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BONAl'AKTK. NAPOLEON L 



BONAPABTE. NAPOLKON I. 



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that evy individual not regular soldier taken with arm* in bit 

 hand* should b* put to death. 



The court of llama wa* now in groat alarm, and I'iiu VI. sent 

 envoys to Bonaparte to sue for terms. Am armistios was aigned on 

 the 23rd of Juuo, preparatory to a definite treaty of peace between 

 UM |K>| and the Directory. The condition* of the armistice went, 

 that the pop* abould give up the province* of Ferran and Bologna, 

 on 1 UM ctual of Anoona, ahould oloee his port* against the enemies 

 of Franco, abould pay fifteen million* of livres in gold or ailver, and 

 U millions in goods, provisions, bone*, cattle, to., beside* surrender- 

 ing a certain number of paintings, statues, vases, and 600 manuscript*, 

 at the ohuioe of the couunissane* lent by tho Directory. This new 

 species of spoliation, unprecedented in modern history, wa* brought 

 into a regular system, and carried on in all oouutriiu conquered by the 

 French annie uutil the fall of Napoleon. Some of the scientific and 

 learned men of France, among whom were Monga and Berthollet, 

 went in ineoeiiion to Parma, Milan, Bologna, liome, and afterward* to 

 Venice and Naples, to take an inventory of the work* of art, from 

 among which they oboe* the beet, and aeut them to Paris. 



While theM thing* were going on aouth of the Po, the court of 

 Vienna wa* preparing a fresh ariuy for the recovery of Lomburdy. 

 *ftil Wuruuer, a veteran officer of considerable reputation, wa* 

 detached with 30,000 men from the Austrian army of the Itbiue, and 

 "--~K~i into the Tyrol, where be collected the remain* of Beaulieu's 

 troop* and the Tyroleee levioe, forming altogether an army of between 

 60,000 and 60,000 men. Bonaparte's army wa* not quite 60,000, of 

 which part wa* stationed round Mantua to blockade that fortress, 

 which wa* garrisoned by 8000 Austriana. Toward* the end of July, 

 Wurtuser, with the uiaiu body of hi* troops, advanced from Trento 

 by the eastern ahore of the Lake of Guards, towards Verona, while 

 another eorp* under Qaoauadowich marched by the western ahore to 

 8al6 and Brescia, from which places they drove the French away, 

 lionapaite, after some hesitation, hoitily raised the siege of Mantua, 

 leaving hi* battering train, and collected the best part of hi* forces to 

 meet Quotnadowioh a* the weaker of the two general*. He attacked 

 him at Louato, drove him back into the mountain*, and then turned 

 quickly to the right to face Wurmter, who having passed Verona, hail 

 entered Mantua, destroyed tho French entrenchment*, and wa* now 

 advancing by Castiglione, from whence he had driven away the French 

 under General V alette. This wsa a critical moment in Bonaparte's 

 career, and it is *aid he was in doubt whether to fall back on the Po, 

 but was dissuaded by Augereau. On the 3rd of August the French 

 retook CastigUone after an obstinate combat Wurmser however took 

 up a position near tho town, where be waa attacked again on the 6th, 

 and compUtly di-ffato<l, with tho lo s of his cannon and several 

 thousand men. Wurmaer withdraw beyond the Minoio, and after- 

 ward* op the Adige into the Tyrol, followed by the French, who 

 attacked and defeated an Austrian division at Roveredo on the 4th of 

 September, and entered the city of Treuto. Wurmwr tin n suddenly 

 crossed the mountain* that divide the valley of the Adige from that 

 of the Brenta, and entered Bassano, where he wa* joined by some 

 reinforcements from Carinthia, intending to march down again toward* 

 Verona and Mantua. But Bonaparte followed him quickly by the 

 lame road, and attacked and routed him at Baatauo. Wurmser had 

 now hardly 16,000 men left, and hi* artillery being lost, and hi* 

 retreat cut off, he took the bold resolution to cut hi* way to Mantua, 

 and shut himself up in that fortress. With a rapidity of movement* 

 then unusual in an Austrian army, he avoided the French division* 

 moving against him from various quarter*. urpri*ed the bridge of 

 Lesjnago, pawed the Adige, marched day and night followed by Bona- 

 parte, beat a French division at Cerea, cut down several other bodies 

 who attempted to oppose him, and at last reached Mantua on the 

 14th of September. Thus, in the course of six weeks, a second 

 Austrian army was destroyed in detail. The rapidity of movement! 

