LIFE OF NAPOLEON
POCKET EDITION
VOL. III.
LIFE OF
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE
BY SIR WALTER SCOTT, BART.
VOL. 3
[Illustration: Hotel de Ville. Paris]
EDINBURGH: A. & C. BLACK.
1876
CONTENTS.
PAGE
CHAP. XXV.--Increasing Jealousies betwixt France and
England--Encroachments on the part of the former--Instructions given
by the First Consul to his Commercial Agents--Orders issued by the
English Ministers--Peltier's celebrated Royalist Publication,
L'Ambigu--Peltier tried for a Libel against the First Consul--found
Guilty--Angry Discussions respecting the Treaty of
Amiens--Malta--Report of Sebastiani--Resolutions of the British
Government--Conferences betwixt Buonaparte and Lord
Whitworth--Britain declares War against France on 18th May, 1803, 1
CHAP. XXVI.--St. Domingo--The Negroes split into parties under
different Chiefs--Toussaint L'Ouverture the most distinguished of
these--Appoints a Consular Government--France sends an Expedition
against St. Domingo, under General Leclerc, in December,
1801--Toussaint submits--He is sent to France, where he dies--The
French are assaulted by the Negroes--Leclerc is succeeded by
Rochambeau--The French finally obliged to capitulate to an English
squadron--Buonaparte's scheme to consolidate his power--The Consular
Guard augmented--Legion of Honour--Opposition formed against the
Consular Government--Application to the Count de Provence (Louis
XVIII.), 16
CHAP. XXVII.--Renewal of the War--England lays an Embargo on French
Vessels--Napoleon retaliates by detaining British Subjects--Effects
of this unprecedented Measure--Hanover and other places occupied by
the French--Scheme of Invasion renewed--Napoleon's
Preparations--Defensive Measures of England, 27
CHAP. XXVIII.--Disaffection begins to arise against Napoleon among
the Soldiery--Purpose of setting up Moreau against him--Character of
Moreau--Causes of his Estrangement from Buonaparte--Pichegru--The
Duke d'Enghien--Georges Cadoudal, Pichegru, and other Royalists,
landed in France--Desperate Enterprise of Georges--Defeated--Arrest
of Moreau--of Pichegru--and Georges--Captain Wright--Duke d'Enghien
seized at Strasburg--Hurried to Paris--Transferred to
Vincennes--Tried by a Military Commission--Condemned--and
Executed--Universal Horror of France and Europe--Buonaparte's
Vindication of his Conduct--His Defence considered--Pichegru found
dead in his Prison--Attempt to explain his Death by charging him
with Suicide--Captain Wright found with his Throat cut--A similar
Attempt made--Georges and other Conspirators Tried--Condemned--and
Executed--Royalists Silenced--Moreau sent into Exile, 38
CHAP. XXIX.--General Indignation of Europe in consequence of the
Murder of the Duke d'Enghien--Russia complains to Talleyrand of the
Violation of Baden--and, along with Sweden, Remonstrates in a Note
laid before the German Diet--but without effect--Charges brought by
Buonaparte against Mr. Drake and Mr. Spencer Smith--who are
accordingly Dismissed from the Courts of Stuttgard and
Munich--Seizure--Imprisonment--and Dismissal of Sir George Rumbold,
the British Envoy at Lower Saxony--Treachery attempted against Lord
Elgin, by the Agents of Buonaparte--Details--Defeated by the
Exemplary Prudence of that Nobleman--These Charges brought before
the House of Commons--and peremptorily Denied by the Chancellor of
the Exchequer, 57
CHAP. XXX.--Napoleon meditates a change of title from Chief Consul
to Emperor--A Motion to this purpose brought forward in the
Tribunate--Opposed by Carnot--Adopted by the Tribunate and
Senate--Outline of the New System--Coldly received by the
People--Napoleon visits Boulogne, Aix-la-Chapelle, and the Frontiers
of Germany, where he is received with respect--The Coronation--Pius
VII. is summoned from Rome to perform the Ceremony at
Paris--Details--Reflections--Changes that took place in
Italy--Napoleon appointed Sovereign of Italy, and Crowned at
Milan--Genoa annexed to France, 63
CHAP. XXXI.--Napoleon addresses a Second Letter to the King of
England personally--Answered by the British Secretary of State to
Talleyrand--Alliance formed betwixt Russia and England--Prussia
keeps aloof, and the Emperor Alexander visits Berlin--Austria
prepares for War, and marches an Army into Bavaria--Her impolicy in
prematurely commencing Hostilities, and in her Conduct to
Bavaria--Unsoldierlike Conduct of the Austrian General
Mack--Buonaparte is joined by the Electors of Bavaria and
Wirtemberg, and the Duke of Baden--Skilful Manœuvres of the
French Generals, and successive losses of the Austrians--Napoleon
violates the Neutrality of Prussia, by marching through Anspach and
Bareuth--Further Losses of the Austrian Leaders, and consequent
Disunion among them--Mack is cooped up in Ulm--Issues a formidable
Declaration on the 16th October--and surrenders on the following
day--Fatal Results of this Man's Poltroonery, want of Skill, and
probable Treachery, 79
CHAP. XXXII.--Position of the French Armies--Napoleon advances
towards Vienna--The Emperor Francis leaves his Capital--French
enter Vienna on 13th November--Review of the French Successes in
Italy and the Tyrol--Schemes of Napoleon to force on a General
Battle--Battle of Austerlitz is fought on the 2d December, and the
combined Austro-Russian Armies completely Defeated--Interview
betwixt the Emperor of Austria and Napoleon--The Emperor Alexander
retreats towards Russia--Treaty of Presburgh signed on the 26th
December--Its Conditions--Fate of the King of Sweden--and of the Two
Sicilies, 95
CHAP. XXXIII.--Relative situations of France and
England--Hostilities commenced with Spain, by the Stoppage, by
Commodore Moore, of four Spanish Galleons, when three of their
escort were taken, and one blew up--Napoleon's Plan of Invasion
stated and discussed--John Clerk of Eldin's great System of Breaking
the Line, explained--The French Admiral, Villeneuve, forms a
junction with the Spanish Fleet under Gravina--Attacked and Defeated
by Sir Robert Calder--Nelson appointed to the Command in the
Mediterranean--BATTLE OF TRAFALGAR, fought 21st October, 1805--Death
of Nelson--Behaviour of Napoleon on learning the Intelligence of
this signal Defeat--Villeneuve commits Suicide--Address of
Buonaparte to the Legislative Body--Statement of M. de Champagny on
the Internal Improvements of France--Elevation of Napoleon's
Brothers, Louis and Joseph, to the Thrones of Holland and
Naples--Principality of Lucca conferred on Eliza, the eldest Sister
of Buonaparte, and that of Guastalla on Pauline, the youngest--Other
Alliances made by his family--Napoleon appoints a new Hereditary
Nobility--Converts from the old Noblesse anxiously sought for and
liberally rewarded--Confederation of the Rhine established, and
Napoleon appointed Protector--The Emperor of Austria lays aside the
Imperial Crown of Germany, retaining only the Title of Emperor of
Austria--Vacillating and Impolitic Conduct of Prussia, 111
CHAP. XXXIV.--Death of Pitt--He is succeeded by Fox as Prime
Minister--Negotiation with France--The Earl of Lauderdale sent to
Paris as the British Negotiator--Negotiation broken off, in
consequence of the refusal of England to cede Sicily to
