_Farther progress of the French Army under Buonaparte--He
crosses the Po, at Placenza, on 7th May--Battle of Lodi takes
place on the 10th, in which the French are victorious--Remarks
on Napoleon's Tactics in this celebrated Action--French take
possession of Cremona and Pizzighitone--Milan deserted by the
Archduke Ferdinand and his Duchess--Buonaparte enters Milan on
the 15th May--General situation of the Italian States at this
period--Napoleon inflicts Fines upon the neutral and unoffending
States of Parma and Modena, and extorts the surrender of some of
their finest Pictures--Remarks upon this novel procedure._
[Sidenote: PROGRESS OF THE FRENCH ARMY.]
The ardent disposition of Buonaparte did not long permit him to rest
after the advantages which he had secured. He had gazed on Italy with an
eagle's eye; but it was only for a moment, ere stooping on her with the
wing, and pouncing on her with the talons, of the king of birds.
A general with less extraordinary talent would perhaps have thought it
sufficient to have obtained possession of Piedmont, revolutionizing its
government as the French had done that of Holland, and would have
awaited fresh supplies and reinforcements from France before advancing
to farther and more distant conquests, and leaving the Alps under the
dominion of a hostile, though for the present a subdued and disarmed
monarchy. But Buonaparte had studied the campaign of Villars in these
regions, and was of opinion that it was by that general's hesitation to
advance boldly into Italy, after the victories which the Marshal de
Coigni had obtained at Parma and Guastalla, that the enemy had been
enabled to assemble an accumulating force, before which the French were
compelled to retreat.[115] He determined, therefore, to give the
Republic of Venice, the Grand Duke of Tuscany, and other states in
Italy, no time to muster forces, and take a decided part, as they were
likely to do, to oppose a French invasion. Their terror and surprise
could not fail to be increased by a sudden irruption; while months,
weeks, even days of consideration, might afford those states, attached
as the rulers must be to their ancient oligarchical forms of government,
time and composure to assume arms to maintain them. A speedy resolution
was the more necessary, as Austria, alarmed for her Italian possessions,
was about to make every effort for their defence. Orders had already
been sent by the Aulic Council of War to detach an army of thirty
thousand men, under Wurmser, from the Army of the Rhine to the frontiers
of Italy. These were to be strengthened by other reinforcements from the
interior, and by such forces as could be raised in the mountainous
district of the Tyrol, which furnishes perhaps the most experienced and
most formidable sharpshooters in the world. The whole was to be united
to the fragments of Beaulieu's defeated troops. If suffered to form a
junction, and arrange their plans for attack or defence, an army, of
force so superior to the French in numbers, veterans in discipline, and
commanded by a general like Wurmser, was likely to prevent all the
advantages which the French might gain by a sudden irruption, ere an
opposition so formidable was collected and organized. But the daring
scheme which Napoleon contemplated, corresponding to the genius of him
who had formed it, required to be executed with caution, united with
secrecy and celerity. These were the more necessary, as, although the
thanks of the French Government had been voted to the army of Italy five
times in the course of a month, yet the Directory, alarmed at the more
doubtful state of hostilities upon the Rhine, had turned their exertions
chiefly in that direction; and, trusting to the skill of their general,
and the courage of his troops, had not transmitted recruits and supplies
upon the scale necessary for the great undertakings which he meditated.
But _Italiam--Italiam!_[116]--the idea of penetrating into a country so
guarded and defended by nature, as well as by military skill, the
consciousness of having surmounted obstacles of a nature so
extraordinary, and the hope that they were approaching the reward of so
many labours--above all, their full confidence in a leader, who seemed
to have bound Victory to his standard--made the soldiers follow their
general, without counting their own deficiencies, or the enemy's
numbers.[117]
To encourage this ardour, Buonaparte circulated an address,[118] in
which, complimenting the army on the victories they had gained, he
desired them at the same time "to consider nothing as won so long as the
Austrians held Milan, and while the ashes of those who had conquered the
Tarquins were soiled by the presence of the assassins of Basseville." It
would appear that classical allusions are either familiar to the French
soldiers, or that, without being more learned than others of their rank,
they are pleased with being supposed to understand them. They probably
considered the oratory of their great leader as soldier-like words, and
words of exceeding good command. The English soldier, addressed in such
flights of eloquence, would either have laughed at them, or supposed
that he had got a crazed play-actor put over him, instead of a general.
But there is this peculiar trait in the French character, that they are
willing to take every thing of a complimentary kind in the manner in
which it seems to be meant. They appear to have made that bargain with
themselves on many points, which the audience usually do in a
theatre,--to accept of the appearance of things for the reality. They
never inquire whether a triumphal arch is of stone or of wood; whether a
scutcheon is of solid metal, or only gilt; or whether a speech, of which
the tendency is flattering to their national vanity, contains genuine
eloquence, or only tumid extravagance.
[Sidenote: TORTONA.]
All thoughts were therefore turned to Italy. The fortress of Tortona was
surrendered to the French by the King of Sardinia; Buonaparte's
headquarters were fixed there, [May 4.] Massena concentrated another
part of the army at Alexandria, menacing Milan, and threatening, by the
passage of the Po, to invade the territories belonging to Austria on the
northern bank of that stream. As Buonaparte himself observed, the
passage of a great river is one of the most critical operations in
modern war; and Beaulieu had collected his forces to cover Milan, and
prevent the French, if possible, from crossing the Po. But, in order to
avert the dangerous consequences of attempting to force his passage on
the river, defended by a formidable enemy in front, Buonaparte's subtle
genius had already prepared the means for deceiving the old Austrian
respecting his intended operations.
[Sidenote: PASSAGE OF THE PO.]
Valenza appeared to be the point of passage proposed by the French; it
is one of those fortresses which cover the eastern frontier of Piedmont,
and is situated upon the Po. During the conferences previous to the
armistice of Cherasco, Buonaparte had thrown out hints as if he were
particularly desirous to be possessed of this place, and it was actually
stipulated in the terms of the treaty, that the French should occupy it
for the purpose of effecting their passage over the river. Beaulieu did
not fail to learn what had passed, which coinciding with his own ideas
of the route by which Buonaparte meant to advance upon Milan, he
hastened to concentrate his army on the opposite bank, at a place called
Valeggio, about eighteen miles from Valenza, the point near which he
expected the attempt to be made, and from which he could move easily in
any direction towards the river, before the French could send over any
considerable force. Massena also countenanced this report, and riveted
the attention of the Austrians on Valenza, by pushing strong
reconnoitring parties from Alexandria in the direction of that fortress.
