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CHAP. XII.

The Haughtiness of the Directory towards different Nations.-Particularly towards the Dutch, whom they confider, not as Confederates, but a conquered People.-Moderation of the Republic and prepondering Party in the United Provinces.-Batavian Convention.-Its Proceedings-Affairs of Geneva. -Meeting of the National Infiitute of France.Confidered as an aufpicious Omen of the Return of Peace and Reign of the Arts.-And Liberty of Thinking and Publishing on all Subjects.-The Alliance between the Church and Monarchy of France, in the End, ruinous to both.-The nele, or confiitutional, Clergy avow their Affent to the Separation of the Church from the State.-Yet venture to condemn fome Things fettled, or approved, by the republican Government.-But which they confidered as adverfe to the Dignity and Interests of the ecclefiaftical Order.-The Settlement of ecclefiaftical Affairs confidered by the Generality of the French as a Matter of great Importance.

HE irritable temper of the di

litics of Ruffia. The court of Swe

Trefortable temper of cted by dengave the directory to underfand,

other governments befide the American. The court of Stockholm, which had, fince the death of the late king Guftavus, explicitly renounced his projects against the French republic, and manifefted favourable difpofitions to it, had lately undergone an evident alteration. Some attributed this to the intrigues of Ruffia; others to the refentment of the Swedish government at the duplicity of the French, who had paid the fubfidy they owed to Sweden, in drafts upon the Dutch republic, which they were confcious would not be honoured. Another motive of diffatisfaction to the directory was, the recall of baron Stäel, the Swedish ambaffador, a friend to the republic, and the replacing him by Mr. Renhaufen, a gentleman noted for his attachment to the po

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that were he to be refufed admiffion, the French envoy at Stockholm, would be treated precifely in the fame manner. But the directory ordered him, nevertheless, to quit Paris; not, however, without expreffing the highest respect for the Swedish nation, the good-will of which it still fought to retain, notwithstanding this variance with its government. The French envoy at that court was, at the fame time, directed to leave it; his refidence there being no longer confiftent with the honour of France, to the intereft of which that court was become manifeftly inimical, by its fubferviency to Ruffia, the declared enemy to the French republic.

The king of Sardinia's ambassador had, in like manner, experinced the difpleasure of the directory, for expreffing

expreffing his regret at the precipitation with which his mafter had concluded the treaty of peace with France; the terms of which, he faid, would have been much less fevere, had he waited for the more favourable opportunities that followed it. For having uttered words of that import, he was ordered to quit the territory of the republic. The Tufcan envoy was difmiffed in the fame manner, on account of the particular zeal he had teftified in behalf of Lewis XVI.'s daughter, when he was permitted to leave France.

The court of Rome, when compelled by the victories of Buonaparte to folicit a fufpenfion of arms, had fent commiflioners to Paris, to negociate a peace: bat, in hope that the numerous reinforcements, which were coming from Germany to the Imperial army, would enable it to recover its loffes, and expel the French from Italy, they ftudiously protracted the negociation, on pretence that they were not furnished with fufficient powers to conclude a definitive treaty. It was not till the fucceffes of the French had put an end to thefe hopes, that they appeared detirous, as well as empowered, to come to a conclufion. But the directory, for anfwer, fignified their immediate difmiffion.

Notwithstanding the refolute and decitive conduct adopted by the directory, they found it neceflary to abate of their peremptorinefs with the Dutch; who, though trongly determined to remain united in intereft with France, were not the lefs refolved to retain their national independence. The party that favour ed and had called in the French, had done it folely with the view of fecuring their afliftance for the fup

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preffion of the ftadtholdership, in which they had been formally pro mifed the concurrence of the French republic. They were, for this motive, fo zealous for the fuccefs of its arms, that, during the campaign of 1794, they had projected an infurreetion in the principal towns of the Seven United Provinces, while the republican armies fhould advance, with all fpeed, to their fupport. Having communicated their defigns to the French government, they doubted not of its readinefs to fe cond them, and prepared according ly to execute the plans which they had formed in virtue of that expectation. But the uninterrupted career of victory, that had given fo decided a fuperiority to the French over all their enemies, had alfo elated them in fuch a manner, that, looking upon the co-operation of their party, in Holland, as no longer of that importance which it had hitherto appeared to be, they now received its applications with a coldness, which plainly indicated that they confidered the Dutch as a people that muft fubmit to their own terms, and whom they now propofed to treat rather as being fubdued by the arms of the French, than as confederated in the fame caufe.

