FRA 
make propofals of peace. On the 31ft lie fent a note to 
the archduke, in which he deprecated the prolongation of 
the war, and intreated him to interpofc his good offices to 
put a (top to its farther ravages. But this prince, doubt¬ 
ing even his own influence at the court of Vienna, re¬ 
turned for anfwer, that he had no powers to negociafe. 
Bonaparte now, in order to abate the ardour of the 
people in defence of their fovereign, addreffed a procla¬ 
mation to the inhabitants of Carinthia, inviting them to 
amity, promifmg to protect their religion and property. 
He then marched from Clagenfurth to St. Veit, rei'olving to 
attack the archduke while yet inferior to him in numbers; 
and prevent the junction of a body of troops from Suabia, 
The imperial general, having concentrated his right and 
centre, marched to Friefach, but abandoned it on the ap¬ 
proach of the French, though his rear-guard fought with 
great bravery, and on the enfuing day they defended with 
equal valour the defile leading from Freifach to Neu- 
markt, which was ineffectually affidled by Maffena. The 
archduke maintained thefe contefrs chiefly to gain time 
for general Spork to join him with reinforcements from 
Saltzburgh ; and having fecured the defired communica¬ 
tion, he retired in the night to Hundfmarkt, ftill purfued 
by Bonaparte, who compelled him to retire fucceffively 
to Judenburgh, Knittefeld, and Vorderemberg. Bona¬ 
parte, occupying all the places abandoned by the impe- 
rialifts, foon became matter of Carinthia, and entered into 
Styria, while his right wing advanced through Carniola 
upon the two banks of the Save, covered by flnall detach¬ 
ments which kept pace with it in Iftria. On Bonaparte’s 
arrival at Judenbourg, April 7, he was met by generals 
Bellegarde and Meerfeldt,. who had full powers to treat 
for a fufpenfion of arms ; and, after a conference, an ar- 
miftice was concluded for fix days, by which the French 
w?re put in poffeffion of a confiderable tract of ground ; 
their centre extending to Brack, their right wing between 
Fiume and Triefte, and their left to Lientz. 
As the terms of this trace included the armies of the 
Tyrol, it becomes neceffary to refume the detail of their 
operations. General Kerpen ftill maintained the ftrong 
poft of Sterzingen, while Loudon retired to Meran ; but 
although the Auftrians poffeffed fome local advantages, 
the inferiority of their forces rendered the occupation of 
their polls extremely precarious. Thefe difficulties were, 
in fome meafure, removed by the zeal of the Tyroleans 5 
twenty thou (and of whom, at the inftigation of count 
Lehrbach, rofe en majfe , and ranged themfelves under the 
iftandards of Loudon and Kerpen. Joubert had united his 
forces between Brixen and Botzen, fo as to maintain a com¬ 
munication with Bonaparte, and fecure himfelf from the 
attack of the Auftrians in the archbiffiopric of Saltzburg. 
While thefe operations detained the French at Brixen 
and upon the Adige, general Loudon, at the head of fif¬ 
teen thoufand men, attacked their out-pofts between Me¬ 
ran and Botzenand, having gained fome ground, re¬ 
newed the affault on the enfuing day, and compelled them 
to evacuate Botzen. Having, by this fuccefs, infpired 
the Tyroleans with confidence, Loudon advanced part of 
his troops to Deutchenoffen and Branzol, and, bringing 
the remainder on the rear of the French, drove them from 
Claufen and Steben, while Kerpen expelled,them from 
Brixen with confiderable lofs. After retieating along the 
valleys of the Adige and Pufter to Lientz, the French 
were joined by a corps of cavalry fent by Bonaparte to 
guard the valley of the Drave, and to eftabliffi a commu¬ 
nication between the armies of the Tyrol and Carinthia, 
Kerpen, however, fixed his head quarters at Prunecken, 
and pulhed his advanced pods as far as Lientz ; while 
Joubert took pofitions conftantly connected with the main 
army. 
While the French were thus driven from the German 
Tyrol, Loudon routed another divifion near Lavis, driv¬ 
ing them fucceffively upon Trente, Roveredo, Torbola, 
and RLva, on the lake of Garda, and compelling them to 
Leek refuge in the citadel of Verona. The Venetians alfc, 
Vol. VII, No. 471. 
