Table Of Content•
:
THE
HISTORY
NAPOLEON BONAPARTE
EMPEROR OF THE FRENCH, ^/J
KING OF ITALY.
WITH TWO ENGRAVINGS.
'<lllenoni.iodoeorumhominmn, quinunc sunt, gloriam, sedetiam antiqnitatls
niemoriam virtute superavit; plura bellagessitquamcjeterilegerunt; pliires pro-
vincias confecit, quam aliiconcupiverunt;etejus adolescentia adscientiamreimi-
litarisnon alienisprseceptis, sedsuis imperils; nonnfllii iniiiliintinllii) nrirlnirfrri
IS;nonstipendiis,sedtriumphiseruditaest." /^^^ ''"''''""'V' "?.'x
Pi^St^
BALTIMORE
J^tinteo at t^e IBMz mn ^tztt 2D^e,
BY WARNER & HANNA,
1806.
CONTENTS.
Page.
Preface . • . • 3
Birth, education and employment of Bonaparte, until
his appointmentto the commandof the army of Ita-
ly, in the year 1795 . . . S
Campaign of 1796 and 1797 in Italy . . 28
ExpeditiontoEgypt . . , . 136
Bonaparte'sappointmenttothefirstconsulship . 197
Bonaparteduringhisconsulate . . . 225
Bonaparte exalted totheimperial dignity . 302
Addenda ^7S
. . . . .
A comprehensive view of the French revolution 401
PREFACE.
AS no apology for the manner in
wliich this volume is executed would
be admitted by its readers, none is of-
fered and as little merit is claimed,
;
no praise is expected: hence the for-
mality of a preface would have been
altogether omitted, had it not been
considered necessary to state whence
this history of Bonaparte has beea
compiled. The publications which
have been consulted, are a variety of
English and French works, such as the
Annual Registers, Stephen's Wars,
Campaign in Italy in both languages,
La vie de Bonaparte, Les Cinques
;
IV PREFACE.
Hommes, Precis des Evenemcns MI-
litaires, Denon's Egypt, Berthier's
Narrative, Wilson's Expedition, Bo-
naparte and the French People, Le
Dix-huit Brumaire, Burdon's Life
and Character of Bonaparte, the Re-
volutionary Plutarch, &c. &c. This
work contains every thing interest-
ing in the life of Napoleon I. which
bears the character of authenticity.
With regard to a very late volume,
^' The Secret History of St. Cloud^'
nothing has been extracted from
it
for that book, besides its general fea-
tures, possesses very strong internal
evidence that it is a spurious produc-
tion, and although it will unfortu-
nately for society have an unbounded
circulation, still it cannot be denied
that little if any dependence can be
placed upon its details; and the per-
son who reads it through is spee-
dily nauseated and disgusted with
the incessant repetition ofthe intrigues
of debauchees, the excesses and infi-
delities of women in high life, and
PREFACE.
the coarse indecent manner in which
they are narrated. As no certainty at
present exists with respect to those vo-
lumes to which this history is indebt-
ed; and as the extracts which have
been made are not marked, it is high-
ly probable that in some instances the
language of others has been unintenti-
onally adopted,whilst it was frequently
introduced by design*...therefore this
general remark will serve as a shield
against the charge of plagiarism...,and
originality in a work of this kind be-
ing impossible, all that can be desir-
ed is accuracy of detail, assiduity of
research, and correctness of style.
/He
who writes the life of Bonaparte
at present, even if he were so inclined,
dares not to investigate freely and fully
the cause and effect of all those im-
portant events in which he has been
principally concerned and that pati-
;
ence of investigation which such a
work would demand, will not suit the
avidity with which the present gene-
ration wish to be informed of the won-
VI PREFACE.
