'obtained fome fucceffes, and it be gan to be apprehended that Buonaparte's army was in great danger. This fpirit manifefted itfelf principally at Ferrara and Bologna, but more than any where at Milan. Here the majority of the inhabitants expreffed the most avowed concern at the retreat of the French before the Imperial army, and at the raifing of the ficge of Mantua: on the report of the total rout of the French, and the approach of the Auftrians, the ftreets and public places were filled by crowds, demanding arms, and offering to march inftantly to the affiftance of the French.

But of all thofe Italian ftates and princes that fhewed unequivocal figns of fatisfaction at the tempo rary fucceffes of the Auftrians, none equalled the temerity with which the court of Rome acted upon this occafion. As foon as intelligence arrived that the French had retreated from Mantua, a vice legate was dispatched to retake poffeffion of Ferrara, notwithstanding the noted averfion of the citizens to the Roman government. This was evidently a breach of the armiftice between the French and the pope, but the vice legate remained in the city even in oppofition to the inclination of the inhabitants, nor quitted it, until news arrived of the entire defeat of the Auftrian army.

At Rome itfelf the deteftation of the French broke out in the moft outrageous treatment of the few that were in that city. Thofe who fhewed themfelves moft forward to abuse them, were the priests and monks. Incited by their example and difcourfes, the populace were, with difficulty, reftrained, by the government, from exercifing their ut

moft fury on the natives of France, known to be republicans.

The news of the victories ob

tained over the Auftrians, put a ftop to thefe proceedings, by the confternation they fpead in Rome, where the general expectation was, that the French would fhortly be expelled from Italy: but the cooler part of the public highly cenfured the readiness with which the pope had been induced to violate the treaty concluded with the French general, and expreffed a full perfuafion that he would require fuch a fatisfaction as would produce a deep repentance for its infraction.

In the mean time, marfhal Wurmfer was occupied in fecuring his retreat towards the mountainous country on the north of the Venetian dominions; but he was followed fo clofely by Buonaparte, that he was overtaken and defeated in two engagements, on the 11th and 12th, with a fevere lofs of men, artillery, and baggage. It was with difficulty that he purfued his march to the other fide of the city of Trent, where he reassembled the remains of his forces.

The flight of the Auftrians enabled the French to refume the fiege of Mantua. The garrifon had, on its being raised, totally deftroyed the works of the beliegers, carried all their cannon, amounting to one hundred and forty pieces, into the town, and fupplied it with large quantities of ftores and pro vifions. From the thirtieth of July, when the fiege was raised, to the nineteenth of Auguft, when the French recommenced their operations against that city, it had been put into the completeft state of defence, and was now reputed more capable than ever to withstand all

the

the efforts of the French, till a more aufpicious opportunity of relieving it effectually.

France, in the mean while, was refounding with the exploits and praifes of Buonaparte, and his victorious army. The ftandards taken from the Auftrians, and fent by him to the directory, were prefented to it with great pomp and ceremony on the twenty-feventh of Auguft. The officer commiffioned to deliver them, addreffed the directory in a foldierly and spirited fpeech, which was received with great fatisfaction and applaufe. It was entirely defcriptive of the bravery and determination of the French foldiers, in Italy, to fhed their blood for the service of the republic. It specified their intrepidity on divers occafions, and the great things it had done for the benefit of the ftate, and the glory of the nation.

La Revailliere Lepaux, then prefident of the directory, returned him a fuitable answer. He loaded the French foldiery with all those praises that affect them poffibly more than any other people of the fame profeffion elsewhere. He compared them to the most renowned warriors of antiquity, and exhorted them to proceed in that career of triumph and fame, which would raise France above all its enemies, and eternize their own name. Thefe en comiums were carefully tranfmitted to the army of Italy, where they produced their intended effect, in the fatisfaction they afforded to both officers and men, and the ardour it filled them with, to be confidered and treated as the heroes of their country.

Thefe enthufiaftic fentiments were, at this period, particularly want

ed. The victories gained in Ita ly had coft the French many of their beft officers, and braveft foldiers; and their distance from France, together with other impediments, obftructed the recruiting of their forces. Their enemies, on the contrary, had many facilities in this refpect: the country behind them was their own: it abounded with robuft and hardy men, inured to a laborious life, and inclined to the military profeffion. Hence conti nual reinforcements were drawn, by means of which marfhal Wurmfer was enabled to repair his frequent loffes, by incorporating the new levies with his veterans.

