CHAPTER XXXV.FROM THE DEATH OF JOSEPH II. TO THE END OF THE GERMAN EMPIRE.(1790—1806.)The Crisis in Europe.—Frederick William II. in Prussia.—Leopold II. in Austria.—His short Reign.—Francis II. succeeds.—French Claims in Alsatia.—War declared against Austria.—The Prussian and Austrian Invasion of France.—Valmy and Jemappes.—The First Coalition.—Campaign of 1793.—French Successes.—Hesitation of Prussia.—The Treaty of Basel.—Catharine II.'s Designs.—Second Partition of Poland.—Kosciusko's Defeat.—Suwarrow takes Warsaw.—End of Poland.—French Invasion of Germany.—Success of the Republic.—Bonaparte in Italy.—Campaign of 1796.—Austrian Successes.—Bonaparte victorious.—Peace of Campo Formio.—New Demands of France.—The Second Coalition.—Suwarrow in Italy and Switzerland.—Bonaparte First Consul.—Victories at Marengo and Hohenlinden.—Peace of Luneville.—The German States reconstructed.—Character of the political Changes.—Supremacy of France.—Hannover invaded.—Bonaparte Emperor.—The Third Coalition.—French march to Vienna.—Austerlitz.—Treaty of Presburg.—End of the "Holy Roman Empire."1790. CONDITION OF EUROPE.The mantles of both Frederick the Great and Joseph II. fell upon incompetent successors, at a time when all Europe was agitated by the beginning of the French Revolution, and when, therefore, the greatest political wisdom was required of the rulers of Germany. It was a crisis, the like of which never before occurred in the history of the world, and probably never will occur again; for, at the time when it came, the people enjoyed fewer rights than they had possessed during the Middle Ages, and the monarchs exercised more power than they had claimed for at least fifteen hundred years before, while general intelligence and the knowledge of human rights were increasing everywhere. The fabrics of society and government were ages behind the demands of the time: a change was inevitable, and because no preparation had been made, it came through violence.1792.Frederick the Great was succeeded by his nephew, Frederick William II., whom, with unaccountable neglect, hehad not instructed in the duties of government. The latter, nevertheless, began with changes which gave him a great popularity. He abolished the French system of collecting duties, the monopolies which were burdensome to the people, and lightened the weight of their taxes. But, by unnecessary interference in the affairs of Holland (because his sister was the wife of William V. of Orange), he spent all the surplus which Frederick had left in the Prussian treasury; he was weak, dissolute and fickle in his character; he introduced the most rigid measures in regard to the press and religious worship, and soon taught the people the difference between a bigoted and narrow-minded and an intelligent and conscientious king.Joseph II. was succeeded by his brother, Leopold II., who for twenty-five years had been Grand-Duke of Tuscany, where he had governed with great mildness and prudence. His policy had been somewhat similar to that of Joseph II., but characterized by greater caution and moderation. When he took the crown of Austria, and immediately afterwards that of the German Empire, he materially changed his plan of government. He was not rigidly oppressive, but he checked the evidences of a freer development among the people, which Joseph II. had fostered. He limited, at once, the pretensions of Austria, cultivated friendly relations with Prussia, which was then inclined to support the Austrian Netherlands in their revolt, and took steps to conclude peace with Turkey. He succeeded, also, in reconciling the Hungarians to the Hapsburg rule, and might, possibly, have given a fortunate turn to the destinies of Austria, if he had lived long enough. But he died on the 1st of March, 1792, after a reign of exactly two years, and was succeeded by his son, Francis II., who was elected Emperor of Germany on the 5th of July, in Frankfort.By this time the great changes which had taken place in France began to agitate all Europe. The French National Assembly very soon disregarded the provisions of the Peace of Westphalia (in 1648), which had only ceded the possessions ofAustriain Alsatia to France, allowing various towns and districts on the West bank of the Upper Rhine to be held by German Princes. The entire authority over these scattered possessions was now claimed by France, and neither Prussia, under Frederick William II., nor Austria under Leopold II. resisted the act otherwise than by a protestwhich had no effect. Although the French queen, Marie Antoinette, was Leopold II.'s sister, his policy was to preserve peace with the Revolutionary party which controlled France. Frederick William's minister, Hertzberg, pursued the same policy, but so much against the will of the king, who was determined to defend the cause of absolute monarchy by trying to rescue Louis XVI. from his increasing dangers, that before the close of 1791 Hertzberg was dismissed from office. Then Frederick William endeavored to create a "holy alliance" of Prussia, Austria, Russia and Sweden against France, but only succeeded far enough to provoke a bitter feeling of hostility to Germany in the French National Assembly.1792. FRANCE AND PRUSSIA.The nobles who had been driven out of France by the Revolution were welcomed by the Archbishops of Mayence and Treves, and the rulers of smaller States along the Rhine, who allowed them to plot a counter-revolution. An angry diplomatic intercourse between France and Austria followed, and in April, 1792, the former country declared war against "the king of Bohemia and Hungary," as Francis II. was styled by the French Assembly. In fact, war was inevitable; for the monarchs of Europe were simply waiting for a good chance to intervene and crush the republican movement in France, which, on its side, could only establish itself through military successes. Although neither party was prepared for the struggle, the energy and enthusiasm of the new men who governed France gained an advantage, at the start, over the lumbering slowness of the German governments. It was not the latter, this time, but their enemy, who profited by the example of Frederick the Great.Prussia and Austria, supported by some but not by all of the smaller States, raised two armies, one of 110,000 men under the Duke of Brunswick, which was to march through Belgium to Paris, while the other, 50,000 strong, was to take possession of Alsatia. The movement of the former was changed, and then delayed by differences of opinion among the royal and ducal commanders. It started from Mayence, and consumed three weeks in marching to the French frontier, only ninety miles distant.Longwyand Verdun were taken without much difficulty, and then the advance ceased. The French under Dumouriez and Kellermann united their forces, held the Germans in check atValmy, on the 20th of September, 1792, and then compelled them to retrace their steps towards the Rhine. While the Prussians were retreating through storms of rain, their ranks thinned by disease, Dumouriez wheeled upon Flanders, met the Austrian army at Jemappes, and gained such a decided victory that by the end of the year all Belgium, and even the city of Aix-la-Chapelle, fell into the hands of the French.1793.At the same time another French army, under General Custine, marched to the Rhine, took Speyer, Worms and finally Mayence, which city was made the head-quarters of a republican movement intended to influence Germany. But these successes were followed, on the 21st of January, 1793, by the execution of Louis XVI., and on the 16th of October of Marie Antoinette,—acts which alarmed every reigning family in Europe and provoked the most intense enmity towards the French Republic. An immediate alliance—called theFirst Coalition—was made by England, Holland, Prussia, Austria, "the German Empire," Sardinia, Naples and Spain, against France. Only Catharine II. of Russia declined to join, not because she did not favor the design of crushing France, but because she would thus be left free to carry out her plans of aggrandizing Russia at the expense of Turkey and Poland.The greater part of the year 1793 was on the whole favorable to the allied powers. An Austrian victory at Neerwinden, on the 18th of March, compelled the French to evacuate Belgium: in July the Prussians reconquered Mayence, and advanced into Alsatia; and a combined English and Spanish fleet took possession of Toulon. But there was no unity of action among the enemies of France; even the German successes were soon neutralized by the mutual jealousy and mistrust of Prussia and Austria, and the war became more and more unpopular. Towards the close of the year the French armies were again victorious in Flanders and along the Rhine: their generals had discovered that the rapid movements and rash, impetuous assaults of their new troops were very