Life of Napoleon Bonaparte, Volume III.Scott, Walter
History
Life of Napoleon Bonaparte, Volume III.
Scott, Walter
France -- History -- 1789-1815; Napoleon I, Emperor of the French, 1769-1821
On the 13th November the French took possession of Vienna, where they
obtained an immense quantity of military stores, arms, and
clothing;[149] a part of which spoils were bestowed by Napoleon on his
ally the Elector of Bavaria, who now witnessed the humiliation of the
Imperial House which had of late conducted itself so haughtily towards
him. General Clarke was appointed Governor of Vienna; and by a change as
rapid as if it had taken place on the stage, the new Emperor of France
occupied Schonbrun, the splendid palace of the long-descended Emperor of
Austria. But though such signal successes had crowned the commencement
of the campaign, it was necessary to defeat the haughty Russians, in
whose aid the Emperor of Austria still confided, before the object of
the war could be considered as attained. The broken and shattered
remnant of the Austrian forces had rallied from different quarters
around the yet untouched army of Alexander; and although the latter
retreated from Brunn towards Olmutz, it was only with the purpose of
forming a junction with Buxhowden, before they hazarded a general
battle.
In the meantime, the French army, following close on their back into
Moravia, fought one or two partial actions, which, though claimed as
victories, were so severely disputed as to make Napoleon aware that he
had to do with a more obstinate enemy than he had of late encountered in
the dispirited Austrians. He waited, therefore, until the result of his
skilful combinations should have drawn around him the greatest force he
could expect to collect, ere venturing upon an engagement, of which, if
he failed to obtain a decisive victory, the consequences were likely to
be fatal to him.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account