The Gallery of Portraits: with Memoirs. Volume 4 (of 7)Malkin, Arthur Thomas
History
The Gallery of Portraits: with Memoirs. Volume 4 (of 7)
Malkin, Arthur Thomas
Biography
advancing his fortunes, and during some years exercised great influence
over him.
Buonaparte entered Italy early in 1796, passing between the Alps and the
Apennines. In the course of eighteen months he made six successful
campaigns, destroyed five Austrian armies, and conquered nearly the
whole of Italy. He obliged the Pope and other Italian sovereigns to send
their choicest treasures of art to Paris, a measure imitated from
ancient Rome, and savouring more of the spirit of ancient conquest, than
of the mitigated warfare of modern times. Among the more memorable
battles fought during this war, were those of Lodi, Roveredo, Arcole,
Rivoli, and Tagliamento. Buonaparte’s activity and skill counterbalanced
the numerical inferiority of his troops; and his personal courage, and
readiness of resources under difficulties, procured him a great
ascendency over the soldiery, by whom he was familiarly called the
“Little Corporal.” At the conclusion of this war, in 1797, the
territories of Venice were divided between France and Austria, the Pope
was deprived of part of his temporal dominions, and a number of the
conquered states were united to form the Cisalpine Republic. His
military talents being now no longer needed, Buonaparte was obliged to
resign his command. Hitherto he had professed a warm attachment to the
democracy, and even sided with that party in the revolution of the 18th
Fructidor (September 4, 1797), when the democratic members of the
Directory deposed their colleagues. His conduct in remodelling some of
the Italian governments threw a doubt on the sincerity of his democratic
principles, which was latterly increased by the assertion of the dignity
of his rank amongst his officers, and by his tenacious resistance to
every attempt made by the Directory to divide or control his power in
the command of the army.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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