49] ANNUAL REGISTER, 1797... 
‘tempted to oppose the French, were 
put to thé sword, and obliged to 
consult their safety in flight. The 
Sclavonians, who had come to their 
assistance, were routed, and fled to 
a fort, filled with their powder and 
ammunition: but it was blown up 
by the cannon of the French, and 
they were all destroyed. Another 
engagement took place before the 
wails of Verona, and the Venetians 
fought with great fury; but they 
were defeated with vast slaughter, 
and the place compelled to sur- 
render. 
The Venetian senate, despairing 
of being able’to make any effectual 
resistance, formally submitted to the 
French commander, and consented | 
to deliver up those persons who had 
been instrumental in the atrocities 
of which the l'rench complained. 
On the sixteenth of May, the French 
took possession of the city of Ve- 
nice, where.a provisional govern- 
ment was established on the repub- 
lican plan. The press was declared 
free, persons and . property secure, 
and religion left on its present 
footing. The only seizures, made 
in the name of the French govern- 
ment, were of the: arsenal and its 
contents, with the shipping that 
belonged to the state. 
Thus fell, after a splendid exist- 
ence of fourteen centuries, the 
celebrated republic of Venice. No 
modern state had risen, from such 
smal] beginnings, to a situation of 
equal prosperity. It was with sin- 
cere regret that every nation in 
Europe beheld its fall, ‘The ce- 
lebrity it had long enjoyed, on a 
_ ma@ltiplicity of accounts, interested 
people in its preservation. With- 
out enquiving how far the French 
could claim a right to doom it so 
unmercifully to destruction, they 
only considered that it hed subsist- 
ed with honour to the present pe- 
riod, and had maiptained its repus 
Aation unimpaired amidst a variety 
of dangers and trials, that had re- 
duced it sometimes to the last ex~ 
tremity. 
with concern the fatal hour arrive, 
‘that was to deprive it of the place 
it had so long and so reputably held 
among the powers of Europe. 
There was another republic, the” 
rulers of which had grievously of- 
fended the French, by the partiality 
they had shewn to the Imperial in- 
terest. This was Genoa, where the 
nobility exercised the supreme sway, 
and were justly apprehensive that 
the French, if successful, would de- 
stroy the aristocracy, and erect a 
government intirely democratical. 
They opposed, from that motive, the 
projects of the French, by every 
clandestine impediment they could 
~ throw in their way; but the torrent 
of that irresistible fortune, whieh 
\ 
The political world saw | 
attended the arms of France, over= | 
whelmed them, in common with.all 
the rest of Italy. After the revolu- 
tion at Venice, the French proceed- 
ed immediately to introduce another 
at Genoa. The majority of the peo- 
ple here were desirous of a popular 
government. Feudshad, of course, 
arisen between them and the parti- 
zans of the nobility. A desperate 
fray took place between both par- 
ties, shortly after the signing of the 
preliminaries between the emperor 
and the French. Elated by this 
event, the republican party raised 
a violent commotion in the city, 
and proceeded to open force, in 
support of their pretensions: but 
numbers of them were killed, and 
the insurrection was suppressed. As 
their principal leaders had fallen, 
iheir projects were considered as at 
an 