N C E. 8 25 
not expecting the approach of peace, but hoping that the 
Auftrian general would make further progrefs, took up 
arms againft the republican troops that remained in their 
country ; and being joined by ten regiments of Sclavo- 
nians in the pay of Venice, they put the French to death 
wherever they were found, without excepting the fick 
in the hofpitals, of whom five hundred were'maffacred at 
Verona. Thefe cruelties afterwards occalioned the diflb- 
lution of tire Venetian republic. 
A party of imperialifts alfo drove the French garrifou 
out of Triefte, and thus attempted to furround the invad¬ 
ing army. Bonaparte, however, knew that the court of 
Vienna mutt be at lead as much embarraffed as himfelf. 
plis army amounted to ninety-five thoufand men. It had 
hitherto proved irrefiftible; and the Auftrians knew, that 
to furround, was not always to conquer. He therefore 
perfifted in advancing; till he compelled the Auftrian 
cabinet to treat for peace. On the 13t.l1 of April the 
armiftice was renewed. It was followed on the j9i.l1 by 
a preliminary treaty, figned at Leoben ; by which it was 
agreed that the Auftrian Netherlands fliould belong to 
France, and that the republic in Lombardy fliould afi'ume 
the name of the CiJalpine Republic, which fliould include 
the duchy of Mantua, and the territories of Modena, 
Ferrara, and Bologna. There is reafon to fufpedt that 
fomething hoftile to the independence of Venice was here 
alfo ftipulated. Bonaparte agreed to withdraw without 
delay into Italy, on receiving fubfiftence for his army 
during its march ; and it was refolved, that all farther 
difputes fliould be afterwards fettled by a .definitive treaty 
of peace. 
Before the confequences of this treaty can be detailed, 
it will be neceffary to recite the prog re is of the campaign 
on the Rhine. After the capture of fort Kehl and Hu- 
ningen, the French were driven from the right bank of 
the river, which again feparated the armies of the Auf¬ 
trians and Moreau. The Auftrian army confided of 011c 
hundred thoufand men, occupying the Rhine from Bade 
to the Sieg, including the garrifons of Philiplburg, Man- 
heim, Mentz, and Ehrenbreitftein, the fort of the Rhine 
before Manheim, and fome ports on the Seitz and Nahe 
in front of Mentz. General Latouif, commanding on the 
Uppep Rhine,- was oppofed by Moreau ; and general Wer- 
neck, on the Lower, by Hoche, who had affumed the 
command inftead of Beurnonville. The French had col¬ 
lectively about one hundred and fifty thoufand-men, who 
lined the banks of the Rhine, and guarded the fortreffes 
from Huningen to Landau ; garrifoned the ftrong holds of 
the Sare and Mofelle, occupied a part of the Palatinate, 
the whole duchy of Deux Pouts, and nearly all the Hundf- 
ruck : they had alfo pods upon the Nahe, and from the 
mouth of that river edged the left bank of the Rhine as 
far as Cologne, and the right bank from that town to 
Duffeldorf. This pofition was much fuperior to that of 
the Auftrians, either for attack or defence, which witli- 
their greater numbers, gave the French a decided advan¬ 
tage over their opponents. 
Hoche croffed the Rhine at Neuwied on the 18th of 
April, and drew up on the plain within reach of the can¬ 
non of the Auftrians, who.were ported .between the vil¬ 
lages of Hetterfdorf and Bendorf. They were ftrongly 
entrenched, and defended by good redoubts, but had only 
fix thoufand men to oppofe thirty’five thoufand ; Wfrneck 
being in the mountains between Altenkirchen, aqdJIach- 
enburg with the main body of the army. Genera! ^Kray, 
apprifed of the armiftice concluded at Jude.niburg the 7th 
of April, requefted a fimilar fufpenfion .of hoftilinies to 
fave the effufion of blood ; but Hoche, lej\conedtly in¬ 
formed,, rejected the prepofal, uitlefs the fortrefs^t Eh¬ 
renbreitftein and the whole courfe of the Lahn.w.e^e put 
in his poffeffion: thefe terms were refufed, augLJKray, 
confnlting his courage rather than his force, couinjenced 
the combat by a brifk cannonade, which was vigaroui.y 
returned by the horfe artillery of the ,Fj;eoch4,yvho now 
refelutely affailed the intrenchments, and, after au ebfti- 
v 