Besides, Beaulieu had himself crossed the Po at this place, and, like
all men of routine--(for such he was though a brave and approved
soldier)--he was always apt to suppose that the same reasons which
directed himself, must needs seem equally convincing to others. In
almost all delicate affairs, persons of ordinary talents are misled by
their incapacity to comprehend, that men of another disposition will be
likely to view circumstances, and act upon principles, with an eye and
opinion very different from their own.
But the reports which induced the Austrian general to take the position
at Valeggio, arose out of a stratagem of war. It was never Buonaparte's
intention to cross the Po at Valenza. The proposal was a feint to draw
Beaulieu's attention to that point, while the French accomplished the
desired passage at Placenza, nearly fifty miles lower down the river
than Valeggio, where their subtle general had induced the Austrians to
take up their line of defence. Marching for this purpose with incredible
celerity, Buonaparte, on the 7th of May, assembled his forces at
Placenza, when their presence was least expected, and where there were
none to defend the opposite bank, except two or three squadrons of
Austrians, stationed there merely for the purpose of reconnoitring.
General Andréossi (for names distinguished during those dreadful wars
begin to rise on the narrative, as the stars glimmer out on the horizon)
commanded an advanced guard of five hundred men. They had to pass in
the common ferry-boats, and the crossing required nearly half an hour;
so that the difficulty, or rather impossibility, of achieving the
operation, had they been seriously opposed, appears to demonstration.
Colonel Lannes threw himself ashore first with a body of grenadiers, and
speedily dispersed the Austrian hussars, who attempted to resist their
landing. The vanguard having thus opened the passage, the other
divisions of the army were enabled to cross in succession, and in the
course of two days the whole were in the Milanese territory, and on the
left bank of the Po. The military manœuvres, by means of which
Buonaparte achieved, without the loss of a man, an operation of so much
consequence, and which, without such address as he displayed, must have
been attended with great loss, and risk of failure, have often been
considered as among his most masterly movements.
Beaulieu, informed too late of the real plans of the French general,
moved his advanced guard, composed of the division of General Liptay,
from Valeggio towards the Po, in the direction of Placenza. But here
also the alert general of the French had been too rapid in his movements
for the aged German. Buonaparte had no intention to wait an attack from
the enemy with such a river as the Po in his rear, which he had no means
of recrossing if the day should go against him; so that a defeat, or
even a material check, would have endangered the total loss of his army.
He was, therefore, pushing forward in order to gain ground on which to
manœuvre, and the advanced divisions of the two armies met at a
village called Fombio, not far from Casal, on the 8th of May. The
Austrians threw themselves into the place, fortified and manned the
steeples, and whatever posts else could be made effectual for defence,
and reckoned upon defending themselves there until the main body of
Beaulieu's army should come up to support them. But they were unable to
sustain the vivacity of the French onset, to which so many successive
victories had now given a double impulse. The village was carried at the
bayonet's point; the Austrians lost their cannon, and left behind
one-third of their men, in slain, wounded, and prisoners. The wreck of
Liptay's division saved themselves by crossing the Adda at Pizzighitone,
while they protected their retreat by a hasty defence of that
fortress.[119]
Another body of Austrians having advanced from Casal, to support, it may
be supposed, the division of Liptay, occasioned a great loss to the
French army in the person of a very promising officer. This was General
La Harpe, highly respected and trusted by Buonaparte, and repeatedly
mentioned in the campaigns of Piedmont. Hearing the alarm given by the
out-posts, when the Austrian patrols came in contact with them, La
Harpe rode out to satisfy himself concerning the nature and strength of
the attacking party. On his return to his own troops, they mistook him
and his attendants for the enemy, fired upon, and killed him. He was a
Swiss by birth, and had been compelled to leave his country on account
of his democratical opinions; a grenadier, says Buonaparte, in stature
and in courage, but of a restless disposition. The soldiers with the
superstition belonging to their profession, remarked, that during the
battle of Fombio, on the day before, he was less animated than usual, as
if an obscure sense of his approaching fate already overwhelmed
him.[120]
The Austrian regiment of cavalry which occasioned this loss, after some
skirmishing, was content to escape to Lodi, a point upon which Beaulieu
was again collecting his scattered forces, for the purpose of covering
Milan, by protecting the line of the Adda.
[Sidenote: BATTLE OF LODI.]
"The passage of the Po," said Buonaparte, in his report to the
Directory, "had been expected to prove the boldest and most difficult
manœuvre of the campaign, nor did we expect to have an action of more
vivacity than that of Dego. But we have now to recount the battle of
Lodi."[121] As the conqueror deservedly congratulated himself on this
hard-won victory, and as it has become in a manner especially connected
with his name and military character, we must, according to our plan, be
somewhat minute in our details respecting it.
The Adda, a large and deep river, though fordable at some places and in
some seasons, crosses the valley of the Milanese, rising in the Tyrolese
Alps, and joining the Po at Pizzighitone; so that, if the few points at
which it can be crossed are fortified or defended, it forms a line
covering all the Milanese territory to the eastward, from any force
approaching from the direction of Piedmont. This line Beaulieu proposed
to make good against the victor before whom he had so often retreated,
and he conjectured (on this occasion rightly) that, to prosecute his
victory by marching upon Milan, Buonaparte would first desire to
dislodge the covering army from the line of the Adda, as he could not
safely advance to the capital of Lombardy, leaving the enemy in
possession of such a defensive line upon their flank. He also
conjectured that this attempt would be made at Lodi.
This is a large town, containing twelve thousand inhabitants. It has old
Gothic walls, but its chief defence consists in the river Adda, which
flows through it, and is crossed by a wooden bridge about five hundred
feet in length. When Beaulieu, after the affair of Fombio, evacuated
Casal, he retreated to this place with about ten thousand men. The rest
of his army was directed upon Milan and Cassano, a town situated, like
Lodi, upon the Adda.
Buonaparte calculated that, if he could accomplish the passage of the
Adda at Lodi, he might overtake and disperse the remainder of Beaulieu's
army, without allowing the veteran time to concentrate them for farther
resistance in Milan, or even for rallying under the walls of the strong
fortress of Mantua. The judgment of the French general was in war not
more remarkable for seizing the most advantageous moment of attack, than
for availing himself to the very uttermost of success when obtained. The
quick-sighted faculty and power of instant decision with which nature
had endowed him, had, it may be supposed, provided beforehand for the
consequences of the victory ere it was yet won, and left no room for
doubt or hesitation when his hopes had become certainties. We have
already remarked, that there have been many commanders, who, after an
accidental victory, are so much at a loss what is next to be done, that
while they are hesitating, the golden moments pass away unimproved; but
Buonaparte knew as well how to use advantages, as to obtain them.
