evening of the fifteenth, directing its march to Zutphen. On the retreat of the British forces, the French took immediate poffeffion of Utrecht, and of Rotterdam, two of the most important places in the feven provinces. fhrub, here and there. The wind was exceffively high, and drifted the fnow and fand together fo ftrong, that we could hardly wreftie against it; to which was added, a feverity of cold a'moft infufferable. The froft was fo intenfe, that the water which came from our eyes, freezing as it fell, hung in icicles to our eye-lafhes; and our breath, freezing as foon as emitted, lodged in heaps of ice about our faces, and on the blankets or coats that were wrapped round our heads. "Night faft approaching, a great number, both men and women, began to linger behind, their fpirits being quite exhaufted, and without hopes of reaching their deftination; and if they once loft tight of the column of march, though but a few minutes, it being dark, and no track to follow, there was no chance of finding it again. In this ftate, numbers were induced to fit down, or creep under the fhelter of bushes, where, weary, fpiritlefs, and without hope, a few moments configned them to fleep; but alas! whoever flept awaked no more, their blood almoft inftantly congealed in their veins, the fpring of life foon dried up; and if ever they opened their eyes, it was only to be fenfible of the laft agonies of their miferable existence. "Others, fenfible of the danger of fitting down, but having loft the column, wandered up and down the pathlefs wafte, furrounded with darknefs and defpair; no found to comfort their ears but the bleak whittling wind; no fight to blefs their eyes but the wide tracklefs defert, and shapeless drift ;' far from human help, far from pity, down they fink, to rife no more! "About half paft ten o'clock at night we reached Brickborge, when, to add to our misfortunes, we could hardly find 100m to fhelter ourselves from the weather, every houfe being already filled with Heffian infantry, who are in no refpe&t friendly to the English. In feveral houfes they pofitively refufed us entrance, and in every one refused us admittance to the fire at the fame time, they pofted centries by the cellar doors, to prevent the inhabitants from falling us any liquors; even their commanding officer pufhed, with his own hands, a number of our men neck and heels out of his quarters. Thus we were fituated, till, partly by force, and partly by stealth, we crept in where we could, glad to obtain the fhelter of a houfe at any rate. [Dec. 17" We halted this day, and in the morning, waggons were fent out with a number of men, to fearch for those who were left behind. A great number were found near the route of the column; but a greater number, who had ftraggled farther off, were never heard of more. In one place, feven men, one woman, and a child, were found dead; in another, a man, a woman, and two children; in another, a man, a woman, and one child; and an unhappy woman being taken in labour, fhe, with her husband and infant, were all found lifeless. One or two men were found alive, but their hands and feet were frozen to fuch a degree, as to be dropping off by the wrifts and ancies. [Dec. 19.] "Perhaps never did a British army experience fuch diftrefs as ours does at this time. Not a village nor houfe but what bears witnefs to our mifery, in containing fome dead, and others dying; fome are daily found who have crawled into houfes fingly; other houfs contain five, fix, or feven, together, fome dead, and others dying, or unable to walk, anu as for thofe that are able, it is no eafy matter for them to and their way; for the country is one continued defert, without roads, and every tract filled up with the drifting and falling fnow. Add to all this, the inhabitants are our moft inveterate enemies, and, where opportunity offers, will rather murder a poor loft diftref fed Englishman, than direct him the right way; feveral inftances of which we have already known. It is reported, that, in the feveral columns of the army, about 700 are miffing fince we left the river Leck." See An Impartial Journal of the Campaigns, in 1793, 1794, and 1795, by Robert Prown, corporal in the Coldftream regiment.Although corporal Brown was not acquainted with the combinations on which were four 4 the plans of the different marches and engagements, and the campaigns in lefs, with the political interefts, and private paffions, by which these yet he relates what came under his own obfervation, with candour, dgement. Delivered Delivered from the English, as the Dutch now affected to speak of themfelves, they gave a loose to the moft intemperate rage against the Stadtholder. This prince found it necellary for the perfonal fafety of himself and his fon, the hereditary prince of Orange, to efcape with all diligence from the fury of the people. He embarked in an open boat at Schaveling, on the nineteenth of January, 1795, and arrived the next day at Harwich. His efcape had not been effected without difficulty. A crowd affembled at the Hague on the morning of their departure, and infifted that he thould be brought to juftice for the part he had taken in favour of the Englifa. His guards, however, protected him from their violence, and conveyed him to the water-fide, where he was again in danger, till the guards that accompanied him difperfed the populace. Pichegru had, in the mean time, been applied to, by the heads of the oppofition to government, who formally invited him to repair to Amfterdam, with affurances of a cordial reception by the people. He addrefied a letter to the regency of that city, informing them of his intention to repair thither, and defpatched a body of men to precede him. A committee of government was elected by the inhabitants, principally out