France--Temporizing Policy of Prussia--An attempt made by her to
form a Confederacy in opposition to that of the Rhine, defeated by
Napoleon--General Disposition of the Prussians to War--Legal Murder
of Palm, a Bookseller--The Emperor Alexander again visits
Berlin--Prussia begins to arm in August 1806, and after some
Negotiation, takes the field in October, under the Duke of
Brunswick--Impolicy of the Plans of the Campaign--Details--Action at
Saalfeld--Battle of Auerstadt, or Jena, on 14th October--Duke of
Brunswick mortally wounded--Consequences of this total
Defeat--Buonaparte takes possession of Berlin on the
25th--Situations of Austria and Prussia, after their several
Defeats--Reflections on the fall of Prussia, 137
CHAP. XXXV.--Ungenerous Conduct of Buonaparte to the Duke of
Brunswick--The approach of the French Troops to Brunswick compels
the dying Prince to cause himself to be carried to Altona, where he
expires--Oath of revenge taken by his son--At Potsdam and Berlin,
the proceedings of Napoleon are equally cruel and vindictive--His
Clemency towards the Prince of Hatzfeld--His Treatment of the
Lesser Powers--Jerome Buonaparte--Seizure of Hamburgh--Berlin
Decrees against British Commerce--Napoleon rejects all Application
from the Continental Commercial Towns to Relax or Repeal
them--Commerce, nevertheless, flourishes in spite of them--Second
anticipation called for of the Conscription for 1807--The King of
Prussia applies for an Armistice, which is clogged with such harsh
Terms, that he refuses them, 162
CHAP. XXXVI.--Retrospect of the Partition of Poland--Napoleon
receives Addresses from Poland, which he evades--He advances into
Poland, Bennigsen Retreating before him--Character of the Russian
Soldiery--The Cossacks--Engagement at Pultusk, on 26th November,
terminating to the disadvantage of the French--Bennigsen continues
his Retreat--The French go into Winter Quarters--Bennigsen appointed
Commander-in-chief in the place of Kaminskoy, who shows symptoms of
Insanity--He resumes Offensive Operations--Battle of Eylau, 8th
February, 1807--Claimed as a Victory by both Parties--The loss on
both sides amounts to 50,000 men killed, the greater part
Frenchmen--Bennigsen Retreats upon Königsberg--Napoleon offers
favourable terms for an Armistice to the King of Prussia, who
refuses to Treat, save for a General Peace--Napoleon falls back to
the line of the Vistula--Dantzick is besieged, and
Surrenders--Russian Army is poorly recruited--the French
powerfully--Actions during the Summer--Battle of Heilsberg, and
Retreat of the Russians--Battle of Friedland, 14th June--An
Armistice takes place on the 23d, 174
CHAP. XXXVII.--British Expedition to Calabria, under Sir John
Stuart--Character of the People--Opposed by General Reynier--Battle
of Maida, 4th July, 1806--Defeat of the French--Calabria evacuated
by the British--Erroneous Commercial Views, and Military Plans, of
the British Ministry--Unsuccessful Attack on Buenos Ayres--General
Whitelocke--is Cashiered--Expedition against Turkey, and its
Dependencies--Admiral Duckworth's Squadron sent against
Constantinople--Passes and repasses the Dardanelles, without
accomplishing anything--Expedition against Alexandria--Rosetta
attacked--British Troops defeated, and withdrawn from Egypt,
September, 1807--Curaçoa and Cape of Good Hope taken, by
England--British Expedition against Copenhagen--its Citadel, Forts,
and Fleet, surrendered to the British--Effects of this proceeding
upon France and Russia--Coalition of France, Russia, Austria, and
Prussia, against British Commerce, 206
CHAP. XXXVIII.--View of the Internal Government of Napoleon at the
period of the Peace of Tilsit--The Tribunate abolished--Council of
State--Prefectures--Their nature and object described--The Code
Napoleon--Its Provisions--Its Merits and Defects--Comparison betwixt
that Code and the Jurisprudence of England--Laudable efforts of
Napoleon to carry it into effect, 218
CHAP. XXXIX.--System of Education introduced into France by
Napoleon--National University--its nature and
objects--Lyceums--Proposed Establishment at Meudon, 249
CHAP. XL.--Military Details--Plan of the Conscription--Its
Nature--and Effects--Enforced with unsparing rigour--Its Influence
upon the General Character of the French Soldiery--New mode of
Conducting Hostilities introduced by the Revolution--Constitution of
the French Armies, Forced Marches--_La Maraude_--Its Nature--and
Effects--on the Enemy's Country, and on the French Soldiers
themselves--Policy of Napoleon, in his Personal Conduct to his
Officers and Soldiers--Altered Character of the French Soldiery
during, and after, the Revolution, 252
CHAP. XLI.--Effects of the Peace of Tilsit--Napoleon's Views of a
State of Peace--Contrasted with those of England--The Continental
System--Berlin and Milan Decrees--British Orders in
Council--Spain--Retrospect of the Relations of that Country with
France since the Revolution--Godoy--his Influence--Character--and
Political Views--Ferdinand, Prince of Asturias, applies to Napoleon
for Aid--Affairs of Portugal--Treaty of Fontainbleau--Departure of
the Prince Regent for Brazil--Entrance of Junot into Lisbon--His
unbounded rapacity--Disturbances at Madrid--Ferdinand detected in a
Plot against his Father, and Imprisoned--King Charles applies to
Napoleon--Wily Policy of Buonaparte--Orders the French Army to enter
Spain, 259
CHAP. XLII.--Pampeluna, Barcelona, Montjouy, and St. Sebastians, are
fraudulently seized by the French--King Charles proposes to sail for
South America--Insurrection at Aranjuez--Charles resigns the Crown
in favour of Ferdinand--Murat enters Madrid--Charles disavows his
Resignation--General Savary arrives at Madrid--Napoleon's Letter to
Murat, touching the Invasion of Spain--Ferdinand sets out to meet
Napoleon--Halts at Vittoria, and learns too late Napoleon's designs
against him--Joins Buonaparte at Bayonne--Napoleon opens his designs
to Escoiquiz and Cevallos, both of whom he finds intractable--He
sends for Charles, his Queen, and Godoy, to Bayonne--Ferdinand is
induced to Abdicate the Crown in favour of his Father, who resigns
it next day to Napoleon--This transfer is reluctantly confirmed by
Ferdinand, who, with his Brothers, is sent to splendid Imprisonment
at Valençay--Joseph Buonaparte is appointed to the Throne of Spain,
and joins Napoleon at Bayonne--Assembly of Notables convoked, 272
CHAP. XLIII.--State of Morals and Manners in Spain--The
Nobility--The Middle Classes--The Lower Ranks--The indignation of
the People strongly excited against the French--Insurrection at
Madrid on the 2d May--Murat proclaims an Amnesty, notwithstanding
which, many Spanish prisoners are put to Death--King Charles
appoints Murat Lieutenant-General of the Kingdom, and Ferdinand's
Resignation of the Throne is announced--Murat unfolds the Plan of
Government to the Council of Castile, and Addresses of Submission
are sent to Buonaparte from various quarters--Notables appointed to
meet at Bayonne on 15th June--The Flame of Resistance becomes
Universal throughout Spain, 289
CHAP. XLIV.--Plans of Defence of the Spanish Juntas--Defeated by the
ardour of the Insurrectionary Armies--Cruelty of the French Troops,