effectual against the old, deliberate, scientific tactics of the Germans. Spain, Holland and Sardinia proved to be almost useless as allies, and the strength of the Coalition was reduced to England, Prussia and Austria.1795. THE TREATY OF BASEL.In 1794 a fresh attempt was made. Prussia furnished50,000 men, who were paid by England, and were hardly less mercenaries than the troops sold by Hesse-Cassel twenty years before. In June, the French under Jourdan were victorious at Fleurus, and Austria decided to give up Belgium: the Prussians gained some advantages in Alsatia, but showed no desire to carry on the war as the hirelings of another country. Frederick William II. and Francis II. were equally suspicious of each other, equally weak and vacillating, divided between their desire of overturning the French Republic on the one side, and securing new conquests of Polish territory on the other. Thus the war was prosecuted in the most languid and inefficient manner, and by the end of the year the French were masters of all the territory west of the Rhine, from Alsatia to the sea. During the following winter they assisted in overturning the former government of Holland, where a new "Batavian Republic" was established. Frederick William II. thereupon determined to withdraw from the Coalition, and make a separate peace with France. His minister, Hardenberg, concluded a treaty at Basel, on the 5th of April, 1795, by which Cleves and other Prussian territory west of the Lower Rhine was relinquished to France, and all of Germany north of a line drawn from the river Main eastward to Silesia, was declared to be in a state of peace during the war which France still continued to wage with Austria.The chief cause of Prussia's change of policy seems to have been her fear that Russia would absorb the whole of Poland. This was probably the intention of Catharine II., for she had vigorously encouraged the war between Germany and France, while declining to take part in it. The Poles themselves, now more divided than ever, soon furnished her with a pretext for interference. They had adopted an hereditary instead of an elective monarchy, together with a Constitution similar to that of France; but a portion of the nobility rose in arms against these changes, and were supported by Russia. Then Frederick William II. insisted on being admitted as a partner in the business of interference, and Catharine II. reluctantly consented. In January, 1793, the two powers agreed to divide a large portion of Polish territory between them, Austria taking no active part in the matter. Prussia received the cities of Thorn and Dantzig, the provinces of Posen, Gnesen and Kalisch, and other territory, amounting to more than 20,000 square miles, with1,000,000 inhabitants. The only resistance made to the entrance of the Russian army into Poland, was headed by Kosciusko, one of the heroes of the American war of Independence. Although defeated at Dubienka, where he fought with 4,000 men against 16,000, the hopes of the Polish patriots centred upon him, and when they rose in 1794 to prevent the approaching destruction of their country, they made him Dictator. Russia was engaged in a war with Turkey, and had not troops enough to quell the insurrection, so Prussia was called upon to furnish her share. In June, 1794, Frederick William himself marched to Warsaw, where a Russian army arrived about the same time: the city was besieged, but not attacked, owing to quarrels and differences of opinion among the commanders. At the end of three months, the king got tired and went back to Berlin; several small battles were fought, in which the Poles had the greater advantage, but nothing decisive happened until the end of October, when the Russian General Suwarrow arrived, after a forced march, from the seat of war on the Danube.1795.He first defeated Kosciusko, who was taken prisoner, and then marched upon Warsaw. On the 4th of November the suburb of Praga was taken by storm, with terrible slaughter, and three days afterwards Warsaw fell. This was the end of Poland, as an independent nation. Although Austria had taken no part in the war, she now negotiated for a share in the Third (and last) Partition, which had been decided upon by Russia and Prussia, even before the Polish revolt furnished a pretext for it. Catharine II. favored the Austrian claims, and even concluded a secret agreement with Francis II. without consulting Prussia. When this had been made known, in August, 1795, Prussia protested violently against it, but without effect: Russia took more than half the remaining territory, Austria nearly one-quarter, and Prussia received about 20,000 square miles more, including the city of Warsaw.After the Treaty of Basel, which secured peace to the northern half of Germany, Catharine II., victorious over Turkey and having nothing more to do in Poland, united with England and Austria against France. It was agreed that Russia should send both an army and a fleet, Austria raise 200,000 men, and England contribute 4,000,000 pounds sterling annually towards the expenses of the war. Duringthe summer of 1795, however, little was done. The French still held everything west of the Rhine, and the Austrians watched them from the opposite bank: the strength of both was nearly equal. Suddenly, in September, the French crossed the river, took Düsseldorf and Mannheim, with immense quantities of military stores, and completely laid waste the country in the neighborhood of these two cities, treating the people with the most inhuman barbarity. Then the Austrians rallied, repulsed the French, in their turn, and before winter recovered possession of nearly all the western bank.1796. BONAPARTE'S CAMPAIGN IN ITALY.In January, 1796, an armistice was declared: Spain and Sardinia had already made peace with France, and Austria showed signs of becoming weary of the war. The French Republic, however, found itself greatly strengthened by its military successes: its minister of war, Carnot, and its ambitious young generals, Bonaparte, Moreau, Massena, &c., were winning fame and power by the continuance of hostilities, and the system of making the conquered territory pay all the expenses of the war (in some cases much more), was a great advantage to the French national treasury. Thus the war, undertaken by the Coalition for the destruction of the French Republic, had only strengthened the latter, which was in the best condition for continuing it at a time when the allies (except, perhaps, England) were discouraged, and ready for peace.The campaign of 1796 was most disastrous to Austria. France had an army under Jourdan on the Lower Rhine, another under Moreau—who had replaced General Pichegru—on the Upper Rhine, and a third under Bonaparte in Italy. The latter began his movement early in April; he promised his unpaid, ragged and badly-fed troops that he would give them Milan in four weeks, and he kept his word. Plunder and victory heightened their faith in his splendid military genius: he advanced with irresistible energy, passing the Po, the Adda at Lodi, subjecting the Venetian Republic, forming new republican States out of the old Italian Duchies, and driving the Austrians everywhere before him. By the end of the year the latter held only the strong fortress of Mantua.1797.The French armies on the Rhine were opposed by an Austrian army of equal strength, commanded by the Archduke Karl, a general of considerable talent, but still governedby the military ideas of a former generation. Instead of attacking, he waited to be attacked; but neither Jourdan nor Moreau allowed him to wait long. The former took possession of the Eastern bank of the Lower Rhine: when the Archduke marched against him, Moreau crossed into Baden and seized the passes of the Black Forest. Then the Archduke, having compelled Jourdan to fall back, met the latter and was defeated. Jourdan returned a second time, Moreau advanced, and all Baden, Würtemberg, Franconia, and the greater part of Bavaria fell into the hands of the French. These States not only submitted without resistance, but used every exertion to pay enormous contributions to their conquerors. One-fourth of what they gave would have prevented the invasion, and changed the subsequent fate of Germany. Frankfort paid ten millions of florins, Nuremberg three, Bavaria ten, and the other cities and principalities in proportion, besides furnishing enormous quantities of supplies to the French troops. All these countries purchased the neutrality of France, by allowing free passage to the latter, and agreeing further to pay heavy monthly contributions towards the expenses of the war. Even Saxony, which had not been invaded, joined in this agreement.Towards the end of summer the Archduke twice defeated Jourdan and forced him to retreat across the Rhine. This rendered Moreau's position in Bavaria untenable: closely