gazine was also taken. The enemy appeared to be retiring upon Agen, and had left open the direct road to Bourdeaux. Whilst these operations were carrying on upon the right, Lieut.-Gen. Sir J. Hope, in concert with Admiral Penrose, crossed the Adour below Bayonne on the 23d and 24th. Great gallantry and skill were displayed in bringing in the vessels destined to form the bridge; and three of the enemy's gun-boats were destroyed, and a frigate after considerable damage was forced higher up the river. The bridge being completed on the 27th, Sir J. Hope more closely invested the citadel of Bayonne. These brilliant successes were not obtained without a considerable loss to the British and Portuguese. A further dispatch from Lord Wellington, dated from St. Sever, March 4, mentions that a heavy rain had so much swelled the Adour and its rivulet, that the army's advance had been impeded. The enemy had collected a corps at Aire to protect a magazine, which being attacked by Sir R. Hill, they were driven from their post with loss, and the town and magazine were taken. After this affair, the French retired by both banks of the Adour towards Tarbes, for the purpose of making a junction with the detachments to be sent from Marshal Suchet's army in Catalonia. In the mean time Lord Wellington dispatched Major-Gen. Fane with a detachment to take possession of Pau, and Marshal Beresford with another to occupy Bourdeaux. This latter expedition, probably the result of correspondences in the city, proved Eventually a matter of great consequence. The Marshal arrived

at Bourdeaux on the 12th of March, and being met at a short distance from the place by the mayor and other principal inhabitants. was conducted into the city with every demonstration of joy. The magistrates and city guards took off the eagles and other imperial badges, and spontaneously assumed the white cockade, the badge of the Bourbons; and thus one of the most important cities in France openly declared for counter-revolution. The Duke D'Angouleme, husband to the daughter of Lewis XVI. and nephew of Lewis XVIII., accompanied the British troops, and was received in Bourdeaux with general acclamations. The mayor issued a proclamation to animate the inhabitants in the cause of their lawful king.

Lord Wellington, having been joined by detached troops and his reserves of cavalry, proceeded on the 18th against the French army. Soult retreated before him, first to Vic Baygorey, and then to Tarbes. At this place he assembled his forces on the 20th, but his Lordship making an attack in two columns, the enemy retreated in all directions after suffering considerable loss.

We now return to the operations of the allied armies in the vicinity of the French capi'al. On March 23, the whole of the army of Prince Schwartzenberg was directed upon Vitry. A Russian light division of cavalry having attacked a considerable body of infantry, killed and made prisoners of a great number of them, and took twenty pieces of cannon. The French having withdrawn from all their positions near Arcis,

were

were now marching upon Vitry, where Napoleon was to be joined by the corps of Marshals Ney and Macdonald. The Prussian commandant at Vitry had been summoned by Ney, with the threat of military execution on refusal to surrender; but he persisted in holding the place. Napoleon at this time had taken the road to St. Dizier with his whole army. His plan, as discovered by an intercepted letter, appears to have been to push between the two allied armies, to interrupt their communication, to fall upon the rear of the Austrians, and to take any other measures that opportunity offered. This bold and rather desperate movement, was evidently the result of his finding himself too weak to oppose the different advances of the allies in front. He also doubtless expected that the capital itself, if attacked in his absence, would make a resistance sufficient to give him time to march to its relief. The discovery of his intentions, however, produced an immediate determination in the allied Generals to unite their forces, and march directly for Paris. The conjoined armies were in number at least 200,000.commanded by the ablest leaders, and animated with the warmest etnulation to employ every effort in bringing this mighty contest to a triumphant decision.

