FRA 
It wns one of the conditions of the armiftice that ten 
days nolice (hould be given of its termination; and this 
ceremony having been complied with on the part of the 
Auftrians, hoftilities began again on the 31b of May, 
1796. Jourdan firft made a movement on both banks of 
the Lower Rhine, and feveral affairs of polls took place 
in the Hundfruck. On the right bank of the Rhine, 
where the imperialifts were weakeft, the french employ¬ 
ed their principal force. Twenty thoufand men only 
defended the Sieg, covered Ehrenbreitftein, and lined the 
right bank of the Rhine, between the Sieg and Lahn. 
This corps, commanded by the prince of Wurtemburg, 
was attacked by the army of the Sambre and Meufe un¬ 
der general Kleber, and compelled to retire behind the 
river to the llrong pofition of EJckerath, with the lofs of 
2400 men. Before the prince was completely ellablifhcd 
in this pub, the republicans endeavoured, by fuperior 
numbers, to outflank and turn him ; but he fell back on 
Altenkirchcn, where he was immediately attacked, and 
put to the rout, with the lofs of twelve pieces of cannon, 
part of his magazines, and three thoufand men. The 
Andrians were thus compelled to retire behind the Lahn, 
leaving Ehrenbreitftein uncovered, which wasimmediately 
inverted by the French. 
The archduke Charles, fenfible of the neceflity of rein¬ 
forcing the prince of Wurtemburg, renounced a diverfton 
he was making in the palatinate and the Hnndfruck, and 
directing his march towards Mentz, parted the Rhine, and 
having fecured the defence of the Lahn, proceeded in 
perfon again!! the left wing of the French army, headed 
by general Lefebvre. The archduke pufhed forward with 
the utmoft celerity to prevent a junflion between jourdan 
and Kleber, and made the right wing of his army pafs the 
Lahn and the Dille at Wetzlaer. General Werneck, 
who commanded this divifion, attacked the French with¬ 
out fuccefs, till feven o’clock in the evening, June 15, 
when a reinforcement having arrived, the archduke ad¬ 
vanced, and furmounting great obftacles, gained a com¬ 
plete vidlory. The republicans in their retreat took ano¬ 
ther pofition equally ftrong with the former, but were 
again expelled, with the lofs of twelve pieces of cannon. 
The French corps which defended the Lower Lahn were 
obliged to fall back on the Sieg, purfued by the arch¬ 
duke, with the lofs of all their proviftons, artillery, wag¬ 
gons, and baggage. 
While thefe events occurred on the Lower Rhine, 
Moreau commenced the campaign on the Upper Rhine, 
by two attacks on the pofition of Wurmfer, on the 14th 
and 20th of June; but which produced no effect but that 
of confining the imperialifts within their intrenched camp 
before the fort of the Rhine. Moreau, however, intend¬ 
ed them only as feints ; for, leaving a final 1 force to watch 
the Auftrian camp, he fuddenly marched with a greater 
portion of his army towards Stratburgh, where prepara¬ 
tions were making for an important enterprife. 
In confequence of the lofs of the Milanefe, the court 
of Vienna had determined to fend marefchal Wurnjfer into 
Italy with thirty thoufand men ; a refolution which the 
French had learned by means of their fpies before it was 
communicated to the imperial army, and formed their 
meafures accordingly. The departure of thirty thoufand 
troops from the Upper Rhine, created an opening which 
the archduke’s expedition to the Lower Rhine would not 
permit him to fill up for fome time ; and Moreau, taking 
advantage of the critical moment,embarked three thoufand 
men in boats, who landing on fome fmall iflands between 
Strafburgh and fort Kelli, drove in the imperial piquets, 
who in their flight omitted to break down the bridges 
which communicate with the right bank of the Rhine. 
