venues of England, it paffed by a confiderable majority.

This new fyftem of hoftilities was carried into execution throughout the greater part of Europe. The English manufactures found no entrance into any port from the Elbe to the Adriatic, fave thofe of Portugal. Spain, by the declaration of war, had entered partly into the plan; and, on the fuggeftion of the French, was prepared to follow their fteps. Genoa, after repeated struggles to keep her neutrality refpected, placed unfortunately between three great powers, thofe of England, Auftria, and France, and her territory violated fucceffively by each, was compelled to yield to the urgent remonftrances of the French republic, and by a formal treaty (on October 9th) agreed to fhut up her ports against the English. Leghorn was in poffeffion of the republican troops, as we have already related; and the English found themselves confined in the Mediterranean to the poffeffion of the Ifland of Elbe, before Leghorn, to which they retreated when expelled from that city. Their Italian allies, the pope and the king of Naples, were, by the conditions of the armiftice with the French republic, circumfcribed in their means of affording affiftance. Corfica was alfo at this period (15th of October) evacuated by the English, who, having taken poffeffion of it at a time when the tyranny of the jacobins had fubjected France, had found the lefs refiftance in re-establishing the forms of monarchical government. While Spain and Italy remained faithful to the coalition, and the French were menaced in their ports by the fleets of thefe combined powers,

Corfica fubmitted to the British crown, not having at that period the choice of an alternative. But when thefe powers were either neutralifed by the fuccefs of the French armies in Italy, or become hoftile to their former allies by forming new combinations with the French, whom they had joined to extirpate, the Corficans, whofe love of independence had already been the favourite theme of poets and hiftorians, once more felt and cherished the generous flame.

For fome time the deliverance of Corfica had been in contemplation; nor could the vigilance of the viceroy hinder fuch communications, or his authority suppress fuch tendencies to infurrection, as were fufficient to mark the difpofitions of his newly-acquired fubjects. While the French were forming plans, the execution of which was checked by the fuperiority of the English naval force, the Corficans were employed in finding means how to co-operate with their former countrymen, and fhake off their new allegiance. The viceroy, who knew how to estimate the alternately fubtle and stubborn politics of these iflanders, did not wait the explosion, but gave notice that he was going to withdraw his troops, and along with them the kingly government he had come to eftablish. The Corficans fcarcely waited the withdrawing of the English troops, before they formed themselves into primary affemblies to fend deputies to the commiffioners in Italy, to diveft themfelves of their title of fubjects to the king of England, and "fwear allegiance to liberty," as citizens of the French republic,

The negotiation which during the fummer had been carrried on

between

between the republic and Naples, and which had been pursued or interrupted by the latter power accord ing to the difadvantages or victories of the republican troops in Italy, was brought to a termination on the 25th October, by a definitive treaty of peace. The politics of the Neapolitan cabinet were completely under the influence of that of Auftria; and those who fuperintended its operations had caufes of perfonal enmity towards the French, which only belonged to the branches of that house. The interpofition of Spain, and the poffibility that the French might fucceed in fixing their power in Italy, tempered that irritability which was ready to break out on every occafion, and which the refentments of a vain and capricious queen, aided by the prefumption of a favourite prime minifter, had fometimes during the negotiation fo powerfully excited, that it was believed that the armistice which had been concluded, would have ended in a renewal of hoftilities. As little was to be expected from a continuation of the war with Naples, and as the mediation of Spain was confined to that part of Italy, the directory entered seriously into a difcuffion of the terms on which peace fhould be granted. The conditions of the treaty were fo moderate and fo little refembling thofe which had been granted to other powers, that when they came to be examined by the legislature, that body thought the dignity of the republic committed in granting to fo inconfiderable an enemy fuch terms as the most powerful could not have hoped to obtain. Nevertheless, as the treaty had been decreed, and figned by the directory, (10th October) and as it was advancing one step further towards

a general peace, it was ratified by the council of five hundred, and approved by that of the elders. No territory having been taken on either fide, and the hoftility of Naples having fcarcely been felt by the French, there appeared no just caufe for large claims of compenfation. France, by this peace, had ane enemy lefs to contend with; and the fecret articles allowed indemnifications and privileges which were deemed equal to any conditions that could have been afked, and which, from the manner in which they were granted, were less revolting to the feelings of the Nea. politan government.

The treaty with the duke of Parma, which had likewife been nego. tiated through the mediation of Spain, was foon after ratified in the ufual forms. The farne fuccefs did not attend the negotiation with the pope. M. Pierracchi, who had been fent as plenipotentiary from. the holy fee to the French repub lic, found the conditions propofed by the directory fo irrreconcilable with the maxims of the catholic church, that he refused to come to any conclufion. It was, however, agreed that the negotiation fhould be continued in Italy, nearer to the residence of the pope, that his holinefs might himfelf determine what were the conditions to which he chofe to give his affent, and what were the facrifices of religious opinion he should think it expedient to make. A congrefs was therefore appointed to be held at Florence, confifting of the French commiffioners belonging to the army in Italy, on the part of the republic, and of count Galeppi on that of the holy fee. The congrefs, which met on the 11th of Sep. tember, was, however, of fhort duration; for the commiffioners proR 4

duced

duced a long lift of articles, and infifted, as an indifpenfable preliminary, that they thould be accepted or refufed altogether. The papal negotiator, not being prepared to decide fo haftily on fo important a fubject, carried the articles back with him to Rome. By the fe articles the pope was enjoined to feparate hiafelf from the coalition, and from every alliance, offenfive and defenfive, against France; to acknowledge in the moft pofitive terms, that his confidence had been abused and himself deceived by the common enemies of the papal fee and the French republic, who had made ufe of his name to publifh various edicts and declarations, the spirit and effect of which were as contrary to his true intentions as they were hoftile to the rights of nations; that he therefore revoked and annulled all fuch publications, of whatever kind, which thould have been invested with his fpiritual authority, and which fhould have any reference to the affairs of France, fince the period of the French revolution.

