IX. 1790. 83. Efforts of Mr Pitt to arrest the ruin of Turkey, which are successful. July 27, 1790. CHAP. menaced Europe from the fall of the Turkish empire, Mr Pitt was indefatigable in his exertions, before it was too late, to arrest the progress of the imperial courts. By his means the alliance was drawn closer between Prussia and Great Britain; and Frederick William, fully alive to the perils which threatened his dominions from the aggrandisement of Austria, advanced, at the head of one hundred thousand men, to the frontiers of Bohemia. Unable to undertake a war at the same time on the Elbe and the Danube, and uneasy, both on account of the menacing aspect of France and the insurrection in Flanders, Austria paused in the career of conquest. Conferences were opened at Reichenbach, midway between the headquarters of the Prussian and Imperial armies; and, after some delay, preliminaries of peace were signed, which terminated the differences between the cabinets of Vienna and Berlin, and opened the way for the accommodation of the former with the Porte. The Prussian army immediately retired: thirty thousand Austrians, under Marshal Bender, moved towards the Low Countries, and speedily reduced its discontented provinces to submission; while a truce was shortly after concluded for nine months between the Turks and Imperialists, which was followed by conferences at Sistow, and at length a definitive treaty was signed at that place on the 4th August 1791. Meanwhile the Empress Catherine, who was not yet formally included in the pacification, intimated her intention of suspending hostilities to the courts of St James's and Hard. i. Berlin, and, as a gage of her sincerity, concluded at Verela a peace with the King of Sweden, who, at the instigation of England and Prussia, had taken up arms, and contended with undaunted valour against his gigantic neighbour.1 Aug. 13, 1790. 86, 87. Sup. iv. 500. xxxiii. 17, 19. 84. This general and rapid pacification of Europe, this Causes of stilling of so many passions and allaying of so many pacification. jealousies, was not the result of accident. It arose from the universal consternation which the rapid progress of this general IX. 1790. the French Revolution excited, and the clear perception CHAP. which all the cabinets at length began to have, of the imminent danger to every settled institution from the contagion of its principles. But, amidst the general alarm, wiser principles were generally prevalent than could reasonably have been anticipated, as to the means of warding off the danger. Mr Pitt in England, Kaunitz at Vienna, and Hertzberg at Berlin, concurred in opinion that it would be imprudent and dangerous to oppose the progress of innovation in France, if it could be moderated by a party in that country sufficiently strong to prevent its leaders from running into excess; and that, in the mean time, the strictest measures should be adopted which circumstances would admit, to prevent its principles from spreading into other states. Such were the maxims on which the conduct of England, Austria, and Prussia was founded during the first two years of the Revolution; though the Empress Catherine, more vehement and imperious in her disposition, or possibly more sagacious in her anticipations, never ceased to urge the necessity of a general confederacy to arrest, by more violent means, the march of so formidable a convulsion. But circumstances at length occurred which put a period to these 1 Cap. Eur. moderate counsels at Vienna and Berlin, and precipitated i. 98, 99. the European monarchies into the terrible contest which 90. awaited them.1 Hard. i. 85, which tionary war. From the time that Louis had been brought a prisoner 85. to Paris, on 5th October 1789, he had recommended to the Causes King of Spain to pay no regard to any public act bearing brought on his name, which was not confirmed by an autograph the Revolu letter from himself; and in the course of the following summer he authorised the Baron Breteuil, his former minister, to sound the German powers on the possibility of extricating him from the state of bondage to which he was reduced. In November 1790, after he found that he was to be forced to adopt measures of hostility against the Church, he resolved to be more explicit; and in IX. 1790. CHAP. December following he addressed a circular to the whole sovereigns of Europe, with a view to the formation of a congress, supported by an armed force, to consider the means of arresting the factions at Paris, and re-establishing a constitutional monarchy in France. This circular 1 Hard. i. 95, 97. 86. ceedings of Assembly German vassals of excited everywhere the warmest feelings of sympathy and commiseration; but the views of the cabinets, notwithstanding, continued at variance that of Vienna still adhered to the necessity of recognising the revolutionary regime, those of St Petersburg and Stockholm openly proclaimed the necessity of an immediate crusade against the infected power.1 So early as the close of 1790, however, the violent Violent pro- proceedings of the National Assembly had brought them. the National into collision with the states of the Empire. The laws against the against the emigrants and priests, which were passed with so much precipitance by that body, infringed the the French rights of the German vassals of the French crown in Alsace and Lorraine, whose rights were guaranteed by the treaty of Westphalia; and the Emperor, as the head of the Empire, addressed a remonstrance to the French King on the subject. Overruled by his revolutionary ministry, Louis made answer that the affair was foreign crown. Dec. 14, 1790. * "Monsieur