Thefe the French parted, and fuddenly attacked Kehl : 
the Suabian garrifon, though afiailed only by infantry, 
made no refinance : and the fupinenefs of the troops in 
the neighbourhood afforded the republicans fuffkient 
time to ftrengthen themfelves in their new acquifition, as 
well as to eftablith a bridge of boats between Kehl and 
Vol.VII. No, 471, 
N C E. .817 
Strafburgh, and fpread themfelves over the plain, fo as 
to defy any attack from Offenburgh or Raffadt. On re¬ 
ceiving information of thefe events, Latour, the Auftrian 
general, in conjunction with the prince de Conde, made 
great exertions to ftop the progrefsof the republicans,but 
■'they were too late. Moreau, with eighty thoufand men, 
occupied the heft chof'en pofitions, and continued to gain 
advantages over the Suabians, from whom he took the 
mountain of Kniebis, and the town of Freydenftadt; 
while Defftix, at the head of the left column of the 
French, defeated Latour-at Renchen, and pufhed forward 
to the city of Raffadt. Here Moreau, with a large rein¬ 
forcement, joined DelFiix ; and after a bloody engagement 
which lafted the whole day, compelled the imperialifts to 
retreat to Eflingen. 
The archduke Charles, fufpeCting the intended move¬ 
ment of the French, left thirty thoufand men under gene¬ 
ral Wartenffeben, to cover the Lower Rhine ; and having 
reinforced the gairifons of Ehrenbreitftein and Mentz, ar¬ 
rived with the reft of his army by forced marches on the 
banks of the Murg, at the m inent when Latour was 
giving way to his opponents. But as foon as the archduke 
had quitted the Lower Rhine, the army of the Sambre and 
Meufe refumed offenfiveoperations ; Jourdan, parting t'lVe 
river near Nieuwied, furprifed the Auftrian general Funck, 
and compelled Wartenffeben to retire behind the Lahn,. 
which the whole French army palled in three columns. 
In vain did Wartenffeben oppofe to their force all the 
efforts of (kill and valour ; he was uniuccefsfui in feveral - 
engagements, and witneffed the capture of fort Kcenig- 
ftein, the irrefiftible advance of the republicans towards 
Frankfort, and finally, the capitulation of that important 
town on the nth of July. He could only hope for fafety 
by retreating towards Wurtzburgh, in order to eftablifh 
a communication with the army of the archduke. 
That brave prince was apprifed of the events which 
had followed his quitting the Lower Rhine ; and, anti¬ 
cipating the confequences, faw no chance of avoiding the 
dangers of being placed between the viftorious armies of 
Jourdan and Moreau, but by a battle ; for which purpofe 
he polled his right wing near the village of Durmerfheim, 
his centre in front of Eflingen, and his left near the 
town and mountains of Frauenall. He wiflied to defer the 
encounter for three days, to give time for the arrival of 
reinforcements ; but Moreau, penetrating his intentions, 
fuddenly attacked his forces on all points, on the 9th of 
July, endeavouring to turn their left by getting round 
the mountains. After four repulfes, the French fuc- 
ceeded in this object, and the imperialifts were obliged 
to retreat towards Pfortzheim. The lofs of men was 
nearly equal on both fides ; but the republicans had the 
advantage of detaching the Auftrians entirely from the 
banks of the Rhine,and from the fortified towns of Philipf- 
burg and Manheim, into both which, however, the arch¬ 
duke prudently threw ftrong garrifons. 
After remaining at Pfortzheim four days, the archduke 
learnt that the French army were dire&ing their march 
towards Stutgard ; and therefore, in order to preferve his 
communication with the prince of Conde, removed his 
camp to a pofition near Vahingen, on the river Entz. 
The republicans dill continuing to advance into the duchy 
of Wurtemburg,thearchduke removed to Ludwifburg,and 
fent two fmall corps under general Bail let and prince J ohn 
of Lichtenftein,. to poll themfelves at Conftadt and Efiin- 
gen. The French entered Stutgard the fame day; and 
the archduke palled his army over the Neckar, and en¬ 
camped at Feldbach ; while the prince of Conde and ge¬ 
neral Frcelich were obliged to yield up the Brifgau and 
the country of the Black Foreft, falling back to Sigmarin- 
gen on the Danube. At the fame time general Warten- 
ileben, continuing to give way before the numerous army 
of Jourdan, was retiring acr’ofs Franconia, and on his arri¬ 
val at Wurtzburg found himfelf on a line with the front 
of the archduke; from which period the march of the 
refpe&ive armies became better combined. 
The 
