us ANNUAL REGISTER, 
without one contending effort, it 
could not be supposed that the En- 
glish government, which, in con- 
cluding the peace of Amiens, had 
voluntarily conselidated this enorm- 
ous mass of power, and had thereby 
even supplied fresh means and vi- 
gour to the ambition of the first con- 
sul, would now interpose any. ob- 
stacle to his enormous aggrandize- 
ment; accordingly we find, that 
nearly six months after the defini- 
tive treaty of peace, it had quietly 
submitted not only to. his arbitrary 
interference on the continent of Eu- 
rope, but to the series of aggression 
and insult, which he had poured, 
with an unsparing hand, on Great 
Britain, during the whole of that 
period. We.have already gone into 
the particulars, in sufficient detail ; 
but it now became known, in addi- 
tion to -these hostile measures, 
scarcely attempted to be concealed ; 
that Bonaparte had dispatched, or 
was about to dispatch, a species of 
military commissioner to Egypt;who, 
returning through, the Ionian isles, 
was to ascertain the actual state 
of those countries; the practi- 
cability of reducing the former, once 
ore to the dominion of France ; 
and to sow the seeds of revolutionary 
principles in the republic of the 
Seven Islands, under the assurance 
of the future protection and assist- 
ance of his government. 
Hitherto, the intervention of Bo- 
naparte, since the preliminaries, in 
the affairs of Europe, had not been 
accompanied by force or violence, 
but were effected peaceably and in 
tranquillity, through the medium 
of his acknowledged influence, and 
the mandates of his cabinet. In 
* Vide Annual Register, for 1802, page 224 to page 2-42. 
1803. 
the subjugation, however, of Swit- 
zerland to his power, he was 
obliged to have recourse to violence, 
and absolutely dictated his will to 
this brave, but unfortunate nation, 
at the point of the bayonet. 
By a recurrence to our former 
volume™, it will be found that we 
have given no inconsiderable por- 
tion of our labours to the narrative 
of the unsuccessful, but gallant 
struggle, made by this virtuous and 
war-like people, for their liberties. 
It will be here, therefcre, only ne- 
cessary to recur to certain datcs, 
which belong immediately to the 
elucidation of the conduct of the 
British government on this occa- 
sion, when, for the first time, it 
attempted to interpose in checking 
the inordinate ambition, and un- 
justifiable violence of the first con- 
sul, and to which the most moment- 
ous and important events owed 
their origin. 
The disputes in Switzerland, be- 
tween the [elvetic government, as 
it was called, (which was entire- 
ly. in the French interests) and 
the democratic states, who in- 
sisted on having their ancient laws 
and constitution restored, commenc- 
ed as early as the month of April 
1802, and assumed a serious aspect 
on-the 13th of the following July ; 
when the great majority’ of the 
cantons formally protested against 
Trench interference, and claimed 
their rights and privileges, as a free 
people, to restore to their country 
their pristine form of government. 
From this period till the 3d of Oc- 
tober, open warfare subsisted be- 
tween the people and the Helvetic 
government, when, in a general 
action 