On the 25th, the combined army marched in three columns to Fere Champenoise. The corps of Marmont, Mortier, and Arrighi, which had been retiring from before Marshal Blucher, moved to wards Vitry to connect themselves with the operations of Napoleon, and to their surprise found themselves close to the army of Schwart

zenberg, when they were expect- · ing to meet their own. They were immediately attacked, and driven back with a great loss of baggage, cannon, and prisoners. On the same day a column of 5000 men, under Gen. Ames, which had brought from Paris a great convoy of provision and ammunition for Napoleon's army, was discovered and attacked by the allied cavalry, The column, though consisting of young troops and national guards, defended itself with great gallantry, and when completely surrounded, continued marching on in squares and firing; nor did they submit to surrender, till a battery of Russian artillery opened upon them, and they were broken by repeated charges of cavalry. The whole with their cannon and the convoy then fell into the hands of the assailants. Generals D'Yorck and Kleist, who had moved from Montmirail on la Ferté Gaucher, contributed to the overthrow of this part of the French army, which was diminished by a third of its numbers, with the loss of almost all its artillery. The grand army continued to advance, and on the 27th its head-quarters were at Coulomiers. Intelligence was received from Winzingerode and Czernicheff, who were harassing Napoleon's rear with a large body of cavalry and cannon, that he was marching back with great precipitation towards the capital by Bar-sur-Aube and Troyes. On the 28th Blucher passed the Marne at Meaux and at Triport with inconsiderable opposition. Part of Mortier's corps retreating through Meaux, broke down the bridge, and without giving any notice to the inhabitants, blew up a vast [C 2] magazine

now,

magazine of powder, the explosion of which did great injury to the place. D'Yorck advancing to Claye, had a sharp action with the enemy's rear, in which he lost some hundreds of men, but succeeded at length in driving them from the woods about that place. The alarm was now hot in Paris. The nominal king Joseph, whom his brother had constituted his lieutenant-general, issued a proclamation in which he acquainted the Parisians with the enemy's advance to Meaux, and urged them to the defence of their city, assuring them that the emperor was marching with a victorious army to their succour.

On the 29th, the corps of Marmont and Mortier entered Paris, in which a garrison had been previously assembled, consisting of part of general Gerard's corps, and a body of about 8000 regular troops, and 30,000 national guards under general Hulin. The allies at this time had their right to wards Montmartre, and their left near the wood of Vincennes. Prince Schwartzenberg now addressed a proclamation to the people of Paris, in which he acquainted them with the presence of the allied armies before their city, their object being a sincere and lasting reconciliation with France. "The attempts (he said) hitherto made to put an end to so many calamities have been useless, because there exists in the very power of the government which oppresses you an insurmountable obstacle to peace." After other hints of the expectation of the allied powers, that the Parisians would declare in favour of a "salutary authority," and a reference

to the conduct of Bourdeaux, he concluded with an assurance that the preservation and tranquillity of their city would be attended to by the allies, in conjunction with their own principal citizens, and that no troops should be quartered upon them. Another conflict, however, still remained before the final decision of Napoleon's fate. On the morning of March 30th, the French army under the command of Joseph Buonaparte, assisted by marshals Marmont and Mortier, took a position in which its right occupied the heights of Fontenay, Romainville, and Belleville, its left rested upon Montmartre, its centre was protected by several redoubts, and in the whole line were ranged more than 150 pieces of artillery. An attack was immediately determined on by the allies, in which the Silesian army was to advance by the side of St. Denis and Montmartre, and the grand army was to force the heights of Romainville and Belleville. These, with that of Montmartre, are so situated that the possession of them commands Paris, with all the intervening tract, filled with villages and country seats. The attack was commenced by the division of Prince Eugene of Wirtemberg, which long sustained with great spirit a galling fire of artillery, and at length carried the heights of Romainville, the enemy retiring to those of Belleville behind them. More to the left, the prince-royal of Wurtemberg directed an attack on the heights of Rosny and Charenton. The attack of the Silesian army by some accident was for a time delayed; but it was not long before d'Yorck

and

and Kleist opened near St. Denis upon Aubervilliers, at which place, and at Pantin, a very obstinate resistance was made. Prince William of Prussia with his brigade, and the Prussian guards, here greatly distinguished themselves. A redoubt and battery in the enemy's centre kept d'Yorck in check for some part of the day; but their flank being exposed by the loss of the heights of Romainville, and their losses in every part of the field, reduced them to the necessity of sending a flag of truce Lo propose a cessation of hostilities, on the condition of their yielding all the ground without the barrier of Paris, till further arrangements could be made. The heights of Montmartre were at this time about to be stormed, and the village of la Villette had been carried by Woronzow's division, which was pushing on to the barrier; the sovereigns of Russia and Prussia, and Prince Schwartzenberg, however, desirous of saving the capital from being sacked, most humanely agreed to the proposal: two aides-de-camp were sent to put the terms in execution; the battle ceased; and at four in the afternoon, count Nesselrode, the Russian minister, went into Paris. Thus terminated this important day, which was not without considerable loss to the allies; but it was final.

