Military Career of Napoleon the Great Part 3

Love to Eugenie and Julie."

Within five days from the defeat of the Sections Napoleon was named second in command of the Army of the Interior, and shortly afterwards Barras, finding his duties as director sufficient to occupy his time, gave up the command to his "little Corsican officer."

After his inauguration as general of the armed force of Paris, Bonaparte waited on each of the five directors. While on a visit to Carnot a celebrated writer was there by invitation,--it being presentation day,--and as the young commander entered, was singing at the piano forte accompanied by a young lady. The entrance of Napoleon, then a short, well-made, olive-complexioned youth, amidst five or six tall young men who seemed to pay him the greatest attention, was a very surprising contrast, and made something of a stir.

On Bonaparte's entrance Carnot bowed with an air of perfect ease and self-possession, and as he pa.s.sed by the author the latter inquired of the host who the gentlemen were.

The director answered: "The general of the armed force of Paris and his aides-de-camp."

"What is his name?" said the author.

"Bonaparte."

"Has he any military skill?"

"So it is said."

"What has he ever done to render himself conspicuous?"

"He is the officer who commanded the troops of the Convention on the Thirteenth Vendemiaire." (Day of the defeat of the Sections).

A shade pa.s.sed over the visage of the inquirer, who happened to be one of the electors of the Vendemiaire, and he retired to one of the dark corners to observe the new visitor in thoughtfulness and in silence.

Carnot then took occasion to predict that the young general would soon take another step to fame and glory.

It was about this time that a lady asked Napoleon: "How could you fire thus mercilessly upon your countrymen?"

"A soldier," he replied calmly, "is only a machine to obey orders!"

A few years before, while at a party given in the drawing rooms of M.

Neckar, a celebrated financier, the Bishop of Autun commended Fox and Sheridan for having a.s.serted that the French army, by refusing to obey the orders of their superiors to fire upon the populace, had set a glorious example to all the armies of Europe; because, by so doing, they had shown themselves that men, by becoming soldiers, did not cease to be citizens.

[Ill.u.s.tration: From a Painting by H. Vernet

BONAPARTE AT THE BRIDGE OF ARCOLA]

"Excuse me, if I venture to interrupt you;" said Napoleon quickly, "but as I am an officer, I must claim the privilege of expressing my sentiments. I sincerely believe that a strict discipline in the army is absolutely necessary for the safety of our const.i.tutional government and for the maintenance of order. Nay, if our troops are not compelled unhesitatingly to obey the commands of the executive, we shall be exposed to the blind fury of democratic pa.s.sions which will render France the most miserable country on the globe!"

The action of the a.s.sembly in placing Napoleon in command of the troops in Paris had caused his name to appear frequently in the newspapers, and thenceforth it emerged from obscurity. As commander his first act was to intercede for and gain the acquittal of Menou, his predecessor, who was then in prison, princ.i.p.ally because of his failure to put down the rioters.

Bonaparte now began to hold military levees, at one of which an incident occurred which gave at once a new turn in his mode of life, and a fresh impetus to the advance of his fortunes. A beautiful boy about twelve years old appeared before Napoleon and said: "My name is Eugene Beauharnais. My father, Viscount, and a General of the Republican armies, has died on the guillotine, and I am come to pray you, sir, to give me his sword." Bonaparte caused the request to be complied with, and the tears of the boy, as he received and kissed the relic, excited the commander's interest. The next day the youth's mother, Josephine Beauharnais, came to thank Napoleon for his kind treatment of her son, and her beauty and singular gracefulness of address made a strong impression upon him. Some time later he offered Josephine his hand; she, after some hesitation, accepted it, and the young general by his marriage, which was celebrated on March 5th, 1796, thus cemented his favorable connection with the society of the Luxembourg, and in particular, with Tallien and Barras, at that time the most powerful men in France.

The first meeting with Eugene, and its influence upon Napoleon's marriage with Josephine, has been sometimes questioned by historians, many of whom have seemingly neglected the Exile's own verification of the story at St. Helena, in which, after relating the incident of Josephine's visit, he said to Dr. O'Meara: "I was much struck with her appearance (Josephine's), and still more with her _esprit_. This first impression was daily strengthened, and marriage was not long in following."

Tranquility was now restored in Paris, and the Directors had leisure to turn their attention to the affairs of the Army of Italy, which was then in a most confused and unsatisfactory condition. They determined to place it under it a new general, and Bonaparte, then but twenty-six years of age, was appointed to the command of the Army of Italy. It is said that when the command was given Napoleon by Carnot (grandfather of the late Sadi-Carnot, president of the present French Republic), the latter told him it was to the command of men alone that he could be appointed, the troops being dest.i.tute of everything but arms. Bonaparte replied, that provided he would let him have men enough, that it was all he wanted; he would answer for the rest, a promise that was soon fulfilled, for instead of an army wanting everything, it became, at the enemy's expense, one of the best appointed in Europe.

