In the midst of these wonderful successes, there were Still divisions and disputes among the members of govern ment at Paris. A decided majority of both councils, as well as two members of the Directory, were of the Mode rate party ; but, in consequence of some violent discussions respecting finance, and the restoration of the property of the emigrants, the legislative and executive branches be came professed enemies to each other. General Hoche, with a division of the army, was brought into the neigh bourhood of Paris by the Directory ; and Augereau was sent for from Italy by the opposite party. The latter sur rounded the Thuilleries, and made Pichegru and twelve more chiefs of the opposite faction prisoners ; Carnot escaped, but Barthelemy was put under arrest. Shortly afterwards the councils, in a most arbitrary and tyrannical manner, voted the transportation to Cayenne of 53 of their own members, and 12 other persons, among whom were Barthelemy and Pichegru. In the room of the displaced directors, the legislature chose Merlin and Francis de Neu [chateau. About this time the negociation with Eng land, conducted by Lord Malmsbury, failed.
France was now at peace with all the powers of Europe except Great Britain. The transactions that took place between them are recorded elsewhere ; we shall therefore confine ourselves to an account of the conduct of the French towards the Pope, Switzerland, and Naples, dur ing the year 1798. At Rome, some disturbances happen ed between the French party and that portion of the in habitants who remained faithful to his Holiness. In the course of these disturbances a French general was shot, and Joseph Bonaparte, who was there as plenipotentiary, demanded his passports, and returned to Paris. The Pope, alarmed, solicited the protection of Vienna, Spain, Naples, and Tuscany, but they would not interfere. General Ber thier with an army marched against Rome, subverted the dominion of the Pope, and proclaimed the sovereignty of the Roman people. Ever since the first successes of Bona parte in Italy, the French had instructed their generals to demand, or take by force, all the most valuable paintings, antiquities, &c.; but on the capture of Rome, these, in stead of being sent to Paris, as the spoil of other cities had been, were sold on the spot.
In Switzerland, French principles had been successfully propagated ; and early in 1798, the Directory resolved to take advantage of this circumstance, and reduce this coun try. A pretence similar to that which they had eagerly embraced at Rome occurred, and was as eagerly embra ced : the Pays de Vaud was invaded, and by the end of January reduced. The senate of Berne now prepared fur an unequal contest ; but they soon found, that not only a large portion of the inhabitants of this canton, but also of the army, were disaffected. Notwithstanding this, they imprudently decreed the rising of the people in a mass : the people did rise, but they dissolved the government. They were, however, by no means willing that the French should interfere in their disputes, and therefore offered terms to them, which were rejected. The enemy con tinued to advance ; the Swiss in vain opposed them, and injured their own cause by murdering their officers, after a complete defeat that they suffered early in March. Berne capitulated, and most of the other cantons followed its ex ample. A new constitution was framed at Paris for this country ; but the inhabitants of the smaller and more de mocratic cantons refused to accept it, and took up arms.
At their head was Aloys Reding, a man of superior purity of patriotism and talents ; but all his efforts were unavail ing, the confederacy being soon dissolved by the arts and the overwhelming power of the French. Scarcely, how ever, had an accommodation taken place, when new coin motions arose, which partook of the madness of despair ; even the women rushed in the midst of the battle ; and the robust mountaineers actually pressed Frenchmen to death in their arms. The French retaliated, by the infliction of every species of cruelty that they could devise ; and, after a short but desperate contest, overthrew the independence of Switzerland.
The King of Naples having imprudently placed so much confidence in the consequences of the victory of the Nile, as to declare war against the French, and to ad vance to the re-conquest of Rome, the Directory resolved to crush him. This was an easy task ; the Neapolitan troops were few in numbers, and excessively ill disciplin ed; they fled before, or weakly opposed, a comparatively small number of French. Rome was recovered ; Gaeta surrendered. General Mack, who commanded the Nea politan troops, being driven from Capua, and not being able to depend on his army, surrendered himself, and the offi cers of his staff, to the republican general. A short time before this, the King of Naples having embarked for Sicily, the loyal populace of that city, and the peasantry of the adjoining district, attacked the enemy, but being defeated, the metropolis submitted to the French yoke.
Towards the end of 1798, there were signs of the re newal of the confederacy against France. The Russians had already commenced hostilities in the Levant, soon after they heard of the victory of the Nile ; and being subsidiz ed by Britain, they marched an army of 45,000 men to the confines of Germany. Austria, however, was at first afraid to engage in a new contest : but not giving a satisfactory answer to the French, who declared that the entrance of the Russian troops into Germany would be considered as a declaration of war, the Directory, on the 13th of March, 1799, ordered the commencement of hostilities, not only against the Emperor, but also against the Grand Duke of Tuscany. At the commencement of this ‘var, the pros pects of the French were very flattering, and they possess ed many advantages which they had not during the previ ous contest. They were very powerful on the Rhine, by the occupation of Dusseldorf and Mentz. They also had the command of Switzerland, and all the strong places in the north of Italy. Their first object was to obtain pos session of the Grison country, that a communication might be preserved with Germany. Massena advanced for this purpose ; while Jourdan, who commanded on the Upper Rhine, advanced on his side, in order to meet him. Masse na soon reduced the Grisons ; but he was defeated in his next enterprise, the reduction of the post of Feldrich, which was held by the Austrian general Hotze, The Aus trians, however, could leap little advantage from this suc cess, but deemed it prudent to retreat into the Tyrol. The Archduke was opposed to Jourdan, and he was more suc cessful ; the French general being obliged to retreat with considerable loss. Jourdan was soon afterwards removed, and Massena appointed to command his army.