followed by the Austrians, he accomplished without loss that famous retreat through the Black Forest which is considered a greater achievement than many victories in the annals of war. Thus, at the close of the year 1796, all Germany east of the Rhine, plundered, impoverished and demoralized, was again free from the French. This defeated Bonaparte's plan, which was to advance from Italy through the Tyrol, effect a junction with Moreau in Bavaria, and then march upon Vienna. Nevertheless, he determined to carry out his portion of it, regardless of the fortunes of the other French armies. On the 2d of February, 1797, Mantua surrendered; the Archduke Karl, who had been sent against him, was defeated, and Bonaparte followed with such daring and vigor that by the middle of April he had reached the little town of Leoben, in Styria, only a few days' march from Vienna. Although he had less than 50,000 men, while the Archduke still had about 25,000,and the Austrians, Styrians and Tyrolese, now thoroughly aroused, demanded weapons and leaders, Francis II., instead of encouraging their patriotism and boldly undertaking a movement which might have cut off Bonaparte, began to negotiate for peace. Of course the conqueror dictated his own terms: the preliminaries were settled at once, an armistice followed, and on the 17th of October, 1797, peace was concluded at Campo Formio.1798. THE CONGRESS OF RASTATT.Austria gave Lombardy and Belgium to France, to both of which countries she had a tolerable claim; but she also gave all the territory west of the Rhine, which she had no right to do, even under the constitution of the superannuated "German Empire." On the other hand, Bonaparte gave to Austria Dalmatia, Istria, and nearly all the territory of the Republic of Venice, to which he had not the shadow of a right. He had already conquered and suppressed the Republic of Genoa, so that these two old and illustrious States vanished from the map of Europe, only two years after Poland.Nevertheless, the illusion of a German Empire was kept up, so far as the form was concerned. A Congress of all the States was called to meet at Rastatt, in Baden, and confirm the Treaty of Campo Formio. But France had become arrogant through her astonishing success, and in May, 1798, her ambassadors suddenly demanded a number of new concessions, including the annexation of points east of the Rhine, the levelling of the fortress of Ehrenbreitstein (opposite Coblentz), and the possession of the islands at the mouth of the river. At this time Bonaparte was absent, on his expedition to Egypt, and only England, chiefly by means of her navy, was carrying on the war with France. The new demands made at the Congress of Rastatt not only prolonged the negotiations, but provoked throughout Europe the idea of another Coalition against the French Republic. The year 1798, however, came to an end without any further action, except such as was secretly plotted at the various Courts.Early in 1799, theSecond Coalitionwas formed between England, Russia (where Paul I. had succeeded Catharine II. in 1796), Austria, Naples and Turkey: Spain and Prussia refused to join. An Austrian army under the Archduke defeated Jourdan in March, while another, supported by Naples, was successful against the French inItaly. Meanwhile, the Congress continued to sit at Rastatt, in the foolish hope of making peace after the war had again begun. The approach of the Austrian troops finally dissolved it; but the two French ambassadors, who left for France on the evening of April 28th, were waylaid and murdered near the city by some Austrian hussars. No investigation of this outrage was ever ordered; the general belief is that the Court of Vienna was responsible for it. The act was as mad as it was infamous, for it stirred the entire French people into fury against Germany.1799.In the spring of 1799, a Russian army commanded by Suwarrow arrived in Italy, and in a short time completed the work begun by the Austrians. The Roman Republic was overthrown and Pope Pius VII. restored: all Northern Italy, except Genoa, was taken from the French; and then, finding his movements hampered by the jealousy of the Austrian generals, Suwarrow crossed the St. Gothard with his army, fighting his way through the terrific gorges of the Alps. To avoid the French General, Massena, who had been victorious at Zurich, he was compelled to choose the most lofty and difficult passes, and his march over them was a marvel of daring and endurance. This was the end of his campaign, for the Emperor Paul, suspicious of Austria and becoming more friendly to France, soon afterwards recalled him and his troops. During the campaign of this year, the English army under the Duke of York, had miserably failed in the Netherlands, but the Archduke, although no important battle was fought, held the French thoroughly in check along the frontier of the Rhine.The end of the year, and of the century, brought a great change in the destinies of France. Bonaparte had returned from Egypt, and on the 9th of November, by force of arms, he overthrew the Government and established the Consulate in the place of the Republic, with himself as First Consul for ten years. Being now practically Dictator, he took matters into his own hands, and his first measure was to propose peace to the Coalition, on the basis of the Treaty of Campo Formio. This was rejected by England and Austria, who stubbornly believed that the fortune of the war was at last turning to their side. In Prussia, Frederick William II. had died in November, 1797, and was succeeded by his son, Frederick William III., who was a man of excellent personal qualities, but without either energy, ambition or clearintelligence. Bonaparte's policy was simply to keep Prussia neutral, and he found no difficulty in maintaining the peace which had been concluded at Basel nearly five years before. England chiefly took part in the war by means of her navy, and by contributions of money, so that France, with the best generals in the world and soldiers flushed with victory, was only called upon to meet Austria in the field.1799. BONAPARTE FIRST CONSUL.At this crisis, the Archduke Karl, Austria's single good general, threw up his command, on account of the interference of the Court of Vienna with his plans. His place was filled by the Archduke John, a boy of nineteen, under whom was an army of 100,000 men, scattered in a long line from the Alps to Frankfort. Moreau easily broke through this barrier, overran Baden and Würtemberg, and was only arrested for a short time by the fortifications of Ulm. While these events were occurring, another Austrian army under Melas besieged Massena in Genoa. Bonaparte collected a new force, with such rapidity and secrecy that his plan was not discovered, made a heroic march over the St. Bernard pass of the Alps in May, and came down upon Italy like an avalanche. Genoa, thousands of whose citizens perished with hunger during the siege, had already surrendered to the Austrians; but, when the latter turned to repel Bonaparte, they were cut to pieces on the field of Marengo, on the 14th of June, 1800. This magnificent victory gave all Northern Italy, as far as the river Mincio, into the hands of the French.Again Bonaparte offered peace to Austria, on the same basis as before. An armistice was concluded, and Francis II. made signs of accepting the offer of peace, but only that he might quietly recruit his armies. When, therefore, the armistice expired, on the 25th of November, Moreau immediately advanced to attack the new Austrian army of nearly 90,000 men, which occupied a position along the river Inn. On the 3d of December, the two met at Hohenlinden, and the French, after a bloody struggle, were completely victorious. There was now, apparently, nothing to prevent Moreau from marching upon Vienna, and the Archduke Karl, who had been sent in all haste to take command of the demoralized Austrians, was compelled to ask for an armistice upon terms very humiliating to the Hapsburg pride.1801.After all its combined haughtiness and incompetency, the Court of Vienna gratefully accepted such terms as itcould get. Francis II. sent one of his ministers, Cobenzl, who met Joseph Bonaparte at Lunéville (in Lorraine), and there, on the 9th of February, 1801, peace was concluded. Its chief provisions were those of the Treaty of Campo Formio: all the territory west of the Rhine, from Basel to the sea, was given to France, together with all Northern Italy west of the Adige. The Duke of Modena received part of Baden, and the Duke of Tuscany Salzburg. Other temporal princes of Germany, who lost part or the whole of their territory by the treaty, were compensated by secularizing the dominions of the priestly rulers, and dividing them among the former. Thus the States governed by Archbishops, Bishops, Abbots or other clerical dignitaries, nearly