90] 
Colli was directed to apply to him 
for that purpose, and proposed a 
suspension of arms, while the peace 
was negociating. But he refused 
to suspend his operations, unless the 
king delivered two strong towns 
into his hands, as pledges of the 
sincerity of his intentions, and im« 
mediately dispatched commissioners 
to Paris. 
The king’s situation was so criti- 
cal, that he was obliged to comply 
with this requisition, and the French 
were put in possession of Cava, 
Coni, and Tortona. The Austrians, 
thus deprived of their ally, were 
obliged to fall back on the Milanese. 
Tn their march they attempted to 
sieze the town of Alessandria, be- 
longing to the king of Sardinia, 
but the commandant prevented the 
execution of this design, and Beau- 
heu hastened to cross the Po, in or- 
der to cover himself and the country 
to the north of that river. 
Inthe mean time, negociations for 
peace were carried on at Paris, be- 
tween the king of Sardinia and the 
French republic, which imposed 
severe conditions on this unfortunate 
prince. He was constrained to 
yield up Savoy, the patrimony of 
his ancestors for many ages, toge- 
ther with the city and territory of 
Nice, and a tract of Jand, which the 
conquerors entitled the Department 
of the Maritime Alps. A new ar- 
rangement was made of the fron- 
tiers on each side, highly advantage- 
ous to France. He consented to 
stop and put an end to all prosecu- 
tions against any of his subjects for 
their political opinions, to withdraw 
himself from the coalition, and to 
apologise for hisconduct towards the 
republic. Such were the principal 
terms of the treaty. 
In this manner was the prince 
ANNUAL REGISTER, 1796. 
completely humbled, who had long — 
been considered as the most secure — 
of any, by his position, against the’ 
inroads of the French: his prede- 
cessors, though frequently hard 
pressed by them, had never been re~ 
duced to such extremities, and ne- 
ver experienced such disgrace. By 
this treaty he was despoiled of all 
power and consequence; and though 
he retained the title of the king, 
he remained no more than the no- 
minal sovereign of his dominions. 
The reduction of the ‘king of 
Sardinia was an event that changed 
at once the whole face of Italy. 
That prince was no longer master 
of the barriers that nature has fixed 
between that country and France, 
and from which he derived his prin- 
cipal importance. They were now | 
in the hands of the French, and the 
Italian powers, deprived of this 
rampart of their dominions, saw 
themselves at the mercy of a people, 
who had, for many centuries, en- 
deavoured to obtain a footing 
among them, with the manifest design 
of subjecting them to their influence. . 
These astonishing successes could 
not fail to inspire the French ar- 
mies, that had obtained them, with 
the highest degree of exultation : 
nor did their commander forget to 
improve the sentiments of self ap- 
plause and confidence, manifested by 
them, into that disposition of mind, 
which would lead them on to those 
farther exploits be had in contem- 
plation. He issued an address to 
them on the twenty-sixth of April, 
three days after the application for 
peace from the Sardinian monarch, 
wherein he recapitulated, in a truly 
classical and energetic style, the 
glory they had acquired, and repre- 
sented that which lay still before 
them. 
“You 
