1 bold until the conclusion of a definitive negotiations proposed, and his troops con peace, or the rupture of the negotiations; in the latter of which cases it was stipulated, that hostilities should not recom-, mence within fourteen days, and that the cessation of the armistice should then be announced to the plenipotentaries or both powers, at the head-quarters of their respective armies. It was further agreed upon in the armistice, that the Russian army should evacuate the Austrian states, with Austrian Poland, viz. Moravia and Hungary, within the period of fifteen days, and Gallicia within a month; the routs to be prescribed to the Russian army; that there should be no levy en masse, or insurrection, in Hungary, nor any extraordinary recruiting for troops in Bohemia; that no foreign army should be permitted to enter the territory of the house of Austria; and that the negotiatiors for both powers should meet at Nicolsbourg for the immediate commencement of a treaty, in order to effect, without delay, the re-establishment of peace and good understanding between the two emperors. Accordingly the Russian army, which suffered considerably for want of provi- sions, and from the loss of a principal part of its baggage and stores, immediately after the signing of the armistice (on the 6th) between the emperors of France and Austria, commenced its retreat from the Austrian states. The negotiators, prince John of Lichtenstein on the part of the emperor of Austria, and Talleyrand for the French emperor, repaired to Nicolsbourg, to conclude a definitive treaty. Buonaparte returned to the palace of Schoenbronn near Vienna, to take up his residence, and the French army prepared to enjoy that repose in cantonments (in the countries they possessed,) which their active services during the campaign rendered so rendered so necessary. In this manner terminated the terrible battle of Austerlitz; a battle which for the importance of its consequences, has perhaps never been exceeded. By this second great blow Buonaparte in effect annihilated the confederacy which had been formed against him the emperor of Russia, it is true, refused to be comprehended in the tinued to make common cause with the British and Swedes assembled in the north of Germany, and with a division of British troops in the Miterranean; but now the Alexander was forced with the shattered remains of his principal army, to trace his steps out of the Austrian states, and retire into his own, leaving the house of Austria to its fate; all the great objects for which the confederacy had armed were necessarily abandoned, and the conqueror was left at full liberty to secure his conquests, and make such changes in the territories of his fallen opponents as would secure him against any future attempts at hostility. To the great superiority of talent on the part of the French, must chiefly be attributed the success of the campaign. Buonaparte, spurning the rules of ordinary warfare, advanced with the rapidity of lightning, to precipitate himself with his whole army in the rear of the enemy; to cut off his supplies, seize his resources, and occupy favorable positions between him and the heart of his states from which he could force him to a decisive battle; or by manœuvring, divide his force and conquer him in detail. With this view he marched forward with scarcely any stores; the velocity of his advance surprised the depots of his enemies, and the French army found in the countries of their opponents which they invaded abundance for their subsistence. The able and comprehensive manner in which the French chief laid his plans, and the vigor with which they were executed, each part always assisted and supporting some other, whilst the whole bore on the enemy with unexpected and irresistible force; greatly accelerated the fate of the campaign. Nor must it be concealed that the inability of the councils and generals of the confederates, and the indifference of the people of Germany, materially contributed in affording Buonaparte an opportunity for achieving one of the most splendid, astonishing, and important series of victories that had ever been obtained even by the heroes of antiquity or since the time of Marlborough CHAP. XXXVIII. The Campaign in Italy-Position and strength of the Armies-The French force the Passage of the Adige Battle of Caldiero-Retreat of the Archduke Charles-Movements of Massena-Conquest of the Tyrol. A LTHOUGH Buonaparte by his bold and unexpected irruption into Bavaria, and his consequent successes in that direction, made Germany the grand theatre of the war; Italy it would appear, had been expected by the Austrian cabinet to be the principal scene of its operations. It was led to this supposition, partly from believing that the French chief would make his greatest efforts in the favourite tract of his former triumphs; and in part from the hope and desire of the Austrian cabinet itself, to be enabled with the assistance of the allies, to expel the French from that important country, and to restore it to its former condition. With these expectations the emperor of Germany had sent large reinforcements early in the dispute with France, to augment his Italian army, the command of which he gave to the archduke Charles: and with a view of totally preventing the French in case of their success from piercing through the Tyrol, as they had done in the late war, and effecting a junction between their German and Italian armies; the principal posts in that important and almost inaccessible country were speedily fortified. On the 20th of September the archduke arrived at Padua, the head-quarters of his Italian army, and next day an nounced his having taken the command, in a short address to the troops Marshal Massena, whom Buonaparte placed at the head of the French Italian VOL. I. army, assumed the command early in September; and on the tenth of that month communicated his arrival to the army, in a proclamation, from his head-quarters at Valegio; from this time to the actual commencement of the campaign, both these generals employed themselves in making preparations for that part of the plan of operations entrusted to them by their respective sovereigns. It was the intention that an army con-sisting of Englishmen, Russians, and Swedes should assemble in the north of Germany to recover Hanover and attack Holland; while a joint English and Rus sian force threatened Italy from the Mediterranean; and assisted the grand united armies of Austria and Russia, in recon-quering that country and