one hundred in number, were abolished at one blow, and what little was left of the fabric of the old German Empire fell to pieces. The division of all this territory among the other States gave rise to new difficulties and disputes, which were not settled for two years longer. The Diet appointed a special Commission to arrange the matter; but, inasmuch as Bonaparte, through his Minister Talleyrand, and Alexander I. of Russia (the Emperor Paul having been murdered in 1801), intrigued in every possible way to enlarge the smaller German States and prevent the increase of Austria, the final arrangements were made quite as much by the two foreign powers as by the Commission of the German Diet.On the 27th of April, 1803, the decree of partition was issued, suddenly changing the map of Germany. Only six free cities were left out of fifty-two,—Frankfort, Hamburg, Bremen, Lübeck, Nuremberg and Augsburg: Prussia received three bishoprics (Hildesheim, Münster and Paderborn), and a number of abbeys and cities, including Erfurt, amounting to four times as much as she had lost on the left bank of the Rhine. Baden was increased to double its former size by the remains of the Palatinate (including Heidelberg and Mannheim), the city of Constance, and a number of abbeys and monasteries: a great part of Franconia, with Würzburg and Bamberg, was added to Bavaria. Würtemberg, Hesse-Darmstadt and Nassau were much enlarged, and most of the other States received smaller additions. At the same time the rulers of Baden, Würtemberg, Hesse-Cassel and Salzburg were dignified by the new title of "Electors"—when they never would be called upon to elect another German Emperor!1803. FRENCH INVASION OF HANNOVER.An impartial study of these events will show that they were caused by the indifference of Prussia to the general interests of Germany, and the utter lack of the commonest political wisdom in Francis II. of Austria and his ministers. The war with France was wantonly undertaken, in the first place; it was then continued with stupid obstinacy after two offers of peace. But except the loss of the left bank of the Rhine, with more than three millions of German inhabitants, Germany, though humiliated, was not yet seriously damaged. The complete overthrow of priestly rule, the extinction of a multitude of petty States, and the abolition of the special privileges of nearly a thousand "Imperial" noble families, was an immense gain to the whole country. The influence which Bonaparte exercised in the partition of 1803, though made solely with a view to the political interests of France, produced some very beneficial changes in Germany. In regard to religion, the Chief Electors were now equally divided, five being Catholic and five Protestant; while the Diet of Princes, instead of having a Catholic majority of twelve, as heretofore, acquired a Protestant majority of twenty-two.France was now the ruling power on the Continent of Europe. Prussia preserved a timid neutrality, Austria was powerless, the new Republics in Holland, Switzerland and Italy were wholly subjected to French influence, Spain, Denmark and Russia were friendly, and even England, after the overthrow of Pitt's ministry, was persuaded to make peace with Bonaparte in 1802. The same year, the latter had himself declared First Consul for life, and became absolute master of the destinies of France. A new quarrel with England soon broke out, and this gave him a pretext for invading Hannover. In May, 1803, General Mortier marched from Holland with only 12,000 men, while Hannover, alone, had an excellent army of 15,000. But the Council of Nobles, who governed in the name of George III. of England, gave orders that "the troops should not be allowed to fire, and might only use the bayonetmoderately, in extreme necessity!" Of course no battle was fought; the country was overrun by the French in a few days, and plundered to the amount of 26,000,000 thalers. Prussia and the other German States quietly looked on, and—did nothing.1804.In March, 1804, the First Consul sent a force across theRhine into Baden, seized the Duke d'Enghien, a fugitive Bourbon Prince, carried him into France and there had him shot. This outrage provoked a general cry of indignation throughout Europe. Two months afterwards, on the 18th of May, Bonaparte assumed the title of Napoleon, Emperor of the French: the Italian Republics were changed into a Kingdom of Italy, and that period of arrogant and selfish personal government commenced which brought monarchs and nations to his feet, and finally made him a fugitive and a prisoner. On the 11th of August, 1804, Francis II. imitated him, by taking the title of "Emperor of Austria," in order to preserve his existing rank, whatever changes might afterwards come.England, Austria and Russia were now more than ever determined to cripple the increasing power of Napoleon. Much time was spent in endeavoring to persuade Prussia to join the movement, but Frederick William III. not only refused, but sent an army to prevent the Russian troops from crossing Prussian territory, on their way to join the Austrians. By the summer of 1805, theThird Coalition, composed of the three powers already named and Sweden, was formed, and a plan adopted for bringing nearly 400,000 soldiers into the field against France. Although the secret had been well kept, it was revealed before the Coalition was quite prepared; and Napoleon was ready for the emergency. He had collected an army of 200,000 men at Boulogne for the invasion of England: giving up the latter design, he marched rapidly into Southern Germany, procured the alliance of Baden, Würtemberg and Bavaria, with 40,000 more troops, and thus gained the first advantage before the Russian and Austrian armies had united.The fortress of Ulm, held by the Austrian General Mack, with 25,000 men, surrendered on the 17th of October. The French pressed forwards, overcame the opposition of a portion of the allied armies along the Danube, and on the 13th of November entered Vienna. Francis II. and his family had fled to Presburg: the Archduke Karl, hastening from Italy, was in Styria with a small force, and a combined Russian and Austrian army of nearly 100,000 men was in Moravia. Prussia threatened to join the Coalition, because the neutrality of her territory had been violated by Bernadotte in marching from Hannover to join Napoleon: the allies, although surprised and disgracefully defeated, werefar from appreciating the courage and skill of their enemy, and still believed they could overcome him. Napoleon pretended to avoid a battle and thereby drew them on to meet him in the field: on the 2d of December at Austerlitz, the "Battle of the Three Emperors" (as the Germans call it) occurred, and by the close of that day the allies had lost 15,000 killed and wounded, 20,000 prisoners and 200 cannon.1806. END OF THE GERMAN EMPIRE.Two days after the battle Francis II. came personally to Napoleon and begged for an armistice, which was granted. The latter took up his quarters in the Palace of the Hapsburgs, at Schönbrunn, as a conqueror, and waited for the conclusion of a treaty of peace, which was signed at Presburg on the 26th of December. Austria was forced to give up Venice to France, Tyrol to Bavaria, and some smaller territory to Baden and Würtemberg; to accept the policy of France in Italy, Holland and Switzerland, and to recognize Bavaria and Würtemberg as independent kingdoms of Napoleon's creation. All that she received in return was the archbishopric of Salzburg. She also agreed to pay one hundred millions of francs to France, and to permit the formation of a new Confederation of the smaller German States, which should be placed under the protectorship of Napoleon. The latter lost no time in carrying out his plan: by July, 1806, theRheinbund(Confederation of the Rhine) was entered into by seventeen States, which formed, in combination, a third power, independent of either Austria or Prussia.Immediately afterwards, on the 6th of August, 1806, Francis II. laid down his title of "Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation," and the political corpse, long since dead, was finally buried. Just a thousand years had elapsed since the time of Charlemagne: the power and influence of the Empire had reached their culmination under the Hohenstaufens, but even then the smaller rulers were undermining its foundations. It existed for a few centuries longer as a system which was one-fourth fact and three-fourths tradition: during the Thirty Years' War it perished, and the Hapsburgs, after that, only wore the ornaments and trappings it left behind. The German people were never further from being a nation than at the commencement of this century; but the most of them still clung to the superstition of an Empire, until the compulsory act of Francis II. showed them, at last, that there was none.
