CHAPTER XVIII. Russia.-War with Turkey-Treaty of Peace-Treaties with Sweden and England-French invasion and retreat-Sweden: its pol cy— Diet-Treaty with England-Warlike Preparations-DenmarkAustria-Hungarian Diet-Germany-Sicily; its new constitutionTurkey. MUCH that relates to the oc-paign. Doubtless, the prospect of currences in the Russian empire during this year has been necessarily anticipated in the last chapter, on account of its intimate connection with the affairs of France; but various circumstances remain to be considered, in which Russia either stood apart from that power, or acted upon her own plans, without the immediate compulsion of events. This The close of the last year left the Russians in a course of success against the Turks, who, under the grand vizier, had crossed the Danube with their best troops. The Petersburgh gazette contains a report from General Kutusoff of the surrender of the vizier's army as prisoners of war, with all their artillery, on November 26th (December 8th) after having lost 10,000 men in different attacks. event, it was generally thought, would be so decisive of the Russian superiority, as to lay the Turks at their feet, and oblige them to consent to such conditions of peace as might be imposed by the conquerors; but the Ottoman Porte continued firm in the resolution of making no sacrifice of territory, and appearances were made of vigorous preparation for another cam an approaching necessity to the Russians of employing their principal force in the defence of their own country, which the French emissaries would not fail of making known in its full extent at Constantinople, greatly encouraged that court in its determination. armistice, however, for an indefinite period, was in the meantime concluded between the Russian and Turkish commanders, and a congress for negociations of peace was sitting at Bucharest. An Notice having been given of the cessation of the armistice, arms were resumed on the 10th of February, and the Russian troops were put in motion towards different points of the Danube to prevent the crossing of that river by the Turks. The Russian advanced guard passed to the right bank of the Danube on the 13th with little opposition, and the Turkish posts fell back upon Rudschnck, where the grand vizier lay with 20 or 25,000 men, waiting to be joined by the reinforcements which were on their march from all parts of the Ottoman empire. General Langeron was at this time commander-in-chief of the Russians, and his head-quarters were were at Giurgewo. These warlike demonstrations, however, had no consequences. The exhaustion of one empire, and the critical state of the other, rendered the necessity of a peace so evident to both parties, that after a considerable time spent in adjusting the terms, a treaty was finally concluded, the ratification of which was announced at Petersburgh by a Te Deum on August 14th. By its principal article respecting territory, the river Pruth, from its entrance into Moldavia to its junction with the Danube, and the left bank of the Danube to its mouth at Kilia, are declared the European boundaries of the two empires; the Porte relinquishing to Russia all the districts, fortresses, and towns to the left of the Pruth. The Danube may be navigated by the merchant vessels of both powers, but Russian ships of war are not to come higher than the mouth of the Pruth. Full amnesty is granted to the subjects of each power who have taken the opposite part in the war; and in particular, the Porte grants a pardon to the Servians, and consents to demolish the fortresses lately erected in their country, putting garrisons in the ancient fortified places. The Porte also offers its mediation to restore peace between Russia and Persia, on the frontiers of which, hostilities had for some time subsisted, and with some disadvantage to the Russians. Thus was terminated a destructive and protracted war, with an acquisition to Russia of an unhealthy slip of country to her already unwieldy mass of territory, at a cost which she doubtless severely felt in the arduous contest almost for existence that' awaited her. It was the obvious policy of the Russian court, not only to free itself from an enemy, but to obtain new friends, in order to strengthen it for the coming encounter. The Swedish government, which had given unequivocal proof of a disposition to assert its independence against the requisitions of France, was naturally the first object of amicable negociation, and a Russian general arrived at Stockholm on March 21st for the purpose of opening a treaty. Some difficulties probably arose, for the sovereigns of the two countries. thought proper to have a personal interview in order to bring matters to a final adjustment. The Emperor Alexander, and the crownprince of Sweden, met at Abo in Finland on August 28th. The emperor, who had been on the spot some days, waited upon the crown-prince immediately after his arrival; and banishing all ceremony, they had a conference which lasted four hours, and from which all their attendants were excluded; but the English minister, Lord Cathcart, was present. The result has not been made public, but it was the general opinion that Alexander promised the restitution of Finland to Sweden within six months, on the condition of a cooperation of the Swedish troops against the French. We shall see, however, that no such co-operation actually took place during the campaign of this year. No difficulty seems to have occurred in settling a treaty between Russia and England, the interests of the two nations so well coin ciding in opposition to the ambitious projects of the French ruler. A treaty of peace and amity was ratified on August 1st, by which the former relations of friendship and commerce between the two countries were re-established, and an alliance defensive against all powers who, in resentment of this treaty, should attack either of the contracting parties, was agreed upon. The assistance given by the English fleet in the defence of Riga, and the confidence with which Russia intrusted its whole naval force to winter in the English ports, have already been mentioned as consequences of this renewed friendship. Whatever fluctuation there might have been in the Russian councils at the remote prospect of a contest with the most formidable power that Europe had ever beheld, there was no symptom of indecision as the storm rolled nearer; and the conditions which the court of Petersburgh proposed as the price of a continuation of its amity indicated a firm resolution to maintain the independence becoming a great and powerful empire. Alexander had taken post at Wilna in order to be at hand for assisting in the deliberations respecting peace and war. When the attack upon his troops at Kowno, and the address of Napoleon to his army, had decided the point of hostility, he issued, on June 25th, general orders to his armies, declaring the war to be commenced, and expressing confidence in the bravery of his troops, and the ju- ice of bis cause The plan of the campaign was wisely framed on the defensive system aviding as long as possible a general action with a foe so much superior in numbers and appointment, and whose impetuosity and military skill would doubtless render his first onset almost irresistible. Alexander himself, when compelled to leave Wilna, prudently returned to Petersburgh, aware that the presence of the sovereign, when not professionally qualified for military command (which he can very rarely be), is only an