Upon the 10th day of May, attended by his best generals, and heading the
choicest of his troops, Napoleon pressed forward towards Lodi. About a
league from Casal, he encountered the Austrian rear-guard, who had been
left, it would appear, at too great a distance from the main body. The
French had no difficulty in driving these troops before them into the
town of Lodi, which was but slightly defended by the few soldiers whom
Beaulieu had left on the western or right side of the Adda. He had also
neglected to destroy the bridge, although he ought rather to have
supported a defence on the right bank of the river, (for which the town
afforded many facilities,) till the purpose of destruction was
completed, than have allowed it to exist. If his rear-guard had been
actually stationed in Lodi, instead of being so far in the rear of the
main body, they might, by a protracted resistance from the old walls and
houses, have given time for this necessary act of demolition.
But though the bridge was left standing, it was swept by twenty or
thirty Austrian pieces of artillery, whose thunders menaced death to any
who should attempt that pass of peril. The French, with great alertness,
got as many guns in position on the left bank, and answered this
tremendous fire with equal spirit. During this cannonade, Buonaparte
threw himself personally amongst the fire, in order to station two guns
loaded with grape-shot in such a position, as rendered it impossible for
any one to approach for the purpose of undermining or destroying the
bridge; and then calmly proceeded to make arrangements for a desperate
attempt.
His cavalry was directed to cross, if possible, at a place where the
Adda was said to be fordable,--a task which they accomplished with
difficulty. Meantime, Napoleon observed that the Austrian line of
infantry was thrown considerably behind the batteries of artillery which
they supported, in order that they might have the advantage of a
bending slope of ground, which afforded them shelter from the French
fire. He therefore drew up a close column of three thousand grenadiers,
protected from the artillery of the Austrians by the walls and houses of
the town, and yet considerably nearer to the enemy's line of guns on the
opposite side of the Adda than were their own infantry, which ought to
have protected them. The column of grenadiers, thus secured, waited in
comparative safety, until the appearance of the French cavalry, who had
crossed the ford, began to disquiet the flank of the Austrians. This was
the critical moment which Buonaparte expected. A single word of command
wheeled the head of the column of grenadiers to the left, and placed it
on the perilous bridge. The word was given to advance, and they rushed
on with loud shouts of _Vive la République!_ But their appearance upon
the bridge was the signal for a redoubled shower of grape-shot, while
from the windows of the houses on the left side of the river, the
soldiers who occupied them poured volley after volley of musketry on the
thick column as it endeavoured to force its way over the long bridge. At
one time the French grenadiers, unable to sustain this dreadful storm,
appeared for an instant to hesitate. But Berthier, the chief of
Buonaparte's staff, with Massena, L'Allemagne, and Corvini, hurried to
the head of the column, and by their presence and gallantry renewed the
resolution of the soldiers, who now poured across the bridge. The
Austrians had but one resource left; to rush on the French with the
bayonet, and kill, or drive back into the Adda, those who had forced
their passage, before they could deploy into line, or receive support
from their comrades, who were still filing along the bridge. But the
opportunity was neglected, either because the troops, who should have
executed the manœuvre, had been, as we have already noticed,
withdrawn too far from the river; or because the soldiery, as happens
when they repose too much confidence in a strong position, became
panic-struck when they saw it unexpectedly carried. Or it may be, that
General Beaulieu, so old and so unfortunate, had somewhat lost that
energy and presence of mind which the critical moment demanded. Whatever
was the cause, the French rushed on the artillerymen, from whose fire
they had lately suffered so tremendously, and, unsupported as they were,
had little difficulty in bayoneting them.
The Austrian army now completely gave way, and lost in their retreat,
annoyed as it was by the French cavalry, upwards of twenty guns, a
thousand prisoners, and perhaps two thousand more wounded and
slain.[122]
Such was the famous passage of the Bridge of Lodi; achieved with such
skill and gallantry, as gave the victor the same character for fearless
intrepidity, and practical talent in actual battle, which the former
part of the campaign had gained him as a most able tactitian.
Yet this action, though successful, has been severely criticized by
those who desire to derogate from Buonaparte's military talents. It has
been said, that he might have passed over a body of infantry at the same
ford where the cavalry had crossed; and that thus, by manœuvring on
both sides of the river, he might have compelled the Austrians to
evacuate their position on the left bank of the Adda, without hazarding
an attack upon their front, which could not but cost the assailants very
dearly.
Buonaparte had perhaps this objection in his recollection when he
states, that the column of grenadiers was so judiciously sheltered from
the fire until the moment when their wheel to the left brought them on
the bridge, that they only lost two hundred men[123] during the storm of
the passage. We cannot but suppose, that this is a very mitigated
account of the actual loss of the French army. So slight a loss is not
to be easily reconciled with the horrors of the battle, as he himself
detailed them in his despatches; nor with the conclusion, in which he
mentions, that of the sharp contests which the army of Italy had to
sustain during the campaign, none was to be compared with that "terrible
passage of the bridge of Lodi."[124]
In fact, as we may take occasion to prove hereafter, the Memoranda of
the great general, dictated to his officers at Saint Helena, have a
little too much the character of his original bulletins; and, while they
show a considerable disposition to exaggerate the difficulties to be
overcome, the fury of the conflict, and the exertions of courage by
which the victory was attained, show a natural inconsistency, from the
obvious wish to diminish the loss which was its unavoidable price.
But, admitting that the loss of the French had been greater on this
occasion than their general cared to recollect or acknowledge, his
military conduct seems not the less justifiable.
