STATE PAPERS. 



429 



to believe, that his majesty the em- 

 peror, at so decisive a period for 

 the fate of the whole world, would 

 lay aside all personal and momen- 

 tary feelings, would alone consult 

 the lasting welfare of Austria, and 

 of the countries by which she is 

 surrounded, and would resolve no- 

 thing but what this great motive 

 should impose as a duty upon him. 

 The Austrian cabinet had never 

 expressed itself in terms that would 

 warrant any other construction ; 

 and yet the French did not only 

 acknowledge that the Austrian me- 

 diation could only be an armed 

 mediation, but declared, upon more 

 than one occasion, that Austria, 

 under existing circumstancesjought 

 no longer to confine herself to act 

 a secondary part, but should ap- 

 pear in force upon the stage, and 

 decide as a great and independent 

 power. Whatever the French go- 

 vernment could either hope or fear 

 from Austria, this acknowledge- 

 ment was of itself a previous jus- 

 tification of the whole intended 

 and hitherto adopted measures of 

 his imperial majesty. 



Thus far were circumstances 

 developed, when the emperor Na- 

 poleon left Paris, in order to make 

 head against the progress of the 

 allied armies. Even their enemies 

 have done homage to the valour 

 of the Russian and Prussian troops 

 in the sanguinary actions of the 

 month of May. That, however, 

 the result of this first period of the 

 campaign was not more favourable 

 to them, was owing partly to the 

 great numerical superiority of the 

 French force, and to the univer- 

 sally acknowledged military talents 

 of their leader, and partly to the 



political combinations by which 

 the allied sovereigns were guided 

 in all their undertakings. They 

 acted under the just supposition, 

 that a cause like the one in which 

 they were engaged could not pos- 

 sibly be confined to themselves ; 

 that sooner or later, whether suc- 

 cessful or unfortunate, every state 

 which still preserved a shadow of 

 independence must join their con- 

 federacy, every independent army 

 must act with them. They, there- 

 fore, did not allow further scope 

 to the bravery of their troops than 

 the moment required, and pre- 

 served a considerable part of their 

 strength for a period, when, with 

 more extended means, they might 

 look to the attainment of greater 

 objects. For the same cause, and 

 with a view to the developement 

 of events, they consented to the 

 armistice. 



In the mean time the retreat of 

 the allies had for the moment given 

 an appearance to the war, which 

 daily became more interesting 

 to the emperor, from the im- 

 possibility, if it should proceed, 

 of his remaining an inactive spec- 

 tator of it. The fate of the Prus- 

 sian monarchy was a point which 

 peculiarly attracted the attention 

 of his majesty, feeling, as the em- 

 peror did, that the restoration of 

 the Prussian monarchy was the first 

 step towards that of the whole 

 political system of Europe; and 

 he viewed the danger in which she 

 now stood as equally afiecting 

 himself. Already, in the month of 

 April, had the emperor Napoleon 

 suggested to the Austrian cabinet, 

 that he considered the dissolution 

 of the Prussian monarchy as a na- 



