The Life of Napoleon I Part 67

[Footnote 323: Roederer, "OEuvres," vol. iii., p. 494.]

[Footnote 324: Colonel Campbell, our Commissioner at Elba, noted in his diary (December 5th, 1814): "As I have perceived in many conversations, Napoleon has no idea of the difficulties occasioned by winds and tides, but judges of changes of position in the case of ships as he would with regard to troops on land."]

[Footnote 325: Jurien de la Graviere, vol. ii., p. 88, who says: "His mild and melancholy disposition, his sad and modest behaviour, ill suited the Emperor's ambitious plans."]

[Footnote 326: "Corresp.," No. 8063. See too No. 7996 for Napoleon's plan of carrying a howitzer in the bows of his gun vessels so that his projectiles might _burst in the wood_. Already at Boulogne he had uttered the prophetic words: "We must have sh.e.l.ls that will shiver the wooden sides of ships."]

[Footnote 327: James, "Naval History," vol. iii., p. 213, and Chevalier, p. 115, imply that Villeneuve's fleet from Toulon, after scouring the West Indies, was to rally the Rochefort force and cover the Boulogne flotilla: but this finds no place in Napoleon's September plan, which required Gantheaume first to land troops in Ireland and then convoy the flotilla across if the weather were favourable, or if it were stormy to beat down the Channel with the troops from Holland.

See O'Connor Morris, "Campaigns of Nelson," p. 121.]

[Footnote 328: Colomb, "Naval Warfare," p. 18.]

[Footnote 329: Jurien de la Graviere, vol. ii., p. 100. Nelson was aware of the fallacies that crowded Napoleon's brain: "Bonaparte has often made his boast that our fleet would be worn out by keeping the sea, and that his was kept in order and increasing by staying in port; but he now finds, I fancy, if emperors hear truth, that his fleet suffers more in a night than ours in one year."--Nelson to Collingwood, March 13th, 1805.]

[Footnote 330: Garden, "Traites," vol. viii., pp. 276-290; also Capt.

Mahan, "Influence of Sea Power, etc.," vol. ii., ch. xv. _ad fin_. He quotes the opinion of a Spanish historian, Don Jose de Couto: "If all the circ.u.mstances are properly weighed ... we shall see that all the charges made against England for the seizure of the frigates may be reduced to want of proper foresight in the strength of the force detailed to effect it."--In the Admiralty secret letters (1804-16) I have found the instructions to Sir J. Orde, with the Swiftsure, Polyphemus, Agamemnon, Ruby, Defence, Lively, and two sloops, to seize the treasure-ships. No fight seems to have been expected.]

[Footnote 331: "Corresp.," No. 8379; Mahan, _ibid_., vol. ii., p.

149.]

[Footnote 332: Letter of April 29th, 1805. I cannot agree with Mahan (p. 155) that this was intended only to distract us.]

[Footnote 333: "Lettres inedites de Talleyrand," p. 121.]

[Footnote 334: Jurien de la Graviere, vol. ii., p. 367.]

[Footnote 335: Thiers writes, most disingenuously, as though Napoleon's letters of August 13th and 22nd could have influenced Villeneuve.]

[Footnote 336: Dupin, "Voyages dans la Grande Bretagne" (tome i., p.

244), who had the facts from Daru. But, as Meneval sensibly says ("Mems.," vol. i., ch. v.), it was not Napoleon's habit dramatically to dictate his plans so far in advance. Certainly, _in military matters,_ he always kept his imagination subservient to facts. Not until September 22nd, did he make any written official notes on the final moves of his chief corps; besides, the Austrians did not cross the Inn till September 8th.]

[Footnote 337: Diary of General Bingham, in "Blackwood's Magazine,"

October, 1896. The accompanying medal, on the reverse of which are the words "frappee a Londres, en 1804," affords another proof of his intentions.]

[Footnote 338: Marbot, "Mems.," ch. xix; Fouche, "Mems.," part 1; Miot de Melito, "Mems.," vol. ii., ch. i.]

[Footnote 339: See Nelson's letters of August 25th, 1803, and May 1st, 1804; also Collingwood's of July 21st, 1805.]

[Footnote 340: In "F.O.," France, No. 71, is a report of a spy on the interview of Napoleon with O'Connor, whom he made General of Division.

See Appendix, p. 510.]

FOOTNOTES TO VOLUME II:

[Footnote 1: Armfeldt to Drake, December 24th, 1803 ("F.O.," Bavaria, No. 27).]

[Footnote 2: Drake's despatch of December 15th, 1803, _ib_.]

[Footnote 3: Czartoryski, "Memoirs," vol. ii., ch. ii.]