menacing France. With this view the emperor of Germany had formed a large ariny in Italy, and marched another towards the Rhine; and both waited only the junction of the Rus-sians, then on their march, to commence these vast and formidable movements. The unexpected and rapid successes, however, of Buonaparte on the Danube, totally and suddenly changed the plan of operations. concerted by the allies. He had taken ad vantage of the premature advance of general Mack's army towards the Rhine, to ef fect its immediate destruction; the Austrian army in Italy lost its point of support in Germany, and was forced to abandon all offensive intentions, and to look only. 4 M to its own safety, now endangered by the victorious advance of the grand French army into the heart of Germany in its rear. Massena being advised of the critical situation of general Mack's army on the Iller, and of its probable and speedy destruction, prepared to commence his operations against the archduke Charles, with the view of driving him out of the Venetian territory; whilst Buonaparte, in his advance to Vienna, detached troops from his right, to intercept the archduke's rear. Accordingly the period agreed on between the two generals for commencing hostilities, having expired on the 17th of October, Massena immediately prepared to force the passage of the Adige; on the opposite banks of which river the adverse armies were posted; the Austrians amounting to about 75,000 men, and the French to 90,000. With this view, at four o'clock the next morning, (the 18th,) the French general ordered a false attack to be made on his right, and at the same time caused an appearance of hostile movement to be made on his left, for the purpose of distracting the enemy by these various manoeuvres; while from his centre he attacked the bridge at the old castle of Verona, and effected the passage of the Adige. The first object to be accomplished was to throw down the walls which barricaded the middle of the bridge, and which the French accomplished in a very gallant manner. The Austrians had made two cuts in the bridge; these the French rendered passable by means of planks, and immediately 24 companies of light troops, selected from the divisions of Gardanne and Duhesme, precipitated themselves from the other side of the river, under cover of the guns of the old castle, and were soon followed by the whole of the division commanded by general Gardanne. In a short time the walls on the bridge were levelled; and, notwithstanding the Austrians made a brave and obstinate defence, the French succeeded in forcing the passage: the remainder of their army now crossed the bridge, and pursued the Austrians to the entrenched heights, to which they retired at some distance from the Adige. Here the action was renewed with great vigor; and, although the archduke sent frequent reinforcements, which arrived in various directions, and the Austrian army continued to resist in the most determined manner till six in the evening, the French at length succeeded in forcing them from some of their positions, and in destroying some entrenchments: the latter, however, retired after the engagement, across the river to their former positions. The Austrians lost in this action seven pieces of cannon and 18 waggons, together with about 1200 prisoners: the loss in killed and wounded also was great on both sides. Next day the French prepared to make a second attack upon the Austrians, who occupied positions a short distance behind their former ones. their former ones. At five on the morning of the 20th, Massena put his army into motion for the purpose. Whilst on the left wing, the division of general Sesia passed the Adige at Polo: that of general Verdier manœuvred from Ronco to Albaro. At the same time the divisions of generals Gardanne and Duhesme extending themselves before the bridge of the old castle of Verona, attacked the heights of Val Pantena, and drew round the castle of San Felici; when the general-in-chief, availing himself of their position, obliged the Austrians to evacuate Veronette. The pallisades of the new bridge were immediately cut down, and the division of horse chasseures under general Espagne, a division of grenadiers, the cavalry of reserve, and the division of general Molitor, marched through Veronette, and proceeded to the great road of St. Michael: here the Austrians opposed with their infantry and cavalry, supported by some pieces of artillery, their further progress. The French cavalry were now ordered to make repeated charges, which they effected with great vigor against the Austrians, and were well supported by the grenadiers of the division of Molitor: in one of these charges the squadron of guides forced 500 Austrian infantry to lay down their arms: After a most desperate conflict, which lasted several hours, the Austrians were forced to retire from the village of St. Michael, and the French occupied Vago: the latter took 1500 prisoners and two pieces of cannon. The loss in killed and wounded was considerable in both armies. After the action of the 20th, the French army advanced, and took a position within two miles of Caldiero, near which the archduke was strongly posted. Massena was now advised of the destruction of Mack's army at Ulm, and the consequent advance of the French grand army under Buonaparte, towards the Austrian capital: he therefore prepared to act with increased vigor. Hitherto his operations were 'studiously confined, with the view of not exposing or disconcerting the grand results of the plan of the campaign, by a premature execution of any of its parts: compelling the archduke Charles to retreat before the proper moment arrived, might only force him to fall back on succour, and perhaps form a junction with an Austrian or Russian army in Germany, which was an event not then to be desired by Buonaparte. Now, on the contrary, that the French chief had destroyed the main Austrian army in Germany, and was rapidly advancing to attack the Russians on the Inn, and force his way to Vienna, Massena could not press the archduke Charles too closely in front, whilst the advance of Buonaparte into the hereditary states was calculated to threaten and intercept his rear. Marshal Massena immediately began to avail himself.of this favorable condition of French operations, and, on the morning of the 30th, made a vigorous attack against the Austrian army, along its whole line. The division of Molitor forming the left, began the action; that of general Gardanne attacked the centre, while general