His head quarters were now at Baflano, a town in the Venetian territories. Here he had assembled a confiderable force, which he dif tributed with great fill in all the advantageous pofitions in his neighbourhood. One of his divitions was ftationed at Alla, on the Adige, in the road to the city of Trent, of which Buonaparte propofed to make himfelf mafter. This divifion occupied a strong poft at Serravalle, on the right of the Adige, and another at Marco, on its left. By a series of fkilful movements Buonaparte compelled a number of intermediate bodies of Auftrians to fall back to thefe two pofts; and, croffing the Adige, on the fourth of September, he attacked the one at Marco, while the remainder of his forces fell upon the other at Serravalle. The engagement was obftinate on both fides, but the French prevailed, and the Auftrians were defeated with great lots, and driven from both pofitions. They retreated to Roveredo, in order to recover themfelves, and make a ftand; but the French

came

them to the rout, and took poffeffion of that town.

The Auftrians, having retreated to Trent, were making preparations to maintain themselves, by fortifying the avenues to it: but Buonaparte, who perceived their defign, gave orders to attack them directly in the poft they had taken. It was extremely ftrong, and it required vaft efforts to make them abandon it; but they were completely routed, and fied in confufion towards Trent, within three miles of which they were purfued. Thus terminated this famous fourth of September; in the course of which the Auftrians fuftained three defeats, and loft upwards of feven thousand men, who were made prifoners, befides a number of flain, together with thirty pieces of cannon, and a large quantity of baggage and horfes.

In the night that followed this memorable day, marfhal Wurmfer, lofing all hope of making head at Trent, evacuated it, and, next morning, the French took poffeffion of this celebrated city. At a fmall distance from it a large body of Auftrians pofted them felves at a bridge, commanding the entrance into the town of Lavis. But hither they were immediately followed by Buonaparte, who forced the entrenchments they had thrown up, after making his way over the bridge, and put them to flight.

Mafter of Trent, an independant principality of the empire, Buonaparte refolved to organize the government of this city on a republican plan. He totally eman cipated it from that Imperial jurifdiction, appointing an adminiftra

natives of the diftrict, to whom alone every place of power and emolument was affigned, in absolute exclufion of all strangers. The laws and ufages eftablished were left untouched; but the fovereignty was vefted in the French republic, to which an oath of obedience was required from all perfons in authority.

By thus investing the natives of this place with the exclufive enjoyment of all thofe employments and profits formerly diverted from them to aliens, he held out the profpect of a fimilar treatment to all that submitted to the French. He doubted not, by this exhibition of their juftice and impartiality, to procure a general willingness to prefer fubordination to France to the dominion exercised over them by their present mafters.

After fettling the government of the city of Trent, Buonaparte loft no time in the prosecution of his advantages over the Auftrians. Marfhal Wurmfer had fixed himself at Baflano, the way to which town was rendered exceffively difficult, by the river Brenta, and the defiles that bear its name. 'Here again the fuperior generalfhip of Buonaparte enabled him to effect a paffage over this river. He directed a chofen body of men to attempt it at a place where it was not expected, and, by a circuitous march, to fall upon the rear of the Auftrians. They fucceeded completely; and, while the fmall fort of Cavela, that flood in the defile, was carried by ftorm, they gained the head of this narrow pals, through which the Auftrians, after evacuating that fort, not being able to make their

way, were compelled to furrender themselves, to the number of four thousand men, befides their cannon and ftandards. This advantage was obtained on the feventh of September.

Buonaparte found no farther oppofition in paffing the other defiles on the road to Baflano. Near this place a ftrong divifion was pofted, which, favoured by the ground, maintained, the next day, a vigorous difpute, but was finally routed. The French pufhed forward to Baffano, from whence it was with difficulty that fome chofen corps of Auftrian grenadiers were able to protect the retreat of marthal Wurmfer hinfelf, who had hardly time to fecure the military cheft. This was truly a decifive action. Five thousand men were taken, with thirty-five cannon and upwards of two hundred large waggons loaded with the baggage of the army, and a valt quantity of military utenfils and ftores.

