it to account. He flew to oppose Moreau; but before he could bring that officer to action, large reinforcements reached the French army, and General Joubert arrived to command it. A variety of movements now occurred, extending through the remaining days of June, and the whole of July; and operating along the entire theatre of two states. Many partial encounters took place, the greater number of which were favourable to the allies; many fortresses were taken and posts carried, but it was not till towards the middle of August that the great battle of Novi was fought, which may be said to have completely broken, for a season, the power of the Republicans in Italy. It would be doing injustice to our author were we to pass by his description of that brilliant affair; or to give it in other words than his own.

General Joubert, anxious to raise the siege of Tortona, which Suwarrow with his whole army covered, determined, with the full approbation of Moreau his second in command, to risk a battle for that purpose. With this view he put his divisions in motion, and came in sight of the allies, who had manœuvred so as to place their right upon Orba, and the left at Rivalta.

"On the 14th of August," says M. Dumas, "the two armies were occupied in observing one another, and in completing their several dispositions. General Joubert drew up on the heights in an oblique position, his right towards the Scrivia, the centre towards Novi, and the left towards Bassaluzzo, which enabled him to cover the movement of a column that was detached from the right beyond the Scrivia, in order to follow by Cassano di Spinola, the mountains which continue to the right of that river, and to reach Tortona.

"This movement, which General Suwarrow was no longer able to prevent, but by displacing the present army, determined him to attack on the morning of the 15th.

"The attack was commenced by the right of the allies commanded by General Kray, against the left of the French, where General Joubert commanded in person. Scarcely were they engaged, when the latter, wishing to animate by his presence a charge of infantry, and calling ' en avant, en avant!' was struck to the heart by a ball, and fell exclaiming, marchez, marchez toujours!'

"While General Kray was endeavouring to fall upon the rear of Novi, he was attacked in front by the Russian General Bagration; but both were repulsed; the Russian division, under General Dorfelden, in the centre, and the left wing of General Melas, received orders to support Bagration, the first by the causeway of Novi, and General Melas reascending the left bank of the Scrivia; but this double attack had no better success than that of the Generals Kray and Bagration; General Dorfelden attempted, without success, to gain the heights on the left of Novi.

"The whole front of the two armies was engaged, and the carnage was dreadful.

VOL. 1. NO. I.

I

"At three o'clock the corps of General Kray having been twice repulsed and much weakened, General Suwarrow caused a second attack against the heights of Novi by the three Russian divisions under the orders of Generals Dorfelden, Bagration, and Miloradowitsch; but such was the steadiness of the French, that notwithstanding the reiterated charges of the Russians they still maintained their position. The centre of the allied army was almost destroyed; three times the attack was sustained or renewed by General Suwarrow with the most determined vigour, in order to occupy or at least to restrain the French centre, which he found it impossible to force. General Moreau, who had resumed the command after the death of Joubert, led them on in person, and, as well as the Generals St. Cyr and Desolles, performed prodigies of valour.

"Meanwhile General Melas, with eight battalions of grenadiers and six battalions of Austrian infantry, which formed the left wing of the allied army, having reached the first heights of Novi on the side of Pietale, and despatched the corps under General Nobili along the left bank of the Scrivia, endeavoured to overpower the whole right of the French army; he advanced as far as Serravalle, which he relieved; he occupied Arquata, and proceeded by the way of Serravalle upon Novi; he directed an attack on the right flank of the French by the division of General Folich, led on by the first battalion of Furtsenberg and by the brigade commanded by Major General Lusignan, who, vehemently repulsed on the first charge, was himself seriously wounded, and made prisoner. General Melas sustained the column which formed his right by a second under the orders of General Laudon; a third, headed by General Lichtenstein, received orders to pass the French line to the back of their right, and to occupy the advantageous positions afforded in the intervals of their columns; General Melas caused their advance to be protected by batteries corresponding with the line of their movement. This manœuvre decided the day.