Buonaparte appears to have had two objects in view in this daring
exploit. The first was, to improve and increase the terror into which
his previous successes had thrown the Austrians, and to impress on them
the conviction, that no position, however strong, was able to protect
them against the audacity and talent of the French. This discouraging
feeling, exemplified by so many defeats, and now by one in circumstances
where the Austrians appeared to have every advantage, it was natural to
suppose, would hurry Beaulieu's retreat, induce him to renounce all
subsequent attempts to cover Milan, and rather to reunite the fragments
of his army, particularly that part of Liptay's division, which, after
being defeated at Fombio, had thrown themselves into Pizzighitone. To
have manœuvred slowly and cautiously, would not have struck that
terror and confusion which was inspired by the desperate attack on the
position at Lodi. Supposing these to have been his views, the victor
perfectly succeeded; for Beaulieu, after his misadventure, drew off
without any farther attempt to protect the ancient capital of Lombardy,
and threw himself upon Mantua, with the intention of covering that
strong fortress, and at the same time of sheltering under it the remains
of his army, until he could form a junction with the forces which
Wurmser was bringing to his assistance from the Rhine.
Buonaparte himself has pointed out a second object, in which he was less
successful. He had hoped the rapid surprise of the bridge of Lodi might
enable him to overtake or intercept the rest of Beaulieu's army, which,
as we have said, had retreated by Cassano. He failed, indeed, in this
object; for these forces also made their way into the Mantuan territory,
and joined Beaulieu, who, by crossing the classical Mincio, placed
another strong line of military defence betwixt him and his victor. But
the prospect of intercepting and destroying so large a force, was worth
the risk he encountered at Lodi,[125] especially taking into view the
spirit which his army had acquired from a long train of victory,
together with the discouragement which had crept into the Austrian ranks
from a uniform series of defeats.
It should also be remembered, in considering the necessity of forcing
the bridge of Lodi, that the ford over the Adda was crossed with
difficulty even by the cavalry, and that when once separated by the
river, the communication between the main army and the detachment of
infantry, (which his censors say Napoleon should have sent across in the
same manner,) being in a great degree interrupted, the latter might have
been exposed to losses, from which Buonaparte, situated as he was on the
right bank, could have had no means of protecting them.
[Sidenote: PIZZIGHITONE.]
Leaving the discussion of what might have been, to trace that which
actually took place, the French cavalry pursued the retreating Austrians
as far as Cremona, of which they took possession. Pizzighitone was
obliged to capitulate, the garrison being cut off from all possibility
of succour. About five hundred prisoners surrendered in that fortress;
the rest of Liptay's division, and other Austrian corps, could no
otherwise escape, than by throwing themselves into the Venetian
territory.
It was at this time that Buonaparte had some conversation with an old
Hungarian officer made prisoner in one of the actions, whom he met with
at a bivouac by chance, and who did not know him. The veteran's
language was a curious commentary on the whole campaign; nay, upon
Buonaparte's general system of warfare, which appeared so extraordinary
to those who had long practised the art on more formal principles.
"Things are going on as ill and as irregularly as possible," said the
old martinet. "The French have got a young general, who knows nothing of
the regular rules of war; he is sometimes on our front, sometimes on the
flank, sometimes on the rear. There is no supporting such a gross
violation of rules."[126] This somewhat resembles the charge which
foreign tactitians have brought against the English, that they gained
victories by continuing, with their insular ignorance and obstinacy, to
fight on, long after the period when, if they had known the rules of
war, they ought to have considered themselves as completely defeated.
A peculiar circumstance is worth mentioning. The French soldiers had a
mode at that time of amusing themselves, by conferring an imaginary rank
upon their generals, when they had done some remarkable exploit. They
showed their sense of the bravery displayed by Buonaparte at the Battle
of Lodi, by creating him a Corporal; and by this phrase, of the _Little
Corporal_, he was distinguished in the intrigues formed against him, as
well as those which were carried on in his favour; in the language of
Georges Cadoudal, who laid a scheme for assassinating him, and in the
secret consultation of the old soldiers and others, who arranged his
return from Elba.[127]
We are now to turn for a time from war to its consequences, which
possess an interest of a nature different from the military events we
have been detailing.
The movements which had taken place since the King of Sardinia's defeat,
had struck terror into the Government of Milan, and the Archduke
Ferdinand, by whom Austrian Lombardy was governed. But while Beaulieu
did his best to cover the capital by force of arms, the measures
resorted to by the Government were rather of a devotional than warlike
character. Processions were made, relics exposed, and rites resorted to,
which the Catholic religion prescribes as an appeal to Heaven in great
national calamities. But the saints they invoked were deaf or impotent;
for the passage of the bridge of Lodi, and Beaulieu's subsequent retreat
to Mantua, left no possibility of defending Milan. The archduke and his
duchess immediately left Milan, followed by a small retinue, and leaving
only a moderate force in the citadel, which was not in a very defensible
condition. Their carriages passed through a large crowd which filled the
streets. As they moved slowly along, the royal pair were observed to
shed natural tears, at leaving the capital of these princely possessions
of their house. The people observed a profound silence, only broken by
low whispers. They showed neither joy nor sorrow at the event which was
passing--all thoughts were bent in anxious anticipation upon what was to
happen next.[128]
When the archduke had departed, the restraint which his presence had
imposed from habit and sentiment, as much as from fear of his authority,
was of course removed, and many of the Milanese citizens began, with
real or affected zeal for republicanism, to prepare themselves for the
reception of the French. The three-coloured cockade was at first timidly
assumed; but the example being shown, it seemed as if these emblems had
fallen like snow into the caps and hats of the multitude. The imperial
arms were removed from the public buildings, and a placard was put on
the palace of the government with an inscription--"This house is to be
let--apply for the keys to the French Commissioner Salicetti." The
nobles hastened to lay aside their armorial bearings, their servants'
liveries, and other badges of aristocracy. Meantime the magistrates
caused order to be maintained in the town, by regular patrols of the
burgher guard. A deputation of the principal inhabitants of Milan, with
Melzi[129] at its head, was sent to the victorious general with offers
of full submission, since there was no longer room for resistance, or
for standing upon terms.
On the 15th of May, Buonaparte made his public entry into Milan, under a
triumphal arch prepared for the occasion, which he traversed, surrounded
by his guards, and took up his residence in the archiepiscopal palace.
The same evening a splendid entertainment was given, and the Tree of
Liberty, (of which the aristocrats observed, that it was a bare pole
without either leaves or fruit, roots or branches,) was erected with
great form in the principal square. All this affectation of popular joy
did not disarm the purpose of the French general, to make Milan
contribute to the relief of his army. He imposed upon the place a
requisition of twenty millions of livres, but offered to accept of goods
of any sort in kind, and at a rateable valuation; for it may be easily
supposed that specie, the representative of value, must be scarce in a
city circumstanced as Milan was.[130] The public funds of every
description, even those dedicated to the support of hospitals, went into
the French military chest; the church-plate was seized as a part of the
requisition; and, when all this was done, the citizens were burdened
with the charge of finding rations for fifteen thousand men daily, by
which force the citadel, with its Austrian garrison, was instantly to be
blockaded.[131]
[Sidenote: SITUATION OF THE ITALIAN STATES.]