and Inveteracy of the Spaniards--Successes of the Invaders--Defeat
of Rio Secco--Exultation of Napoleon--Joseph enters Madrid--His
Reception--Duhesme compelled to Retreat to Barcelona, and Moncey
from before Valencia--Defeat of Dupont by Castanos at Baylen--His
Army Surrenders Prisoners of War--Effects of this Victory and
Capitulation--Unreasonable Expectations of the British
Public--Joseph leaves Madrid, and Retires to Vittoria--Defence of
Zaragossa, 299
CHAP. XLV.--Zeal of Britain with regard to the Spanish struggle--It
is Resolved to send an Expedition to Portugal--Retrospect of what
had passed in that Country--Portuguese Assembly of Notables summoned
to Bayonne--Their Singular Audience of Buonaparte--Effects of the
Spanish Success on Portugal--Sir Arthur Wellesley--His Character as
a General--Despatched at the Head of the Expedition to
Portugal--Attacks and Defeats the French at Roriça--Battle and
Victory of Vimeiro--Sir Harry Burrard Neale assumes the Command, and
frustrates the Results proposed by Sir Arthur Wellesley from the
Battle--Sir Harry Burrard is superseded by Sir Hew
Dalrymple--Convention of Cintra--Its Unpopularity in England--A
Court of Inquiry is held, 310
CHAP. XLVI.--Duplicity of Buonaparte on his return to
Paris--Official Statements in the Moniteur--Reports issued by
Champagny, Minister of the Foreign Department--French Relations with
the different Powers of Europe--Spirit of Resistance throughout
Germany--Russia--Napoleon and Alexander meet at Erfurt on 27th
September, and separate in apparent Friendship on 17th
October--Actual feelings of the Autocrats--Their joint Letter to the
King of Great Britain proposing a General Peace on the Principle of
_uti possidetis_--Why rejected--Procedure in
Spain--Catalonia--Return of Romana to Spain--Armies of Blake,
Castanos, and Palafox--Expedition of General Moore--His desponding
Views of the Spanish Cause--His Plans--Defeat of Blake--and
Castanos--Treachery of Morla--Sir John Moore Retreats to
Corunna--Disasters on the March--Battle of Corunna, and Death of Sir
John Moore, 322
CHAP. XLVII.--General Belliard occupies Madrid--Napoleon returns to
France--Cause of his hurried Return--View of the Circumstances
leading to a Rupture with Austria--Feelings of Russia upon this
occasion--Secret intrigues of Talleyrand to preserve Peace--Immense
exertions made by Austria--Counter efforts of Buonaparte--The
Austrian army enters Bavaria, 9th April, 1809--Napoleon hastens to
meet them--Austrians defeated at Abensberg on the 20th--and at
Eckmühl on the 22d--They are driven out of Ratisbon on the 23d--The
Archduke Charles Retreats into Bohemia--Napoleon pushes forward to
Vienna, which, after a brief Defence, is occupied by the French on
the 12th of May--Retrospect of the events of the War in Poland,
Italy, the North of Germany, and the Tyrol--Enterprises of
Schill--Of the Duke of Brunswick Oels--Movements in the
Tyrol--Character and Manners of the Tyrolese--Retreat of the
Archduke John into Hungary, 343
CHAP. XLVIII.--Position of the French and Austrian Armies after the
Battle of Eckmühl--Napoleon crosses the Danube--Great Conflict at
Asperne, when victory was claimed by both Parties--Battle of
Wagram, fought 6th July--Armistice concluded at Znaim--Close of the
Career of Schill and the Duke of Brunswick Oels--Defence of the
Tyrol--Its final unfortunate Result--Growing Resistance throughout
Germany--Its effects on Buonaparte--He Publishes a singular
Manifesto in the Moniteur, 360
APPENDIX--
NO. I.--Instructions by Napoleon to Talleyrand, Prince of
Beneventum, 377
NO. II.--Further Particulars concerning the Arrest, Trial, and Death
of the Duke d'Enghien, 378
[Illustration: CENTRAL AND SOUTH GERMANY,
TO ILLUSTRATE THE CAMPAIGNS OF NAPOLEON BONAPARTE]
CHAPTER XXV.
_Increasing Jealousies betwixt France and England--Encroachments on
the part of the former--Instructions given by the First Consul to
his Commercial Agents--Orders issued by the English
Ministers--Peltier's celebrated Royalist Publication,
L'Ambigu--Peltier tried for a Libel against the First Consul--found
Guilty--Angry Discussions respecting the Treaty of
Amiens--Malta--Report of Sebastiani--Resolution of the British
Government--Conferences betwixt Buonaparte and Lord
Whitworth--Britain declares War against France on 18th May, 1803._
These advances towards universal empire, made during the very period
when the pacific measures adopted by the preliminaries, and afterwards
confirmed by the treaty of Amiens, were in the act of being carried into
execution, excited the natural jealousy of the people of Britain. They
had not been accustomed to rely much on the sincerity of the French
nation; nor did the character of its present chief, so full of ambition,
and so bold and successful in his enterprises, incline them to feelings
of greater security. On the other hand, Buonaparte seems to have felt as
matter of personal offence the jealousy which the British entertained;
and instead of soothing it, as policy dictated, by concessions and
confidence, he showed a disposition to repress, or at least to punish
it, by measures which indicated anger and irritation. There ceased to be
any cordiality of intercourse betwixt the two nations, and they began to
look into the conduct of each other for causes of offence, rather than
for the means of removing it.
The English had several subjects of complaint against France, besides
the general encroachments which she had continued to make on the
liberties of Europe. A law had been made during the times of the wildest
Jacobinism, which condemned to forfeiture every vessel under a hundred
tons burden, carrying British merchandise, and approaching within four
leagues of France. It was now thought proper, that the enforcing a
regulation of so hostile a character, made during a war of unexampled
bitterness, should be the first fruits of returning peace. Several
British vessels were stopped, their captains imprisoned, their cargoes
confiscated, and all restitution refused. Some of these had been driven
on the French coast unwillingly, and by stress of weather; but the
necessity of the case created no exemption. An instance there was of a
British vessel in ballast, which entered Charente, in order to load with
a cargo of brandy. The plates, knives, forks, &c., used by the captain,
being found to be of British manufacture, the circumstance was thought a
sufficient apology for seizing the vessel. These aggressions, repeatedly
made, were not, so far as appears, remedied on the most urgent
remonstrances, and seemed to argue that the French were already acting
on the vexatious and irritating principle which often precedes a war,
but very seldom immediately follows a peace. The conduct of France was
felt to be the more unreasonable and ungracious, as all restrictions on
her commerce, imposed during the war, had been withdrawn on the part of
Great Britain, so soon as the peace was concluded. In like manner, a
stipulation of the treaty of Amiens, providing that all sequestrations
imposed on the property of French or of English, in the two contending
countries, should be removed, was instantly complied with in Britain,
but postponed and dallied with on the part of France.