It was afterwards a matter of dispute between Carnot and Barras as to which of them had first proposed his appointment to this command. It is admitted in one of Josephine's letters that Barras had promised to procure the position for Bonaparte before his marriage took place.

One of the Directors hesitated and said to Napoleon, "You are too young."

"In a year," he answered, "I shall be either old or dead!"

II

BONAPARTE'S CAMPAIGN IN ITALY, 1796-7

When Napoleon set out from Paris on the 21st of March 1796, to take command of the Army of Italy, after a honeymoon of but three days, he traversed France with the swiftness of a courier, turning aside but a few hours at Ma.r.s.eilles with his mother and family, whom he was now able to provide for in an adequate manner. His letters to Josephine were full of pa.s.sionate expressions of tenderness, and regret at their separation.

But after paying his tribute to the affections, his heart was speedily filled with exultation and triumph. For the first time he was chief in command; the power within him was now free to direct his actions, unhampered by the restraint he had so long felt in the capital. He was extremely anxious to commence the career to which Fate called him, by placing himself at the head of the Army of Italy at once.

It would not be difficult to imagine with what delight this young general--then scarcely twenty-six years old--advanced to an independent field of glory and conquest, confident in his own powers, and in the perfect knowledge of the country which he had previously acquired. He had under his command such men, already distinguished in war by success and bravery as: Augereau, Ma.s.sena, Serrurier, Joubert, Lannes, Murat, La Harpe, Stengel and Kilmaine, all of whom were astonished at the youthful appearance of their new commander.

It was not without some discontent that the old generals beheld a young man, lately their inferior, taking the command over their heads,--to which each supposed he had a prior claim, and reaping the benefits of a plan of operations they did not imagine to have originated with himself.

As he rode along the ranks the soldiers observed that he did not sit well on horseback, and complained that a "mere boy" had been sent to command them. The young general, however, soon obtained that respect for his character, which had been denied to his physical const.i.tution. The firmness he exhibited, soon put a stop to the insubordination which had prevailed in the army; and, even before they had conquered under him, the troops became as submissive as at any subsequent period, when his character was fully established.

Some years before, when Bonaparte was conversing at Toulon with M. de Volney, the well-known Corsican traveler and literary man, at a dinner given to the two friends by Turreau, then in command of the military force at Nice, a campaign in Italy was suggested. After the dessert was brought in Napoleon said to Turreau: "Don't you think it's altogether too bad to have 10,000 men lying idle here at Nice when the Republic could make such excellent use of them in Italy?"

"Possibly," replied Turreau, "but we can do nothing; we have no order to move from the Committee of Public Safety."

"Then," said Napoleon, "it is your duty to make the committee ashamed of its inactivity."

"What would you do if you could act as you pleased?" asked Turreau.

Napoleon promised to give a reply the next evening. At the time fixed he came prepared with a complete plan of campaign written out and cla.s.sified under seventeen heads. It involved the invasion and conquest of Italy on almost the same lines that he was now about to undertake, and the outgrowth partially of that meeting, for Turreau forwarded the plan to the Committee of Public Safety at Paris on condition that it be put in the hands of Carnot, in whose judgment Napoleon had confidence.

Carnot looked over the plan and was delighted. He was unable to secure immediate action, but two years later, when the invasion of Italy was determined upon, he had sufficient influence to see that Napoleon was put in charge of it.

Bonaparte arrived at the headquarters of the army at Nice on the 27th of March, 1796. The French Army of Italy, which amounted to 31,000 available men, had endured great hards.h.i.+ps and privations, were dest.i.tute of shoes, clothing, and almost everything which their comfort demanded. The cavalry was wretchedly mounted and they were very deficient in artillery. To silence their complaints, and reconcile them to their situation, as well as to endear them to himself, Napoleon lived familiarly with his soldiers, partic.i.p.ated in their hards.h.i.+ps and privations, and redressed many of their grievances. "My brave fellows,"

he said to them on one occasion, while endeavoring to revive their spirits; "although you suffer great privations, you have no reason to be dissatisfied; everything yields to power; if we are victorious, the provisions and the supplies of the enemy become ours; _if we are vanquished, we have already too much to lose_."

The allies, Austrian and Sardinian, were a greatly superior force, numbering as they did 80,000 men, were well equipped with supplies, and occupied in their own, or a friendly country, all the heights and pa.s.ses of the Alps. Berthier, then on Napoleon's staff as major-general, took great pleasure in showing as a curiosity in after years a general order by which three louis-d'or were granted as a great supply for an outfit to each general of division, and dated on the very day of the victory at Albinga.

