Seven months after the 18 Brumaire, he boldly crossed the Alps by the Great Saint Bernard to compel Austria to make peace. On June 14, 180o, the hardly won victory of Marengo made him once more master of Italy. Together with Moreau's victory at Hohenlinden in December, it forced the Emperor Francis to sign the treaty of Luneville, by which Austria recognized all the con quests of the Revolution. The left bank of the Rhine became part of France, and was divided into departments. This was the tri umph of Bonaparte and of the revolution. For the first time in history France had regained her "natural frontiers," those of Gaul as known to Caesar.
By the treaty of Luneville, the British government lost her last Continental ally. The war was costing dear, and many people were weary of it. Trade was severely affected. The first consul, who knew this, resumed in appearance the preparations for in vasion, which had been begun in 1797. When, after the fall of Pitt, negotiations were begun with the London cabinet, he strove to drive a bargain, renouncing all claims on Egypt. In March 1802, the treaty of Amiens was signed. It was, and could only be a truce, but the French saw in it definitive peace, and the pres tige of the first consul was increased.
Their opposition would become more formidable as the ten year period drew to a close. Definitely to establish the Consulate, and to make it safe from attack, permanence was desired. Thus by a natural progression opinion tended towards the revival of the monarchy in favour of the first consul. He himself was silent, asked for nothing, and let his friends work for him. This they did most effectively.
After the triumph of the peace of Amiens, they proposed a national token of gratitude. The Senate accorded only a pro
longation of power for a further ten years. This was a discom fiture. Then Cambaceres thought of consulting the people whether Napoleon Bonaparte (his Christian name was beginning to be used officially) should be made consul for life. It was carried by three and a half million to less than ten thousand votes. The first consul also received the right to choose his successor (Aug. 1802). Although he then had no children, there was nothing to prevent him from choosing his son, if he should have one.
Hereditary monarchy was thus on the point of being re-estab lished, after so many solemn protestations to the contrary. From that time the sovereigns of Europe began to regard Bonaparte as one of themselves. They watched him "climbing step by step towards the throne," though there were to be further happenings before he reached it. It would be an error to accuse him of hav ing sought to gain the crown by means of a new war. The estab lishment of the empire was an indirect consequence of the renewal of hostilities in May 1803, the immediate cause of which was a dispute over Malta and the interpretation of the treaty of Amiens, though for reasons easily understood, and beyond the control of statesmen, peace could never have been more than a truce. Could England allow France to remain in permanent possession of the finest coast line and most valuable ports of the Continent from Rotterdam to Genoa? To put the question is to answer it. And we must remember that Napoleon had received Belgium and Holland in trust for the Revolution.
Georges Cadoudal, who had landed in France, succeeded in impli cating the celebrated Moreau, jealous of the first consul. The discovery of this plot infuriated Bonaparte. He accused the émigrés of ingratitude, publicly affirmed his republican sym pathies, and declared that the intention was to destroy the revo lution in his person. He determined to strike.