843 FRA 
Chivaflo, Tuvin, Adi, and Alexandria; the other bv 
Vercelli, Navarre, Milan, Lodi, and Piacenza. The firfl 
was th.e fhorteft ; but in preferring the other, Bonaparte 
avoided the necefiity of puffing under the cannon of Tu¬ 
rin and Alexandria, which he had neither time nor force 
to befiege, and gained the advantage of feizing the prin¬ 
cipal magazines and Bores formed by the Andrians on the 
Teffino, the Adda, and the Oglio. After a feint, which 
deceived the imperialids intrenched near Romano, Bona¬ 
parte took Vercelli on th.e 26th of May ; after which 
Chivaflo, Mafferano, Borgo di Seffia, and all the towns 
in Upper Piedmont from Fenertrelles to the confluence 
of the Seffia and the Po, opened their gates. Moreau 
was enabled, in confequence of his fuccefs in Germany, 
to detach twenty-five thoufand men under general Moncey, 
which entered Italy by the Simplon and the St. Gothard. 
By the 31ft, the whole French army under the com¬ 
mand of the firfl conful was united on the Teffino; on the 
other (ide of which the Andrians under Laudohn were 
entrenched, and had removed the bridges and carried over 
the boats. Several ingenious manoeuvres, and a bold ex¬ 
ploit of a French demi-brigade, enabled them, however, 
to feize fome of thefe veffels, and by means of a flying- 
bridge which they afterwards eftabliflied, the whole army 
eroded the Teffino on the 2d of June. Bonaparte entered 
Milan, and inveded the caflle ; an Italian general, named 
Lechi, gained pofleffion of all the territories of the Cifal- 
pine republic between the Seffia and the Serio, except 
the fort of Arona ; and Lafnes took pofleffion of Pavia, 
which was haflily evacuated by the troops of the emperor. 
Thus, in a fortnight after his defeent from the Alps, 
Bonaparte was placed in the midfl of his former conqueds, 
having taken the Audrian magazines and the garrifons 
left by Melas, and his central pofition intercepted the 
communication of that general with the Tyrol. Yet he 
was with his whole army perfectly ifolated, and it ap¬ 
peared certain that a Angle reverfe of fortune mud expofe 
him to inevitable deftruCtion. On his entry into Milan, 
Bonaparte made hade to re-eflablifh the Cifalpine repub¬ 
lic ; releafed thofe who had been confined fince the abo¬ 
lition of the republican fyflem; the magifirates formerly 
appointed by him, having come to Paris for the purpofe, 
were reinflated in their offices ; the national guard was re- 
organifed, and armed from the magazines of the Auf- 
trians ; and the firfl conful iffued three proclamations, 
fuited to his prefent purpofes, and calculated to promote 
his future views. 
During thefe tranfaflions, a detachment under Murat 
and Lafnes, proceeding rapidly along the left bank of the 
Po, feized Piacenza on the 4th of June, and, having re¬ 
paired the bridge of boats, prepared to march for the 
relief of Genoa, by afeending the left bank of the Trebbia. 
This project was, however, rendered abortive ; and the 
ilrict maintenance of the blockade by the Audrian army 
and the Britiffi fleet, foon reduced the garrifon and inha¬ 
bitants, amounting to a hundred thoufand fouls, to the 
mod deplorable date of want, w hen Maffena was obliged 
to yield to the folicitations of the people, and accepted 
on the 4th of June, favourable terms of capitulation; 
terms which it is fuppofed w'ould not have been granted, 
but the befieging army had received orders to quit their 
politions and combine with Melas in refiding Bonaparte. 
When Bonaparte was appriled of the lofs of Genoa, he 
perceived that it would be improper for him to remove 
to a confiderable diftance from the Po, as the Audrians 
had dill eighty thoufand men in the Ligurian mountains, 
although it was not eafy for them to combine this whole 
force io otie body. Half the army, under general Ott, 
was in the vicinity of Genoa ; the other half in the county 
ofTende, near the fource of theTanaro: the great ob- 
je.ft of the Audrian commander was therefore to unite 
thefe two bodies, and that of the firfl conful was to at¬ 
tack and defeat them feparately. To effect this purpofe, 
Bonaparte marched rapidly towards the Bormida, feeking 
a pofition where he could be fortified betyveen the Ta- 
N C E. 
naro and the mountains, and able to attack at pleafure 
the divifion coming from Genoa by Gavi or Novi, or that 
coming from Nice by Ormea or Adi. To fruflrate this 
project, general Ott united his army by forced marches 
between the Bormida and the Scrivia, preffing forward 
and endeavouring to impede the progrefs of the French. 