Such were the difpofitions of the French towards the Dutch, when they enterred the United Provinces. The arbitrary manner, in which they impofed a multiplicity of heavy contributions upon the Dutch, was highly exafperating to the nation' but they were too prudent to exal perate men, who were determined? to act as conquerors, and whom it .. was impoflible to refift. They fub. mitted, therefore, with that phlegms: atic patience, which characterizes

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them in difficulties, and ufually enables them to furmount the greateft, by giving way to the ftorm while it lafts, and referving themfelves for thofe aufpicious opportunities of retrieving their affairs, that fo feldom fail the vigilant and undefponding.

In the mean time, the republican party, in Holland, refolved to conduct itself with fo much temper to the adherents of that party, which it had oppofed with fo much firmnefs and perfeverance, that they fhould have no caufe to complain of its having made an improper ufe of the power it had newly acquired. The effects of this inoderation were highly beneficial to both parties. It foftened the grief of thofe who had been deprived of the government of their country, and induced them to be lefs hoftile to thofe who had taken their places: and it procured for thefe a readinefs in the generality of people to confider them as actuated by patriotic motives, and in no wife by private animofity towards their antagonists.

This conduct was the more remarkable, that the inhabitants of the provinces, though a large majority, was defirous of a change of government, differed materially in their opinions concerning that which was to fucceed it. The party favouring the stadtholder was the leaft confiderable. It confifted of the titled, or noble families, ftill remaining in the United Provinces, and chiefly depended upon the inferior claffes, and the great number of foreigners, for the moft part Germans, in the Dutch fervice. The mercantile and middle claffes, and generally the people of opulence and property, were inclined to a republican fyftem: but herein they differed among themfelves as to the plan to be adopted. VOL. XXXVIII.

Several preferred the antecedent one, that had fubfifted from the demife of William III. king of Great Britain and ftadtholder, with fuch alteration as might fecure it effectually from a re-establishment of that office, and render it more democratical: others recommended an immediate adoption of the precedents, which the French had fixed on as the most popular. Thefe different parties contended with great warmth for the fuperior excellence of their various plans. But the neceffity of fettling fome form of government, brought them, at laft, after long and violent difpute, to the determination of calling a national convention. The provinces of Zealand and Frizeland, the two moft confiderable in the Dutch republic, next to that of Holland, made a long and obftinate oppofition to this propofal. But they were, at length, prevailed upon to concur with the others on its expediency.

The year 1795 was confumed in altercations of this nature. But as foon as the national convention met, which was on the firft of March, 1796, all parties agreed on a refolution to declare war against Great Britain, which they confidered as having chiefly occafioned the many calamities that had befallen the United Provinces for a course of years. Through its influence over the ftadtholder, the ftrength of the ftate had been perfidioufly withheld from acting in defence of the trade and fhipping of the republic, and its interefts wholly facrificed to thofe of England. During the whole duration of the American war, this had been done in despite and contempt of continual remonftrances and folicitations from the most refpectable citizens in the common. [N]

wealth,

wealth. It was through the interference of England, leagued with Pruffia, that the ftadtholder, who had been expelled from the United Provinces, was restored in defiance of the manifeft will of the Dutch. Thus a governor was impofed upon them, whom they could compare to no other than a lord-lieutenant of Ireland, or a stadtholder of some Pruffian district. He was the mere agent of thofe two powers, by whofe impulfe he was guided, and by whofe power he was upheld in his authority, which he exercifed entirely according to their directions. Through their fatal influence, Holland had been precipitated into the prefent conteft with France, againft the well-known withes of all the provinces, and upon pretexts quite foreign to their intereft. While this influence lafted, Holland could be viewed in no other light than as a dependence of England and Pruffia. It was, therefore, incumbent on the national convention, to put an end to this flavish and ruinous connection with those two powers, but efpecially with England; which had, on the pretence of efpoufing the caufe of the ftadtholder, torn from the republic almoft the whole of its poffeffions in the Indies and in America. What was still more infulting, the English miniftry treated him avowedly as the fovereign of the Seven Provinces, though they must know that he was conftitutionally no more than the captaingeneral of their armies, and the admiral-in-chief of their fleets. What was this but tyranny and ufurpation in the extreme? The pretenfions of Pruffia were at end, by the treaty it had concluded with France: but thofe of England were in full vigour, and it eagerly feized every