"Towards five in the evening, General Melas, with the grenadiers of Paar, attacked in flank the position of Novi, which had cost so much blood from the commencement of the action, and which Moreau now proceeded to reinforce in order to cover the retreat which he had ordered. The French, finding themselves nearly surrounded, were constrained to abandon Novi; the column under the Prince de Lichtenstein had already intercepted their communication with Gavi. It was only possible, therefore, for them to retire by their left flank upon Ovada. The retreat was at first effected in good order, but the artillery not having moved off through the village of Pasturana so quickly as it might have done, the division which formed the rear-guard found the village crowded with troops; its progress was arrested, itself thrown into disorder, and speedily overtaken by the corps of General Karackzy, who had been despatched by General Suwarrow in their pursuit. The French generals Perignon, Grouchy, and Partouneaux, made a last effort to rally the rear-guard, in which they were unsuccessful; all three were wounded and made prisoners, along with the Piedmontese general Colli. Perignon and Grouchy received several sabre wounds.

"General Grouchy, who after several fruitless attempts, had rallied a body of cavalry, made a charge with a standard in his hand, and after losing it in the struggle, he placed his hat on the point of his sword, and returned to the charge, but he was this time wounded and thrown from his horse. Night put an end to the contest."

It is hardly necessary for us to remind the reader, that the good effects which might have resulted from this splendid victory,-a victory which M. Dumas not unaptly compares to those of Malplaquet in 1709, and Francfort sur l'Oder in 1759, were sadly counteracted by the unfortunate change which soon afterwards took place in the plans and councils of the allies. Called away from the scene of his triumphs to assist in the subjugation of Switzerland, Suwarrow found himself deserted in that difficult country by the corps which ought to have supported him, and instead of acting there the brilliant part which he had acted on the plains of Italy, was with much difficulty, and by dint of extraordinary courage and perseverance on the part of his troops, only enabled to save himself from destruction. The Archduke, in the mean while, began to relax in his exertions. The invasion of France was no longer hinted at, but every nerve applied to secure and reduce to order those states which the house of Austria had recovered. Finally, Russia withdrew altogether from the coalition, and the fabric, which it had cost so much blood and treasure to erect, was shaken to its foundation. But it is high time that we should turn our eyes to other parts of the world.

Whilst the Russian and Austrian armies were thus pressing upon the French Republic on one side, it appeared advisable to the British government to try the effect of a diversion on another. The Dutch, it was believed, were ripe for revolt; and nothing more was wanting than the arrival of a force, round which they might rally, in order at once to lead them into it. Measures were accordingly entered into for the invasion of Holland by a combined army of English and Russians, of which the chief command was to be intrusted to the Duke of York; and preparations began, about the middle of the summer, to be set on foot for its organization. It does not appear that any attempts were made to keep secret the point towards which the armament in question was destined. On the contrary, the assembling of some 20 or 25,000 men along the coast of the mouth of the Thames, as well as the numerous proclamations in favour of the Stadtholder, which were industriously circulated, served to satisfy the Directory, as early as the month of July, that a storm would, before long, burst upon some part of the Batavian Republic. The Republicans were not remiss in preparing to meet it. The newlyraised national guard was embodied and regularly drilled, fresh

"At three o'clock the corps of General Kray having been twice repulsed and much weakened, General Suwarrow caused a second attack against the heights of Novi by the three Russian divisions under the orders of Generals Dorfelden, Bagration, and Miloradowitsch; but such was the steadiness of the French, that notwithstanding the reiterated charges of the Russians they still maintained their position. The centre of the allied army was almost destroyed; three times the attack was sustained or renewed by General Suwarrow with the most determined vigour, in order to occupy or at least to restrain the French centre, which he found it impossible to force. General Moreau, who had resumed the command after the death of Joubert, led them on in person, and, as well as the Generals St. Cyr and Desolles, performed prodigies of valour.