FROM THE DEATH OF JOSEPH II. TO THE END OF THE GERMAN EMPIRE.
(1790—1806.)
The Crisis in Europe.—Frederick William II. in Prussia.—Leopold II. in Austria.—His short Reign.—Francis II. succeeds.—French Claims in Alsatia.—War declared against Austria.—The Prussian and Austrian Invasion of France.—Valmy and Jemappes.—The First Coalition.—Campaign of 1793.—French Successes.—Hesitation of Prussia.—The Treaty of Basel.—Catharine II.'s Designs.—Second Partition of Poland.—Kosciusko's Defeat.—Suwarrow takes Warsaw.—End of Poland.—French Invasion of Germany.—Success of the Republic.—Bonaparte in Italy.—Campaign of 1796.—Austrian Successes.—Bonaparte victorious.—Peace of Campo Formio.—New Demands of France.—The Second Coalition.—Suwarrow in Italy and Switzerland.—Bonaparte First Consul.—Victories at Marengo and Hohenlinden.—Peace of Luneville.—The German States reconstructed.—Character of the political Changes.—Supremacy of France.—Hannover invaded.—Bonaparte Emperor.—The Third Coalition.—French march to Vienna.—Austerlitz.—Treaty of Presburg.—End of the "Holy Roman Empire."
1790. CONDITION OF EUROPE.
The mantles of both Frederick the Great and Joseph II. fell upon incompetent successors, at a time when all Europe was agitated by the beginning of the French Revolution, and when, therefore, the greatest political wisdom was required of the rulers of Germany. It was a crisis, the like of which never before occurred in the history of the world, and probably never will occur again; for, at the time when it came, the people enjoyed fewer rights than they had possessed during the Middle Ages, and the monarchs exercised more power than they had claimed for at least fifteen hundred years before, while general intelligence and the knowledge of human rights were increasing everywhere. The fabrics of society and government were ages behind the demands of the time: a change was inevitable, and because no preparation had been made, it came through violence.
1792.
Frederick the Great was succeeded by his nephew, Frederick William II., whom, with unaccountable neglect, hehad not instructed in the duties of government. The latter, nevertheless, began with changes which gave him a great popularity. He abolished the French system of collecting duties, the monopolies which were burdensome to the people, and lightened the weight of their taxes. But, by unnecessary interference in the affairs of Holland (because his sister was the wife of William V. of Orange), he spent all the surplus which Frederick had left in the Prussian treasury; he was weak, dissolute and fickle in his character; he introduced the most rigid measures in regard to the press and religious worship, and soon taught the people the difference between a bigoted and narrow-minded and an intelligent and conscientious king.
Joseph II. was succeeded by his brother, Leopold II., who for twenty-five years had been Grand-Duke of Tuscany, where he had governed with great mildness and prudence. His policy had been somewhat similar to that of Joseph II., but characterized by greater caution and moderation. When he took the crown of Austria, and immediately afterwards that of the German Empire, he materially changed his plan of government. He was not rigidly oppressive, but he checked the evidences of a freer development among the people, which Joseph II. had fostered. He limited, at once, the pretensions of Austria, cultivated friendly relations with Prussia, which was then inclined to support the Austrian Netherlands in their revolt, and took steps to conclude peace with Turkey. He succeeded, also, in reconciling the Hungarians to the Hapsburg rule, and might, possibly, have given a fortunate turn to the destinies of Austria, if he had lived long enough. But he died on the 1st of March, 1792, after a reign of exactly two years, and was succeeded by his son, Francis II., who was elected Emperor of Germany on the 5th of July, in Frankfort.
By this time the great changes which had taken place in France began to agitate all Europe. The French National Assembly very soon disregarded the provisions of the Peace of Westphalia (in 1648), which had only ceded the possessions ofAustriain Alsatia to France, allowing various towns and districts on the West bank of the Upper Rhine to be held by German Princes. The entire authority over these scattered possessions was now claimed by France, and neither Prussia, under Frederick William II., nor Austria under Leopold II. resisted the act otherwise than by a protestwhich had no effect. Although the French queen, Marie Antoinette, was Leopold II.'s sister, his policy was to preserve peace with the Revolutionary party which controlled France. Frederick William's minister, Hertzberg, pursued the same policy, but so much against the will of the king, who was determined to defend the cause of absolute monarchy by trying to rescue Louis XVI. from his increasing dangers, that before the close of 1791 Hertzberg was dismissed from office. Then Frederick William endeavored to create a "holy alliance" of Prussia, Austria, Russia and Sweden against France, but only succeeded far enough to provoke a bitter feeling of hostility to Germany in the French National Assembly.
1792. FRANCE AND PRUSSIA.
The nobles who had been driven out of France by the Revolution were welcomed by the Archbishops of Mayence and Treves, and the rulers of smaller States along the Rhine, who allowed them to plot a counter-revolution. An angry diplomatic intercourse between France and Austria followed, and in April, 1792, the former country declared war against "the king of Bohemia and Hungary," as Francis II. was styled by the French Assembly. In fact, war was inevitable; for the monarchs of Europe were simply waiting for a good chance to intervene and crush the republican movement in France, which, on its side, could only establish itself through military successes. Although neither party was prepared for the struggle, the energy and enthusiasm of the new men who governed France gained an advantage, at the start, over the lumbering slowness of the German governments. It was not the latter, this time, but their enemy, who profited by the example of Frederick the Great.
Prussia and Austria, supported by some but not by all of the smaller States, raised two armies, one of 110,000 men under the Duke of Brunswick, which was to march through Belgium to Paris, while the other, 50,000 strong, was to take possession of Alsatia. The movement of the former was changed, and then delayed by differences of opinion among the royal and ducal commanders. It started from Mayence, and consumed three weeks in marching to the French frontier, only ninety miles distant.Longwyand Verdun were taken without much difficulty, and then the advance ceased. The French under Dumouriez and Kellermann united their forces, held the Germans in check atValmy, on the 20th of September, 1792, and then compelled them to retrace their steps towards the Rhine. While the Prussians were retreating through storms of rain, their ranks thinned by disease, Dumouriez wheeled upon Flanders, met the Austrian army at Jemappes, and gained such a decided victory that by the end of the year all Belgium, and even the city of Aix-la-Chapelle, fell into the hands of the French.
1793.
At the same time another French army, under General Custine, marched to the Rhine, took Speyer, Worms and finally Mayence, which city was made the head-quarters of a republican movement intended to influence Germany. But these successes were followed, on the 21st of January, 1793, by the execution of Louis XVI., and on the 16th of October of Marie Antoinette,—acts which alarmed every reigning family in Europe and provoked the most intense enmity towards the French Republic. An immediate alliance—called theFirst Coalition—was made by England, Holland, Prussia, Austria, "the German Empire," Sardinia, Naples and Spain, against France. Only Catharine II. of Russia declined to join, not because she did not favor the design of crushing France, but because she would thus be left free to carry out her plans of aggrandizing Russia at the expense of Turkey and Poland.
The greater part of the year 1793 was on the whole favorable to the allied powers. An Austrian victory at Neerwinden, on the 18th of March, compelled the French to evacuate Belgium: in July the Prussians reconquered Mayence, and advanced into Alsatia; and a combined English and Spanish fleet took possession of Toulon. But there was no unity of action among the enemies of France; even the German successes were soon neutralized by the mutual jealousy and mistrust of Prussia and Austria, and the war became more and more unpopular. Towards the close of the year the French armies were again victorious in Flanders and along the Rhine: their generals had discovered that the rapid movements and rash, impetuous assaults of their new troops were very effectual against the old, deliberate, scientific tactics of the Germans. Spain, Holland and Sardinia proved to be almost useless as allies, and the strength of the Coalition was reduced to England, Prussia and Austria.