While Lombardy suffered much, the neighbouring countries were not
spared. The reader must be aware, that for more than a century Italy had
been silently declining into that state of inactivity which succeeds
great exertion, as a rapid and furious blaze sinks down into exhaustion
and ashes. The keen judgment of Napoleon had seen, that the geographical
shape of Italy, though presenting in many respects advantages for a
great and commercial nation, offered this main impediment to its
separate existence as one independent state, that its length being too
great in proportion to its breadth, there was no point sufficiently
central to preserve the due influence of a metropolis in relation to its
extreme northern and southern provinces; and that the inhabitants of
Naples and Lombardy being locally so far divided, and differing in
climate, habits, and the variety of temper which climate and habits
produce, could hardly be united under the same government. From these
causes Italy was, after the demolition of the great Roman Empire, early
broken up into different subdivisions, which, more civilized than the
rest of Europe at the time, attracted in various degrees the attention
of mankind; and at length, from the sacerdotal power of Rome, the wealth
and extensive commerce of Venice and Genoa, the taste and splendour of
Florence, and the ancient fame of the metropolis of the world, became of
importance much over-proportioned to their actual extent of territory.
But this time had passed away, and the Italian states, rich in
remembrances, were now comparatively poor in point of immediate
consequence in the scale of nations. They retained their oligarchical or
monarchical forms and constitutions, as in the more vigorous state of
their existence, but appeared to have lost their energies both for good
and evil. The proud and jealous love which each Italian used to bear
towards his own province was much abated; the hostility of the factions
which divided most of their states, and induced the citizens to hazard
their own death or exile in the most trifling party quarrel, had
subsided into that calm, selfish indifference, which disregards public
interests of all kinds. They were ill governed, in so far as their
rulers neglected all means of benefiting the subjects or improving the
country; and they were thus far well-governed, that, softened by the
civilisation of the times, and perhaps by a tacit sense of their own
weakness, their rulers had ceased, in a great measure, to exercise with
severity the despotic powers with which they were in many cases
invested, though they continued to be the cause of petty vexations, to
which the natives had become callous. The Vatican slept like a volcano,
which had exhausted its thunders; and Venice, the most jealous and cruel
of oligarchies, was now shutting her wearied eyes, and closing her ears,
against informers and spies of state. The Italian states stood,
therefore, like a brotherhood of old trees, decayed at heart and root,
but still making some show of branches and leaves; until the French
invasion rushed down, like the whirlwind which lays them prostrate.
In the relations between France and Italy, it must be observed, that two
of the most considerable of these states, Tuscany and Venice, were
actually in league with the former country, having acknowledged the
republic, and done nothing to deserve the chastisement of her armies.
Others might be termed neutral, not having perhaps deemed themselves of
consequence sufficient to take part in the quarrel of the coalesced
powers against France. The Pope had given offence by the affair of
Basseville, and the encouragement which his countenance afforded to the
non-conforming clergy of France. But, excepting Naples and Austrian
Lombardy, no state in Italy could be exactly said to be at open war with
the new republic. Buonaparte was determined, however, that this should
make no difference in his mode of treating them.
[Sidenote: SEIZURE OF WORKS OF ART.]
The first of these slumbering potentates with whom he came in contact,
was the Duke of Parma.[132] This petty sovereign, even before Buonaparte
entered Milan, had deprecated the victor's wrath; and although neither
an adherent of the coalition, nor at war with France, he found himself
obliged to purchase an armistice by heavy sacrifices. He paid a tribute
of two millions of livres, besides furnishing horses and provisions to a
large amount, and agreeing to deliver up twenty of the finest paintings
in his cabinet, to be chosen by the French general.[133]
The next of these sufferers was the Duke of Modena.[134] This prince was
a man of moderate abilities; his business was hoarding money, and his
pleasure consisted in nailing up, with his own princely hands, the
tapestry which ornamented churches on days of high holiday; from which
he acquired the nickname of "the royal upholsterer." But his birth was
illustrious as the descendant of that celebrated hero of Este, the
patron of Tasso and of Ariosto; and his alliance was no less splendid,
having married the sister of the unfortunate Marie Antoinette, and of
Joseph the Second: then his daughter was married to the Archduke
Ferdinand, the Governor of Milan. Notwithstanding his double connexion
with the Imperial family, the principality of Modena was so small that
he might have been passed over as scarce worthy of notice, but for the
temptation of his treasures, in the works of art, as well as in specie.
On the approach of a column of the French army to Modena, the duke fled
from his capital, but sent his brother, the Chevalier d'Este, to
capitulate with Napoleon, [May 20.][135]
It might have been urged in his favour, that he was no avowed partner in
the coalition; but Buonaparte took for granted his good-will towards his
brother-in-law the Emperor of Austria, and esteemed it a crime deserving
atonement.[136] Indeed it was one which had not been proved by any open
action, but neither could it admit of being disproved. The duke was
therefore obliged to purchase the privilege of neutrality, and to
expiate his supposed good inclination for the house of Austria. Five
millions and a half of French livres, with large contributions in
provisions and accoutrements, perhaps cost the Duke of Modena more
anxious thoughts than he had bestowed on the misfortunes of his imperial
relatives.
To levy on obnoxious states or princes the means of paying or
accommodating troops, would have been only what has been practised by
victors in all ages. But an exaction of a new kind was now for the first
time imposed on these Italian Princes. The Duke of Modena, like the Duke
of Parma, was compelled to surrender twenty of his choicest pictures,
to be selected at the choice of the French general, and the persons of
taste with whom he might advise. This was the first time that a demand
of this nature had been made in modern times in a public and avowed
manner,[137] and we must pause to consider the motives and justice of
such a requisition.[138]
[Sidenote: WORKS OF ART.]
Hitherto, works of art had been considered as sacred, even during the
utmost extremities of war. They were judged to be the property, not so
much of the nation or individuals who happened to possess them, as of
the world in general, who were supposed to have a common interest in
these productions, which, if exposed to become the ordinary spoils of
war, could hardly escape damage or destruction. To take a strong example
of forbearance, Frederick of Prussia was a passionate admirer of the
fine arts, and no scrupulous investigator of the rights conferred by
conquest, but rather disposed to stretch them to the uttermost. Yet,
when he obtained possession of Dresden under circumstances of high
irritation, Frederick respected the valuable gallery, cabinets, and
museums of the capital of Saxony, and preserved their contents
inviolate, as a species of property which could not, and ought not, to
fall within the rights of a conqueror. He considered the elector as only
the keeper of the gallery; and regarded the articles which it contained
as belonging to the civilized world at large.