On the 8th of April Napoleon wrote to the Directory: "I found this army, not only dest.i.tute, but without discipline; their insubordination and discontent were such that the malcontents had formed a party for the Dauphin, and were singing songs opposed to the tenets of the Revolution. You may, however, rest a.s.sured that peace and order will be re-established; by the time you receive this letter, we shall have come to an engagement."

It was under such circ.u.mstances that Bonaparte proposed forcing a pa.s.sage to Italy and converting the richest territory of the enemy into the theatre of war. "Soldiers," said he to his dest.i.tute and disheartened men, "you are naked and ill-fed; the Republic owes you much, but she has nothing with which to pay her debts. Your endurance and patience amidst these barren rocks deserves admiration; but it brings you no glory. I come to lead you into the most fertile plains the sun s.h.i.+nes upon. Rich provinces, and great cities will soon be in your power; there you will reap riches and glory--they will be at your disposal. Soldiers of Italy! with such a prospect before you, can you fail in courage and perseverance?"

This was the commander's first address to the army, and the words of encouragement which he gave them shot martial enthusiasm through their veins like electric fire. Under the incompetent management of Scherer the army, which had obtained some success against the Austrian general, De Vins, had been without glory, although their battalions were headed by valiant officers whose leader had neglected to improve his good fortune. The French soldiers were thirsting for a commander capable of leading them on to fame and glory, the conquest of Italy, therefore, seemed reserved for General Bonaparte.

Napoleon's system of tactics, although then unknown even to his officers, were a fixity with him. They appear to have been grounded on the principle that "the commander will be victorious who a.s.sembles the greatest number of forces upon the same point at the same moment, notwithstanding an inferiority of numbers to the enemy when the general force is computed on both sides." He eminently possessed the power of calculation and combination necessary to exercise these decisive manoeuvres.

Napoleon's career of victory began, as it continued, in defiance of the established rules of warfare, and what distinguished him above all his contemporaries was his ability to convert the most unfavorable circ.u.mstances into the means of success. He perceived that the time was come for turning a new leaf in the history of war. With such numbers of troops as the impoverished Republic could afford him, he soon saw that no considerable advantages could be obtained against the vast and highly-disciplined armies of Austria and her allies unless the established rules of etiquette and strategy were abandoned. It was only by such rapidity of motion as should utterly surprise the superior numbers of his adversaries that he could hope to concentrate the entire energy of a small force, such as he commanded, upon some point of a much greater force, and thus defeat them. He knew he would have to deal with veteran soldiers and experienced generals--men who had learned the art of war before he was born. He therefore resolved that every movement should be made with celerity, and every blow be leveled where it was least expected.

To effect such rapid marches as he had determined upon, it was necessary that the soldiery should make up their minds to consider tents and baggage as idle luxuries; and that instead of a long and complicated chain of reserves and stores, they should dare to rely wholly for the means of sustenance on the countries into which their venturesome leader might conduct them.

The objects of Napoleon's expedition were to compel the king of Sardinia, who maintained a powerful army in the field, to abandon the alliance of Austria; to compel Austria to concentrate her forces in her Italian provinces, thus obliging her to withdraw them from the bank of the Rhine where they had long hovered. It was hoped, also, to humble the power of the Vatican and break the prestige of its Jesuitical diplomacy forever. He had as yet achieved no fame in the field and not a general in Europe would have blamed him if he had only succeeded in holding the territory of Nice and Savoy, which France had already won.

Napoleon's plan of reaching the fair regions of Italy differed from that of all former conquerors; they had uniformly penetrated the Alps at some point of access in that mighty range of mountains; he judged that the same end might be accomplished more easily by advancing along the narrow strip of comparatively level country that intervenes between those enormous barriers and the sh.o.r.es of the Mediterranean Sea, and forcing a pa.s.sage at the point where the last or southern extremity of the Alps melt, as it were, into the first and lowest of the Appenine range.

No sooner did he begin to concentrate his troops towards this region than Beaulieu, the Austrian general, took measures for protecting Genoa and the entrance of Italy with a powerful, disciplined and well-appointed army. He posted himself with one column at Voltri, a town on the sea some ten miles west of Genoa; D'Argenteau, with another column occupied the heights of Montenotte, while the Sardinians, led by General Colli, formed the right of the line at Ceva. This disposition was made in compliance with the old system of tactics; but it was powerless before new strategy. The French could not advance towards Genoa but by confronting some one of the three armies and these Beaulieu supposed were too strongly posted to be dislodged.