GERMANY. 519 
the enemy in one mighty body, It is more than pro¬ 
bable that the event of the war would have taken a 
very different turn. 
It now became tlie objefl of Napoleon to follow up 
this great blow with redoubled vigilance; and his deter¬ 
mination was to take pofTeflion of Vienna, the capital of 
Auflria, by forced marches; and to this point, as to a 
centre, he commanded the four divifions of his army to 
direct their courfe, in fpite of every obtlacle that might 
prefent itfclf in their way. On the oppofite fide of tlic 
Inn, a numerous body of Auftrian and Ruffian troops 
were polled, as if to difpute tlie pafl'age; but after a 
flight fkirmifli they fell back to Lintz, and left the 
French army to crofs the river without interruption, 
which it accomplifhed on the 28th of Otlober. It now 
advanced through the Auftrian territory, almoft witli- 
out reflftance, till it reached St. Polten, only twenty-fix 
miles froir; Vienna. Here Napoleon was waited upon by 
a deputation from the emperor Francis, tendering him 
the keys of the city, and trufting to his magnanimity 
and juftice, in not fuffering private perfons, nor their 
property, to be violated, nor that magnificent metropolis 
to be defaced and pillaged by the foldiery. On the 13th 
of November, 1805, Napoleon, at the head of his whole 
army, took pofTeflion of Vienna ; and to his honour it 
muft be recorded, that he held the prefervation of the 
city, and the rights of its inhabitants, moft facred ; 
though the difaffefted and infidious among the natives 
came forward to plunder with hafly ftrides; and every 
viper that had for ages been foftered in the bofbin of 
the ftate, now eretted their deleterious fangs, to glut on 
the vitals of the pai'ent which gave them birth, or the 
government which fecured their exiflence, and aftbrded 
them nourifliment and protection! But there muft be 
fome fuch reptiles in every ftate, and in every country, 
or the meafure of guilt and iniquity could never be full. 
Previous to this direful and ever to be lamented day, 
(for Vienna had never before been taken or entered by 
an hoftile army,) the emperor Francis II. had retired to 
Prefburg, in Upper Hungary, in his way to Olmutz, the 
capital of Moravia, where he was to meet the Ruffian 
emperor Alexander and to which place his emprefs, 
family, and houfehold, with all his valuables that could 
be fecured in time, had been before removed. And here 
alfo, amid the poignant diftrefs of the emprefs and royal 
family, and after having loft his w'hole Auftrian domi¬ 
nions, Francis magnanimoufly publiflied a declaration to 
his fubjeCts, couched in the molt animated terms, “ that 
it was ftill his determination to purfue his fortune to 
the lafl flake, and neither fubmit to an inexorable foe, 
nor enter into a feparate peace, while he could rely on 
the pledged ajjijiance of the king of PruJJia, and on his invin¬ 
cible allies the emperor of Ruffia, and the king of Great- 
Britain,— but under circimfances of the very laji extremity d' 
He allb called upon his loyal and beloved fubjebts “ to 
rife in mafs, further to flrengthen and aid the undimi- 
niflied armies of his great allies and friends, until the 
emperor of the French Ihould be brought to fuch terms 
and conditions of a peace, as would not tarnifh or abridge 
the honour and independence of the firft and highefl mo¬ 
narchy in Europe.” 
But the memorable event which was to decide the 
fate of the empire, and bla.fl: the laurels of the houfe of 
Auflria, was now at hand: this was the battle of Aufler- 
litz ; the only important Hand made by the allies during 
the war. The emperor Francis had colleCled a conli- 
derable part of his difeomfited army, confifling of about 
twenty-five thoufand men, under liis own immediate 
command, affilled by prince John of Lichtenflein ; and 
which he now united to the grand Rulfian army, confifl¬ 
ing of about eighty thoufand men, commanded by the 
emperor Alexander in perfon, aflifled by the grand duke 
Conftantine, prince Pangrazion, and the generals Kutu- 
fow and Buxhovden. The French army was commanded 
fey the emperor Napoleon in perfon, aflifled by the mare- 
fchals Soult, Lafnes, Bernadottc, Davoufl, and prince 
Murat, and conlifled of one hundred and tw'enty thou¬ 
fand men, elated with conquefl, and enthufiaflic in the 
purfuit of victory. Early on the 2d of December, 1805, 
tile arduous and bloody contlidt began. The whole 
French line was inflantly put in motion; aqd having a 
mofl decided advantage in its numerous cavalry and ar¬ 
tillery, it galled aiid mowed down the ranks of the allies 
even before they could come into aflion. The horfes 
of the Ruffian artillery and cavalry, worn down by fo 
long a march, and dcllitute of food for three days pre¬ 
vious to the battle, were wholly incapable of acting. 
