140 



A U ST1U A. 



Second co- 

 alition 

 against 

 rrance. 



Auwria. joined by a considerable Russian force. A strong 

 Russian army entered the Austrian states, and made 

 some stay in the neighbourhood of Vienna previously 

 to its march under the celebrated Suwa r r ow to Italy. 

 Bonaparte was in Egypt, wasting the flower of the 

 French army. Discord and imbecility filled the Pa- 

 risian councils. Austria once more raised all her 

 standards, and the court party at Vienna looked for- 

 ward for victory and triumph. 



The bravery of the combined armies of Austria 

 and Russia, and the military talents of Suwarrow, ob- 

 tained at first some successes for the new coalition ; 

 but they proved of little consequence in the course 

 of the war. Russians, like English soldiers, may 

 fight like lions, and indeed often exhibit rare degrees 

 of intrepidity, and valour on the day of battle, but 

 they do not carry on war so well as the French, nor 

 are they so well officered, and so well supplied with 

 the numerous requisites for long field service as that 

 ingenious and active people. The Emperor of Russia, 

 impatient of the sacrifices which he was making in 

 the west of Europe, while all his exertions were ne- 

 cessary on the Persian frontiers; disgusted with the 

 miserable fate of the gallant army which he had sent 

 to Holland, and which partook in the hardships and 

 humiliations of their brave English allies under the 

 British commander in chief, recalled all his forces 

 from the contest. England was compelled to remove 

 her troops from the continent as heretofore ; but she 

 galled her enemy in Egypt, and had lately inflicted a 

 deep wound upon his navy and army by the brilliant 

 victory of Nelson over Brueys at Aboukir, and by 

 Sir Sidney Smith's repulse of Bonaparte at St Jean 

 D'Acre. 



In spite of the defection of Russia and England 

 in Europe, in spite of deranged finances, an empty 

 treasury, bad seasons, and aggravated calamities of 

 various kinds ; notwithstanding the very equivocal 

 conduct of Prussia, which seemed to watch an op- 

 portunity for raising herself upon the ruins of Aus- 

 tria; and notwithstanding the disasters of Marengo, 

 and the loss of all Italy ; Austria struggled forward, 

 under all the vices of her old corrupted and incom- 

 petent war administration, until the decisive battle of 

 Hohenlinden, in December 1800. 



After the victory of Hohenlinden, the French ge- 

 neral Moreau might certainly have advanced without 

 much danger to Vienna, and dictated what terms he 

 pleased to the Austrian monarch. But it was not 

 the policy of France to ruin Austria, or to elevate 

 Prussia or Russia into dangerous powers by her de- 

 struction. It was more prudent to keep her as a ba- 

 lance against both, until the season should arrive of 

 degrading all the three successively, and in a way in 

 which France alone would be the gainer, and would 

 have to contend with only one of them at a time. 

 The treaty of Luneville was accordingly concluded, 

 and Austria lost only Venice, and a few trifling pre- 

 rogatives in Swabia ; while she got Salzburg and 

 Berchtolsgaden as an indemnification for her sacri- 

 fices in Italy. The people of Vienna were highly 

 pleased with these conditions ; for they had expected 

 to see the French armies in their streets, and they 

 were glad at all events to procure any thing at that 

 rime like an honourable peace. 



Peace of 

 Luneville, 

 Feb. 9. 

 1501. 



The Austrian armies were reduced to a lower pitch Auitria. 

 at the period of the peace of Luneville, than at any w v * 

 other since the year 17!)2, when the revolution war 

 commenced. They perhaps exceeded 100,000 men, 

 but the emperor could not bring -10,000 effective sol- 

 diers to hear upon any single point. To raise the 

 military force to its usual level was therefore indis- 

 pensihly requisite ; and this seems to have been the 

 main object of the cabinet in 1801, 1802, 1803, and 

 1804. Recruiting went on with considerable spirit, 

 notwithstanding the loss of some important recruit- 

 ing stations in Germany ; and some few alterations, 

 deemed judicious even by the enemies of the court, 

 took place in the appointment of officers, and in the 

 mode of paying the army. France did not look on 

 with indifference. She always kept a vigilant eye 

 towards the Austrian eagle, and was determined to 

 pare his talons, or clip his wings, before he should 

 once more soar to his ancient eminence. She there- 

 fore made one encroachment after another in Ita- 

 ly and Germany, and preferred so many demands, 

 that Austria resolved for the third time to try her Third c- 

 fortune against her great rival. England and Rus- alukm 

 sia joined her with alacrity. The former gave mo- a g a "ist 

 ney, promised troops, and probably meant to per- * rancc * 

 form her promises in good time. The latter pro- 

 mised an army of 100,000 men, and actually sent 

 60,000 excellent troops on the day appointed, and for- 

 warded the remainder witli all possible speed. The 

 king of Prussia was understood to be at least favour- 

 ably disposed, if not actually pledged by his word 

 and honour to join the coalition ; and Sweden was to 

 exert herself to the utmost in the same cause. Early 

 in September 1805, the armies took the field. A 

 court cabal sent the Archduke Charles and John, in 

 whom the army had the greatest confidence, with se- 

 condary commands to Italy ; while the post of ho- 

 nour, that of commanding the German army against 

 the emperor of the French in person, was conferred 

 upon General Mack. To complete the absurdity, 

 this general's hands were tied up. He was ordered 

 to advance far into Bavaria, and even to occupy the 

 line of the Iller, 300 miles beyond the Austrian fron- 

 tier, before a single Russian soldier had entered Ger- 

 many. Mack's army did not exceed 80,000 men. 

 Bonaparte was approaching with bis wonted celerity, 

 at the head of 180,000 combatants. The Bavarians 

 and Wirtemberg troops joined him with all speed, 

 and his army on the first week of October amounted 

 to 220,000 effective men. General Mack sent dis- 

 patch after dispatch, and courier after courier, to 

 Vienna, desiring permission either to retire upon the 

 Russian armies, which were rapidly advancing, and 

 had promised to be in Braunau on the 19th of Oc- 

 tober, or to file off towards Italy, and compel Bona- 

 parte to meet him there by the way of Switzerland, 

 or to risk being placed between him and the Russians, 

 should the French venture to penetrate into the he- 

 reditary states. The unfortunate Mack, who is much 

 more blamed tlian he deserves to be, was ordered to 

 await the Russians on the Iller ; and was favoured by 

 the council at Vienna with the pleasing intelligence, 

 that the French could not reach him before the end 

 of October, and that in the mean time a landing, to be 

 made by a powerful English army on the coast of 