[Sidenote: COMMERCIAL AGENTS.]
The above were vexatious and offensive measures, intimating little
respect for the Government of England, and no desire to cultivate her
good will. They were perhaps adopted by the chief consul, in hopes of
inducing Britain to make some sacrifices in order to obtain from his
favour a commercial treaty, the advantages of which, according to his
opinion of the English nation, was a boon calculated to make them
quickly forgive the humiliating restrictions from which it would
emancipate their trade. If this were any part of his policy, he was
ignorant of the nature of the people to whom it was applied. It is the
sluggish ox alone that is governed by a goad. But what gave the deepest
offence and most lively alarm to Britain, was, that while Buonaparte
declined affording the ordinary facilities for English commerce, it was
his purpose, nevertheless, to establish a commercial agent in every part
of the British dominions, whose ostensible duty was to watch over that
very trade which the first consul showed so little desire to encourage,
but whose real business resembled that of an accredited and privileged
spy. These official persons were not only, by their instructions,
directed to collect every possible information on commercial points, but
also to furnish a plan of the ports of each district, with all the
soundings, and to point out with what wind vessels could go out and
enter with most ease, and at what draught of water the harbour might be
entered by ships of burden. To add to the alarming character of such a
set of agents, it was found that those invested with the office were
military men and engineers.
Consuls thus nominated had reached Britain, but had not, in general,
occupied the posts assigned to them, when the British Government,
becoming informed of the duties they were expected to perform, announced
to them, that any one who might repair to a British seaport under such a
character, should be instantly ordered to quit the island. The secrecy
with which these agents had been instructed to conduct themselves was so
great, that one Fauvelet, to whom the office of commercial agent at
Dublin had been assigned, and who had reached the place of his
destination before the nature of the appointment was discovered, could
not be found out by some persons who desired to make an affidavit before
him as consul of France. It can be no wonder that the very worst
impression was made on the public mind of Britain respecting the further
projects of her late enemies, when it was evident that they availed
themselves of the first moments of returning peace to procure, by an
indirect and most suspicious course of proceeding, that species of
information, which would be most useful to France, and most dangerous to
Britain, in the event of a renewed war.
While these grievances and circumstances of suspicion agitated the
English nation, the daily press, which alternately acts upon public
opinion, and is reacted upon by it, was loud and vehement. The personal
character of the chief consul was severely treated; his measures of
self-aggrandisement arraigned, his aggressions on the liberty of France,
of Italy, and especially of Switzerland, held up to open day; while
every instance of petty vexation and oppression practised upon British
commerce or British subjects, was quoted as expressing his deep
resentment against the only country which possessed the will and the
power to counteract his acquiring the universal dominion of Europe.
There was at this period in Britain a large party of French Royalists,
who, declining to return to France, or falling under the exceptions to
the amnesty, regarded Buonaparte as their personal enemy, as well as the
main obstacle to the restoration of the Bourbons, to which, but for him
only, the people of France seemed otherwise more disposed than at any
time since the commencement of the Revolution. These gentlemen found an
able and active advocate of their cause in Monsieur Peltier, an
emigrant, a determined royalist, and a man of that ready wit and
vivacity of talent which is peculiarly calculated for periodical
writing. He had opposed the democrats during the early days of the
Revolution, by a publication termed the "Acts of the Apostles;"[1] in
which he held up to ridicule and execration the actions, pretensions,
and principles of their leaders, with such success as induced Brissot to
assert, that he had done more harm to the Republican cause than all the
allied armies. At the present crisis, he commenced the publication of a
weekly paper in London, in the French language, called _L'Ambigu_. The
decoration at the top of the sheet was a head of Buonaparte, placed on
the body of a Sphinx. This ornament being objected to after the first
two or three numbers, the Sphinx appeared with the neck truncated; but,
being still decked with the consular emblems, continued to intimate
emblematically the allusion at once to Egypt, and to the ambiguous
character of the first consul. The columns of this paper were dedicated
to the most severe attacks upon Buonaparte and the French Government;
and as it was highly popular, from the general feelings of the English
nation towards both, it was widely dispersed and generally read.
The torrent of satire and abuse poured forth from the English and
Anglo-Gallican periodical press, was calculated deeply to annoy and
irritate the person against whom it was chiefly aimed. In England we are
so much accustomed to see characters the most unimpeachable, nay, the
most venerable, assailed by the daily press, that we account the
individual guilty of folly, who, if he be innocent of giving cause for
the scandal, takes it to heart more than a passenger would mind the
barking of a dog, that yelps at every passing sound. But this is a
sentiment acquired partly by habit, partly by our knowledge, that
unsubstantiated scandal of this sort makes no impression on the public
mind. Such indifference cannot be expected on the part of foreigners,
who, in this particular, resemble horses introduced from neighbouring
counties into the precincts of forest districts, where they are liable
to be stung into madness by a peculiar species of gadfly, to which the
race bred in the country are from habit almost totally indifferent.
If it be thus with foreigners in general, it must be supposed that from
natural impatience of censure, as well as rendered susceptible and
irritable by his course of uninterrupted success, Napoleon Buonaparte
must have winced under the animated and sustained attacks upon his
person and government, which appeared in the English newspapers, and
Peltier's _Ambigu_. He attached at all times, as we have already had
occasion to remark, much importance to the influence of the press, which
in Paris he had taken under his own especial superintendence, and for
which he himself often condescended to compose or correct paragraphs. To
be assailed, therefore, by the whole body of British newspapers, almost
as numerous as their navy, seems to have provoked him to the extremity
of his patience; and resentment of these attacks aggravated the same
hostile sentiments against England, which, from causes of suspicion
already mentioned, had begun to be engendered in the British public
against France and her ruler.
Napoleon, in the meantime, endeavoured to answer in kind, and the
columns of the _Moniteur_ had many an angry and violent passage directed
against England.[2] Answers, replies, and rejoinders passed rapidly
across the Channel, inflaming and augmenting the hostile spirit,
reciprocally entertained by the two countries against each other. But
there was this great disadvantage on Buonaparte's side, that while the
English might justly throw the blame of this scandalous warfare on the
license of a free press, the chief consul could not transfer the
responsibility of the attack on his side; because it was universally
known that the French periodical publications being under the most
severe regulations, nothing could appear in them except what had
received the previous sanction of the government. Every attack upon
England, therefore, which was published in the French papers, was held
to express the personal sentiments of the chief consul, who thus, by
destroying the freedom of the French press, had rendered himself
answerable for every such license as it was permitted to take.
[Sidenote: NOTE BY M. OTTO.]
[Sidenote: July 25.]
It became speedily plain, that Buonaparte could reap no advantage from a
contest in which he was to be the defendant in his own person, and to
maintain a literary warfare with anonymous antagonists. He had recourse,
therefore, to a demand upon the British Government, and after various
representations of milder import, caused his envoy, Monsieur Otto, to
state in an official note the following distinct grievances:--First, the
existence of a deep and continued system to injure the character of the
first consul, and prejudice the effect of his public measures, through
the medium of the press: Secondly, the permission of a part of the
Princes of the House of Bourbon, and their adherents, to remain in
England for the purpose, (it was alleged,) that they might hatch and
encourage schemes against the life and government of the chief consul.