There are persons who demand the cause of this distinction, and require
to know why works of art, the value of which is created solely by the
opinion of those who pretend to understand them, and is therefore to be
regarded as merely imaginary, or, as it is called by lawyers, a mere
_pretium affectionis_, should be exempted from that martial law which
disposes at pleasure of the real property of the vanquished.
It might easily be shown in reply, that the respect due to genius of the
highest order, attaches with a sort of religious zeal to the objects of
our admiration in the fine arts, and renders it a species of sacrilege
to subject them to the chances of war. It has besides already been
hinted, that these chefs-d'œuvre being readily liable to damage,
scarcely admitting of being repaired, and absolutely incapable of being
replaced, their existence is hazarded by rendering them the objects of
removal, according to the fluctuation of victory.
But it is surely sufficient to say, that wherever the progress of
civilisation has introduced rules to qualify and soften the extremities
of war, these should be strictly adhered to. In the rudest ages of
society, man avails himself of the right of the strongest in the fullest
extent. The victor of the Sandwich islands devours his enemy--the North
American Indian tortures him to death--almost all savage tribes render
their prisoners slaves, and sell them as such. As society advances,
these inhumanities fall out of practice; and it is unnecessary to add,
that, as the victorious general deserves honourable mention in history,
who, by his clemency, relaxes in any respect the rigorous laws of
conquest, so he must be censured in proportion whose conduct tends to
retrograde towards the brutal violence of primitive hostility.
Buonaparte cannot be exempted from this censure. He, as the willing
agent of the Directory under whose commands he acted, had resolved to
disregard the neutrality which had hitherto been considered as attaching
to the productions of the fine arts, and, for the first time, had
determined to view them as the spoils of conquest. The motive is more
easily discovered than justified.
In the Reign of Terror and Equality, the fine arts, with every thing
connected with cultivated feelings, had been regarded as inconsistent
with the simplicity of the Republican character; and, like the
successful fanatics of England, and the first enthusiastic votaries of
the Koran, the true Sans-Culottes were disposed to esteem a taste which
could not generally exist without a previous superior education, as
something aristocratic, and alien from the imaginary standard of
equality, to which it was their purpose to lower all the exertions of
intellect, as well as the possession of property. Palaces were therefore
destroyed, and monuments broken to pieces.
But this brutal prejudice, with the other attempts of these frantic
democrats to bring back the world to a state of barbarism, equally in
moral and in general feeling, was discarded at the fall of the Jacobin
authority. Those who succeeded to the government, exerted themselves
laudably in endeavouring rather to excite men's minds to a love of those
studies and tastes, which are ever found to humanize and soften the
general tone of society, and which teach hostile nations that they have
points of friendly union, even because they unite in admiring the same
masterpieces of art. A museum was formed at Paris, for the purpose of
collecting and exhibiting to public admiration paintings and statues,
and whatever was excellent in art, for the amusement of the citizens,
whose chief scene of pleasure hitherto had been a wild and ill-regulated
civic festival, to vary the usual exhibition of the procession of a
train of victims moving towards the guillotine. The substitution of such
a better object of popular attention was honourable, virtuous, and
politic in itself, and speedily led the French people, partly from
taste, partly from national vanity, to attach consequence to the fine
arts and their productions.
Unfortunately there were no ordinary measures by which the French, as
purchasers, could greatly augment the contents of their Museum; and more
unfortunately for other nations, and ultimately for themselves, they
had the power and the will to increase their possessions of this kind,
without research or expense, by means of the irresistible progress of
their arms. We have no right to say that this peculiar species of
spoliation originated with Buonaparte personally. He probably obeyed the
orders of the Directory; and, besides, instances might no doubt be found
in the history of all nations, of interesting articles of this nature
having been transferred by the chance of war from one country to
another, as in cases of plunder of an ordinary description, which,
though seldom avowed or defended, are not the less occasionally
practised. But Napoleon was unquestionably the first and most active
agent, who made such exactions a matter of course, and enforced them
upon principle; and that he was heartily engaged in this scheme of
general plunder, is sufficiently proved from his expressions to the
Directory, upon transmitting those paintings which the Duke of Modena,
the first sufferer on this system, was compelled to surrender, and which
were transferred to Paris as the legitimate spoils of war.
But before copying the terms in which Napoleon announces the
transmission of masterpieces of art to the National Museum, it ought to
be remarked, that the celebrated Saint Jerome, by Correggio, which he
mentions with a sort of insulting triumph, was accounted so valuable,
that the Duke of Modena offered two millions of livres as the ransom of
that picture alone. This large sum the French general, acting on the
principle which many in his situation were tempted to recognise, might
have safely converted to his own use, under the certainty that the
appropriation, indispensable as his services were to the government,
would neither have been inquired into nor censured. But avarice cannot
be the companion, far less the controller, of ambition. The feelings of
the young victor were of a character too elevated to stoop to the
acquisition of wealth; nor was his career, at that or any other period,
sullied by this particular and most degrading species of selfishness.