1795. THE TREATY OF BASEL.
In 1794 a fresh attempt was made. Prussia furnished50,000 men, who were paid by England, and were hardly less mercenaries than the troops sold by Hesse-Cassel twenty years before. In June, the French under Jourdan were victorious at Fleurus, and Austria decided to give up Belgium: the Prussians gained some advantages in Alsatia, but showed no desire to carry on the war as the hirelings of another country. Frederick William II. and Francis II. were equally suspicious of each other, equally weak and vacillating, divided between their desire of overturning the French Republic on the one side, and securing new conquests of Polish territory on the other. Thus the war was prosecuted in the most languid and inefficient manner, and by the end of the year the French were masters of all the territory west of the Rhine, from Alsatia to the sea. During the following winter they assisted in overturning the former government of Holland, where a new "Batavian Republic" was established. Frederick William II. thereupon determined to withdraw from the Coalition, and make a separate peace with France. His minister, Hardenberg, concluded a treaty at Basel, on the 5th of April, 1795, by which Cleves and other Prussian territory west of the Lower Rhine was relinquished to France, and all of Germany north of a line drawn from the river Main eastward to Silesia, was declared to be in a state of peace during the war which France still continued to wage with Austria.
The chief cause of Prussia's change of policy seems to have been her fear that Russia would absorb the whole of Poland. This was probably the intention of Catharine II., for she had vigorously encouraged the war between Germany and France, while declining to take part in it. The Poles themselves, now more divided than ever, soon furnished her with a pretext for interference. They had adopted an hereditary instead of an elective monarchy, together with a Constitution similar to that of France; but a portion of the nobility rose in arms against these changes, and were supported by Russia. Then Frederick William II. insisted on being admitted as a partner in the business of interference, and Catharine II. reluctantly consented. In January, 1793, the two powers agreed to divide a large portion of Polish territory between them, Austria taking no active part in the matter. Prussia received the cities of Thorn and Dantzig, the provinces of Posen, Gnesen and Kalisch, and other territory, amounting to more than 20,000 square miles, with1,000,000 inhabitants. The only resistance made to the entrance of the Russian army into Poland, was headed by Kosciusko, one of the heroes of the American war of Independence. Although defeated at Dubienka, where he fought with 4,000 men against 16,000, the hopes of the Polish patriots centred upon him, and when they rose in 1794 to prevent the approaching destruction of their country, they made him Dictator. Russia was engaged in a war with Turkey, and had not troops enough to quell the insurrection, so Prussia was called upon to furnish her share. In June, 1794, Frederick William himself marched to Warsaw, where a Russian army arrived about the same time: the city was besieged, but not attacked, owing to quarrels and differences of opinion among the commanders. At the end of three months, the king got tired and went back to Berlin; several small battles were fought, in which the Poles had the greater advantage, but nothing decisive happened until the end of October, when the Russian General Suwarrow arrived, after a forced march, from the seat of war on the Danube.
1795.
He first defeated Kosciusko, who was taken prisoner, and then marched upon Warsaw. On the 4th of November the suburb of Praga was taken by storm, with terrible slaughter, and three days afterwards Warsaw fell. This was the end of Poland, as an independent nation. Although Austria had taken no part in the war, she now negotiated for a share in the Third (and last) Partition, which had been decided upon by Russia and Prussia, even before the Polish revolt furnished a pretext for it. Catharine II. favored the Austrian claims, and even concluded a secret agreement with Francis II. without consulting Prussia. When this had been made known, in August, 1795, Prussia protested violently against it, but without effect: Russia took more than half the remaining territory, Austria nearly one-quarter, and Prussia received about 20,000 square miles more, including the city of Warsaw.
After the Treaty of Basel, which secured peace to the northern half of Germany, Catharine II., victorious over Turkey and having nothing more to do in Poland, united with England and Austria against France. It was agreed that Russia should send both an army and a fleet, Austria raise 200,000 men, and England contribute 4,000,000 pounds sterling annually towards the expenses of the war. Duringthe summer of 1795, however, little was done. The French still held everything west of the Rhine, and the Austrians watched them from the opposite bank: the strength of both was nearly equal. Suddenly, in September, the French crossed the river, took Düsseldorf and Mannheim, with immense quantities of military stores, and completely laid waste the country in the neighborhood of these two cities, treating the people with the most inhuman barbarity. Then the Austrians rallied, repulsed the French, in their turn, and before winter recovered possession of nearly all the western bank.
1796. BONAPARTE'S CAMPAIGN IN ITALY.
In January, 1796, an armistice was declared: Spain and Sardinia had already made peace with France, and Austria showed signs of becoming weary of the war. The French Republic, however, found itself greatly strengthened by its military successes: its minister of war, Carnot, and its ambitious young generals, Bonaparte, Moreau, Massena, &c., were winning fame and power by the continuance of hostilities, and the system of making the conquered territory pay all the expenses of the war (in some cases much more), was a great advantage to the French national treasury. Thus the war, undertaken by the Coalition for the destruction of the French Republic, had only strengthened the latter, which was in the best condition for continuing it at a time when the allies (except, perhaps, England) were discouraged, and ready for peace.
The campaign of 1796 was most disastrous to Austria. France had an army under Jourdan on the Lower Rhine, another under Moreau—who had replaced General Pichegru—on the Upper Rhine, and a third under Bonaparte in Italy. The latter began his movement early in April; he promised his unpaid, ragged and badly-fed troops that he would give them Milan in four weeks, and he kept his word. Plunder and victory heightened their faith in his splendid military genius: he advanced with irresistible energy, passing the Po, the Adda at Lodi, subjecting the Venetian Republic, forming new republican States out of the old Italian Duchies, and driving the Austrians everywhere before him. By the end of the year the latter held only the strong fortress of Mantua.
1797.
The French armies on the Rhine were opposed by an Austrian army of equal strength, commanded by the Archduke Karl, a general of considerable talent, but still governedby the military ideas of a former generation. Instead of attacking, he waited to be attacked; but neither Jourdan nor Moreau allowed him to wait long. The former took possession of the Eastern bank of the Lower Rhine: when the Archduke marched against him, Moreau crossed into Baden and seized the passes of the Black Forest. Then the Archduke, having compelled Jourdan to fall back, met the latter and was defeated. Jourdan returned a second time, Moreau advanced, and all Baden, Würtemberg, Franconia, and the greater part of Bavaria fell into the hands of the French. These States not only submitted without resistance, but used every exertion to pay enormous contributions to their conquerors. One-fourth of what they gave would have prevented the invasion, and changed the subsequent fate of Germany. Frankfort paid ten millions of florins, Nuremberg three, Bavaria ten, and the other cities and principalities in proportion, besides furnishing enormous quantities of supplies to the French troops. All these countries purchased the neutrality of France, by allowing free passage to the latter, and agreeing further to pay heavy monthly contributions towards the expenses of the war. Even Saxony, which had not been invaded, joined in this agreement.