It was therefore categorically demanded, 1st, That the British
Government do put a stop to the publication of the abuse complained of,
as affecting the head of the French Government. 2d, That the emigrants
residing in Jersey be dismissed from England--that the bishops who had
declined to resign their sees be also sent out of the country--that
George Cadoudal be transported to Canada--that the Princes of the House
of Bourbon be advised to repair to Warsaw, where the head of their
family now resided--and, finally, that such emigrants who continued to
wear the ancient badges and decorations of the French court, be also
compelled to leave England. Lest the British ministers should plead,
that the constitution of their country precluded them from gratifying
the first consul in any of these demands, Monsieur Otto forestalled the
objection, by reminding them that the Alien Act gave them full power to
exclude any foreigners from Great Britain at their pleasure.[3]
To this peremptory mandate, Lord Hawkesbury,[4] then minister for
foreign affairs, instructed the British agent, Mr. Merry, to make a
reply, at once firm and conciliatory; avoiding the tone of pique and ill
temper which is plainly to be traced in the French note, yet maintaining
the dignity of the nation he represented. It was observed, that, if the
French Government had reason to complain of the license of the English
journals, the British Government had no less right to be dissatisfied
with the retorts and recriminations which had been poured out from those
of Paris; and that there was this remarkable feature of difference
betwixt them, that the English Ministry neither had, could have, nor
wished to have, any control over the freedom of the British press;
whereas the _Moniteur_, in which the abuse of England had appeared, was
the official organ of the French Government. But, finally, upon this
point, the British Monarch, it was said, would make no concession to any
foreign power, at the expense of the freedom of the press.[5] If what
was published was libellous or actionable, the printers and publishers
were open to punishment, and all reasonable facilities would be afforded
for prosecuting them. To the demands so peremptorily urged, respecting
the emigrants, Lord Hawkesbury replied, by special answers applying to
the different classes, but summed up in the general argument, that his
Majesty neither encouraged them in any scheme against the French
Government, nor did he believe there were any such in existence; and
that while these unfortunate princes and their followers lived in
conformity to the laws of Great Britain, and without affording nations
with whom she was at peace any valid or sufficient cause of complaint,
his Majesty would feel it inconsistent with his dignity, his honour, and
the common laws of hospitality, to deprive them of that protection,
which individuals resident within the British dominions could only
forfeit by their own misconduct.[6]
[Sidenote: TRIAL OF PELTIER.]
To render these answers, being the only reply which an English Minister
could have made to the demands of France, in some degree acceptable to
Buonaparte, Peltier was brought to trial[7] for a libel against the
first consul, at the instance of the Attorney-General. He was defended
by Mr. Mackintosh, (now Sir James,)[8] in one of the most brilliant
speeches ever made at bar or in forum, in which the jury were reminded,
that every press on the continent was enslaved, from Palermo to
Hamburgh, and that they were now to vindicate the right we had ever
asserted, to speak of men both at home and abroad, not according to
their greatness, but their crimes.
The defendant was found guilty; but his cause might be considered as
triumphant.[9] Accordingly, every part of the proceedings gave offence
to Buonaparte. He had not desired to be righted by the English law, but
by a vigour beyond the law. The publicity of the trial, the wit and
eloquence of the advocate, were ill calculated to soothe the feelings of
Buonaparte, who knew human nature, and the character of his usurped
power, too well, to suppose that public discussion could be of service
to him.[10] He had demanded darkness, the English Government had
answered by giving him light; he had wished, like those who are
conscious of flaws in their conduct, to suppress all censure of his
measures, and by Peltier's trial, the British ministers had made the
investigation of them a point of legal necessity. The first consul felt
the consciousness that he himself, rather than Peltier,[11] was tried
before the British public, with a publicity which could not fail to
blaze abroad the discussion. Far from conceiving himself obliged by the
species of atonement which had been offered him, he deemed the offence
of the original publication was greatly aggravated, and placed it now
directly to the account of the English ministers, of whom he could never
be made to understand, that they had afforded him the only remedy in
their power.
The paragraphs hostile to England in the _Moniteur_ were continued; an
English paper called the _Argus_, conducted by Irish refugees, was
printed at Paris, under permission of the Government, for the purpose
of assailing Britain with additional abuse, while the fire was returned
from the English side of the Channel, with double vehemence and tenfold
success. These were ominous precursors to a state of peace, and more
grounds of misunderstanding were daily added.
The new discussions related chiefly to the execution of the treaty of
Amiens, in which the English Government showed no promptitude. Most of
the French colonies, it is true, had been restored; but the Cape, and
the other Batavian settlements, above all, the island of Malta, were
still possessed by the British forces. At common law, if the expression
may be used, England was bound instantly to redeem her engagement, by
ceding these possessions, and thus fulfilling the articles of the
treaty. In equity, she had a good defence; since in policy for herself
and Europe, she was bound to decline the cession at all risks.
The recent acquisitions of France on the continent, afforded the plea of
equity to which we have alluded. It was founded on the principle adopted
at the treaty of Amiens, that Great Britain should, out of her conquests
over the enemy's foreign settlements, retain so much as to
counterbalance, in some measure, the power which France had acquired in
Europe. This principle being once established, it followed that the
compact at Amiens had reference to the then existing state of things;
and since, after that period, France had extended her sway over Italy
and Piedmont, England became thereby entitled to retain an additional
compensation, in consequence of France's additional acquisitions. This
was the true and simple position of the case; France had innovated upon
the state of things which existed when the treaty was made, and England
might, therefore, in justice, claim an equitable right to innovate upon
the treaty itself, by refusing to make surrender of what had been
promised in other and very different circumstances. Perhaps it had been
better to fix upon this obvious principle, as the ground of declining to
surrender such British conquests as were not yet given up, unless France
consented to relinquish the power which she had usurped upon the
continent. This, however, would have produced instant war; and the
Ministers were naturally loth to abandon the prospect of prolonging the
peace which had been so lately established, or to draw their pen through
the treaty of Amiens, while the ink with which it was written was still
moist. They yielded, therefore, in a great measure. The Cape of Good
Hope and the Dutch colonies were restored, Alexandria was evacuated, and
the Ministers confined their discussions with France to the island of
Malta only; and, condescending still farther, declared themselves ready
to concede even this last point of discussion, providing a sufficient
guarantee should be obtained for this important citadel of the
Mediterranean being retained in neutral hands. The Order itself was in
no respect adequate to the purpose; and as to the proposed Neapolitan
garrison, (none of the most trustworthy in any case,) France, by her
encroachments in Italy, had become so near and so formidable a neighbour
to the King of Naples, that, by a threat of invasion of his capital, she
might have compelled him to deliver up Malta upon a very brief notice.
All this was urged on the part of Britain. The French Ministry, on the
other hand, pressed for literal execution of the treaty. After some
diplomatic evasions had been resorted to, it appeared as if the cession
could be no longer deferred, when a publication appeared in the
_Moniteur_ [Jan. 30, 1803] which roused to a high pitch the suspicions
as well as the indignation of the British nation.
[Sidenote: SEBASTIANI'S REPORT.]