impediment to the operations of his generals. The disasters occasioned by the first rush of this dreadfui torrent were met with resolution and magnanimity on the part of the Russian government; and even after the loss and destruction of the ancient capital, not the most distant idea seems to have been admitted of yielding to the will of the invader. Nor, in a war like this, would it be just to attribute to a want of feeling for the severe sufferings of its subjects, this pertinacity of resistance: it was not a war for the attainment of an object of ambition, in which the happiness of the people had little or no concern, but for that national independence, without which there can be neither public honour nor private prosperity. Further, it became evident, after the battle of Borodino, that the plan adopted was almost certain of final success. The assailants were continually diminishing in number and strength; while the reinforcements of the defenders were concentrating on all sides, and their confidence rose in proportion as that of their enemies subsided. The sure aid of their terrible winter was also approaching; and even had the houses of Moscow been left standing, no prudent general would have thought of wintering in the heart of a hostile country, cut off by a long tract of deserts (for such they had been rendered) from all military communication with the source of his supplies. The retreat of the French was at length fully decided, and Russia was left at liberty to adopt a system of action not imposed by the present necessity of making defence against superior power. At this period, in October, the Emperor Alexander issued a proclamation which gave a spirited, but unexaggerated, view of the relative situation of the two antagonists. "Russians! (said he) at length the enemy of our country, the foe of its independence and freedom, has experienced a portion of that terrible vengeance which his ambitious and unprincipled aggression had aroused. From the period of his march from Wilna, his army, great in numbers, assured in valour and discipline, and elated at the remembrance of victories gained in other regions, threatened no less than the subjugation of the Russias. The system which we had thought fit to adopt strengthened that confidence. The sanguinary battles fought on his route, and which gave him temporary possession of Smolensk, flattered him with all the illusions of victory. He reached Moscow, and he believed himself invincible and invulnerable. He now exulted in the idea of reaping the fruit of his toils; of obtaining for his soldiers comfortable winter-quarters; and of sending out from thence, next spring, fresh forces to ravage and burn our cities, make captives of our countrymen, overthrow our laws and holy religion, and subject every thing to his lawless will. Vain presumptuous hope! insolent degrading menace! A population of forty millions, attached to their sovereign and country, and devoted to their religion and laws, the least brave man of whom is superior to his confederates and victims, cannot be conquered by any heterogeneous force which he could muster." After recounting what has been done, the emperor goes on to observe, "Much however remains to be done, and that is in your power. Let the line of his retreat be rendered memorable by your honest indignation: destroy every thing which can be of service to him, and our commanders have orders to remunerate you. Render your bridges, your roads, impassable. In fine, adopt and execute the suggestions of a brave, wise, and patriotic heart, and show yourselves deserving of the thanks of your country and your sovereign." With what effect these injunctions were put in practice may be inferred from the narrative already given of the disastrous return of the surviving French from the country they had so cruelly desolated. It only remains to be observed, that the Russians, not contented with the complete expulsion of their invaders, followed up their success without taking the repose usually allotted to the winter, and exerted themselves for the recovery of the districts annexed to their empire, and the renewal of their former influence in that part of Europe. But the particulars of these vigorous efforts will form materials for the public history of another year. SWEDEN Continued during this year to fix the attention of politicians, by a system of conduct that that gave scope to a variety of conjectures, but which was probably a necessary consequence of her peculiar situation. The statement of her affairs made by the erown-prince to the king, on the resumption of the royal a thority by the latter, on January 7th, was noticed in our last volume. It evidently pointed at a system of independent neutrality as that which ought to be adopted by the kingdom, and which it possessed the means of maintaining. In the same month, some representations were made by the Swedish minister at Paris on behalf of merchants whose ships had been taken by French privateers during the war; to which the answer given was, that the war bad liquidated all these claims. Shortly after, the French chargé d'affaires at Stockholm made a requisition in behalf of certain French, Dutch, and Genoese creditors of the state, , demanding that the commissioners for the national debt should pay them, if not their capitals, at least the interest which had accrued, To this, the Swedish minister for foreign affairs was directed to return the same answer that was given in the former case, "That the war between the two powers had liquidated all debts whatever. These replies and retorts indicated little wish in the two courts to live in harmony with each other. The occupation of Swedish Pomerania by the French has been mentioned as one of the earliest military events of the year. It seems at first to have produced the intended effect of influencing the Swedish government; for in an official publication by that government on the subject of the en trance of the French into Stralsund, it is said that this proceeding. was not to be regarded as a hostile act. An application, also, made by the merchants to the crownprince for permission to import goods from Great Britain, met with a decided negative; and it was followed by strict orders to the governor of Gottenburgh not to admit British merchandize into the ports of Sweden without immediately sequestrating the same. As the prospect of hostilities between France and Russia, however, became more certain, the conduct of Sweden assumed a more determinate aspect; and when the Russian general Von Suchtelen was on his mission at Stockholm, he was joined in the beginning of April by Mr. Thornton, the English minister, though as yet under no public character. On April 20th the diet of the kingdom assembled at Orebro. It was opened by a speech from the king, in which, after alluding to the happy effect of various acts passed at the former diet, he says, " I have called you together at a moment when great and important occurrences, out of our native country, seem to threaten Europe with new misfortunes. Guarded by her situation from the forced obligation of paying obedience to foreign sway, which possibly might not accord with her own interests, Sweden has every thing to hope from unity, valour, and conduct; every thing to lose, if she gives herself up to intestine divisions, and unwise fear." His Majesty proceeds to set forth the advantage of union, and hints at the reasons which induced him to convoke the diet at Orebro rather than at Stockholm; and |