"Meanwhile General Melas, with eight battalions of grenadiers and six battalions of Austrian infantry, which formed the left wing of the allied army, having reached the first heights of Novi on the side of Pietale, and despatched the corps under General Nobili along the left bank of the Scrivia, endeavoured to overpower the whole right of the French army; he advanced as far as Serravalle, which he relieved; he occupied Arquata, and proceeded by the way of Serravalle upon Novi; he directed an attack on the right flank of the French by the division of General Folich, led on by the first battalion of Furtsenberg and by the brigade commanded by Major General Lusignan, who, vehemently repulsed on the first charge, was himself seriously wounded, and made prisoner. General Melas sustained the column which formed his right by a second under the orders of General Laudon; a third, headed by General Lichtenstein, received orders to pass the French line to the back of their right, and to occupy the advantageous positions afforded in the intervals of their columns; General Melas caused their advance to be protected by batteries corresponding with the line of their movement. This manœuvre decided the day.

"Towards five in the evening, General Melas, with the grenadiers of Paar, attacked in flank the position of Novi, which had cost so much blood from the commencement of the action, and which Moreau now proceeded to reinforce in order to cover the retreat which he had ordered. The French, finding themselves nearly surrounded, were constrained to abandon Novi; the column under the Prince de Lichtenstein had already intercepted their communication with Gavi. It was only possible, therefore, for them to retire by their left flank upon Ovada. The retreat was at first effected in good order, but the artillery not having moved off through the village of Pasturana so quickly as it might have done, the division which formed the rear-guard found the village crowded with troops; its progress was arrested, itself thrown into disorder, and speedily overtaken by the corps of General Karackzy, who had been despatched by General Suwarrow in their pursuit. The French generals Perignon, Grouchy, and Partouneaux, made a last effort to rally the rear-guard, in which they were unsuccessful; all three were wounded and made prisoners, along with the Piedmontese general Colli. Perignon and Grouchy received several sabre wounds.

"General Grouchy, who after several fruitless attempts, had rallied a body of cavalry, made a charge with a standard in his hand, and after losing it in the struggle, he placed his hat on the point of his sword, and returned to the charge, but he was this time wounded and thrown from his horse. Night put an end to the contest."

It is hardly necessary for us to remind the reader, that the good effects which might have resulted from this splendid victory,-a victory which M. Dumas not unaptly compares to those of Malplaquet in 1709, and Francfort sur l'Oder in 1759, were sadly counteracted by the unfortunate change which soon afterwards took place in the plans and councils of the allies. Called away from the scene of his triumphs to assist in the subjugation of Switzerland, Suwarrow found himself deserted in that difficult country by the corps which ought to have supported him, and instead of acting there the brilliant part which he had acted on the plains of Italy, was with much difficulty, and by dint of extraordinary courage and perseverance on the part of his troops, only enabled to save himself from destruction. The Archduke, in the mean while, began to relax in his exertions. The invasion of France was no longer hinted at, but every nerve applied to secure and reduce to order those states which the house of Austria had recovered. Finally, Russia withdrew altogether from the coalition, and the fabric, which it had cost so much blood and treasure to erect, was shaken to its foundation. But it is high time that we should turn our eyes to other parts of the world.

Whilst the Russian and Austrian armies were thus pressing upon the French Republic on one side, it appeared advisable to the British government to try the effect of a diversion on another. The Dutch, it was believed, were ripe for revolt; and nothing more was wanting than the arrival of a force, round which they might rally, in order at once to lead them into it. Measures were accordingly entered into for the invasion of Holland by a combined army of English and Russians, of which the chief command was to be intrusted to the Duke of York; and preparations began, about the middle of the summer, to be set on foot for its organization. It does not appear that any attempts were made to keep secret the point towards which the armament in question was destined. On the contrary, the assembling of some 20 or 25,000 men along the coast of the mouth of the Thames, as well as the numerous proclamations in favour of the Stadtholder, which were industriously circulated, served to satisfy the Directory, as early as the month of July, that a storm would, before long, burst upon some part of the Batavian Republic. The Republicans were not remiss in preparing to meet it. The newlyraised national guard was embodied and regularly drilled, fresh