The publication alluded to was a report of General Sebastiani. This
officer had been sent as the emissary of the first consul, to various
Mahommedan courts in Asia and Africa, in all of which it seems to have
been his object, not only to exalt the greatness of his master, but to
misrepresent and degrade the character of England. He had visited Egypt,
of which, with its fortresses, and the troops that defended them, he had
made a complete survey. He then waited upon Djezzar Pacha, and gives a
flattering account of his reception, and of the high esteem in which
Djezzar held the first consul, whom he had so many reasons for wishing
well to. At the Ionian Islands, he harangued the natives, and assured
them of the protection of Buonaparte. The whole report is full of the
most hostile expressions towards England, and accuses General Stuart of
having encouraged the Turks to assassinate the writer. Wherever
Sebastiani went, he states himself to have interfered in the factions
and quarrels of the country; he inquired into its forces; renewed old
intimacies, or made new ones with leading persons; enhanced his master's
power, and was liberal in promises of French aid. He concludes, that a
French army of six thousand men would be sufficient to conquer Egypt,
and that the Ionian Islands were altogether attached to the French
interest.[12]
The publication of this report, which seemed as if Buonaparte were
blazoning forth to the world his unaltered determination to persist in
his Eastern projects of colonization and conquest, would have rendered
it an act of treason in the English Ministers, if, by the cession of
Malta, they had put into his hand, or at least placed within his grasp,
the readiest means of carrying into execution those gigantic schemes of
ambition, which had for their ultimate, perhaps their most desired
object, the destruction of the Indian commerce of Britain.
As it were by way of corollary to the gasconading journal of Sebastiani,
an elaborate account of the forces, and natural advantages of France,
was published at the same period, which, in order that there might be no
doubt concerning the purpose of its appearance at this crisis, was
summed up by the express conclusion, "that Britain was unable to contend
with France single-handed."[13] This tone of defiance, officially
adopted at such a moment, added not a little to the resentment of the
English nation, not accustomed to decline a challenge or endure an
insult.
The Court of Britain on the appearance of this Report on the State of
France, together with that of Sebastiani, drawn up and subscribed by an
official agent, containing insinuations totally void of foundation, and
disclosing intrigues inconsistent with the preservation of peace, and
the objects for which peace had been made, declared that the King would
enter into no farther discussion on the subject of Malta, until his
Majesty had received the most ample satisfaction for this new and
singular aggression.[14]
While things were thus rapidly approaching to a rupture, the chief
consul adopted the unusual resolution, of himself entering personally
into conference with the British ambassador. He probably took this
determination upon the same grounds which dictated his contempt of
customary forms, in entering, or attempting to enter, into direct
correspondence with the princes whom he had occasion to treat with. Such
a deviation from the established mode of procedure seemed to mark his
elevation above ordinary rules, and would afford him, he might think, an
opportunity of bearing down the British ambassador's reasoning, by
exhibiting one of those bursts of passion, to which he had been
accustomed to see most men give way.
It would have been more prudent in Napoleon, to have left the conduct of
the negotiation to Talleyrand.[15] A sovereign cannot enter in person
upon such conferences, unless with the previous determination of
adhering precisely and finally to whatever ultimatum he has to propose.
He cannot, without a compromise of dignity, chaffer or capitulate, or
even argue, and of course is incapable of wielding any of the usual, and
almost indispensable weapons of negotiators. If it was Napoleon's
expectation, by one stunning and emphatic declaration of his pleasure,
to beat down all arguments, and confound all opposition, he would have
done wisely to remember, that he was not now, as in other cases, a
general upon a victorious field of battle, dictating terms to a defeated
enemy; but was treating upon a footing of equality with Britain, the
mistress of the seas, possessing strength as formidable as his own,
though of a different character, and whose prince and people were far
more likely to be incensed than intimidated by any menaces which his
passion might throw out.
[Sidenote: LORD WHITWORTH.]
The character of the English ambassador was as unfavourable for the
chief consul's probable purpose, as that of the nation he represented.
Lord Whitworth was possessed of great experience and sagacity.[16] His
integrity and honour were undoubted; and, with the highest degree of
courage, he had a calm and collected disposition, admirably calculated
to give him the advantage in any discussion with an antagonist of a
fiery, impatient, and over-bearing temper.
We will make no apology for dwelling at unusual length on the
conferences betwixt the first consul and Lord Whitworth, as they are
strikingly illustrative of the character of Buonaparte, and were, in
their consequences, decisive of his fate, and that of the world.
Their first interview of a political nature took place in the Tuileries,
17th February, 1803. Buonaparte, having announced that this meeting was
for the purpose of "making his sentiments known to the King of England
in a clear and authentic manner," proceeded to talk incessantly for the
space of nearly two hours, not without considerable incoherence, his
temper rising as he dwelt on the alleged causes of complaint which he
preferred against England, though not so much or so incautiously as to
make him drop the usual tone of courtesy to the ambassador.
He complained of the delay of the British in evacuating Alexandria and
Malta; cutting short all discussion on the latter subject, by declaring
he would as soon agree to Britain's possessing the suburb of St. Antoine
as that island. He then referred to the abuse thrown upon him by the
English papers, but more especially by those French journals published
in London. He affirmed that Georges and other Chouan chiefs, whom he
accused of designs against his life, received relief or shelter in
England; and that two assassins had been apprehended in Normandy, sent
over by the French emigrants to murder him. This, he said, would be
publicly proved in a court of justice. From this point he diverged to
Egypt, of which he affirmed he could make himself master whenever he had
a mind; but that he considered it too paltry a stake to renew the war
for. Yet, while on this subject, he suffered it to escape him, that the
idea of recovering this favourite colony was only postponed, not
abandoned. "Egypt," he said, "must sooner or later belong to France,
either by the falling to pieces of the Turkish government, or in
consequence of some agreement with the Porte."[17] In evidence of his
peaceable intentions, he asked, what he should gain by going to war,
since he had no means of acting offensively against England, except by
a descent, of which he acknowledged the hazard in the strongest terms.
The chances, he said, were a hundred to one against him; and yet he
declared that the attempt should be made if he were now obliged to go to
war. He extolled the power of both countries. The army of France, he
said, should be soon recruited to four hundred and eighty thousand men;
and the fleets of England were such as he could not propose to match
within the space of ten years at least. United, the two countries might
govern the world, would they but understand each other. Had he found, he
said, the least cordiality on the part of England, she should have had
indemnities assigned her upon the continent, treaties of commerce, all
that she could wish or desire. But he confessed that his irritation
increased daily, "since every gale that blew from England, brought
nothing but enmity and hatred against him."
He then made an excursive digression, in which, taking a review of the
nations of Europe, he contended that England could hope for assistance
from none of them in a war with France. In the total result, he demanded
the instant implement of the treaty of Amiens, and the suppression of
the abuse in the English papers. War was the alternative.