derfal changes which the French era
peror 's daily producing on the Eurc
pean continent. In this volume wi
be found no profundity of disquisit
on, no excursions of the imaginatioi
no embellishments of fancy, whic
never should be admitted into hist<
rical composition .no learned investi-
.,
gations, no wild anticipations, and
no colouring: to the narration....it is an
unadorned, and as far as the documents
which could be procured authorize, a
faithful relation of the uncommon
scenes through which has passed pro-
bably the m.ost extraordinary charac-
m
ter Vvhose name lives history. That
which Cicero said of Pompey being
much more just when asserted of Bo-
naparte: " He has surpassed not the
^' generals of the y)resent age only, but
'^ even those of antiquity in military
" fame conducted more wars than
;
'V those of which others have read;
' " reduced more provinces than others
'^ have desired; and his youth was
'^ trained to the profession of armsj
PREFACE. VU
^^ not by the precepts of other men,
^' but by his commands; not by mis-
^^ takes in war, but by victories ; not
^' by a series of campaigns, but by a
^' succession of triumphs.'* This
narrative nevertheless contains a great
variety of incidents which are com-
prised in no other vohime, and which
cannot be known except by resorting
to the same sources, which would not
compensate for the trouble, and proba-
bly be unsuccessful. Many of the
anecdotes of Bonaparte which are in-
serted, remain unaltered and continue
in the language of the authors from
•whom they were extracted and the
:
continual accession of new documents
even until the work was nearly com-
pleted, actuated the addition of those
few pages which are filled with occur-
rences received too late to be inserted
in their proper order in the body of
the history. The general distinctive
marks of Bonaparte's miatary charac-
ter, occur twice or thrice in the
volume^ but the repetition was consi-
Vlll PREFACE.
dered necessary to render the connec-
tion and sense complete.
The Uteral errata which may be
discovered, and which have no effect
upon the meaning of the word are not
noticed....but tlie reader is requested
to correct an important error in page
12th, in the sixteenth and seventeenth
lines from the head, for " Marshal
Prince of Saoccyny^'' read '^ Marshal
Comte de Saxe ;'' P^g^ 305, the
sip"naturc should be in conformity to
"
etiquette, Napoleon^'' instead of
'' Bonapai^te;' page SOZj eleventh
"
line, read of the Italian consulta^^
"
&c. page 310, twelfth line, for re-
tilled'' read " retreated'^'' page 339.^
fifth line from the bottom, for '^ op-
pressed'' insert '' opposed.'] These it
is beHeved are the most obvious mis-
takes in the volume.
GEORGE BOURNE,
THE
HISTORY
OF
MAPOJLJEOM BOWAFAIRTE.
EMPEROR OF THE FREJVCH,
AND
' KIJVG OF ITALY,
Birth.*.>Edu€ation...,and Employment ofBona-
parte^ until his appointment to the command
of the army of Italy in the year 1796-
^
vjREAT
events always produce extraordi-
nary characters they excite the passions, and
:
invigorate the talents of men they animate
:
exertion, raise merit from obscurity, and un-
fold the energy of genius. The truth 'of
this observation, has been strikingly evinced,
since the commencement of the French revo-
lution proving the love of freedom to be an
;
active and irresistibly powerful principle;
B
10 THE HISTORY OF
—^^^' ' ' ' ' ' . %
which, when once roused, operates with an
electrick power, wakens the lethargick, in-
flames the whole mass of society, and in the
contests which it originates, exhibits all the
virtues and vices of human nature. >^
When
contending for liberty, against the
oppression ofdomestic tyrants, or the attempts
of foreign powers to enslave them; Greece
and Rome displayed a host of heroes. Si-
'3nilar causes have, inmodern times, been ac-
companied by sim.ilar effects and the late war
;
in Europe discovered some of the most illus-
trious characters whom the historian has hi-
therto commemorated.
The French armies, previous to the Revo-
lution, were disorganized, without discipline,
dissatisfied, numerous without skill, and ge-
nerally unsuccessful in battle. That, which
forced the veterans of the continent of
Europe, to turn pale before raw recruits,
and which discomfited Brunswick, Clairfait,
Wurmser, &c. can have been no common
principle. Hence, we feel interested in eve-
ry particular which relates to such person-
ages as Jourdan, Pichegru, Hoche, Moreau
and Bonaparte and the high station to which
;
the latter has attained, renders the perusal
of a review of his life an interesting employ-
ment, which must be attended with consider-
able advantage.
Napoleon Bonaparte, the son of Charles
Bonaparte, and Lsetitia Raniolini, was born
at Ajaccio, in Corsica, August 15th, 1769.