In addition to this retractation, he was alfo enjoined to difavow having any concern in the murder of the French ambaffador, Baffeville; to fet at liberty all perfons, whether French, or the natives of other countries, or his own fubjects, who were held in confinement on account of their political opinions; to deprive no man in future of his liberty, or pe:fecute him on account of his religious opinions; to forbid the inhuman cuftom of mutilating children throughout his ftates, under the moft fevere penalties; and, to abolish the tribunal of the inquifition. It was alfo required that the pope fhould make his tates the afylum of the members of the monaftic orders, and of the

priefts, who had quitted Prance; and that he fhould renounce all right to the territories which he formerly poffeffed in France, and which were now integral parts of the French republic.

To these conditions were annexed others under the name of fecret articies, by which the pope fhould bind himself to the payment of 300.000 livres each mouth, till the ratification of the peace with the king of Naples and the emperor; and by which he engaged to cede to the French republic various duchies, and leave it in poffeffion of the legations of Ferrara, Bologna, and its dependencies. Other conditions, under the title of " treaty of commerce and navigation," and articles relative to confuls, made up this series of propofitions, to which the pope was required to give his prompt and undivided affent.

The pope held a congregation of cardinals, who decreed unanimously, that the conditions were not only incompatible with the tenets of the catholic religion, but alfo fubverfive of the rights of fovereignty, and of courfe refused their affent.

Mr. Galeppi returned to Florence to make known to the French commiffioners the determination of the pope, which he did in a note figned by himself, and M. Azzara, the Spanish minifter at the court of Rome, and who held the place of mediator between the holy fee and the republic. The commiffioners, on the other hand, refused to ac. cept this note, alleging that they had no concern with M. Azzara, on which M. Galeppi difpatched another note in which he claimed the mediation of the court of Spain, adding that though they refufed to acknowledge that mediation, the pope's refufal to the arti

destroyed British property to a large amount. This expedition was entrusted to admiral Richery, who, with a fquadron confifting of feven fhips of the line, was releafed, by the aid of the Spanish fleet, from Cadiz, where he had been fhut up by the English for feveral months, with the valuable captures he had made of the English Mediterranean fleet of merchantmen in the preceding fummer. No other advantage refulted to the French than the temporary lofs they occafioned to their enemies, except the return of Richery to Rochelle, and the addition made to the naval armament then equipping at Breit. This lofs on the part of the English was compensated foon after by the advantages gained over the Dutch at the Cape of Good Hope, where admiral Lucas with his fquadron, confisting of seven fhips, was captured, or rather delivered into the power of the English, by the defection of the crews under his com

mand.

This fquadron had efcaped the vigilance of the English by effecting a paffage early in the fpring, and was to have been joined by a French fquadron of fufficient force to effect the purpose for which the expedition was destined,-the recapture of the Cape. The French fquadron was to have been fitted out at the expence of the Dutch, who could obtain this aid on no other conditions; the money was duly paid to the French government but the fquadron was never prepared; and the Dutch, after feveral months of fruitlefs folicitation, instead of recovering their poffeffions, were compelled to fubmit to the lofs of the forces which they had fent to retake them.

While the imperialifts on the upper Rhine were purfuing general

Moreau, who, in the face of a powerful enemy had effected his paffage across the river at Huningue, preferving a poft on the right fide which had been haftily thrown up, from which the Auftrians attempted in vain to diflodge him; the army which had defeated the troops under general Jourdan, over-ran the Palatinate, advancing almost to the banks of the Mofelle on the one fide, and spreading along the frontier of the French territory, on the other. General Bournonville had been ordered from Holland to replace Jourdan, and re-inforce the army of the Sambre and Meufe with the divifions under his command. In addition to the poft oppofite Huningue, and the village of Kell, the French kept poffeffion, on the right fide of the Rhine, of the town of Neuwied, a few miles below the fortrefs of Ehrenbreitstein. An increase of the river from heavy falls of rain having broken the bridge of communication, the Austrians, in order to take advantage of the accident, and poffefs themselves of this important place which was the only point of communication the French held with the right fide between Kehl and Duffeldorf, and whofe communication with the main army was now cut off by the fwell of the waters, croffed the Rhine in feveral places, to divert the attention of the republicans from the attack which they meditated on Neuwied, from the illand, one fide of which still communicated with the fort, as the bridge was unbroken in that part, and from the main land, where their regular batteries were already eftablifhed.

This expedition was planned for the capture of the whole garrifon; but the French general, aware of the defign of the Auftrians, made