Such a peace as that of Leoben could not there fore prove permanent, unless Austria had been re duced to a state of absolute nullity or insensibility, or France had granted further concessions than the plundered, insulted, and degraded Venetian states. Russia was soon called upon, both by the Emperor of Germany and by England, to join in a new war. Turky was now also an ally against France, on ac count of the invasion of Egypt. An English ar my was sent, as before, to the Low Countries, un der the command of the duke of York, and there joined by a considerable Russian force. A strong Russian army entered the Austrian states, and made some stay in the neighbourhood of Vienna previously to its march under the celebrated Suwarrow to Italy. Bonaparte was in Egypt, wasting the flower of the French army. Discord and imbecility filled the Pa risian councils. Austria once more raised all her standards, and the court party at Vienna looked for ward for victory and triumph.
The bravery of the combined armies of Austria and Russia, and the military talents of Suwarrow, ob tained at first some successes for the new coalition ; but they proved of little consequence in the course of the war. Russians, like English soldiers, may fight like lions, and indeed often exhibit rare degrees of intrepidity, and valour on the day of battle, butt they do not carry on war so well as the French, nor are they so well officered, and so well supplied with the numerous requisites for long field service as that ingenious and active people. The Emperor of Russia, impatient of the sacrifices which he was making in the west of Europe, while all his exertions were ne cessary on the Persian frontiers; disgusted with the miserable fate of the gallant army which he had sent to Holland, and which partook in the hardships and humiliations of their brave English allies under the British commander in chief, recalled all his forces from the contest. England was compelled to remove her troops from the continent as heretofore; but she galled her enemy in Egypt, and had lately inflicted a deep wound upon his navy and army by the brilliant victory of Nelson over Brueys at Aboukir, and by Sir Sidney Smith's repulse of Bonaparte at St Jean D'Acre.
In spite of the defection of Russia and England in Europe, in spite of deranged finances, an empty treasury, bad seasons, and aggravated calamities of various kinds; notwithstanding the very equivocal conduct of Prussia, which seemed to watch an op portunity for raising herself upon the ruins of Aus tria ; and notwithstanding the disasters of Marengo, and the loss of all Italy ; Austria struggled forward, under all the vices of her old corrupted and incom petent war administration, until the decisive battle of Hohenlinden, in December 1800.
After the victory of Hohenlinden,. the French ge neral Moreau might certainly have advanced without much danger to Vienna, and dictated what terms he pleased to the Austrian monarch. But it was not the policy of France to ruin Austria, or to elevate Prussia or Russia into dangerous powers, by her de struction. It was more prudent to keep her as a ba lance against both, until the season should arrive of degrading all the three successively, and in a way in which France alone would be the gainer, and would have to contend with only one of them at a time.. The treaty of Luneville was accordingly concluded, and Austria lost only Venice, and a few trifling pre rogatives in Swabia ; while she got. Salzburg and Berchtolsgaden as an indemnification for her sacri fices in Italy. The people of Vienna were highly pleased with these conditions ; for they had expected to see the French armies in their streets, and they were glad at all events to procure any thing at that time like an honourable peace.
The Austrian armies were reduced to a lower pitch at the period of the peace of Luneville, than at any other since the year 1792, when the revolution war commenced. They perhaps exceeded 100,000 men,
but the emperor could not bring effective sol diers to bear upon any single point. To raise the military force to its usual level was therefore indis pensihly requisite ; and this seems to have been the main object of the cabinet in 1801, 1802, 1803, and Recruiting went on with considerable spirit, notwithstanding the loss of some important recruit ing stations in Germany ; and some few alterations, deemed judicious even by the enemies of the court, took place in the appointment of officers, and in the mode of paying the army. France did not look on with indifference. She always kept a vigilant eye towards the Austrian eagle, and was determined to pare his talons, or clip his wings, before he should once more soar to his ancient eminence. She there fore made one encroachment after another in Ita ly and Germany, and preferred so many demands, that Austria resolved for the third time to try her fortune against her great rival. England and Rus sia joined her with alacrity. The former gave mo ney, promised troops, and probably meant to per form her promises in good time. The latter pro mised an army of 100,000 men, and actually sent 60,000 excellent troops on the day appointed, and for• warded the remainder with all possible speed. The king of Prussia was understood to be at least favour ably disposed, if not actually pledged by his word and honour to join the coalition ; and Sweden was to exert herself to the utmost in the same cause. Early in September 1805,. the armies took the field. A court cabal sent the Archduke Charles and John, in whom the army had the greatest confidence, with se condary commands to Italy ; while the post of ho nour, that of commanding the German army against the emperor of the French in person, was upon General Mack. ' To complete the absurdity, this general's hands were tied up. He was ordered to advance far into Bavaria, and even to occupy the line of the Iller, 300 miles beyond the Austrian fron tier, before a single Russian soldier had entered Ger many. Mack's army did not exceed 80,000 men. Bonaparte was approaching with his wonted celerity, at the. head of 180,000 combatants. The Bavarians and Wirtemberg troops joined him with all speed, and his army on the first week of October amounted to 220,000 effective men. General Mack sent dis patch after dispatch, and courier after courier, to Vienna, desiring permission either to retire upon the Russian armies, which were rapidly advancing, and had promised to be in Braunau on the 19th of Oc tober, or to file off towards Italy, and compel Bona parte to meet him there by the way of Switzerland, or to risk being placed between him and the Russians, should the French venture to penetrate into the he reditary states. The unfortunate Mack, who is much more blamed than he deserves to be, was ordered to await the Russians on the Iller ; and was favoured by the council at Vienna with the pleasing intelligence, that the French could not reach him before the end of October, and that in the mean time a landing, to be made by a powerful English army on the coast oi trance or Holland, would relieve him from more ' than one half of their forces. While these puerilities passed, the terrible armies of France rushed like a torrent upon Swabia, Franconia, and Bavaria. Dis regarding the neutrality of Prussia, they traversed Anspach, annihilated the army of General Mack at Ulm, and on the 15th of October, the third day after firing the first shot, decided the fate of this war, and ruined the third coalition, which had for its profess ed object the deL erance of Europe.