Duhesme moved on from the right. The different attacks were well conducted; and the Austrians, who fought with great courage, were forced, after an obstinate conflict, to abandon the village of Caldiero, and to retire to the heights. At half-past four, the archduke ordered his reserve, consisting of 24 battalions of grenadiers, and several regiments, to advance: the battle then became more general. Both armies displayed uncommon determination, and fought with great fury: the French cavalry made some successful charges, and several battalions of their grenadiers coming up at the same time, attacked the Austrians with the bayonet; and, notwithstanding the latter made a desperate resistance, and were supported by the fire of 30 pieces of cannon planted in their entrenchments, they were at length driven from the field, with the loss of more than 3000 prisoners. Both the French and Austrians had a great number of killed and wounded in this action; on the termination of which, prince Charles requested a truce to bury the dead. A disastrous consequence of this action to the Austrians was the separation of one of their columns, amounting to 5000 men, from the corps of Rosembourg, and its being completely cut off: the French commander sent one of his aid-de-camps to summon it to surrender; but the general officer, Hillinger, who commanded the Austrian column, not seeing any French troops near him, declared his intention to defend himself. A regiment of French light infantry was then ordered to advance from Veronette, when the Austrian column made a movement to approach, and forced the regiment to take a position under the walls of San Felici. Massena immediately repaired to the spot, and ordered four battalions of grenadiers to surround the Austrians. A fresh summons was then sent to general Hillinger, who, seeing himself surrounded, and no chance left of his escape, entered into a capitulation for laying down his arms. The archduke Charles on his part, finding that a column of his army had been cut off, and being apprehensive that his positions might be turned, proceeded to effect his retreat, and marched on the night of the, 1st, for that purpose. Next morning, at break of day, the French reconnoitring parties sent to the different parts of the Austrian line, found they had quitted it and retreated in the night, a division of chasseurs on horseback, and the light division of general Gardanne, immediately set for ward in the pursuit of the Austrians, whom these troops harassed during the day, taking about 500 prisoners. The Austrian commander-in-chief was also hastened in his retreat by the junction of the army under general St. Cyr, with that under Massena, which took place on the 30th, during the late action of Caldiero: that ariny, 25,000 strong, marched from Naples, where it had been stationed, in consequence of a treaty of neutrality entered into between Buonaparte and the Neapolitan king, towards the latter end of September. In this treaty the French emperor bound his Sicilian majesty to adhere to a strict neutrality during the present war, to shut his kingdom and ports against the troops and fleets of the belligerent powers, and not to confide the command of his army or places to any Russian, Austrian, or French emigrant officer for these obligations the French chief agreed to evacuate Naples, and St. Cyr's army accordingly marched to reinforce Massena. On the 2nd of November, the French Italian ariny being thus considerably augmented, pushed on in pursuit of the archduke Charles, and advanced its headquarters to Montebello. Its stay here was not long; for, after a few hours' rest, it again set out, and marched in the direction of Vicenza. The gates of this city had been secured. Massena summoned it to surrender, but received a refusal; next morning, however, being determined to force a passage, he ordered some pieces of cannon and howitzers to be directed against the gates and the city itself; when the gates were thrown open, and the French army allowed to enter. They found in Vicenza 1000 wounded, and the remains of some magazines, which the Austrians had not time to remove. The archduke Charles, with his army, retreated by the road of Bassano, whither Massena continued the pursuit, constantly galling the Austrian rear: by taking this direction, it seemed as if the archduke wished to assist the Tyrol; but, being no doubt informed by this time, of the rapid advance of Buonaparte towards the here ditary states, and of the approach of Auge reau and Ney to the Tyrol, for the purpose of attacking it; he immediately altered his determination, and where the road branches off to Bassano and Treviso, he directed his march to the right for the latter city, after burning behind him the bridge over the Terrent. When the French arrived at the village of St. Pierre in Ger, they found it occupied by a corps of Austrians; these were immediately charged, and a sharp action ensued, in which the French succeeded in making about 500 prisoners, and driving their opponents, after a brave resistauce, from the village. The French next marched for the Brenta, at which river their advanced-guard arrived at the moment when the Austrians had crossed, and were endeavoring to destroy the bidge: a brisk cannonade was immediately cominenced from both banks of the river, which was continued till night. Next day, the 14th, at four in the morning, Massena ordered several regiments of cavalry, with the light troops mounted behind them, to ford the river, whilst the bridge was repairing. The French army soon after crossed it, and advanced for Cittadella, where it arrived in time to cut off the rearposts of the enemy. At five in the evening, Massena entered Castel-Franco, and his chasseurs, by pushing forward, took possession of Salvatrunda and Albaredo: in these positions the French general found it necessary to allow his army to take a few hours' rest, after the late incessant exertions.. In this advance from Montebello, the French made 1500 prisoners. On the 5th, the division of the right, which had directed its march against 1805. this place, occupied Padua; and, on the next day, the 6th, the division of the left, which marched against Bassano, by the Sette Communi, also possessed itself of that town. The French levied heavy contributions from these large towns, after which they resumed their pursuit of the retreating Austrians. Massena met with only a slight opposition in his march from Brenta to the Piave, and he effected the passage of the latter river without much |