Towards the end of summer the Archduke twice defeated Jourdan and forced him to retreat across the Rhine. This rendered Moreau's position in Bavaria untenable: closely followed by the Austrians, he accomplished without loss that famous retreat through the Black Forest which is considered a greater achievement than many victories in the annals of war. Thus, at the close of the year 1796, all Germany east of the Rhine, plundered, impoverished and demoralized, was again free from the French. This defeated Bonaparte's plan, which was to advance from Italy through the Tyrol, effect a junction with Moreau in Bavaria, and then march upon Vienna. Nevertheless, he determined to carry out his portion of it, regardless of the fortunes of the other French armies. On the 2d of February, 1797, Mantua surrendered; the Archduke Karl, who had been sent against him, was defeated, and Bonaparte followed with such daring and vigor that by the middle of April he had reached the little town of Leoben, in Styria, only a few days' march from Vienna. Although he had less than 50,000 men, while the Archduke still had about 25,000,and the Austrians, Styrians and Tyrolese, now thoroughly aroused, demanded weapons and leaders, Francis II., instead of encouraging their patriotism and boldly undertaking a movement which might have cut off Bonaparte, began to negotiate for peace. Of course the conqueror dictated his own terms: the preliminaries were settled at once, an armistice followed, and on the 17th of October, 1797, peace was concluded at Campo Formio.
1798. THE CONGRESS OF RASTATT.
Austria gave Lombardy and Belgium to France, to both of which countries she had a tolerable claim; but she also gave all the territory west of the Rhine, which she had no right to do, even under the constitution of the superannuated "German Empire." On the other hand, Bonaparte gave to Austria Dalmatia, Istria, and nearly all the territory of the Republic of Venice, to which he had not the shadow of a right. He had already conquered and suppressed the Republic of Genoa, so that these two old and illustrious States vanished from the map of Europe, only two years after Poland.
Nevertheless, the illusion of a German Empire was kept up, so far as the form was concerned. A Congress of all the States was called to meet at Rastatt, in Baden, and confirm the Treaty of Campo Formio. But France had become arrogant through her astonishing success, and in May, 1798, her ambassadors suddenly demanded a number of new concessions, including the annexation of points east of the Rhine, the levelling of the fortress of Ehrenbreitstein (opposite Coblentz), and the possession of the islands at the mouth of the river. At this time Bonaparte was absent, on his expedition to Egypt, and only England, chiefly by means of her navy, was carrying on the war with France. The new demands made at the Congress of Rastatt not only prolonged the negotiations, but provoked throughout Europe the idea of another Coalition against the French Republic. The year 1798, however, came to an end without any further action, except such as was secretly plotted at the various Courts.
Early in 1799, theSecond Coalitionwas formed between England, Russia (where Paul I. had succeeded Catharine II. in 1796), Austria, Naples and Turkey: Spain and Prussia refused to join. An Austrian army under the Archduke defeated Jourdan in March, while another, supported by Naples, was successful against the French inItaly. Meanwhile, the Congress continued to sit at Rastatt, in the foolish hope of making peace after the war had again begun. The approach of the Austrian troops finally dissolved it; but the two French ambassadors, who left for France on the evening of April 28th, were waylaid and murdered near the city by some Austrian hussars. No investigation of this outrage was ever ordered; the general belief is that the Court of Vienna was responsible for it. The act was as mad as it was infamous, for it stirred the entire French people into fury against Germany.
1799.
In the spring of 1799, a Russian army commanded by Suwarrow arrived in Italy, and in a short time completed the work begun by the Austrians. The Roman Republic was overthrown and Pope Pius VII. restored: all Northern Italy, except Genoa, was taken from the French; and then, finding his movements hampered by the jealousy of the Austrian generals, Suwarrow crossed the St. Gothard with his army, fighting his way through the terrific gorges of the Alps. To avoid the French General, Massena, who had been victorious at Zurich, he was compelled to choose the most lofty and difficult passes, and his march over them was a marvel of daring and endurance. This was the end of his campaign, for the Emperor Paul, suspicious of Austria and becoming more friendly to France, soon afterwards recalled him and his troops. During the campaign of this year, the English army under the Duke of York, had miserably failed in the Netherlands, but the Archduke, although no important battle was fought, held the French thoroughly in check along the frontier of the Rhine.
The end of the year, and of the century, brought a great change in the destinies of France. Bonaparte had returned from Egypt, and on the 9th of November, by force of arms, he overthrew the Government and established the Consulate in the place of the Republic, with himself as First Consul for ten years. Being now practically Dictator, he took matters into his own hands, and his first measure was to propose peace to the Coalition, on the basis of the Treaty of Campo Formio. This was rejected by England and Austria, who stubbornly believed that the fortune of the war was at last turning to their side. In Prussia, Frederick William II. had died in November, 1797, and was succeeded by his son, Frederick William III., who was a man of excellent personal qualities, but without either energy, ambition or clearintelligence. Bonaparte's policy was simply to keep Prussia neutral, and he found no difficulty in maintaining the peace which had been concluded at Basel nearly five years before. England chiefly took part in the war by means of her navy, and by contributions of money, so that France, with the best generals in the world and soldiers flushed with victory, was only called upon to meet Austria in the field.
1799. BONAPARTE FIRST CONSUL.
At this crisis, the Archduke Karl, Austria's single good general, threw up his command, on account of the interference of the Court of Vienna with his plans. His place was filled by the Archduke John, a boy of nineteen, under whom was an army of 100,000 men, scattered in a long line from the Alps to Frankfort. Moreau easily broke through this barrier, overran Baden and Würtemberg, and was only arrested for a short time by the fortifications of Ulm. While these events were occurring, another Austrian army under Melas besieged Massena in Genoa. Bonaparte collected a new force, with such rapidity and secrecy that his plan was not discovered, made a heroic march over the St. Bernard pass of the Alps in May, and came down upon Italy like an avalanche. Genoa, thousands of whose citizens perished with hunger during the siege, had already surrendered to the Austrians; but, when the latter turned to repel Bonaparte, they were cut to pieces on the field of Marengo, on the 14th of June, 1800. This magnificent victory gave all Northern Italy, as far as the river Mincio, into the hands of the French.
Again Bonaparte offered peace to Austria, on the same basis as before. An armistice was concluded, and Francis II. made signs of accepting the offer of peace, but only that he might quietly recruit his armies. When, therefore, the armistice expired, on the 25th of November, Moreau immediately advanced to attack the new Austrian army of nearly 90,000 men, which occupied a position along the river Inn. On the 3d of December, the two met at Hohenlinden, and the French, after a bloody struggle, were completely victorious. There was now, apparently, nothing to prevent Moreau from marching upon Vienna, and the Archduke Karl, who had been sent in all haste to take command of the demoralized Austrians, was compelled to ask for an armistice upon terms very humiliating to the Hapsburg pride.
1801.
After all its combined haughtiness and incompetency, the Court of Vienna gratefully accepted such terms as itcould get. Francis II. sent one of his ministers, Cobenzl, who met Joseph Bonaparte at Lunéville (in Lorraine), and there, on the 9th of February, 1801, peace was concluded. Its chief provisions were those of the Treaty of Campo Formio: all the territory west of the Rhine, from Basel to the sea, was given to France, together with all Northern Italy west of the Adige. The Duke of Modena received part of Baden, and the Duke of Tuscany Salzburg. Other temporal princes of Germany, who lost part or the whole of their territory by the treaty, were compensated by secularizing the dominions of the priestly rulers, and dividing them among the former. Thus the States governed by Archbishops, Bishops, Abbots or other clerical dignitaries, nearly one hundred in number, were abolished at one blow, and what little was left of the fabric of the old German Empire fell to pieces. The division of all this territory among the other States gave rise to new difficulties and disputes, which were not settled for two years longer. The Diet appointed a special Commission to arrange the matter; but, inasmuch as Bonaparte, through his Minister Talleyrand, and Alexander I. of Russia (the Emperor Paul having been murdered in 1801), intrigued in every possible way to enlarge the smaller German States and prevent the increase of Austria, the final arrangements were made quite as much by the two foreign powers as by the Commission of the German Diet.