 of the French divisions, and the intricacy of their manoeuvre*, can 

 only be appreciated by an attentive examination of the map of the 



A third general and a third army were sent by Austria into Italy hi 

 UM autoum of the same year. Marshal Alvinci, an officer of some 

 repaUtio*. advanced from Carinthia by way of Bclluno with 80,000 

 nm, while General Davidowich with 20,000 descended from the Tyrol 

 by the valley of the Adigo. They were to m t between Pe*chiera 

 and Verona, and proceed to relieve Wurmser at Mantua. Bonaparte, 

 who wa* determined to attack Alvinsi before lie could form hi* junction, 

 gave him baltlo at Le Hove, near Baseauo, 6th of November; but in 

 spite of all the effort, at Maeseoa sod Augereau he could not break the 

 Austrian line, and nut day be retreated by Vicenia to Verona. On 

 the earn* day Vaubols, whom Bonaparte had opposed to Davidowi, h. 

 wa* driven away from Treoto and Hoveredo with great low, and obliged 

 to fall bad to Rivoli and La Corona. Had Davidowioh followed up 

 Us success be might have pushed on to the plain* on the right bank of 

 UM Ad** pes* ; VroB, and have placed Bonaparte in a very critical 

 position, with Alvinxi in front, Devidowicb on his left flank, and Mantua 

 in Id. rear. Instead of this, Davidowicti itayed ten day* at Uuveredo. 

 Alvioai meantime bad advanced by Vicensa and Villanova to the 

 hesghte of Caldiero facing Verona, where he wailed for Davidowioh'* 

 nce Bonaparte attempted on the 1 2th of November to dislodge 

 from Celdwro, bat after considerable lost b* wai obliged to 



withdraw his troops again into Verona. He wrote next day a desponding 

 letter to Paris, in which he recapitulates hi* loses*, hi* bt*t officer* 

 killed or wounded, hi* soldiers exhausted by fatigue, and himself in 

 danger of being surrounded. He however determined to inuke a last 

 effort tn dislodge Alvinsi by turning hi position. With two >l. 

 under Maesena and Augereau be inarched quietly out of Verona in the 

 night of the 14tb, followed the right bank of the Adige, croesed that 

 river at Itonoo early next morning, and moved quickly by a cross road 

 leading through a marshy country towards Vilhmova in the roar of 

 Alviusi, where the Austrian baggage, stores, Ac., were stationed. The 

 Alpoue, a mountain stream, ran between the French and Villaoova. 

 The French attempted to pass it by the bridge of Arcole, but found it 

 defended ; and this led to the celebrated battle of that name, which 

 lasted three day*, and which wa* unquestionably the hardest fought in 

 all those Italian campaigns. On the 17th Bonaparte succeeded in 

 turning the position of Arcole, when Alvinci thought it prudent to 

 retire U|K>U Viceuxa and Bassano, where the Austriaus took up th-ir 

 winter quarters. Bonaparte wrote to Carnot after the action of the 

 third day :" Never was a field of battle so obstinately contested i 

 our enemies were numerous and determined. I have hnrdly any general 

 officers left." They were almost all killed, wounded, or prisoners. 



On the same day that Bonaparte obliged Alvinii to retire from the 

 Adige, Davidowich, rousing himself from his inconceivable inaction, 

 pushed down by Ala on the Adige, drove Vaubois before him, and 

 entered the plain* between Peachiera and Verona. But it was now too 

 late : Bonaparte turned against him, and obliged him quickly to retrace 

 his steps to Ala and lioveredo. Thus ended the third campaign of the 

 year 1796. 



