HISTORY OF EUROPE. 
ment, than it was when count La 
Lippe began to attempt its reforma- 
tion. In this government, so ad- 
ministered and so supported, the 
people, far from placing any confi- 
dence, took no manner of interest, 
and there could be little doubt, that 
had the Prench invaded the country, 
their progress would have been ob- 
Served with perfect indifference by 
the great body of the inhabitants. 
These things were not unknown at 
aris, where, except the negotia- 
tions with Englasd and’ Russia, 
nothing now remained, since the 
peace of Presburg, to occupy the 
attention of Bonaparte, and to 
delay his favourite project of sub- 
duing the last ally of England. 
Should those negotiations fail, as 
there was but too much reason to 
fear they must, from the extrava- 
‘gant pretensions of the enemy, and 
the general repugnance of both the 
‘court and the people in this country, 
to any such peace as the situation 
‘of the continent entitled us to ex- 
pect; then it was evident that the 
invasion of Portugal would be the 
first step of the French government, 
Scarcely any thing else, indeed, 
remained to be done—for it was the 
‘only stake which England still had 
to lose on the continent of Europe. 
And even during the course of the 
negotiation this threat was held out 
in the plainest terms, while authentic 
fntelligence from different quarters, 
proved that some advances were 
made in carrying the menace into 
execution. The British government, 
therefore, saw clearly that at all 
‘events Portugal must be invaded ; 
that a blow, would in all probability 
‘be struck at that defenceless ally, 
during the progress of the nego- 
tiation, and for the purpose of has- 
one 
993 
tening ifs conclusion; that to a 
certainty, even if it were delayed 
so long, the rupture of the negotia 
tion would be the signal for im- 
mediately marching an army from 
Bayonne to the Tious. it became, 
therefore, the first care of the Bri= 
tish ministry to provide the means 
of assisting our ancient ally with 
forces proportioned to the magni~ 
tude of the threatened danger, and 
with the promptitude which its 
imminency demanded. 
Orders were immediately diss 
patched to the eazl of St. Vincent, 
who was then cruizing off Brest, at 
the head of the Channel fleet, and 
within little more than a week after 
the intelligence had been received 6€ 
the threatened attack, and oaly ten 
days after the menace had been held 
out to the British negotiators at 
Paris, that famous commande r rode 
at ancher before Lisbon, with a 
squadron of six sail of the finest 
ships of the lite. By treaty we 
are restricted from keeping more 
than this number in the Tagus at 
time. So that the admiral 
ordered another vessel which ac. 
companied him to cruize off the 
coast, and made the other ships 
PES her by turns. The rest of 
the Channel fleet, and the squadron 
off Ferrol, were in readiness to 
reinforce rhe detachment at a moz 
ment’s notice, if any occasion should 
require it. 
In the mean time, and with the 
same dispatch, a large and well ap- 
pointed army was assembled at Ply- 
mouth, the destination of several 
detachments of our forces having 
been changed for the present, in 
order to atiord the means of speedily 
assisting the Portuguese government, 
Lieutenant-generals Siméce and the 
2 earl 
