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tion of himself to carry on a fiege in form. He had not the artillery neceflary for this purpofe, unlefs, indeed, he fhould borrow it from the English fleet: but it could not be any other than a matter both tedious and difficult to convert the English guns, mounted for the marine fervice, into battering cannon.

The nature of the ground divided the whole of the defence, as well as the attack, into two distinct and feparate parts, by the courfe of the Bifagno. The forts l'Eperon and Diamant, covered the line of defence on the left; and, on the right, it was aided by the pofition of Genoa, on the heights of Del Bati, and defended by the fort of Riche lieu, to which are attached five counter-forts, fituated on the prolongation of the eminence. Maffena, after making thefe difpofitions, which feemed to fecure, at least for a time, the fafety of Genoa, projected a grand movement, which had for its object nothing le's than to blockade Savona, retake Vado, and, by recovering his firft lines, re-establish his communications with general Suchet.

On the night between the eighth and ninth, all the corps that were to compofe the column of general Soult, were directed to proceed to Voltri.

The Auftrians employed the whole of the eighth of April, (the taking of the Bochetta excepted) in watching the motions of the French, and in drawing over different corps from their left to their right, to wards the centre of their pofts, which was at Safello.

April 9. At three o'clock, on the morning of that day, notice was

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By the plan agreed on, general Soult was to be at Safello in the evening; but, a movement made by the enemy, retarded the movement of general Soult, by the neceffity which it laid him under of fecuring, with great care, his rear, and keeping up his communication with Genoa. Towards two o'clock in the morning, at the moment he was preparing to depart from Voltri, to proceed to Safello, he learnt that the enemy, having reduced the poft of Cabannes de Macarello, had advanced as far as Acqua-Sarta, within three miles of Voltri. this, he immediately formed the refolution to attack the enemy in this new pofition. This operation was committed to general Gazau, and he performed it with fuccefs. But even this fuccefs prevented general Soult from taking the fhare, that had been allotted to him, in the operations of the next day, refolved on by general Maflena.

On

April 10. At four o'clock in the morning, general Soult directed his march by Aqua Bianca, Martino, and St. Pietro del Alba, to Satello. About a mile from Pallo, he was informed that four Auftrian regiments, making, in all, eight thoufand men, were on their way from Monte Notte to la Verreria, and that, on the morrow, that column

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was to attack the detachment at Campani, and proceed, thereafter, to Voltri, in order to cut off the retreat of the French column that marched on the coast, along fide of the Marine, and which was headed by general Maflena in perfon.

General Melas leaving, under the orders of general Elnitz, a fufficient force for keeping general Suchet in check, marched against general Maffena with three bodies of his army. The divifion on the right, confifted of the brigades of Buffy, Latterman, and Sticher, commanded by the count de Palfy. The centre was compofed of the brigades of Bellegarde and Beautano, commanded by general Bellegarde. The left divifion was under the orders of general St. Julian; and of which, the eight thousand men above mentioned formed a part.

To difconcert and overthrow this project, general Gazau took a pofition, on the road which leads from Verneria to Pouzonne; and general Poinfot received orders to attack, on the heights of Safello, the enemy's rear-guard, which was bearing

on Verneria.

General Poinfot executed this movement with fo much impetuofity, that he cut off a part of the regiment of Deutchmeifter, took three pieces of cannon, and carried the town of Safello; where he also took two hundred thoufand cartridges, and fix hundred prifoners. The fuccefs of this attack was aided by that of another made by general Godinat, chief of brigade, on Costala-Longa. The great difficulty of making war in a mountainous country, confifts in that of concerting movements, and forming any harmonious fyftem of action.

Mallena, who could not be in

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formed of the obftacles which unavoidably retarded the march of neral Soult, on Monte Notte, neverthelefs completed his own, with the divifion under general Gardanne, This column, fetting out from Varraggio, about eight o'clock in the morning, directed its march to La Stella. About midway, between these two places, this column, compofed of no more than twelve hundred men, fell in with that of the Auftrians near ten thousand strong, who were marching on the fame point. The firing commenced on the part of the Auftrians. The French took a pofition in which they were enabled to repel reiterated attacks. Their certainty of being feconded and fupported by general Soult, whom they expected every moment to turn the Auftrian rear, fupported their carnage under to great an odds of numbers. General Gardanne in this conflict was wounded; and the fmall French column, in danger of being furrounded by the Auftrians, made a fpeedy retreat in the night, directing their flight to the corps under general Soult: but the junction between thefe two French corps was not fo eafy a matter as general Malfena had imagined. The Auftrians followed them close, and annoyed them feverely in all their movements.