of thofe who had been imprifoned for petitioning for peace, and against an inundation. They planted the tree of liberty in the chief places of the city, and every man aflumed the French cockade. On the twentieth of January, Pichegru made his entry into Amfterdam, at the head of five thousand men, and was received with the greateft acclamations. The first act of the French general was, to proclaim the freedom and independency of the feven united provinces. New magiftrates were elected, by a general affembly of the citizens, together with twenty-one provifional reprefentatives of the city. Municipal officers were alfo appointed, on the principal of whom they conferred the title of mayor. In this manner was effected, without bloodshed, the furrender of the feven united provinces to the French republic. Whatever ideas the commonalty might entertain of this tranfaction, it was evident to the difcerning, that the French would confider themselves as authorised to treat it as a conqueft obtained by their arms, and though a peaceable ceflion had been made, it was chiefly through the confcioufnefs that refiftance would have been fruitlefs. The fame motive influenced the conduct of the other cities in the provinces of Holland. Haarlem and Layden adopted the fame mea fures taken at Amfterdam, and declared themfelves for France, in the moft folemn manner. In the province of Zealand, fo called from its confifting of islands, lay, at this time, a confiderable fquadron of flips of war. The admiral, who commanded it, was warmly in the intereft of the French. On the thirtieth of January, after a confultation with the principal individuals of his own party, he hoifted the French flag, and took poffeffion of Fl fhing and Middleburg, the two chief towns in the provinces, every part of which acceeded, on the fourth of February, to the terms fettled by a negotiation with general Michaud, who commanded the French troops in the neighbour[E2] hood. hood. Exclufively of liberty of confcience, and of religious worfhip, which the French introduced every where, it was ftipulated that no place in Zealand should be garrifoned by the French, nor their affignats be forced into circulation. The fortrefles on the frontiers of Brabant, Bergen-op-Zoom, particularly, were in an excellent ftate of defence; but the Hague, the refidence of the States-General, having fubmitted to the French, thofe ftates, which were now at their mercy, iffued proclamations, enjoining to all the garrifon towns, in confequence of the Stadtholder's withdrawing himself, to give admittance to the French troops. In compliance with thefe proclamations, the ftrong and almoft impregnable town of Bergen-op-Zoom opened its gates to the French. It had fuftained feveral fieges, a famous one particularly in the beginning of the last century, by the Spaniards, under the celebrated Spinola, one of the greatest generals of the age, and was never taken till the year 1747, by the French, commanded by Marthal Lowendahl. Williamftadt, Breda, and other ftrong places, were yielded to the French in the fame man ner. The provinces of Guelderland, Utrecht, Holland, and Zealand, were now completely in the poffeffion of the French. Thefe four were unquestionably the moft important of any, by their fituation and opulence. The French were fully fenfible of the value of thefe new acquifitions, and their wants prompted them to apply to their new allies for immediate affiftance. The conftitution intended to fuperfede the prefent, not being yet formed, the States-General were directed to publish a proclamation, in their own name, demanding a fupply of clothes and provifions for the French army. The laft of the articles demanded was calculated at one million four hundred thoufand pounds. In order to foften this requifition, it was declared to be made, not as from a conqueror, but an ally, fighting under the common banner of liberty. On the twenty-feventh of February, when this proclamation was iffued, an affembly was held of the provifional representatives of the people of Holland, of which Peter Paulus, a man of abilities and moderation, was unanimoufly elected prefident. They began by depofing the Stadtholder from all his offices, and abolishing the offices themfelves. They next proceeded to an abrogation of all the other forms of the preceding conftitution, and to an organization of others in their ftead. They inftituted an enquiry into the circumftances of the bank of Amfterdam; by which it appeared to be perfectly folvent, though not in fpecie, yet in bonds and fecurities of that nature which proved, on examination, wholly unexceptionable. In confequence of the farther deliberations of this affembly, a folemn declaration of the rights of men and citizens was published, at the Hague, on the third of February, together with a proclamation, annuliing the fentences palled against the patriotic party in 1787, and recalling home to their country all thofe who had been banished for their oppofition to the Stadtholder. The fubmiffion, or indeed the conqueft of fo rich and powerful a ftate as Holland, was a fubject of great great alarm to the princes that their caufe as the French them. formed the coalition against France. felves. In the fouth of France, That country was the centre of all their conquefts were the duchy of pecuniary loans and negotiations, Savoy, with the principalities of and its ready affiftance on all fuch oc- Nice and Monaco, in Italy. The cafions, rendered its independence provinces of Bifcay and Catalonia, in an object of general intereft to all Eu- Spain. The population of all thefe rope; the northern powers in parti- countries was eftimated at thirteen cular. France, it was now forefeen, millions; which, added to the would engrofs all the money that twenty-four millions contained