 
his own escape. 
The passages of the Piava, and 
of the 'T'agliamento, «decided the 
contest between the archduke and 
Buonaparte. The whole country 
to the north of these rivers now lay 
open to the French. The repub- 
lican army spread itself immediately 
into every direction, the Imperial 
troops retiring before them with a 
visibly diminished resistance. These. 
evacuated Palmanova, of which 
the French took possession, on 
the eighteenth, with immense ma- 
gazines of provisions. They ad- 
vanced on the nineteenth to Gra- 
disca, a town of importance on the 
river Lizonzo. The Austrians were 
posted in force on the opposite 
bank; but the French having ef- 
fected a passage, made themselves 
masters of the heights command- 
ing the town, upon which it was 
obliged to surrender, and the gar- 
rison, consisting of the best troops 
in the archduke’s army, were made 
prisoners of war to the amount of 
three thousand. Another French 
division proceeding northward from 
the Tagliamento, drove the retreat- 
ing euemy as far as Ponteba, after 
repeatedly defeating him, and ma- 
king numbers prisoners, with vast 
quantities of stores. 
The capture of Gradisca was 
followed by that of Goritz, on the 
twenty-first of March. The Aus- 
triaus withdrew from this place in 
such haste, that they left fifteen 
hundred sick and wounded in the 
hospitals, with all their previsions 
and stores. Both these town be- 
‘ longing to the emperor, the French 
commander settled a municipal go- 
yernment in them, ou the republi- 
cai form, declaring them in posses= 
sion of all the rights and. privileges 
they 
