18 
Memoirs < 
league, and having long wavered, she 
declared iu favour of the allies. 
Napoleon, after the rupture of the 
armistice, endeavoured to reach the 
Prussian capital, but he experienced 
considerable checks. The allies, on 
their side, moved forward to attack 
Dresden, but in this movement they 
were repulsed, Napoleon having had 
time to return and defend the city with 
his best troops. The Austrians suffered 
considerably on that occasion, and Mo¬ 
reau, who had come from America, to 
fight under the banners of the confe¬ 
derates, was mortally wounded. Na¬ 
poleon was advised to retire on the 
Rhine, but he neglected to profit by 
that advice, and was obliged subse¬ 
quently to retreat upon Leipzic, where 
-a most sanguinary contest ensued, 
which lasted for three days. He 
reached that city on the 14th of Oc¬ 
tober, and the battle was fought on the 
16th, 18th, and 19th of that month. 
It was considered as decisive of the 
-contest, so far as it regarded Germany. 
The Austrians, in their enthusiasm, 
named it 44 The Battle of Nations,” 
and they annually celebrate it. The 
loss was immense. Among the killed 
was Prince Poniatowski of Poland; 
twenty-three generals fell into the 
power of the allies ; the Dukes of Ra- 
gusa, Reggio, and thirteen other ge¬ 
neral officers were wounded. Of 184,000 
men, opposed to 312,000, not more than 
60,000 remained; the Saxons, Bavari¬ 
ans, Westphalians, and the remainder of 
the contingents, declared for the allies. 
Napoleon arrived at Frankfort on 
the 31st of October, and with rapid, 
haste reached the Tuilleries, where 
the authorities, in the usual terms, ap¬ 
proached to compliment him; hut Bo¬ 
naparte, with his usual frankness, to 
their— 44 Your majesty has surmounted 
every difficulty,” replied, 44 Within the 
last year all Europe marched with us ; 
now all Europe is leagued against us.” 
It must he confessed the answer was 
worthy of him : though admitting that 
fortune opposed him, he did not shrink 
from an avowal of the truth. He de¬ 
manded of the senate another levy of 
300,000 men, which, as before, was 
granted to him; hut the legislative 
body, in a respectful manner, hinted 
at ftlie necessity for concluding peace. 
Chi the 26tli of January following, 
he said to his council, 44 I go to put 
myiself at the head of my armies. In 
three months you shall have a glorious 
peace, or I will perish.” The Prussians 
of Napoleon, [Aug, I, 
had seized on Brienne, where they oc¬ 
cupied a fine position, but which they 
neglected sufficiently to guard: Bona¬ 
parte attacked them vigorously, and 
soon dislodged them. Seconded by the 
Austrians, they returned to the charge, 
and in their turn forced the French to 
retreat. General Blueher advanced 
upon the Marne towards the middle 
of February, with the array of Sile¬ 
sia, and occupied Chateau-Thierry, 
while the grand army, commanded by 
the sovereigns in person, marched 
upon the Seine, Bonaparte seemed to 
retire, as if afraid to encounter the 
enemy, though merely with a view to 
cover the capital; but on a sudden, 
with the left wing of his army, he at¬ 
tacked, with irresistible impetuosity, 
the allied corps, posted at Champ- 
Auhert, and which formed the grand 
link of the two allied armies; this 
corps was overthrown in two succes¬ 
sive affairs at Montmirail and Chateau- 
Thierry, and the French took 10,000 
prisoners. 
On the 13th of February, the day of 
the battle of Champ-Aubert, the ad¬ 
vanced-guard of the Russian army en¬ 
tered Soissons, and General Billow 
seized upon Laon, on the one side, and 
the corps of Count De Wittgenstein 
moved on the Seine, and obliged Bona¬ 
parte to direct his steps to that point. 
The conflicts which ensued in conse¬ 
quence were most sanguinary both at 
Montereau and Nogent; and after hav¬ 
ing experienced great losses, the prin¬ 
cipal part of the allied army was obliged 
to retire upon Troyes* and then to eva¬ 
cuate that city. The early part of March 
was rendered remarkable by a treaty 
of alliance, concluded between the 
King of England and the Emperors of 
Austria and Russia, and the King of 
Prussia, by which they hound them¬ 
selves not to make a peace, nor to agree 
to a truce except under certain condi¬ 
tions. This was signed at Cliatillon, 
and was made known to Bonaparte on 
the 15th of March, with an alternative 
either to accept the conditions, or, in 
case of a refusal, to abide by the conse¬ 
quences. He refused the terms, at¬ 
tacked Blueher on the heights of Craone, 
and obtained some advantage, which, 
however, was rendered useless imme¬ 
diately after by a reverse. In his bul¬ 
letins, in detailing these affairs, he did 
not despair, but talked of making a 
point upon the Meuse to draw out the 
garrisons of Alsace and Lorraine, and 
having thus obtained an accession of 
troops, 