in could be raised in this manner, and France, conftituted a mafs of all the power and wealth of Hol- thirty-feven millions, inhabiting the land would henceforth be at the centre of Europe, and capable by difpofal of the French republic. that pofition alone, if united under Thefe were mortifying reflections to one government, to defy the enmity the enemies of that formidable na- of all their neighbours, and to exertion, now become more dangerous cife an influence amounting almoft than ever, by the acceffion of foto univerfal fovereignty, many countries to its dominions, already fo extenfive and populous, and by the partiality of the majority of people in its new acquifitions, to the principles of the French republicans. Well might the convention glory in the fituation of France at this time. Never, fince the days of Charlemaign, had the empire of France extended over fo many regions and people. A lift of recent conquefts was printed, and affixed to a tablet, which was hung up in the hall of the convention, and copies of it were fent to the armies, together with an enumeration of the victories by which thefe conquefts were obtained. They confifted of the ten provinces of the Auftrian Netherlands; the feven united provinces; the bifhoprics of Liege, Worms, and Spires; the electorates of Treves, Cologne, and Mentz; the dutchy of Deux Ponts; the Palatinate; the Duchies of Juliers and Cleves. Thefe acquifitions were all rich, fertile, and populous countries, abounding with men as zealous in The catalogue of their victories was no lefs confpicuous. In the space of feventeen months they had won twenty-feven battles, and been victorious in one hundred and twenty actions of lefs note. They had taken one hundred and fixteen ftrong cities and fortified places : but what redounded chiefly to the reputation of the French, thefe fucceffes had been obtained over the beft difciplined armies of Europe, elated with their paft triumphs over warlike enemies, and commanded by generals of confummate experience, and the most dazzling reputation. Their own armies in the commencement of the conteft, confifted of officers and foldiers, few of whom had feen fervice, and their commanders were very far from eminent in their profeffion. With thefe difadvantages, they refolutely ventured to face the tremendous combination formed against them; and in lefs than a twelve month, from acting on the defensive, they affaulted their enemies in every direction, and ftruck them every where with fo much terror, that [E3] feveral feveral of them were meditating a retreat from the field of action, and total feceffion from the confederacy, by uniting with which they had fuftained fo many loffes. Such was the defcription given by the French of their numerous exploits; and impartiality requires it fhould be acknowledged, notwithstanding the odium they lie under, that the account is not exaggerated. In the mean time, through the activity of the French commanders in the feven provinces, and the cooperation of the inhabitants, the relics of the British troops, and thofe in their pay, were totally unable to make the leaft ftand, during their difficult retreat from that inhofpitable country, where the hatred of the natives to the English was never concealed whenever they dared to manifeft it, and where occafion were induftrioufly fought to fhew it in the hartheft manner. On reaching Deventer, the 27th of January, after one of the moft fatiguing and diftrefsful marches that ever was experienced by a retreating army, the British troops had expected the refpite of a few days from their labours and fufferings. Such had been their courage and perfeverance, in the midft of thefe arduous trials, that they had conveyed fafely to this place ali the ammunition and military flores, artillery, and implements of war of all defcriptions, belonging to the army; but they could carry them no farther. The diminution of their strength, through the numbers that fell ill, or died in this difaftrous retreat, compelled them, from want of hands, to deftroy immenfe quantities of thefe articles, to prevent their coming into the pottetion of the enemy, yho purfued them to eagerly, that they were obliged to quit Deventer two days after their arrival. The French, to the amount of fifty thousand men, were advancing upon them with all poffible speed, in order to cut off the communication between the different corps, and thereby force them to furrender. But notwithstanding their vaft fuperiority, and the celerity of their motions, they were not able to interrupt the British troops, whole movements were fo firm and steady, amidft incellant obftacles, as to furmount them every one, contrary to general expectation. It was not, however, without heavy lotes, that they overcame the difficulties and difcouragements perpetually thrown in their way, either by the enemy or the elements. Moft of their marches were performed through ice or fnow, mud or water, often up to their middle. On the tenth of February, they crofled the Vecht, the river which divides in two parts, the province of Overiffel; and, on the twelfth, the river Ems, at Rheine. They continued retreating in this manner till the twenty-fourth. On this day a body of the French army came up with them, and an engagement enfeed, in which, with an inconfiderable lofs, the British troops difplayed fuch firmnefs, that the enemy could make no effectual impreffion upon them. Refuming their march, with little interruption, they arrived at length in the country of Bremen, about the clofe of March. Here they were joined by other divifions of the army. That which was under the command of lord Cathcart, had to encounter even more than a common fhare of thefe difficulties: the French kept continually on its rear, and hardly a day palled with Out |