During this excursive piece of declamation, which the first consul
delivered with great rapidity, Lord Whitworth, notwithstanding the
interview lasted two hours, had scarcely time to slide in a few words in
reply or explanation. As he endeavoured to state the new grounds of
mistrust which induced the King of England to demand more advantageous
terms, in consequence of the accession of territory and influence which
France had lately made, Napoleon interrupted him--"I suppose you mean
Piedmont and Switzerland--they are trifling occurrences, which must have
been foreseen while the negotiation was in dependence. You have no right
to recur to them at this time of day." To the hint of indemnities which
might be allotted to England out of the general spoil of Europe, if she
would cultivate the friendship of Buonaparte, Lord Whitworth nobly
answered, that the King of Britain's ambition led him to preserve what
was his, not to acquire that which belonged to others. They parted with
civility, but with a conviction on Lord Whitworth's part, that
Buonaparte would never resign his claim to the possession of Malta.[18]
[Sidenote: March 8.]
The British Ministry were of the same opinion; for a Message was sent
down by his Majesty to the House of Commons, stating, that he had
occasion for additional aid to enable him to defend his dominions, in
case of an encroachment on the part of France. A reason was given,
which injured the cause of the Ministers, by placing the vindication of
their measures upon simulated grounds;--it was stated, that these
apprehensions arose from "military preparations carrying on in the ports
of France and Holland."[19] No such preparations had been complained of
during the intercourse between the ministers of France and England,--in
truth, none such existed to any considerable extent,--and in so far, the
British ministers gave the advantage to the French, by not resting the
cause of their country on the just and true grounds. All, however, were
sensible of the real merits of the dispute, which were grounded on the
grasping and inordinate ambition of the French ruler, and the sentiments
of dislike and irritation with which he seemed to regard Great Britain.
The charge of the pretended naval preparations being triumphantly
refuted by France, Talleyrand was next employed to place before Lord
Whitworth the means which, in case of a rupture, France possessed of
wounding England, not directly indeed, but through the sides of those
states of Europe whom she would most wish to see, if not absolutely
independent, yet unoppressed by military exactions. "It was _natural_,"
a note of this statesman asserted, "that Britain being armed in
consequence of the King's message, France should arm also--that she
should send an army into Holland--form an encampment on the frontiers of
Hanover--continue to maintain troops in Switzerland--march others to the
south of Italy, and, finally, form encampments upon the coast."[20] All
these threats, excepting the last, referred to distant and to neutral
nations, who were not alleged to have themselves given any cause of
complaint to France; but who were now to be subjected to military
occupation and exaction, because Britain desired to see them happy and
independent, and because harassing and oppressing them must be in
proportion unpleasing to her. It was an entirely new principle of
warlike policy, which introduced the oppression of unoffending and
neutral neighbours as a legitimate mode of carrying on war against a
hostile power, against whom there was little possibility of using
measures directly offensive.
Shortly after this note had been lodged, Buonaparte, incensed at the
message of the King to Parliament, seems to have formed the scheme of
bringing the protracted negotiations betwixt France and England to a
point, in a time, place, and manner, equally extraordinary. At a public
court held at the Tuileries, on the 13th March, the chief consul came up
to Lord Whitworth in considerable agitation, and observed aloud, and
within hearing of the circle,--"You are then determined on war?"--and,
without attending to the disclamations of the English ambassador,
proceeded,--"We have been at war for fifteen years--you are determined
on hostility for fifteen years more--and you force me to it."[21] He
then addressed Count Marcow and the Chevalier Azara--"The English wish
for war; but if they draw the sword first, I will be the last to return
it to the scabbard. They do not respect treaties, which henceforth we
must cover with black crape."[22] He then again addressed Lord
Whitworth--"To what purpose are these armaments? Against whom do you
take these measures of precaution? I have not a single ship of the line
in any port in France: But if you arm, I too will take up arms--if you
fight, I will fight--you may destroy France, but you cannot intimidate
her."
"We desire neither the one nor the other," answered Lord Whitworth,
calmly: "We desire to live with her on terms of good intelligence."
"You must respect treaties, then," said Buonaparte, sternly. "Woe to
those by whom they are not respected! They will be accountable for the
consequences to all Europe."
So saying, and repeating his last remark twice over, he retired from the
levee, leaving the whole circle surprised at the want of decency and
dignity which had given rise to such a scene.[23]
This remarkable explosion may be easily explained, if we refer it
entirely to the impatience of a fiery temper, rendered, by the most
extraordinary train of success, morbidly sensitive to any obstacle which
interfered with a favourite plan; and, doubtless, it is not the least
evil of arbitrary power, that he who possesses it is naturally tempted
to mix up his own feelings of anger, revenge, or mortification, in
affairs which ought to be treated under the most calm and impartial
reference to the public good exclusively. But it has been averred by
those who had best opportunity to know Buonaparte, that the fits of
violent passion which he sometimes displayed, were less the bursts of
unrepressed and constitutional irritability, than means previously
calculated upon to intimidate and astound those with whom he was
treating at the time. There may, therefore, have been policy amid the
first consul's indignation, and he may have recollected, that the
dashing to pieces Cobentzel's china jar in the violent scene which
preceded the signing of the treaty of Campo Formio,[24] was completely
successful in its issue. But the condition of Britain was very different
from that of Austria, and he might have broken all the porcelain at St.
Cloud without making the slightest impression on the equanimity of Lord
Whitworth. This "angry parle," therefore, went for nothing, unless in so
far as it was considered as cutting off the faint remaining hope of
peace, and expressing the violent and obstinate temper of the
individual, upon whose pleasure, whether originating in judgment or
caprice, the fate of Europe at this important crisis unhappily depended.
In England, the interview at the Tuileries, where Britain was held to be
insulted in the person of her ambassador, and that in the presence of
the representatives of all Europe, greatly augmented the general spirit
of resentment.[25]
Talleyrand, to whom Lord Whitworth applied for an explanation of the
scene which had occurred, only answered, that the first consul, publicly
affronted, as he conceived himself, desired to exculpate himself in
presence of the ministers of all the powers of Europe.[26] The question
of peace or war came now to turn on the subject of Malta. The retention
of this fortress by the English could infer no danger to France;
whereas, if parted with by them under an insecure guarantee, the great
probability of its falling into the hands of France, was a subject of
the most legitimate jealousy to Britain, who must always have regarded
the occupation of Malta as a preliminary step to the recapture of Egypt.
There seemed policy, therefore, in Napoleon's conceding this point, and
obtaining for France that respite, which, while it regained her colonies
and recruited her commerce, would have afforded her the means of
renewing a navy, which had been almost totally destroyed during the war,
and consequently of engaging England, at some future and propitious
time, on the element which she called peculiarly her own. It was
accordingly supposed to be Talleyrand's opinion, that, by giving way to
England on the subject of Malta, Napoleon ought to lull her suspicions
to sleep.
Yet there were strong reasons, besides the military character of
Buonaparte, which might induce the first consul to break off
negotiation. His empire was founded on the general opinion entertained
of his inflexibility of purpose, and of his unvaried success, alike in
political objects as in the field of battle. Were he to concede the
principle which England now contested with him in the face of Europe, it
would have in a certain degree derogated from the pre-eminence of the
situation he claimed, as autocrat of the civilized world. In that
character he could not recede an inch from pretensions which he had once
asserted. To have allowed that his encroachment on Switzerland and
Piedmont rendered it necessary that he should grant a compensation to
England, by consenting to her retention of Malta, would have been to
grant that Britain had still a right to interfere in the affairs of the
continent, and to point her out to nations disposed to throw off the
French yoke, as a power to whose mediation he still owed some deference.
