138] ANNUAL REGISTER, 1796. 
sistance, on their part, impratti- 
cable. 
General Jourdan made a resolute 
stand upon that day. He defeated 
the Austrian general, Stzaray ; and 
would have totally destroyed the 
troopsunder hiscommand, notwith- 
standing his skill and their bravery, 
had not the whole of the archduke’s 
army arrived in time to relieve both 
him and Wartensleben, who had 
not, conjointly, been able to make 
an effeétual impression upon the 
French. ; 
They again continued their re. 
treat, barrassed by the Austrians ; 
who frequently experienced the se- 
verest checks, and were obliged to 
aét with the utmost caution against 
an enemy, whose inferiority of 
strength alone procured them most 
of their advantages, From the sixth 
to the sixteenth, several obstinate 
engagements took place between 
the Austrians and the French, who 
routed two of their best generals, 
Kray and Hotze, with considerable 
loss. But on the archduke’s con- 
centrating his force for a general 
attack, they withdrew from. their 
posts on the Lahn, on the seven- 
teenth, and made good their retreat 
to the Sieg. {t was. performed with 
such order, end their countenance 
appeared so firm and resolute, that 
the Austrians, though they were so 
much more numerous, did not judge 
proper to give them much molesta- 
tion, and suffered them to retire 
with a loss that was deemed in- 
considerable when compared with 
the means they had of rendering it 
much greater. 
Thus ended an expedition, fram 
which, at its commencement, the 
most prosperous issue was expected, 
and weuid probably have been de- 
rived, had those irregularities and 
depredations been. duly restrained, 
which were so peculiarly unbecom- 
ing and impolitic in the republican 
and revolutionary army, and had 
those supplies of men and moneybeen 
Seasonably provided, on which the 
general entrusted with the expedition 
had confidently relied. The want of 
pecuniary remittances obliged bim to 
have recourse to heavier exaétions 
than were consistent with the plan 
of conciliation, on which the French 
must have been conscious the pre- 
servation of their popularity among 
the natives of Germany, and of 
that good will to their cause, through 
which they promised themselves, 
and aétually met with during some 
time, a very friendly reception from 
the commonality chiefly depended. 
The want of reinforcements was a 
still more fatal injury to the enter- 
prise. The extent of country, over- 
run rather than subdued by the 
French, required a far greater force 
than that commanded by Jourdan, 
whose operations were necessarily 
stinted, from the inadequacy of his 
strength to perform them, and whose 
aétivity was perpetually retarded 
by the defeét of meavs to give it 
proper scope. 
The losses of the French in this 
expedition were very considerable 
in soldiers and ofiicers of the highest 
desert and reputation in their ser- 
vice. None, indeed, but such could 
have contended with the far supe- 
rior numbers of excellent troops 
conunually starting up against them 
from every quarter ; nor could-have 
made good their retreat through the 
vast tractof country they bad to tra- 
Verse ; their march through which 
was no less dangerous from the 
hostility of the inbabitants, than 
from the indefatigable vigour of a 
Dursuing enemy. : 
; ¥ 4 The 