mon Frère-J'ai appris par M. de Moustier l'intérêt que votre Majesté avait témoigné, non seulement pour ma personne, mais pour le bien de mon royaume. Les dispositions de votre Majesté, à m'en donner des témoignages dans tous les cas où cet intérêt peut être utile pour le bien de mon peuple, ont excité vivement ma sensibilité. Je le réclame avec confiance dans ce moment-ci, où malgré l'acceptation que j'ai faite de la nouvelle constitution, les factieux montrent ouvertement le projet de détruire le resté de la monarchie. Je viens de m'adresser à l'Empéreur, à l'Impératrice de Russie, aux rois d'Espagne et de Suède; et je leur présente l'idée d'un congrès des principales puissances de l'Europe, appuyé d'une force armée, comme la meilleure mesure pour arrêter ici les factieux, donner le moyen d'établir un ordre de choses plus désirable, et empêcher que le mal qui nous travaille puisse gagner les autres états de l'Europe. J'espère que votre Majesté approuvera mes idées, et qu'elle me gardera le secret le plus absolu sur la démarche que je fais auprès d'elle. Elle sentira aisément que les circonstances où je me trouve m'obligent à la plus grande circonspection: c'est ce qui fait qu'il n'y a que le Baron de Breteuil qui soit instruit de mon secret. Votre Majesté peut lui faire passer ce qu' elle voudra."-LOUIS XVI. au ROI DE PRUSSE, 3 Décembre 1790; LAMARTINE, Histoire des Girondins, i. 322, 323. IX. 1791. to the Empire, as the princes and prelates affected were CHAP. reached as vassals of France, not as members of the Empire, and that indemnities had been offered. This answer was not deemed satisfactory; a warm altercation ensued: Leopold asserted, in a spirited manner, the rights of the German princes; and this dispute, joined to the obvious and increasing dangers of his sister, Marie Antoinette, gradually inclined the Emperor to more vigorous measures, and strengthened the bonds of union with Frederick William, who openly inclined towards the deliverance of the unhappy princess. The King of England, also, took a vivid interest in the misfortunes of the royal family of France, promising, as Elector of Hanover, to concur in any measures which might be deemed necessary to extricate them from their embarrassments; and he sent Lord Elgin to Leopold, who was then travelling in Italy, to concert measures for the common object. An envoy from Prussia at the same time reached the Emperor, and to them was soon joined the Comte d'Artois, who was at Venice, and brought to the scene of deliberation the Hard. i. warmth, haste, and inconsiderate energy, which had 100, 107. Cap. Eur. rendered him the first decided opponent of the Revolu- pend.la Rév. Franç. i. 87, tion, and ultimately proved so fatal to the fortunes of his 108, 109. family.1 the King to effect liverance, Meanwhile, the King and Queen of France, finding 87. their situation insupportable, and being aware that not Efforts of only their liberty, but their lives, were now endangered, and Queen resolved to make every exertion to break their fetters. of France With this view, they despatched secret agents to Brussels their deand Cologne, to communicate with the Emperor and the King of Prussia; and Count Alphonse de Durfort was instructed to inform the Comte d'Artois, that the King could no longer influence his ministers; that he was in reality the prisoner of M. Lafayette, who secretly and hypocritically was conducting everything to a republic; that the royal family were filled with the most anxious IX. 1791. 1 Hard. i. 105, 111. Bertrand CHAP. desire to make their escape by the route either of Metz or Valenciennes, and placed entire reliance on the zeal and activity of their august relatives. Furnished with these instructions, Count Durfort left Paris in the end de Molle of April 1791, and soon joined the Comte d'Artois at Venice, who was already arranging, with the English and Prussian envoys, the most probable means of overcoming the scruples of the Emperor. ville, Mém. de Louis XVI. ii. 309, 318. 88. Treaty of When these different parties met with the Emperor at Mantua, on 20th May 1791, the most discordant May 1791. plans were submitted for his consideration. That of the Comte d'Artois, which was really drawn up by M. Calonne, the former minister of Louis XVI., was the most warlike, and proposed the adoption, in July following, of hostile measures. The Allied courts did not go into these precipitate views; but, alarmed by the menacing principles openly announced by the National Assembly, and by the growing symptoms of disaffection among their own subjects, the Emperor of Germany, the King of Sardinia, and the King of Spain, concluded an agreement by which it was concerted "1. That the Emperor should assemble thirty-five thousand men on the frontiers of Flanders, while fifteen thousand soldiers of the Germanic body should present themselves in Alsace; fifteen thousand Swiss on the frontiers of Franche-Comté; fifteen thousand Piedmontese on the frontiers of Dauphiné; and the King of Spain should collect an army of twenty thousand men on the Pyrenees. 2. That these forces should be 2 Hard. i. formed into five armies, which should act on their Pièces Just, respective frontiers of France, and join themselves to No. 1. Mig the malcontents in the provinces and the troops who Molleville, preserved their allegiance to the throne. 3. That in Mém. sur le the following July, a protestation should be issued by Louis XVI. the princes of the House of Bourbon, and immediately Cap. i. 116. after a manifesto by the Allied powers. 4. That the object of these assemblages of troops was, to induce the Jom. i. 262. i. 131. Ber trand de Règne de ii. 317, 324. 2 |