created on purpose already prefaged the most horrid attempts; that the murder of all the Royal Family was refolved on by the confpirators; that fuch of the nobility and clergy as in France remained faithful to their God and to their King, would have been inftantly butchered, and that foreign powers would have had to punish thousands of criminals and regicide monsters. "A ray of hope, which still feemed to beam forth in the heart of his most Christian Majefty, made him doubtless entertain an idea that the factious would foon repent; and he probably flattered himself, that by this laft act of condefcenfion he should be able to difarm their fury, and diffipate that fatal cloud of error by which they were blinded. The nullity of his acceptance, fully demonftrated by thofe rigorous circumftances which imperiously commanded it, fufficiently destroyed the inconve niences of it. He wifhed, as he himfelf declared, that the constitution might be judged by experience. In a word, he was obliged either to accept it, or condemn France to commit execrable crimes, to abandon it to all the horrors of civil war, and to bury it entirely under its own ruins. "The King figned it, but his hand at that time was in chains, The act which he performed was invalid. The proteftation of the 20th of June had previously annulled it. A prifoner can enter into no engagement, can fanction nothing, nor accept of any thing; and a monarch, who is reduced to the neceffity of writing that he is free, is not fo in reality. All powers, filled with indignation at this horrid fpectacle, had already concerted measures for avenging the honour of the diadem.-His late Imperial Majefty, by his circular letter, written from Padua, invited all the powers of Europe to form a confederation for this purpose. The convention of Pilnitz determined thofe circumftances which made their Imperial and Pruffian Majefties to have recourfe to arms; but the acceptation of his moft Chriftian Majefty, though forced, and confequently null, feemed to promise a new order of things: it rendered the danger lefs threatening, and the latter events feemed to afford hopes refpecting the future. It appeared that the greater part of the French nation, ftruck with the evils which they had prepared for themselves, were returning to more moderate principles, began to acknowledge the neceffity of maintaining that form of government which was alone proper for a great ftate, and to testify a defire of restoring to the throne that dignity and influence which belong to monarchical governments. His Imperial Majefty was not completely fatisfied with thefe appearances; but he wished, as well as the other powers united with him, to *Letter of the King to the Affembly, September 18, 1791. + Month of July, 1791. 1791. Difpatch of Prince de Kaunitz to several ministers at foreign courts, Nov. 12, try try the effects of a little longer delay, to avoid, if poffible, that difagreeable extremity, to which all powers feel themselves now obliged to have recourfe. A prodigious number, however, of faithful Frenchmen, banished from their country by crimes which they had feen, and of which they were the objects, imploring in vain at home timid or corrupt judges, and laws, which, in order to opprefs them, were made to fpeak, or be filent, as might be most favourable to the revolution, ranged themfelves under the banner of honour, duty, and fidelity, with Monfieur the Count d'Artois, and other princes of the blood, who, like them, had been forced to exile themselves from their country. "A new ufurping affembly, which feemed to pride itself in furpaffing the exceffes of the preceding, dared to treat the royal Majesty with ftill greater infults*, added weight to his chains, encouraged more than ever the effervefcence of those popular focieties which domineered over him, multiplied the dangers around his throne, were incenfed at the hofpitable reception granted by foreign Princes to the French emigrants†, and infulted, with intolerable licentioufnefs, all the fovereigns of Europe. In violation of their own laws, and contrary to their pretended renunciation of making conquefts, they invaded the Compté of Avignon, the Bishopric of Bale, pretended to fet an arbitrary pecuniary valuation on the facred property which they had, in Lorrain and Alface, forcibly taken from feveral princes and States of the empire, and were offended because the police in all the neighbouring countries fuppreffed thofe inflammatory_writings which they induftriously circulated, and punished thofe miffionaries of revolt whom they every where difperfed to corrupt the people, and to incite them to attack private property, to dethrone kings, and abolish all religions. Their audacity encreafing, by remaining hitherto unpunished, and rendered more violent by the moderation of neighbouring princes, this affembly, in their delirium, conceived the project of extending their ufurpation, and the licentious principles of the French to the Germanic empire, and, without doubt, to the whole world A ministry, whom they obliged his moft Christian Majefty to accept, became the organ of their fecret views, and of views well known to all popular focieties. "Explanations were required from the court of Vienna, and given with that clearnefs, precifion, and minutenefs, which became the candour and dignity of his Apoftolic Majesty, the King of Bohemia and Hungary: Being in every respect fatisfactory, Decree of Monday, February 6, 1792, which determines, that, in writing to the King, the president shall follow the formula adopted by the King in writing to the aflembly. + Difpatches of Prince de Kaunitz to M. de Flumendorff, February 17, 1792. they they could difpleafe only an affembly and focieties who wished to difturb the public peace, and who, by intrigues and criminal manœuvres, obliged the King to yield to the violent impulfe of his miniftry and the affembly, and, contrary to all justice, contrary to all reason, and contrary to the evident intereft of France, to declare war against his neighbour, his relation, and his good and faithful ally the King of Hungary and Bohemia. The ufurping affembly flattered themfelves that they could fubdue Europe, as they had fubdued France, by corrupting their troops, feducing their fubjects, and rendering odious the paternal authority of fovereigns; by commanding crimes; by giving rewards to those who committed them; by irritating and flattering the paffions of the people; and, in a word, by diffolving all the bonds of moral and political fociety. They flattered themselves, above all, that they fhould revive and propagate that error which had misled the provinces of the Auftrian Netherlands; they trufted they should carry thither the flames of infurrection; find there a number of partizans; devour the rich patrimony of the churches; feize on the property of the nobility; abolish the lawful authorities of the States; and, as