[Footnote 4: The Czar's complaints were: the exile of the King of Sardinia, the re-occupation of S. Italy by the French, the changes in Italy, the violation of the neutrality of Baden, the occupation of Cuxhaven by the French, and the levying of ransom from the Hanse Towns to escape the same fate ("F.O.," Russia, No. 56).]

[Footnote 5: Lord Harrowby to Admiral Warren ("F.O.," Russia, No.

56).]

[Footnote 6: Garden, "Traites" vol. viii., p. 302; Ulmann, "Russisch-Preussische Politik," p. 117]

[Footnote 7: See the letter in the "Paget Papers," vol. ii., p. 170.]

[Footnote 8: "F.O.," Russia, No. 55. See note on p. 28.]

[Footnote 9: Czartoryski's "Mems.," vol. ii., chs. ii.-iv.]

[Footnote 10: "Lettres inedites de Napoleon" (May 30th, 1805).]

[Footnote 11: See Novossiltzoff's Report in Czartoryski's "Memoirs,"

vol. ii., ch. iv., and Pitt's note developing the Russian proposals in Garden's "Traites," vol. viii., pp. 317-323, or Alison, App. to ch.

x.x.xix. A comparison of these two memoranda will show that on Continental questions there was no difference such as Thiers affected to see between the generous policy of Russia and the "cold egotism" of Pitt. As Czartoryski has proved in his "Memoirs" (vol. ii., ch. x.) Thiers has erred in a.s.signing importance to a mere first draft of a conversation which Czartoryski had with that ingenious schemer, the Abbe Piatoli. The official proposals sent from St. Petersburg to London were very different; _e.g._, the proposal of Alexander with regard to the French frontiers was this: "The first object is to bring back France into its ancient limits or such other ones as might appear most suitable to the general tranquillity of Europe." It is, therefore, futile to state that this was solely the policy of Pitt after he had "remodelled" the Russian proposals.]

[Footnote 12: "Corresp.," No. 8231. See too Bourrienne, Miot de Melito, vol. ii., ch. iv., and Thiers, bk. xxi.]

[Footnote 13: This refusal has been severely criticised. But the knowledge of the British Government that Napoleon was still persevering with his schemes against Turkey, and that the Russians themselves, from their station at Corfu, were working to gain a foothold on the Albanian coast, surely prescribed caution ("F.O.,"

Russia, Nos. 55 and 56, despatches of June 26th and October 10th, 1804). It was further known that the Austrian Government had proposed to the Czar plans that were hostile to Turkey, and were not decisively rejected at St. Petersburg; and it is clear from the notes left by Czartoryski that the prospect of gaining Corfu, Moldavia, parts of Albania, and the precious prize of Constantinople was kept in view.

Pitt agreed to restore the conquests made from France (Despatch of April 22nd).]

[Footnote 14: Garden, "Traites," vol. viii., pp. 328-333. It is clear that Gustavus IV. was the ruler who insisted on making the restoration of the Bourbons the chief aim of the Third Coalition. In our "F.O.

Records" (Sweden, No. 177) is an account (August 20th, 1804) of a conversation of Lord Harrowby with the Swedish amba.s.sador, who stated that such a declaration would "palsy the arms of France." Our Foreign Minister replied that it would "much more certainly palsy the arms of England: that we made war because France was become too powerful for the peace of Europe."]

[Footnote 15: "Corresp.," No. 8329.]

[Footnote 16: Bailleu, "Preussen und Frankreich," vol. ii., p. 354.]

[Footnote 17: Thiers (bk. xxi.) gives the whole text.]

[Footnote 18: The annexation of the Ligurian or Genoese Republic took place on June 4th, the way having been prepared there by Napoleon's former patron, Salicetti, who liberally dispensed bribes. A little later the Republic of Lucca was bestowed on Elisa Bonaparte and her spouse, now named Prince Bacciochi. Parma, hitherto administered by a French governor, was incorporated in the French Empire about the same time.]

[Footnote 19: Paget to Lord Mulgrave (March 19th, 1805).]

[Footnote 20: Beer, "Zehn Jahre oesterreich. Politik (1801-1810)." The notes of Novossiltzoff and Hardenberg are printed in Sir G. Jackson's "Diaries," vol i., App.]

[Footnote 21: See Bignon, vol. iv., pp. 271 and 334. Probably Napoleon knew through Laforest and Talleyrand that Russia had recently urged that George III. should offer Hanover to Prussia. Pitt rejected the proposal. Prussia paid more heed to the offer of Hanover from Napoleon than to the suggestions of Czartoryski that she might receive it from its rightful owner, George III. Yet Duroc did not succeed in gaining more from Frederick William than the promise of his neutrality (see Garden, "Traites," vol. viii., pp. 339-346). Sweden was not a member of the Coalition, but made treaties with Russia and England.