These reasons were not without force in themselves, and, joined to the
natural impetuosity of Buonaparte's temper, irritated and stung by the
attacks in the English papers, had their weight probably in inducing him
to give way to that sally of resentment, by which he endeavoured to cut
short the debate, as he would have brought up his guard in person to
decide the fate of a long-disputed action.
Some lingering and hopeless attempts were made to carry on negotiations.
The English Ministry lowered their claim of retaining Malta in
perpetuity to their right of holding it for ten years. Buonaparte, on
the other hand, would listen to no modification of the treaty of Amiens,
but offered, as the guarantee afforded by the occupation of Neapolitan
troops was objected to, that the garrison should consist of Russians or
Austrians. To this proposal Britain would not accede. Lord Whitworth
left Paris, and, on the 18th May, 1803, Britain declared war against
France.
Before we proceed to detail the history of this eventful struggle, we
must cast our eyes backwards, and review some events of importance which
had happened in France since the conclusion of the treaty of Amiens.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] The "Actes des Apôtres," which appeared in 1790, and in the editing
of which Peltier was assisted by Riverol, Champcenetz, and the Viscount
Mirabeau, was principally directed against the measures of the
Constituent Assembly.
[2] "I made the _Moniteur_ the soul and life-blood of my government; it
was the intermediate instrument of my communications with public
opinion, both at home and abroad. Did any question arise respecting
certain grand political combinations, or some delicate points of
diplomacy? the objects were indirectly hinted at in the _Moniteur_. They
instantly attracted universal attention, and became the topics of
general investigation. The _Moniteur_ has been reproached for the
acrimony and virulence of its notes against the enemy: but before we
condemn them, we are bound to take into consideration the benefits they
may have produced, the anxiety with which they occasionally perplexed
the enemy, the terror with which they struck a hesitating
cabinet."--NAPOLEON, _Las Cases_, tom. iv., p. 186.
[3] Annual Register, vol. xlv., p. 659.
[4] Afterwards Earl of Liverpool, and Prime Minister of England--who
died early in 1827.
[5] "His Majesty cannot, and never will, in consequence of any
representation or menace from a foreign power, make any concession which
can be, in the smallest degree, dangerous to the liberty of the press,
as secured by the constitution of the country--a liberty justly dear to
every British subject."--_Annual Register_, vol. xlv., p. 664.
[6] "The French Government must have formed a most erroneous judgment of
the disposition of the British nation, and of the character of its
Government, if they have been taught to expect that any representation
of a foreign power will ever induce them to a violation of those rights
on which the liberties of the people of this country are
founded."--_Ibid._, p. 666.
[7] The trial took place in the Court of King's Bench, Feb. 21, before
Lord Ellenborough and a special jury.
[8] The Right Hon. Sir James Mackintosh, died May 30, 1832.
[9] He was never brought up to receive sentence, our quarrel with the
French having soon afterwards come to an absolute rupture. [Peltier was
a native of Nantes. On the restoration of the Bourbons, he returned to
Paris, where he died in 1825.]
[10] "Thence the resentment which Buonaparte felt against England.
'Every wind which blows,' said he, 'from that direction, brings nothing
but contempt and hatred against my person.' From that time he concluded
that the peace could not benefit him; that it would not leave him
sufficient facility to aggrandize his dominion externally, and would
impede the extension of his internal power; that, moreover, our daily
relations with England modified our political ideas and revived our
thoughts of liberty."--FOUCHÉ, tom. i., p. 257.
[11] "When Napoleon was shown, at St. Helena, some numbers of
_L'Ambigu_, he said, 'Ah! Peltier. He has been libelling me these twenty
years: but I am very glad to get them.'"--O'MEARA, vol. i., p. 385.
[12] For a copy of Sebastiani's report to the first consul, see Annual
Register, vol. xlv., p. 742.
[13] "Whatever success intrigues may experience in London, no other
people will be involved in new combinations. The government says, with
conscious truth, that England, single-handed, cannot maintain a struggle
against France."--_View of the State of the Republic_, Feb. 22, 1803.
See Annual Register, vol. xlv., p. 760.
[14] See Declaration, dated Westminster, May 18, 1803; Annual Register,
vol. xlv., p. 742.
[15] "The conference with Lord Whitworth proved for me a lesson which
altered my method for ever. From this moment I never treated officially
of political affairs, but through the intervention of my minister for
foreign affairs. He, at any rate, could give a positive and formal
denial, which the sovereign could not do."--NAPOLEON, tom. iv., p. 156.
[16] Lord Whitworth had been, successively,--in 1786, minister
plenipotentiary at Warsaw,--in 1788, envoy extraordinary and minister
plenipotentiary to St. Petersburgh,--and, in 1800, minister
plenipotentiary to the court of Denmark.
[17] "If Buonaparte had wished for the maintenance of peace, he would
sedulously have avoided giving umbrage and inquietude to England, with
regard to its Indian possessions, and would have abstained from
applauding the rhodomontades about the mission of Sebastiani into Syria
and Turkey. His imprudent conversation with Lord Whitworth accelerated
the rupture. I foresaw, from that time, that he would quickly pass from
a certain degree of moderation, as chief of the government, to acts of
exaggeration, violence, and even rage."--FOUCHÉ, tom. i., p. 259.
[18] See Extract of a Despatch from Lord Whitworth to Lord Hawkesbury,
dated Paris, Feb. 17; Annual Register, vol. xlv., p. 685.
[19] Annual Register, vol. xlv., p. 646.
[20] Annual Register, vol. xlv., p. 697.
[21] "Nous avons," said he, "dejà fait la guerre pendant quinze ans." As
he seemed to wait for an answer, I observed only, "C'en est dejà
trop."--"Mais," said he, "vous voulez la faire encore quinze années; et
vous m'y forcez."--Lord Whitworth to Lord Hawkesbury; see Annual
Register, vol. xlv., p. 696.
[22] "Ils ne respectent pas les traités: il faut dorénavant les couvrir
de crêpe noir."
[23] "The ambassador made a respectful bow, and gave no reply. The first
consul left that part of the saloon; but whether he had been a little
heated by this explosion of ill-humour, or from some other cause, he
ceased his round, and withdrew to his own apartments. Madame Buonaparte
followed; and in an instant the saloon was cleared of company."--SAVARY,
tom. i., p. 307.
[24] See _ante_, vol. ii., pp. 175, 176. "It is to be remarked, that all
this passed loud enough to be heard by two hundred people who were
present; and I am persuaded that there was not a single person who did
not feel the impropriety of the first consul's conduct, and the total
want of dignity, as well as of decency, on the occasion."--LORD
WHITWORTH.
[25] "It is utterly incorrect, that any thing occurred in the course of
our interview which was not in conformity with the common rules of
decorum. Lord Whitworth himself, after our conference, being in company
with other ambassadors, expressed himself perfectly satisfied, and
added, that he had no doubt all things would be satisfactorily
settled."--NAPOLEON, _Las Cases_, tom. iv., p. 157.
[26] For a copy of Napoleon's Instructions to Talleyrand, see Appendix
to this Volume, No. I.