HISTORY OF EUROPE. 
try; and that they must now de- 
fend their own honor. The officer 
however, who carried this answer, 
was empowered to state, that if any 
acceptable terms were offered, they 
would probably not be rejected. 
General Mortier refused to make 
any other propositions, and imme- 
diately prepared to cross the Elbe 
in the face of the Hanoverian army, 
who had taken a strong position on 
the banks of the river, which was 
well defended with artillery. But 
general Walmoden seeing that the 
French army was determined to 
force its passage, sent new propo- 
sitions, which were at length agreed 
to, and on the 5th of July a conven- 
tion was settled, by which the Ha- 
noyerian army was to be disbanded, 
and return to their homes upon 
their parole, not to serve against 
France or her allies until regularly 
exchanged; and its artillery, 
horses, and military stores, were 
to be given up to the French._— 
General Mortier in his letter to the 
“first consul, said, that “ it was 
only from generosity to an enemy 
imploring clemency, that he granted 
those terins; that general Walmo- 
den signed the capitulation with an 
afflicted heart; and that it was 
difficult to paint the situation of 
the fine regiment of the king of 
England’s guards at dismounting.” 
The French government, in pos- 
sessing themselves of Hanover, pro- 
fessed in a laboured manifesto, that 
‘it was their intention to retain it 
"merely as a pledge for the restitu- 
tion of Malta, and trusted by that 
‘pretence to prevail on the other 
_ powers of Germany to look with 
‘indifference on this invasive -vio- 
lation of the independence and 
integrity of the empire, The 
23% 
zpathy of those powers encouraged 
the French to the levying large con- 
tributions from the Hanse Pawns: 
and to commit farther encroach- 
ments on the German territory. The 
prince regent of Denmark had indeed 
upon the first news ef the march of 
the French army, advanced a con- 
siderable body of troops into Hol- 
stein; but after the conquest of 
Hanover, it was intimated to him 
that the French government saw 
with displeasure,preparations which 
appeared hostile and menacing; 
in consequence of which he thoug 4.8 
it adviseable to withdraw his army, 
and Hanover and the adjacent 
country remained in the undisputed 
possession of France, 
The aggressions of Bonaparte 
were not, however, confined to 
Germany, under the pretext of re- 
taining pledges for Malta: not- 
withstanding the conditions of the 
separate peace with Naples, a con- 
siderable French army was in mc- 
tion to occupy all the Neapolitan 
ports on the Adriatic, and particu- 
larly the town and port of ‘Taren~ 
tum, to which Bonaparte had 
always attached vast. importance, 
and which in the negociauions with 
lord Whitworth, it appeated the 
French government considered a 
an equivalent for Malta. Ancona 
and the principal possessions of the 
pope on that sea, were seized on bay 
the French army at the same 
And now the moment was arrived, 
when the avowed system of France 
in her war with E ngland night be 
developed, atid be put im execu- 
tion, namely, first to increase her 
strength and reintorce her treasury, 
by the possession and plunder cf 
the weaker states in her neighbours. 
heod ; and pally to apply her 
whoie 
time. 