When his officers would have persuaded him to accept the money, as more
useful for the army, he replied, that the two millions of livres would
soon be spent, but the Correggio[139] would remain an ornament of the
city of Paris for ages, and inspire the production of future
masterpieces.[140]
In his despatch to the Directory, of 17th Floreal (8th of May,) Napoleon
desires to have some artists sent to him, who might collect the
monuments of art; which shows that the purpose of seizing upon them had
been already formed.[141] In the letter which accompanied the
transmission of the pictures, he has these remarkable expressions:--"You
will receive the articles of the suspension of arms which I have granted
to the Duke of Parma. I will send you as soon as possible the finest
pictures of Correggio, amongst others a Saint Jerome, which is said to
be his masterpiece. I must own that the saint takes an unlucky time to
visit Paris, but I hope you will grant him the honours of the
Museum."[142]
The same system was followed at Milan, where several of the most
valuable articles were taken from the Ambrosian collection. The articles
were received in the spirit with which they were transmitted. The most
able critics were despatched to assist the general in the selection of
the monuments of the fine arts to be transferred to Paris, and the
Secretary-general of the Lyceum, confounding the possession of the
production of genius with the genius itself which created them,
congratulated his countrymen on the noble dispositions which the victors
had evinced. "It is no longer blood," said the orator, "which the French
soldier thirsts for. He desires to lead no slaves in triumph behind his
chariot--it is the glorious spoils of the arts and of industry with
which he longs to decorate his victories--he cherishes that devouring
passion of great souls, the love of glory, and the enthusiasm for high
talents, to which the Greeks owed their astonishing successes. It was
the defence of their temples, their monuments, their statues, their
great artists, that stimulated their valour. It was from such motives
they conquered at Salamis and at Marathon. It is thus that our armies
advance, escorted by the love of arts, and followed by sweet peace, from
Coni to Milan, and soon to proceed from thence to the proud basilic of
St. Peter's." The reasoning of the Secretary of the Lyceum is lost
amidst his eloquence; but the speech, if it means any thing, signifies,
that the seizing on those admired productions placed the nation which
acquired the forcible possession of them, in the same condition as if
she had produced the great men by whom they were achieved;--just as the
ancient Scythians believed they became inspired with the talents and
virtues of those whom they murdered. Or, according to another
interpretation, it may mean that the French, who fought to deprive other
nations of their property, had as praiseworthy motives of action as the
Greeks, who made war in defence of that which was their own. But however
their conduct might be regarded by themselves, it is very certain that
they did by no means resemble those whose genius set the example of such
splendid success in the fine arts. On the contrary, the classical
prototype of Buonaparte in this transaction, was the Roman Consul
Mummius, who violently plundered Greece of those treasures of art, of
which he himself and his countrymen were insensible to the real and
proper value.
It is indeed little to the purpose, in a moral point of view, whether
the motive for this species of rapine were or were not genuine love of
the art. The fingering connoisseur who secretes a gem, cannot plead in
mitigation, that he stole it, not on account of the value of the stone,
but for the excellence of the engraving; any more than the devotee who
stole a Bible could shelter herself under a religious motive. But, in
truth, we do not believe that the French or their general were actuated
on this occasion by the genuine love of art. This taste leads men to
entertain respect for the objects which it admires; and feeling its
genuine influence, a conqueror would decline to give an example of a
species of rapine, which, depriving those objects of admiration of the
protection with which the general sentiment of civilized nations had
hitherto invested them, must hold them up, like other ordinary property,
as a prey to the strongest soldier. Again, we cannot but be of opinion,
that a genuine lover of the arts would have hesitated to tear those
paintings from the churches or palaces, for the decoration of which they
had been expressly painted, and where they must always have been seen to
the best effect, whether from the physical advantages of the light, size
of apartment, and other suitable localities connected with their
original situation, or from the moral feelings which connect the works
themselves with the place for which they were primarily designed, and
which they had occupied for ages. The destruction of these mental
connexions, which give so much additional effect to painting and
statuary, merely to gratify the selfish love of appropriation, is like
taking a gem out of the setting, which in many cases may considerably
diminish its value.
We cannot, therefore, believe, that this system of spoliation was
dictated by any sincere and manly love of the arts, though this was so
much talked of in France at the time. It must, on the contrary, be
ascribed to the art and ambition of the Directory who ordered, and the
general who obeyed; both of whom, being sensible that the national
vanity would be flattered by this species of tribute, hastened to secure
it an ample gratification. Buonaparte, in particular, was at least
sufficiently aware, that, with however little purity of taste the
Parisians might look upon these exquisite productions, they would be
sufficiently alive to the recollection, that, being deemed by all
civilized people the most admirable specimens in the world, the valour
of the French armies, and the skill of their unrivalled general, had
sent them to adorn the metropolis of France; and might hope, that once
brought to the prime city of the Great Nation, such chefs-d'œuvre
could not again be subject to danger by transportation, but must remain
there, fixed as household gods, for the admiration of posterity. So
hoped, as we have seen, the victor himself; and doubtless with the
proud anticipation, that in future ages the recollection of himself, and
of his deeds, must be inseparably connected with the admiration which
the Museum, ordained and enriched by him, was calculated to produce.
But art and ambition are apt to estimate the advantages of a favourite
measure somewhat too hastily. By this breach of the law of nations, as
hitherto acknowledged and acted upon, the French degraded their own
character, and excited the strongest prejudice against their rapacity
among the Italians, whose sense of injury was in proportion to the value
which they set upon those splendid works, and to the dishonour which
they felt at being forcibly deprived of them. Their lamentations were
almost like those of Micah the Ephraimite, when robbed of "the graven
image, and the Teraphim, and the Ephod, and the molten image," by the
armed and overbearing Danites--"Ye have taken away my gods that I have
made, and what have I more?"
Again, by this unjust proceeding, Buonaparte prepared for France and her
capital the severe moral lesson inflicted upon her by the allies in
1815. Victory has wings as well as Riches; and the abuse of conquest, as
of wealth, becomes frequently the source of bitter retribution. Had the
paintings of Correggio, and other great masters, been left undisturbed
in the custody of their true owners, there could not have been room, at
an after period, when looking around the Louvre, for the reflection,
"Here once were disposed the treasures of art, which, won by violence,
were lost by defeat."[143]
FOOTNOTES:
[115] Montholon, tom. iii., p. 162.
[116]
"--procul obscuros colles humilemque videmus
Italiam. Italiam! primus conclamat Achates;
Italiam! læto socii clamore salutant."
VIRG. _Æneid_, Book III.--S.
"Now every star before Aurora flies,
Whose glowing blushes streak the purple skies;
When the dim hills of Italy we view'd,
That peep'd by turns, and dived beneath the flood,
Lo! Italy appears, Achates cries,
And, Italy! with shouts the crowd replies."
DRYDEN.
[117] "The army, on reaching the Adige, will command all the states of
the House of Austria in Italy, and all those of the Pope on this side of
the Apennines; it will be in a situation to proclaim the principles of
liberty, and to excite Italian patriotism against the sway of
foreigners. The word _Italiam. Italiam!_ proclaimed at Milan, Bologna,
and Verona, will produce a magical effect."--NAPOLEON, _Montholon_, tom.
iii., p. 165.
[118] It was dated Cherasco, April the 26th, and sufficiently proves,
that notwithstanding all their victories, many of the soldiery, nay,
even of the superior officers, were still alarmed at the magnitude of
the enterprise on which Napoleon was entering with apparently very
inadequate resources.