The only alternative left for tlie allies, w'as to marcli 
up to within point-blank fhot of the enemy, and after 
..difeharging a few rounds as they approached, to engage 
them on the point of the bayonet. 'This manoeuvre was 
enforced with all pollible expedition throughout the 
line, and a dreadful effulion of liuman blood was the 
confequence. I'he French front were compelled to give 
way; but being fupplied with a flroiig reinforcement of 
frelh troops, they in turn gained ground, and a dreadful 
havock was again made; both fides figliting more like 
enraged tigers, than like men. At lengtli the Frencli 
fucceeded in forcing the centre of the allies ; and the 
right and left wings being too much disjointed, and 
deflitute of cavalry, the enemy eafily turned their flanks, 
and fell upon their rear. Every cliance of recovering' 
this misfortune was loft; a dreadful llaughter enfued, 
and vidlory declared for the French. Here ended the 
lad druggie of Francis II. with the implacable Napoleon 
Bonaparte; and the emperor Alexander marched back 
his difeomfited troops to the Ruiiian territory 
Had, indeed, the allied powers been pundtual to their 
engagements, and taken their ground with tlie fame 
promptitude and alacrity as the French ;—had the Eng- 
lidi, and Swedes, and Ruflians, united with tiie Hano¬ 
verian and Heflian troops, formed a vad army in the 
rear of the French, as had been dipulated :—and had the 
hefitating indecifive Pruflian monarch joined his unim¬ 
paired legions to them, as pledged to the emperor Francis ;— 
is it realonable to imagine that the republican armvj 
after all, and more than all, its' unparalleled luccefles, 
hemmed in on all fides, and Ihut up in the mod, didant 
province of the German empire, where its enemies would 
have multiplied every b.our, and all the neutral dates 
have joined their contingents to the imperial army,— 
could ever have cut its way through ranks of fucii com- 
billed magnitude, or made good a retreat through a 
country, where all refources and lupplies might, have 
been completely cut oil'?—The elector of Wirtemburg 
pu'blicly declared that he only waited for tlie king of 
Pruflia, to join, with liim, his forces under the imperial 
dandard; and but for want of which, he was compelled 
to take an aftive part in favour of tiie enemy. But it 
was unfortunately the lot of Frederic William not to 
participate in fo much glory :—the crifis of his fate was 
not yet arrived :—coveting too much, he hided for more 
than was his due :■—while courted and importuned on 
every fide to throw the weight of his mighty army into 
the Icale, he liad tlie vanity to fuppofe his nod could at 
pleafure drike the balance. By this delufion he eventu¬ 
ally lod his empire, even before he knew the extent of 
his own imbecility. Thus we partly trace the unfathom¬ 
able ways of divine Providence, in making man the in- 
drument of his own chadifement,—in dealing out to ail 
his creatures a jud and equal retribution.—See the ar¬ 
ticle Prussia. 
Immediately after the fatal battle of Auderlitz, the 
emperor Francis, foiled in every hope, and reduced to 
the lad extremity, was compelled to fue for an armidice, 
as a prelude to a peace on fuch terms as the conqueror 
might think fit to grant. Thefe, though hard, and ex¬ 
tremely humiliating, were neverthelefs not fo fevere as 
might have been expedted from the triumphant leader 
of a revolutionary army. It was dipulated that the 
emperor 