opportunity of doing all the damage in its power to the people of the United Provinces; who had, therefore, the clearest right to confider it as their most inveterate enemy. On thefe confiderations, which were obvious to all impartial minds, the national convention ought to call forth the whole ftrength of the nation, and ufe every effort to recover what England had fo unjustly taken from it, rather by furprize than real wefs.

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Such was the language of the republican party, in Holland, which, confiding in its strength, and on the fupport of the French, was determined to improve to the utmost the opportunity that now offered, of extinguifhing, radically, all the hopes and pretenfions of the Orange family. In this determination, this party met with every encourage ment from the directory, which anxiously stimulated it to form a conftitution explicitly exclufive of a ftadtholder.

The Dutch convention itself was fufficiently averfe to the re-eftablishment of this office, which, new-modelled as it had been, by England and Pruffia, was become, in fact, a fovereignity. But however unanimous on this point, they varied on feveral others. The former independence of the Seven Provinces on each other, and their feparate and unconnected authority over their refpective territories and people, had fo long fubfifted without impairing the general union, that it appeared to many unnecessary, if not dangerous, to make any alteration in this matter, as it would affect the mode of levying taxes, and burthen one province with the expences of another. To this it was replied, that a firm and indifloluble

union,

ed.

union, which was the object principally required, could not be effected, while fuch a feparation of interefts was fuffered to exift. It would open a door to perpetual variances, which might eventually endanger the very existence of the government they were about to establish, by breaking the principal bond of unity on which it was to be foundAfter a multiplicity of debates upon this fubject, the importance of a folid union of all the provinces, into one common ftate, appeared fo indifpenfible, that it was unanimoufy agreed to, on the first day of December, 1796. To remove the objection that had principally ftood in the way of this decifion, a commiffion of the most respectable members of the convention was appointed to examine and ftate the former debts of the refpective provinces, and to confider of the moft equitable and fatisfactory manner of liquidating them, by providing for their extinction, and preferving, at the fame time, uninjured, the rights and interests of all the parties concerned in this liquidation.

In all thefe tranfactions, the members of the Dutch convention were remarkably cautions in permitting no vifible interference in their deliberations on the part of the French government. Its fecret influence was well known; but the prefervation of every form and external indication of freedom, was judged indifpenfible, in order to maintain the apparent dignity of the ftate, and, whatwas of more confequence in the eye of the difcerning, to prevent the French themfelves, at any future period, from pleading a right of interfering, from any acknowledged precedent. The directory was alfo very careful in abftaining from all

open and oftefible exercise of authority over this meeting. This would have invalidated their proceedings, and infringed the liberty which France boafted, of having refiored to the Dutch,-in too glaring a manner, not to have excited their murmurs and refentment. For these reasons the directory affected every fentiment of refpect for this national convention of the United Provinces, and treated it with every outward mark of their confidering it as the reprefentative of an inde pendent nation.

But the regard fhewn, by France, to the republic of Holland, was measured folely by the confideration of its weight in the political fcale, which, however depreffed by circumftances, might ftill recover the level of its former importance. The directory did not extend the fame deference to thofe whom it deemed more fubjected to its power. This was remarkably evinced in its conduct towards Geneva. This little republic had invariably remained attached to the interefts of the revolution in France, ever fince its firft breaking out; and had gone hand in hand with it through all its variations. Relying on thefe proofs of its fidelity, it now requested the directory to confirm its independence, by making it a claufe in the treaties between France and other powers. But this requeft did not coincide with the views of the directory, which had, it feems, in contemplation the annexation of Geneva to the dominion of France. In purfuance of this project, an intimation was given to the Genevans, that their intereft would be better confulted, and their freedom fecured, by becoming a part of the French republic. This intimation was highly difguft[N2]

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