[119] Montholon, tom. iii., p. 169; Thibaudeau, tom. i., p 206; Jomini,
tom. viii., p. 117.
[120] Montholon, tom. iii., p. 172.
[121] Moniteur, No. 241, May 20.
[122] Montholon, tom. iii., p. 173; Jomini, tom. viii., p. 126;
Thibaudeau, tom. i., p. 218.
[123] "The loss of the French was only four hundred men."--THIBAUDEAU,
tom. i., p. 218.
[124] Moniteur, No. 241, May 20.
[125] "Vandémiaire and Montenotte," said the Emperor, "never induced me
to look upon myself as a man of a superior class: it was not till after
Lodi that I was struck with the possibility of my becoming a decisive
actor on the scene of political events. It was then that the first spark
of my ambition was kindled."--LAS CASES, tom. i., p. 150.
[126] Montholon, tom. iii., p, 178.
[127] "How subtle is the chain which unites the most trivial
circumstances to the most important events! Perhaps this very nickname
contributed to the Emperor's miraculous success on his return from Elba
in 1815. While he was haranguing the first battalion he met, which he
found it necessary to parley with, a voice from the ranks exclaimed,
'Vive notre petit Caporal!--We will never fight against him.'"--LAS
CASES, tom. i., p. 170.
[128] Thiers, tom. viii., p. 207.
[129] "It was in memory of this mission, that Napoleon, when King of
Italy, created the duchy of Lodi, in favour of Melzi."--MONTHOLON, tom.
iii., p. 179.
[130] Botta, tom. i., p. 431; Jomini, tom. viii., p. 179; Thibaudeau,
tom. i., p. 234; Thiers, tom. viii., p. 208.
[131] On the 20th, Buonaparte addressed the following remarkable order
of the day to the army:--
"Soldiers! you have rushed like a torrent from the top of the Apennines:
you have overthrown, dispersed, all that opposed your march. Piedmont,
delivered from Austrian tyranny, indulges her natural sentiments of
peace and friendship towards France. Milan is yours; and the republican
flag waves throughout Lombardy. The Dukes of Parma and Modena are
indebted for their political existence only to your generosity. The army
which so proudly threatened you, can now find no barrier to protect it
against your courage: neither the Po, the Ticino, nor the Adda, could
stop you a single day: those vaunted bulwarks of Italy opposed you in
vain; you passed them as rapidly as the Apennines. These great successes
have filled the heart of your country with joy; your representatives
have ordered a festival to commemorate your victories, which has been
held in every commune of the republic. There your fathers, your mothers,
your wives, sisters, and mistresses, rejoiced in your victories, and
proudly boasted of belonging to you. Yes, soldiers! you have done
much.--But remains there nothing more to perform? Shall it be said of
us, that we know how to conquer, but not how to make use of victory?
Shall posterity reproach us with having found our Capua in
Lombardy?--But I see you already hasten to arms; an effeminate repose is
tedious to you; the days which are lost to glory, are lost to your
happiness. Well, then! let us set forth; we have still forced marches to
make, enemies to subdue, laurels to gather, injuries to avenge! Let
those who have sharpened the daggers of civil war in France, who have
basely murdered our ministers, and burnt our ships at Toulon, tremble!
The hour of vengeance has struck. But let the people of all countries be
free from apprehension; we are the friends of the people everywhere, and
more particularly of the descendants of Brutus and Scipio, and the great
men whom we have taken for our models. To restore the capitol, to
replace there the statues of the heroes who rendered it illustrious,
with suitable honours, to awaken the Roman people, stupified by several
ages of slavery--such is the fruit of our victories. They will form an
historical era for posterity: yours will be the immortal glory of having
changed the face of the finest part of Europe. The French people, free,
respected by the whole world, will give to Europe a glorious peace,
which will indemnify her for the sacrifices of every kind, which, for
the last six years, she has been making. You will then return to your
homes; and your countrymen will say, as they point you out--'_He
belonged to the army of Italy_.'"--_Moniteur_, No. 254, June 2.
On reading over this proclamation one day at St. Helena, the Emperor
exclaimed--"And yet they have the folly to say I could not write!"--LAS
CASES, tom. iii., p. 86.
[132] Frederic, Duke of Parma, grandson of Philip V. of Spain, was born
in 1751. On his death, in 1802, the duchy was united to France, in
virtue of the convention of 1801.
[133] Montholon, tom. iii., p. 173; Lacretelle, tom. xiii., p. 172;
Thibaudeau, tom. i., p. 211. See the Treaty, Annual Register, vol.
xxxviii., p. 233.
[134] Hercules III., Renaud d'Este, last Duke of Modena, was born in
1727 and died in 1797.
[135] Lacretelle, tom. xiii., p. 187; Montholon, tom. iii., p. 187.
[136] "The duke is avaricious. His only daughter and heiress is married
to the Archduke of Milan. The more you squeeze from him, the more you
take from the House of Austria."--LALLEMANT to BUONAPARTE, 14th May;
_Correspondence Inédite_, tom. i., p. 169.
[137] Montholon, tom. iii., p. 174.
[138] "The republic had already received, by the same title, and placed
in its Museum, the _chefs-d'œuvre_ of the Dutch and Flemish schools.
The Romans carried away from conquered Greece the statues which adorn
the capitol. Every capital of Europe contained the spoils of antiquity,
and no one had ever thought of imputing it to them as a
crime."--THIBAUDEAU, tom. i., p. 214.
[139] Montholon, tom. iii., p. 174.
[140] "Is it, then, so difficult for Sir Walter to justify the motive
which induced Napoleon to prefer works of art? It was a motive too great
and too praiseworthy to need justification."--LOUIS BUONAPARTE, p. 21.
[141] On the 7th of May, Carnot had written to Buonaparte--"The
executive Directory is convinced, citizen-general, that you consider the
glory of the fine arts connected with that of the army under your
command. Italy is, in great part, indebted to them for her riches and
renown; but the time is arrived when their reign must pass into France
to strengthen and embellish that of liberty. The National Museum must
contain the most distinguished monuments of all the arts, and you will
neglect no opportunity of enriching it with such as it expects from the
present conquests of the army of Italy, and those which may follow,"
&c.--_Correspondence Inédite_, tom. i., p. 155.
[142] Moniteur, 25th Floreal, 16th May.
[143] See also Lacretelle's "Digression sur l'enlèvement de statues,
tableaux, &c."--_Hist._, tom. xiii., p. 172.