while the French army possessed officers every way qualified for the important but bloody business of war, the allies were led on by men confident to destruction, but by no means equal to the arduous task. Hence the result of the dreadful battle just described. Experience has abundantly proved, that both Germans and Russians possess courage equal, if not superior, to the French, and are in general stronger,the question then very naturally arises-why are they not victorious when opposed with equal numbers ?— Because they are miserably officered. The English prints, about this period, vied with each other, in loading with fulsome praise, the magnanimous emperor of Russia; he was called the courageous youth, the heroic Alexander, and every other fine epithet to be found in the English language. These high sounding titles may please the ear, and flatter the vanity of a weak prince-they may look very pretty too when written or printed on paper; yet they all evaporate in empty nothingness on the field of battle. The emperor of Russia may possess a fair portion of courage; perhaps he might have personally led пр his troops to the charge; and that on his return to St. Petersburg, after the battle, he might have had a triumph decreed, by his subjects, for that which he did not perform; yet nothing is more certain, than that on the plains of Moravia, he experienced an inglorious and signal defeat, and was forced to make an ignoninious retreat from that very army, to which, but a few hours before, he had attempted to dictate in a strain of imperial authority, and which he affected to despise.-Such is the mutability of human affairs! Various rumours were afloat in this country, about the time that the battle of Austerlitz was fought. It was known that a general engagement was expected, and report sometimes gave the victory to one side, and sometimes to the other. The affair at Ulm, the capture of Vienna, &c. had, however, prepared the thinking part of the English people to hear of further defeat. Bet from this state of uncertainty, the French were the first to relieve us-they contrived, with the help of the tide, to drift a boat out of Boulogne harbour, which, on being picked up by one of the English cruizers, was found to contain a short note, addressed to the commander of the British vessels on that station. Commodore Owen, then of the Immortalite frigate, sent this note to England, which contained a very laconic account of the defeat of the allies. Intelligence shortly afterwards arrived, which detailed at much greater length the disastrous news. Continent Coalition, so ruinous to the true interests of this country, was always a favorite object with Mr. Pitt. Although, from time to time, he witnessed the inefficacy of such measures; yet, with an obstinacy peculiar to himself, he persevered to the last in a system, which repeated experience had demonstrated to be calculated solely to augment that very power which it was his professed object to diminish. The plan pursued by Mr. Addington, in attacking the colonies of the enemy, and in other respects confining himself to naval operations, seemed to insure to England every advantage which she had a right to expect, and was attended with an expence comparatively trifling; but this prudent and economical plan of carrying on the war was by no means suited to the views of that hungry herd, who made immense fortunes by a system of extended, and consequently expensive, warfare, and who constituted the bulk of Mr. Pitt's friends. These persons, though perhaps most of them had acquired large fortunes, had needy relations and friends, whom they wished, in like manner, to accumulate riches by the blood of their fellow-creatures. The cry, therefore, of a weak administration was quickly raised by this interested party against Mr. Addington, whom they also affected to consider as a man of inferior abilities, and no way calculated to wield the immense resources of the British empire. They called loudly for a more vigorous man to direct the national energy, and thus Mr. Pitt again returned to place and power. Intent on continental coalition, he succeeded in persuading the emperor of Russia to join, what was denominated, the common cause, and the battle of Austerlitz terminated the business. But this heaven-born minister (as he has been sometimes called) had calculated so much upon this coalition, that its miscarriage greatly affected his health, already impaired by intense application to business, as well as the bottle:-he was gradually observed to sink under the burden which oppressed him, and at length terminated his earthly career, on the 23rd of January, 1806; in the 47th year of his age. END OF VOL. III. Printed by W. Leak, Ormskirk. TO VOLUME III. A. 303 Resigns his office, 453 frigates and a Danish frigate, 1 Alexander proclaimed emperor of Ancona surrenders to the allies, 129 coast of Portugal, 411 Arklow attacked by the Irish rebels, in favor of their sovereign, 117 Task allotted to the, 100 Armistice between the French and vol. iii. duke Charles and Moreau, 228 Atalante, brig, taken by the Eng- Austerlitz, decisive battle of, 538 of the, 83 Position of the, 100 B. Bagration, prince, attacked and de- Ballynahinch, battle of, 9 Beauharnois, Eugene, viceroy of Belgians, disaffection of the, 58 Blackman, a famous privateering a in Egypt,43 Proclamation of, to 538 Bonaparte's address to the senate, Brannau taken by the French, 503 the French and Austrians, 213 British ministry, uneasiness of the, 320 Reinforce the fleet on the Brune appointed to the command Brunn entered by the French, 514 C. Cairo, insurrection at, 51 Invest- Caldero, battle near, 520 Cape Francois taken by the French, 350 Cape Town invested by the blacks, who are obliged to retreat, 366 Caraccioli, prince, hanged, 121 Carnot appointed to the war de- Casteggio taken by the French, 208 clamation of ordered to Paris63 manders of the forts, 350 Surrenders to the French, 360 of upper and lower Austria, 511 deserts the republican cause, 118 |