165 



ANNUAL REGISTER, 1804. 



timent used as a principal argument 

 to advance his pretensions. 



The first decided step towards 

 the accomplishment of this long- 

 meditated measure, was an address 

 to the first consul, on the part of the 

 senate, dated the 27th March, pro- 

 posing to constitute him hereditary- 

 emperor of France. 



His answer was dated the 23th 

 April, from St. Cloud, and was 

 communicated, by a message, in the 

 following terms : 



" Senators, your address of the 

 " 6*^h of last Germinal has never 

 " ceased to be present to my 

 " thoughts ; it has been the objedt 

 *' of ray most constant meditation. 

 " You have judged the hereditary 

 " power of the supreme magistracy 

 *' necessary, in ord«r to shelter the 

 *' French nation completely from 

 *' the plots of our enemies, and from 

 " the agitations arising from rival 

 *' ambition. It likewise appears 

 " to you, that many of our institu- 

 " tions require improvement, in or- 

 "• der permanently to secure the 

 *' triumph of equality and public li- 

 *' berty, and present to the people, 

 *' and to the government, the dou- 

 " bie guarantee of which they stood 

 *' in need. We have been con- 

 " stantly guided by this grand truth, 

 " that the sovereignty resides in the 

 *' French people, in the sense, that 

 " every thing, without exception, 

 " ought to be done for their inte. 

 " rest, their happiness, and their 

 " glory. It is in order to attain 

 *' this end, that the supreme magis- 

 ^' tracy, the senate, the council of 

 *' state, the legislative body, the 

 " electoral body, the electoral col. 

 ^' leges, and the different branches 

 " of the administration, are, and 

 " ought to be, instituted. In pro- 

 *' portion as I fix my attention on 



" these great objects, I am the mor« 

 " convinced of the truth of those 

 " Sentiments which I have express- 

 " ed to you, and I feel more and 

 '^ more, that, in a circumstance as 

 " new as it is important, the coun- 

 " sels of your wisdom artd experi- 

 " ence were necessary to enable me 

 " to fix my ideas. I request you, 

 " therefore, to malce known to me 

 " the whole of your thoughts. The 

 " French people can add nothing to 

 '' the honour and glory with which 

 " they have surrounded me: but 

 " my most sabred duty, and that 

 '' dearest to my heart, is to secure, 

 " to their latest posterity, those ad- 

 '^ vantages which they have acquired, 

 " by a revolution that has cost them 

 *' so much, particularly by the sa- 

 *' crifice of those millions of brave 

 '• citizens who have died in defence 

 *' of their rights. Fifteen years 

 " have elapsed since, by a sponta- 

 " neous movement, you ran to arms; 

 " you acquired liberty, equalitj-^, 

 ^' and glory. These first blessings 

 '' of nations are now secured to you 

 " for ever, are t^heltered from every 

 " storm, they are preserved to you, 

 " and to your children. Institu- 

 " tions, conceived and commenced 

 " in the midst of the hurricanes of 

 " internal and external wars, devc- 

 " loped with constancy, are just 

 " terminated in the attempts and 

 '^ plots of our most mortal enemies, 

 <•' by the adoption of such measures 

 " as the experience of centuries and 

 " of nations has demonstrated, as 

 " proper to guarantee the rights 

 " which the nation had judged ne- 

 " cessary for its dignity, its liberty 

 " and its happiness." 



This was echoed by the most ful- 

 some addresses from the armies, the 

 departments, and principal cities ; 

 two of which we shall here tran- 

 scribe. 



I 



