something- perhaps a new English initiative- might turn up. In the end
Napoleon lost his temper with the delaying tactics. When Cobenzl
disingenuously claimed that the Austrian emperor had no power to
dispose of the destinies of the Rhine states, Napoleon exploded. 'Your
emperor is nothing but an old maidservant accustomed to being raped by
everyone!' He picked up a precious tea service - a gift to Cobenzl from
the Russian Empress Catherine - and smashed it on the ground. 'This is
what will happen to your monarchy!'
Shaken by this outburst and advised by his government that there was
no power in France that could oppose Bonaparte, Cobenzl signed terms.
On 17 October the peace of Campo Formio was signed. Austria ceded
Belgium and recognized the Cisalpine Republic, which included Bologna,
Modena, Ferrara and the Romagna. As a sop Austria was given Venice,
!stria and Dalmatia but France retained the Ionian islands. In a secret
article Austria agreed to support the French claim to the left bank of the
Rhine at a Congress to be held at Rastadt.
Wiser heads in France saw that this treaty was scarcely the glittering
triumph portrayed by the Bonapartist press. The original war aims of
'natural frontiers' had been transmogrified into Napoleon's quixotic
dream for a new Italy, and the destruction of Venice was widely seen as a
blot on French honour. Worst of all, Austria had been left with a foothold
in Italy, which was bound to cause conflict in future and, in general, the
empire that had sustained so many reverses in Italy had got away
astonishingly lightly. There were many who agreed with another rising
political star, the Abbe Emmanuel Sieyes: 'I believed that the Directory
was to dictate the conditions of peace to Austria but I see now that it is
rather Austria which has imposed them on France. This peace is not a
peace, it is a call for a new war.'
It took four hours of impassioned discussion before the Directors
agreed to ratify Campo-Formio. They wanted to oppose Napoleon, but
he had the military power and their resources were uncertain. Besides, a
great wave of relief swept over war-weary France and the tide of public
opinion was running so strongly in favour of peace and Bonaparte that
the executive did not dare to oppose it. Their foremost fear now was that
the Corsican ogre would soon be back in Paris. To forestall this, they
announced that the Commander in Italy was to be given two new
honours: he was simultaneously appointed plenipotentiary to the Rastadt
conference and nominated Commander of the Army of England, the
would-be invasion force collecting in the Channel ports.
Though proud of the honour conferred on him, Napoleon was under
no illusions about the Directors. In Turin on 19 November he confessed
marcin
(Marcin)
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