The metropolis of France being thus laid prostrate at the feet of hostile armies, no determination ever occurred of greater moment, in a moral and political view, than the treatment it was to receive. Besides the lust of rapine and pillage which prevails in the mass of all military bodies, feelings of re

sentment for the long and atrocious injuries inflicted upon the countries of Europe, by the re lentless ambition of the French ruler, must have inspired a strong desire of retaliation; and the flames of Moscow, in particular, must have kindled in the Russian troops an impatient ardour for spreading the same destruction through the streets of Paris. So fiercely did this passion rage, that the emperor Alexander is said almost to have descended to supplications, with the more undisciplined of his bands, to induce them to forego their vindictive purposes, But this benevolent sovereign, with his illustrious confederates, must have shuddered at the idea of involving the innocent, as well as the guilty inhabitants of a vast city in the direst calamities; moreover, the declarations of the allied powers had been filled with sentiments of good-will towards the French nation, the happiness, and even prosperity, of which, they professed to have in view, as far as was compatible with the welfare of its neighbours. Mere retaliatory mischief is always ignoble, and generally unjust, since its effects cannot be limited to suitable objects. From these considerations, though we may justly praise, we cannot wonder at the pacific and conciliatory measures that were immediately adopted by the victors on this great event.

The first important act was the capitulation which resulted from the armistice granted by the allied powers. Its most material articles were the evacuation of Paris, by the troops of Marmont and Mor tier, at seven in the morning of the 31st, taking with them all their

military

military appurtenances; the entire separation of the national guard, and municipal gendarmerie, from the troops of the line, leaving their future condition to the determination of the allied powers; and the relinquishment of the arsenals, magazines, &c. in the same state as when the capitulation was proposed. On the same day, the entrance of the sovereigns into Paris took place, the ceremonial of which is thus described by sir C. Stewart. "The cavalry, under the grand arch-duke Constantine, and the guards of all the different allied forces, were formed in columns early in the morning on the road from Bondi to Paris. The emperor of Russia with all his staff, his generals, and their suites present, proceeded to Pantin, where the king of Prussia joined him with a similar cortége. These sovereigns, surrounded by all the princes in the army, together with the prince field-marshal, and the Austrian etat-major, passed through the fauxbourg St. Martin, and entered the barrier of Paris about eleven o'clock, the Cossacks of the guard forming the advance of the march. Already was the crowd so enormous, as well as the acclamations so great, that it was difficult to move forward; but before the monarchs reached the Porte de St. Martin to turn on the boulevards, there was a moral impossibility of proceeding. All Paris seemed to be assembled and concentrated in one spot one spring evidently directed all their movements: they thronged in such masses round the emperor and king, that, with all their condescending and gracious familiarity, extending their hands on all

:

sides, it was in vain to attempt to satisfy the populace." In the French account it is added, that before the chiefs of the three armies entered any house, they made their troops file off before them, to preserve discipline, and prevent disorders. They then alighted at the house of the prince of Benevento (Talleyrand) and the emperor of Russia issued a declaration expressing the intentions of himself and his colleagues. It affirmed, that the allied sovereigns would no more treat with Napoleon Buonaparte, nor with any of his family; that they respected the integrity of ancient France, as it existed under its legitimate kings, and would perhaps do more for it; and that they would recognize and guarantee the constitution which France should adopt. (See State Papers).

On April 1, the members of the senate assembled in consequence of an extraordinary convocation, the Prince of Benevento being president. They passed a decree, "that there shall be established a provisional government, charged to provide for the wants of the administration, and to present to the senate the plan of a constitution which may suit the French people." This government was to consist of five members, who were then nominated, Talleyrand's name standing first. On the proposal of a senator, the following articles were voted: That the senate and the legislative body are integral parts of the intended constitution: that the army, as well as the retired officers and soldiers, shall retain the ranks, honours, and pensions they at present

enjoy