they caufed to be repeated with complaifance by the ministry of their will", they wished to carry away the fpecie of the Low Countries, and to replace it with that paper money which circulates on the credit of violence; which is fecured only by ufurped property; and which, by its difcredit at home, is fufficiently proved to be illegal. They thus trusted that they should be able to reward the crimes of their fatellites, and the activity of their patriotic agents, with the spoils of their neighbours, and the riches of a peaceful and industrious people. On this criminal basis, deteftable in the eyes of all nations, they founded their wifh for war, as well as their plan for executing it; and they congratulated themselves for having extorted this propofal from a juft monarch, whofe whole live has attefted his love for juftice, his fidelity towards his allies, and his ardent defire for preferving the tranquillity of Europe. "The triumph of the affembly, however, was not of long duration. Providence, in bleffing the arms of a fovereign, unjustly attacked, defervedly punifhed thofe rebellious troops to their King, who, detaining him prifoner in Paris, came, in his name, to make war on his allies. "The army of the French revolters, beat at Tournay and Mons, and defeated at Florenne and Grifnille, attempted an invafion of Flanders, an open and defenceless country; but being foon after obliged to retire, the ufurping affembly were taught that his Apoftolic Majefty had none but courageous foldiers, as well as Report by M. Dumourier, on the affair of Mons. + Letters of M. Luckner, June 28th, 19th, and 30th, 1792. faithful faithful fubjects, and that nothing of their projects remained to that rebellious army, but the fhame of having conceivd them; the ignominy of having maffacred, with a civic joy, the unfortunate prifoners who had done their duty; and the opprobrium of having burnt at Courtray, without advantage, without object, and even without military pretence, the habitations and property of three hundred families, against whom they had no caufe of complaint. But other enjoyments recompenced the ufurping affembly for these checks. Contrary to the exprefs letter of their own laws, without procefs, and without previous accufation; without hearing him, or any perfon for him, the affembly had unjustly difmiffed, and removed from the King's perfon, an irreproachable guard; and invited banditti from all the provinces to their affiftance. These famous banditti, whofe names must be handed down with infamy to the remotest ages, as if they wished to try the strength and energy of the villainy of their agents, caufed the afylum of the King to be violated on the 20th of June 1792; and the moft atrocious crimes would have been then committed, had not the majesty of the monarch, his virtues and his firmnefs, overawed a band of regicides, whofe arms were evidently paid and directed. All France, who in juftice ought to be feparated from the factious, turned afide with horror from that execrable day, and demanded that punishment might be inflicted on the guilty. But he who refufes to punish crimes is alone criminal; and Europe cannot be mistaken respecting the authors of these outrages. "Such then is the French revolution, unjust and illegal in its principle, horrid in the means by which it was effected, and difaftrous in its confequences. "Their Imperial and Royal Majefties, who can no longer delay to fulfil their mutual engagements, to deliver mankind from fo many exceffes, have confidered this revolution under the following points of view : c 1. As it perfonally regards his most Christian Majesty. "2. As it refpects the French nation. 3. As it refpects the Princes of Germany who have poffeffions in France. 1 "4. As it refpects the tranquillity of Europe, and the happi nefs of all nations. I. On the Revolution, as it perfonally regards his most Christian Majefty. "The whole world knows, that it was effential to the French monarchy, and the unanimous wifh expreffed in the instructions of the bailiwicks, that the King of France fhould be legislator; that he should have the full and entire difpofal of the army; that he should cause justice to be administered to his fubjects; that he fhould fhould have the right of making peace and war; and, in a word, that plenitude of power which belongs to fovereignty. But it is also known, that an ufurping affembly, leaving him the title of King, which they confidered as a gratification, deprived him abfolutely of royal authority; that, reduced to be the executor of their will*, their fervile and paffive organ, he had not even the right of propofing the most neceffary laws t; that he had no longer any authority over the fea and land forces; that the right of making peace and war was taken from him §; that he was deprived of the power of electing magiftrates ||; and that not enjoying even the power of going wherever he pleafed, which the conftitution fecures to all citizens, his most Christian Majesty was forced to refide near the pretended legislative body **; and that the chain which detained him could not be extended farther than the dif tance of twenty miles. "The fupreme authority in France being never-ceafing and indivisible, the King could neither be deprived, nor voluntarily diveft himself of any of the prerogatives of royalty, because he is obliged to tranfmit them entire with his crown to his fucceffors. "He could be dethroned only by an abdication; but the acts which he committed cannot even be confidered as a partial abdication, because he could not diveft himself of the crown, but to inveft the prefumptive heir, and because the effential condition of the validity of fuch an act would be a full and entire liberty which did not exift, and this it is perfectly notorious that his most Christian Majefty never enjoyed. It is well known that the violence, outrages, and dangers with which his people were threatened, and on account of which he was continually haraffed, never fuffered him to be in freedom a moment. How then could the fovereigns of Europe acknowledge a revolution which, to the fcandal of the whole world, dethrones a puiffant and just monarch, continualy deftroys his liberty, endangers his life as well as the lives of the Queen and Royal Family; and which, by an univerfal fyftem of anarchy, would force all fovereigns, though the honour of their diadems did not render it a duty, to confider as perfonal outrages to each of them individually, all thofe which have been, or may hereafter be, offered to their most Christian Majefties? Warned by the examples of the paft; by the days, above all, of July 13th, 14th, and 17th; by those of October 5th * VIIIth article of the conftitution, fection, Internal administration, + Decree of September 24, 1789. Decree, February 28, 1790, and April 28, 1791. Decree, March 22, 1790, Decree, August 16, 1790. Decree, March 24, 1792, article III. and |