Frequent Ikirmiflies were occafioned by this mode of pro¬ 
ceeding, the mod confiderable of which took place on 
the 9th between Broni and Voghera ; and, although the 
republicans gained fome advantage, they could not pre. 
vent the junction of Ott and Melas, which was no foonec 
effected, than preparations were made for-a'pitched battle. 
At day-break, on the 14th of June 1800, the Audrians 
paffed the Bormida by two bridges, formed in three co¬ 
lumns, and marched to encounter the^advanced guard of 
the French, who were alfo divided in three ; the left and 
centre being commanded by Vidtor, the right by Lafnes, 
and fupported by the cavalry under Murat. The right 
wing'of the Audrians afeended the Bormida, the centre 
was placed on the great road towards the village of Ma¬ 
rengo, from which the battle took its name; and the left 
extended towards Cadel Cenolo. After an obdinate con- 
ted, which laded fix hours, the Auftrians had gained po'f- 
feffion of Marengo, and compelled general Victor- to re¬ 
treat ; and his movement compelled Lafnes to adopt the 
fame meafure. The victory appeared complete ; the re¬ 
publicans, defeated in all diredlions, retired to the plain 
of San Guilto, where Deffaix, the celebrated conqueror 
of Upper Egypt, was dationed with a corps de referve. 
With this body he made a fudden and defperate charge 
on the purfuing army, who were already uttering fliouts 
of victory ; the republicans turned and rallied to fecond 
this gallant effort ; the Audrians were broken, a divifion 
of fix thoufand was furrounded and made prifoners, and, 
after a clofe engagement of thirteen hours, viftory re¬ 
mained with the republicans-. Their account of killed 
and wounded made the lofs of the Audrians amount 
to eight thoufand, and feven thoufand prifoners; 
while their own did not exceed five thoufand killed and 
wounded, and very few captured; but in this datement 
there is probably fome exaggeration. The honour and 
advantages of the vidtory remained with Bonaparte, who 
had in fa£t been defeated, and in a diforderly date of re¬ 
treat; while, fuch is the caprice of fortune, Deffaix, to 
whom the fuccefs of the day was folely due, was killed 
on the field : he was generally efteemed and beloved in 
the French army, and the peculiar circumdances attend¬ 
ing his death procured for him general and undiffembled 
expreflions of homage and regret. 
In the battle of Marengo it was obvious that Bonaparte 
had fame, rank, and even life, at flake : but on the part 
of the Audrians it appeared only an ordinary encounter ; 
if fuccefsful, they annihilated the hopes of the French in 
Italy; if defeated, with far greater lofs than the French 
aferibed to them, they had dill abundant means of re¬ 
treat, and a great feries of exertion would have been re- 
quifite to reduce the numerous fortified places dill in 
their hands. The temporary lofs of viftory had not 
difpirited the imperial troops; they were dill equal to 
their opponents in numbers, dill ready to renew the en¬ 
counter, and for the mod part unwilling to allow that the 
incident which doled the day entitled their opponents to 
claim the honours of the victory. Melas, however, feems 
to have been over-awed by the influence of circumdances, 
his judgment dazzled by the fuppofed afcendancy of Bo¬ 
naparte, or his faculties enfeebled by the temporary failure 
of his hopes. Influenced by this unaccountable panic, 
for no fufficient authority exifls to accufe him of evil in¬ 
tentions, he concluded, two days after the battle of Ma¬ 
rengo, a convention with Bonaparte, by which he furren- 
dered to him the fortrelfes of Genoa, Savona, Coni, Ceva, 
Turin, Tortona, Alexandria, Milan, Pizzighitone, Aro¬ 
na, Urbino, all Liguria, Piedmont, and the Cifalpine, ex¬ 
cept the towns of Pefchiera, Mantua, Borgo-Forte, Fer¬ 
rara, and Ancona, on Condition that the Audrian army 
might 