In the mean time general Soult had gained fome fucceffive advantages, and the fmall body, which followed Maflena on the coaft, commanded by general Freinet, effected a junction with general Soult on the mountain of St. Hermitte, not without confiderable lofs on the fide of both the Auftrians and the French. The Auftrians loft feveral officers of rank, and, it was faid, above one

thoufand

thousand men made prifoners. Of the French, the chief of brigade, Villaret, was killed; and feveral other officers of rank were wounded, among whom was general Freffinet, who, on the fifteenth, received two musket fhots. A confiderable number of the French were alfo made prifoners by the Auftrians. The refult of all thefe different actions was, that the French, exhaufted of men, money, and provifions, were obliged to reconcile their minds, at laft, to the idea of retreating, by little and little, towards Genoa, and the forts with which it was environed: a plan which was, at laft, carried into complete execution, after daily fighting, on the twentieth of April.

The kind of war that is carried on by any army, receflarily depends on the force which it poffeffes, and the fituation in which it is placed. It was naturally, therefore, to be expected, that the generals Melas and Maffena fhould purfue oppofite fyftems of operation. The object of Maflena, continually in action with an enemy, fuperior in numbers, as well as fresh and hearty, was to divide the enemy, by marching his .own troops in two columns. It was contrived that these columns fhould not be equal in ftrength. The one was weaker than the other, and made it its chief business to mancuvre, as much as poffible, fo as to Occupy the enemy, and keep him in play, without either attacking him, or waiting to receive an attack, except when it was unavoidable, as was the cafe at Albiffola. The other, and the fronger column, endeavoured to keep up the tone of offenfive operations, by

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force on the different divifions of the enemy, and to beat their different corps in fucceffion, as was the cafe at Macarolo, Sallello, and La Verneria.

The Auftrians, on the contrary, being able to divide, without too much weakening themfelves, fludied always to furround the French, and never met them without attacking them, except when detached columns were turning then on every fide. Even the different advantages refulting to the French from this mode of warfare, in a mountainous country, precipitated their deftruc tion, and forced them to fall back on Genoa, which was not done without difficulty, the Auftrians being feveral times on the point of cutting off their retreat.

During the feries of events now related, on the left of the army of Genoa, the right, under the orders of general Miolis, had tried the fame kind of warfare, and received orders, at laft, to fall back to Genoa.

In the courfe of the fifteen days that the defence was maintained, if we may fay fo, by offenfive operations, Maflena, having loft a third of his men, although the Austrians had loft a good deal more of theirs, could not diffemble that he had nothing more to expect from the force of his arms. He therefore fet himself to fortify himself in his pofitions, to difcover fome means of fubfiftence, and to exercife the fevereft economy in the use of such as yet remained. By means of fome fmall thips, which yet remained to the French army, notwithfanding the vigilance of the Englith fleet, he fent letters to Corfica, to gene. ral Suchet, and to Marfelles. Several officers, whom he had fent

to

to general Suchet, and to the first conful, with an account of his fituation, were taken by the enemy. In the mean time, Maf fena became acquainted with the march of the army of referve, under Buonaparte. He was not lefs encouraged by the courage of his troops. There was not a day that paffed without fkirmishing be tween advanced pofts, in forced reconnoitrings, and efforts to pene trate within the pofitions of the befigging army.

On the thirtieth of April, the Auftrians, who by this time had carried the poft of Deux Frere's, and fort Quezzi, blockaded Fort Diamant, and commanded the works of Fort Eperon. In this pofture of affairs, Maflena, perceiving that they had in view to take the poft of la Madona del Monte, from whence they might drive the French from Alboro, the only point from which they would be able to homtard Genoa, he formed a refolution to make a laft effort with his corps of referve, which had not yet been brought into ferious action, and to force the enemy to abandon their moft advanced pofitions. this be fucceeded, but it was at the expenfe of a feries of bloody actions, defperate and obftinate, and lofs on both fides; infomuch, that the combatants being too near each other to make ute of mufkery, had recourfe to their bayonets, the butt ends of their mufkets, and even to stones. The lots in killed, on both fides, was great. The French made a great number of prifoners, even to the amount of leveral thousands, and took all the fealing-ladders destined for the efcalade of Genoa, and the forts adjacent. The fcaling-ladders were fo