Bonaparte had now some Ifisura to turn his attention to the internal 

 aflairs of the conquered countries. The Milanese in general rem.uiu- 1 

 passive, but tho people of Modena and liologna seemed anxious to 

 constitute themselves into an independent state. Bonaparte himself 

 had not directly encouraged such manifestations, but his subalterns 

 had ; and indeed the revolt of Keggio, which was the first Italian city 

 that proclaimed its independence, wai bgun by a party of Coraioan 

 pontoneers, who were passing through on their way to the army. 

 (Count Paradiai, ' Lettera a Carlo Botta,') Bonaparte allowed Modern, 

 Iteggio, Bologna, and Ferrara to form themselves into a republic, which 

 was called Cispadana. As for the Milanese, the Directory wrote that 

 it wa* not yet certain whether they should not be obliged to restore 

 that country to the emperor at the peace. Bonaparte has clearly stated 

 his policy at that time towards the North Italians in a letter to the 

 Directory on the 2$th of December 17'JtJ : "There are in I -ombar.ly 

 (Milanese) three parties: 1st, tint which is subservient to France and 

 follows our directions; 2nd, that which .lints at liberty and a national 

 government, uud that with some degree of impatience ; 3rd, the party 

 friendly to Austria and hostile to us. I support the first, restrain the 

 second, and put down the third. As for the f-tates south of th- To 

 (Moduna, Bologna, fto.), there are also there three parties : 1st, the 

 friends of the old governments; 2nd, the partisans of n free consti- 

 tution, though somewhat aristocratical ; 3rd, the partisans of pure 

 democracy. I endeavour to put down the first; I support the second 

 because it is the party of the great proprietors and of the clergy, who 

 exercise the greatest influence over the masse* of the people, whom 

 it is our interest to win over to us ; 1 restrain the third, which i* 

 composed chiefly of young men, of writers, and of people who, its in 

 France and everywhere else, love liberty merely for the sake of 

 revolution." 



The pope found that he could not agree to a peace with the Directory, 

 whose conditions wore too hard, and consequently, after paying five 

 millions of livres, be (topped all further remittances. Bonaparte, after 

 disapproving in his despatches the abruptness of the Directory, and 

 saying that it was impolitic to moke too many enemies at once while 

 Austria was still in the field, repaired to Bologna in January 17'J7 to 

 threaten the Uouian states, when ho heard that Alvinzi was preparing 

 to move down again upon the Adige. The Austrian marshal had 

 received reinforcements which raised his army again to 0,000 men. 

 lie marched them in several columns, threatening several point? at 

 once of the French line on the Adige, and Bonaparte for nwhilo was 

 perplexed as to where the principal attack would bo made. He learnt 

 however through a spy that the main body of Alvinzi was moving down 

 from the Tyrol along the right bank of the Adige upon Kivoli, where 

 Joubert wa* posted. On the 13th Bonaparte hurried from Verona with 

 Massena's division to Rivoli, and on the 14th the battle of Kivoli took 

 place. Alvinxi, calculating upon having before him Joub rt's corps 

 only, bad extended his line with the view of surrounding him. Twice 

 was Uivoli carried by the Austrians, and twice retaken by the French. 

 Massena, and afterwards Key, with his division, coming to Joube.it' s 

 assistance, carried the day. Alvinri's scattered divisions were routed 

 in detail with immense loss. Another Austrian division under General 

 Proven had meantime forced the passage of the Adige near Legnago, 

 and arrived outside of Mantua, when I'rovera attacked the entrench- 

 ments of the besieger*, while Wurmser made a sortie with part of the 

 garrison. Bonaparte hurried with Masm-na's division from llivoli, airl 

 arrived just in time to prevent the junction of Provera and Wurmser. 

 Proven, attacked on all sides, was obliged to surrender with his division 

 of 6000 men, and Wuruuer was driven back into the fortress. Alvinzi, 

 with the remainder of hit army, was at the same time driven back to 