On the 27th of April, 1803, the decree of partition was issued, suddenly changing the map of Germany. Only six free cities were left out of fifty-two,—Frankfort, Hamburg, Bremen, Lübeck, Nuremberg and Augsburg: Prussia received three bishoprics (Hildesheim, Münster and Paderborn), and a number of abbeys and cities, including Erfurt, amounting to four times as much as she had lost on the left bank of the Rhine. Baden was increased to double its former size by the remains of the Palatinate (including Heidelberg and Mannheim), the city of Constance, and a number of abbeys and monasteries: a great part of Franconia, with Würzburg and Bamberg, was added to Bavaria. Würtemberg, Hesse-Darmstadt and Nassau were much enlarged, and most of the other States received smaller additions. At the same time the rulers of Baden, Würtemberg, Hesse-Cassel and Salzburg were dignified by the new title of "Electors"—when they never would be called upon to elect another German Emperor!
1803. FRENCH INVASION OF HANNOVER.
An impartial study of these events will show that they were caused by the indifference of Prussia to the general interests of Germany, and the utter lack of the commonest political wisdom in Francis II. of Austria and his ministers. The war with France was wantonly undertaken, in the first place; it was then continued with stupid obstinacy after two offers of peace. But except the loss of the left bank of the Rhine, with more than three millions of German inhabitants, Germany, though humiliated, was not yet seriously damaged. The complete overthrow of priestly rule, the extinction of a multitude of petty States, and the abolition of the special privileges of nearly a thousand "Imperial" noble families, was an immense gain to the whole country. The influence which Bonaparte exercised in the partition of 1803, though made solely with a view to the political interests of France, produced some very beneficial changes in Germany. In regard to religion, the Chief Electors were now equally divided, five being Catholic and five Protestant; while the Diet of Princes, instead of having a Catholic majority of twelve, as heretofore, acquired a Protestant majority of twenty-two.
France was now the ruling power on the Continent of Europe. Prussia preserved a timid neutrality, Austria was powerless, the new Republics in Holland, Switzerland and Italy were wholly subjected to French influence, Spain, Denmark and Russia were friendly, and even England, after the overthrow of Pitt's ministry, was persuaded to make peace with Bonaparte in 1802. The same year, the latter had himself declared First Consul for life, and became absolute master of the destinies of France. A new quarrel with England soon broke out, and this gave him a pretext for invading Hannover. In May, 1803, General Mortier marched from Holland with only 12,000 men, while Hannover, alone, had an excellent army of 15,000. But the Council of Nobles, who governed in the name of George III. of England, gave orders that "the troops should not be allowed to fire, and might only use the bayonetmoderately, in extreme necessity!" Of course no battle was fought; the country was overrun by the French in a few days, and plundered to the amount of 26,000,000 thalers. Prussia and the other German States quietly looked on, and—did nothing.
1804.
In March, 1804, the First Consul sent a force across theRhine into Baden, seized the Duke d'Enghien, a fugitive Bourbon Prince, carried him into France and there had him shot. This outrage provoked a general cry of indignation throughout Europe. Two months afterwards, on the 18th of May, Bonaparte assumed the title of Napoleon, Emperor of the French: the Italian Republics were changed into a Kingdom of Italy, and that period of arrogant and selfish personal government commenced which brought monarchs and nations to his feet, and finally made him a fugitive and a prisoner. On the 11th of August, 1804, Francis II. imitated him, by taking the title of "Emperor of Austria," in order to preserve his existing rank, whatever changes might afterwards come.
England, Austria and Russia were now more than ever determined to cripple the increasing power of Napoleon. Much time was spent in endeavoring to persuade Prussia to join the movement, but Frederick William III. not only refused, but sent an army to prevent the Russian troops from crossing Prussian territory, on their way to join the Austrians. By the summer of 1805, theThird Coalition, composed of the three powers already named and Sweden, was formed, and a plan adopted for bringing nearly 400,000 soldiers into the field against France. Although the secret had been well kept, it was revealed before the Coalition was quite prepared; and Napoleon was ready for the emergency. He had collected an army of 200,000 men at Boulogne for the invasion of England: giving up the latter design, he marched rapidly into Southern Germany, procured the alliance of Baden, Würtemberg and Bavaria, with 40,000 more troops, and thus gained the first advantage before the Russian and Austrian armies had united.
The fortress of Ulm, held by the Austrian General Mack, with 25,000 men, surrendered on the 17th of October. The French pressed forwards, overcame the opposition of a portion of the allied armies along the Danube, and on the 13th of November entered Vienna. Francis II. and his family had fled to Presburg: the Archduke Karl, hastening from Italy, was in Styria with a small force, and a combined Russian and Austrian army of nearly 100,000 men was in Moravia. Prussia threatened to join the Coalition, because the neutrality of her territory had been violated by Bernadotte in marching from Hannover to join Napoleon: the allies, although surprised and disgracefully defeated, werefar from appreciating the courage and skill of their enemy, and still believed they could overcome him. Napoleon pretended to avoid a battle and thereby drew them on to meet him in the field: on the 2d of December at Austerlitz, the "Battle of the Three Emperors" (as the Germans call it) occurred, and by the close of that day the allies had lost 15,000 killed and wounded, 20,000 prisoners and 200 cannon.
1806. END OF THE GERMAN EMPIRE.
Two days after the battle Francis II. came personally to Napoleon and begged for an armistice, which was granted. The latter took up his quarters in the Palace of the Hapsburgs, at Schönbrunn, as a conqueror, and waited for the conclusion of a treaty of peace, which was signed at Presburg on the 26th of December. Austria was forced to give up Venice to France, Tyrol to Bavaria, and some smaller territory to Baden and Würtemberg; to accept the policy of France in Italy, Holland and Switzerland, and to recognize Bavaria and Würtemberg as independent kingdoms of Napoleon's creation. All that she received in return was the archbishopric of Salzburg. She also agreed to pay one hundred millions of francs to France, and to permit the formation of a new Confederation of the smaller German States, which should be placed under the protectorship of Napoleon. The latter lost no time in carrying out his plan: by July, 1806, theRheinbund(Confederation of the Rhine) was entered into by seventeen States, which formed, in combination, a third power, independent of either Austria or Prussia.
Immediately afterwards, on the 6th of August, 1806, Francis II. laid down his title of "Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation," and the political corpse, long since dead, was finally buried. Just a thousand years had elapsed since the time of Charlemagne: the power and influence of the Empire had reached their culmination under the Hohenstaufens, but even then the smaller rulers were undermining its foundations. It existed for a few centuries longer as a system which was one-fourth fact and three-fourths tradition: during the Thirty Years' War it perished, and the Hapsburgs, after that, only wore the ornaments and trappings it left behind. The German people were never further from being a nation than at the commencement of this century; but the most of them still clung to the superstition of an Empire, until the compulsory act of Francis II. showed them, at last, that there was none.