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formed as to admit of three men abreaft. They were burned by the French in the night. General Soult carried the poft of DeuxFreres, and the route of the Auf trians was complete. The fituation of the Auftrian prifoners in Genoa was dreadful. The French fuffered extreme privations themfelves: their prifoners, after attempting to prolong life by eating their fhoes and knapfacks, died of hunger.

This day, the most memorable in the fiege, the victory, which was fo decidedly on the fide of the French, only ferved to haften its conclufion. Such combats, fo d ·ftructive to both parties, added to the miseries of the French and Genoefe, by the increafe of prifoners without an encreafe of provifions. The army of Buonaparte was yet at too great a diftance to come to the relief of Mafiena before the laft of his foldiers fhould have perished with hunger. In the forties, which he made in the courle of the month of May, he loft a great many of his officers, and among thefe fome of the generals of his ftaff, in killed and feverely wounded.

The city of Savona had furren dered to the Auftrians on the fif teenth of May. The English fleet began now to bombard Genoa every night. The populace, particularly the women, running about the ftreets, fet up frightful cries for peace. And a general infurrection of the people of Genoa against the French, would have enfued, if the e forts of the French fol tiers to restrain it, had not been feconded by a number of individuals among the inhabitants. The illufions of hope at last vanished. There was no longer the smallest expectation that the fuc cours to long looked for would come

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in time. The provifions were entirely exhaufted; even the laft horfes and dogs were nearly confumed, when general Maflena received a letter from general Melas, inviting him to an interview with lord Keith, and the generals Otto and St. Julian, who offered him a capitulation on the most honourable terms. To this first overture, he replied, that he would confider of it; though he had, in truth, nothing farther to confider. The day after, he received another meflage with the fame terms. He then fent the adjutant-general Andreaux, under pretence of fome bufinefs relating to the prifoners, to Rivolo, to receive the proposals of the enemy, and to enter, without any farther delay, into a negociation for peace.

The first article of capitulation propofed by the allies, was, that the army fhould return to France, but that the general thould remain prifoner of war-" You, fir," faid ford Keith to Maffena," are worth twenty thousand men." But, Maffena faid, "that no negociation would be gone into, if the word capitulation was to be made ufe of." On the fourth of June the allied generals, having departed from their first propofal, refumed the negociations.

In the mean time, while this was going on, the city of Genoa* containing a population of one hundred and fixty thoufand fouls, though a prey to all the horrors of famine, remained quiet. A great number of old people, women and children, reduced to the neceflity of attempting to fuftain nature by herbs, roots, and impure animals, died of dilease or ineni

tion. This melancholy picture, was often exhibited to view, by the rising fun. Mothers were often found dead with hunger, and chil dren, at the breaft alio dead, or dying.

On that day, the fourth of June, the principal articles for the evacu ation of Genoa were agreed on between the French adjutant-gene Audreaux on the one part, and major-general Reft, a staff officer in the imperial fervice, with the Englith captain Rivera, on the other. And it was fettled that the chiefs of the oppofite armies fhould meet, on the day after, being the fifth of June, for figning a definitive treaty. At nine o'clock in the morning of that day a conference was held by the oppofite parties, in a small chapel, which's fituated in the middle of the bridge of Cornegliano, and between the pofts of the Auftrians and the French. Here lord Keith, commander of the combined naval forces in the Mediterranean, general Otto, commander of the blockade of Genoa, with general st. Julian, who was charged with the political part of the negociation, were met by general Maflena, commander-in-chief of the French army in Italy. Each of thefe parties was accompanied by only two or three gentlemen.

In this conference Maffena dilplayed much fineffe, under the cloak of an apparent gaiety, which formed a complete contraft with the gravity of the other contracting party, and was attended with this advantage, that it did not look as if he were greatly alarmed for the fituation of his army. And it is,

Including d'Albaro, St. Martin, Bifagno, and St d'Arena, containing forty thoufand. Genoa, proper, contains about one hundred and twenty thousand.

perhaps,

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