Notwithstanding this great defeat, marshal Wurmfer fteadily adhered to the refolution he had formed, that in cafe his retreat fhould be cut off to the Auftrian territories, he would throw himself into Mantua, and defend it to the laft extremity. This was now precifely his fituation: he had luckily, with the remains of fome battalions, rejoined a large divifion of his army at Montabello, a town in the proximity of Vienna, and on the road to Verona. As it was impracticable to retire across the Brenta, where the French army commanded all the paffages, he marched to Porto Lagnago, where he paffed the Adige, on the ninth of September, making all the expedition he was able to reach Mantua.

The French, in the mean time,
VOL. XXXVIII.

were purfuing him, and came up to a place through which it was imagined he would pass; not finding him there, they took another route; but their guide misled them, and they again miffed him. He had now reached Cerea, a village lying between Governolo and Caftellaro, at which places large bodies of the French were pofted to intercept him. Here too a divifion of their army met him, and an engagement enfued, but he defeated them, taking a number of prifoners, and advancing to Caftellaro, encountered another divifion with like fuc cefs. These two actions took place on the twelfth, and at night he arrived at Mantua.

A great number of Auftrians had, during this efcape of their general, fallen into the hands of the French.

He had ftationed the corps that came with him in the fuburbs of Mantua, where the French attacked him on the fourteenth. The whole day was fpent in very bloody fkirmishes; and on the fifteenth a ferious engagement followed. The Auftrian general's object was to retain poffeffion of the fuburbs, from which he hoped, by means of his numerous cavalry, to forage the country round, and procure provifions for the garrifon. The object of the French was to drive him from thefe pofts, and confine him within the body of the place. The conflict was fevere and obftinate on both fides, but the Auftrians lost the day, and were compelled to seek fhelter within the walls of Mantua. No lefs than two thoufand fell in the action, and as many were taken, with twenty pieces of cannon, and a large quantity of ammunition., The lofs of the French was alfo confiderable, as the Auftrians [1]

main

maintained a long and desperate fight.

Various were the fallies and fkirmishes that took place in the courfe of this famous fiege, between the garrifon and the befiegers. Every fpecies of art and ftratagem was employed by each party, and numbers fell in the encounters that continually happened. But the fuccefs was ufually on the fide of the French, who gradually diminished the ftrength of the garrifon, by the frequent captures of those who fal lied out, and who, notwithstanding the fkill and valour they difplayed on thefe occafions, feldom could make good their retreat into the

town.

While the French army lay before Mantua, the fandards taken from the Auftrians in the feveral actions on the borders of Italy, to wards the Tyrol, and lately before Mantua, were fent to the directory, and prefented, on the first of October, with great form and folemnity, by Buonaparte's aid-de-camp, Marmont, who, in a fet fpeech, detailed the recent triumphs of the French in Italy. They had, he obferved, in the courfe of this campaign, deftroyed three hoftile armies, taken fortyfeven thousand men, two hundred and eighty pieces of cannon, and forty-nine fland of colours. Two of these indeed, the French, he faid, held in little value, as they were taken from the troops of his holi nefs, who had changed his late tone, as will prefently appear; an enemy unworthy of their notice: but ftill they fhewed the number of their enemies, and the extent of their own fucceffes.

Shortly after the feftivals and rejoicings, occafioned by the prefentations of thefe trophies, the directory had another opportunity of exulting

in the good fortune that seemed fo invariably connected with the proceedings of the French in Italy. Since their occupation of Leghorn, it had been the refort of all those Corficans who had fled from, or been expelled their country, when it became annexed to the British dominions. They received every encouragement from the French there, and came to the determination of forming a plan for the expulfion of the English from Corfica.

A circumstance that operated powerfully for the French in that ifland was, that Buonaparte was a native of it. The great actions he had performed, had rendered him an object of universal respect among his countrymen, who gloried in him, as a man who reflected the highest honour on his country. The report of his continual victories emboldened the French party, in Corfica, to renew their endea yours to undermine the intereft of the English, whofe government they reprefented as domineering and oppreffive, and contrary to thofe principles that were congenial to the natives of this ifland. They gradually fucceeded in propagating difcontent among a people noted for their ficklenefs and the inconftancy of their attachments. A communication was established between the exiles at Leghorn and elfewhere, and their partifans in Corfica. In a fhort time, the adherents to France became fo numerous and active, that the English in the island clearly perceived that an infurrection was preparing against them, which, from the inconfiderableness of their force, they would not be able to withstand. The Corficans held meetings and af-fembled numbers of men in arms,

whose