reign over France, to make this concert ceafe immediately, by refpecting the tranquillity and the rights of other powers, and to guarantee the effential bafis of the French monarchical form of government against the infringements of violence and anarchy. Every caufe of uneafinefs would have ceafed, if fuch difpofitions had prevailed in France; and the whole conduct of the court of Vienna, far from juftifying any blame of its views, would have evinced its ingenuoufness and moderation.

Upon the invitation of the French miniftry, it had entirely withdrawn from the faid declaration the claims of the German princes having dominions in Alface. And if the deceafed fovereign of Auftria was unable to avoid fulfilling his duties as Emperor in this refpect, nothing in the world fhewed that he should prevent any conciliatory method which was indeed fufficient and compatible with the conftitution of the empire, on objects in which Auftria never was concerned itself in a direct manner, and for which reason it is the more unjust actually to draw from this a particular motive for a war against her; whereas her prefent fovereign has no greater concern in it than the other members of the German body.

On the other hand, the court of Vienna has given the cleareft proofs of the good faith of its difpofitions, by refraining from accompanying its declarations by armaments adequate to the greatnefs of thofe that France fupported her queftions withal. Whilft the latter aflembled 130,000 men on the frontiers of the Low Countries and Germany, the court of Vienna did not fend a bat

talion more to its Belgian troops, whofe reinforcements ever fince 1790, have generally not exceeded 3 or 4000 men. All its measures were confined to augment its anterior Auftrian troops with 4000 men, who, by this reinforcement, were carried to 10,000 men; and it was not till after the 14th of April that difpofitions were made for fending more troops, when the offenfive interpretation which the well-meaning declarations of the court of Vienna met with, and the events which foon after happened in France, left no more doubt of the speedy explofion of an attack.

The propofal reciprocally to difarm, delivered on the 11th of March by the French ambassador at Vienna, at a time when France alone bad armed for a war, accompanied with a demand of quitting the concert of powers in a moment when the pofition of that kingdom daily gave more and more uueafinefs, could not in any refpect be confidered otherwife than as an ultimate pretence for engaging the French nation in this attack, to which all the preceding fteps had led, and the execution of which happened almost at the fame period when the ambaffador delivered the declaration of war.

Thus none of the grievances accumulated in the French declaration of war, without a fingle proof, has the leaft appearance of foundation and good faith, and of which the nullity was not already proved, except, indeed, the new grievance which is added to it as an overplus of injuftice, by upbraiding the court of Vienna with the hopes it had entertained that the reason, the ho nour, and equity of the more found

and

and greater part of the nation would ultimately triumph, by the pains the court of Vienna had taken to difpel prejudices unjustly excited, concerning the nature of the con

cert.

The complaints alleged againft the court of Vienna, not only do not furnish the fmalleft apparent motive for an attack, but it is evident that they are fo many objects of provocation and aggreffion committed by those who reign in France.

They prefume to blame the court of Vienna for the protection it has refused at home, and caused to be denied elsewhere to the enterprizes and affairs of the French emigrants; they who did protect and foment the confpiracies for a rebellion in the Auftrian Netherlands! Their confeffions and public meafures fince the attack, prove, that in the hope of fucceeding in thefe treacherous actions and practices of the fame kind, tending to feduce the faithful Auftrian troops, their chief confidence was placed.

It is they who excited a difpute between France and the German empire, by depriving feveral German princes of rights and enjoyments affured by a poffeffion of a century and a half, grounded on folemn treaties. Their excufe against the obligatory force of these treaties, derived from a pretended inconfiftency with later and fpontaneous laws of one of the contract. ing parties, is grounded on a principle that overthrows all treaties. And that decree of the 14th of January, by which the National Affembly, fetting up at the fame time for judge and party, has affumed the power of pafling an arbitrary

They, who for fix months paft were occupied in making preparations for war and attack on the frontiers of the Auftrian Netherlands and Germany, complain of the very moderate precaution of the court of Vienna for the fafety of provinces that are upwards of 200 leagues diftant from the centre of its dominions.

They pretend that the fovereignty of the French nation is injured by the establishment of a concert, whofe firft view has been to fave the only lawful fovereign of France, whilft they, in the mean while, daily attack and provoke all the fovereigns of Europe in the moft inconfiderate manner, and with the bittereft invectives. In fhort, they difpute with the crowns the participation and the right of interfering in, or being concerned about the confequences of their new conftitution; whilft they, with all their might, endeavour to fubvert all governments, by fpreading all over Europe the bane of feduction and infurrection.

The King of Hungary and Bohemia is thus entitled to call in the fupport of all Europe, in a caufe that concerns the honour and fafety of all governments, and he arraigns the abettors of so unjust and heinous an attack before the tribunal of the univerfe and pofterity, as being anfwerable for all the evils that are the unavoidable confequences of war.

Vienna, July 5th, 1792.

Subflance

TH

tween the two courts.

II. All anterior treaties, efpecially thofe of Breflau, Drefden, Hubertfburg, and Tefchen, are renewed and confirmed by the prefent.

III. The two courts guarantee and protect all their ftates which they actually poffefs at prefent against all attacks whatever.

IV. In virtue of this guarantee, the two powers will act in concert for the maintenance of peace; and in cafe that either of them fhould be menaced, they will employ mutual good offices to prevent hoftilities: and fhould thefe efforts not prove fuccefsful, the party fhall affift the one threatened with fifteen thoufand infantry and five thousand cavalry.

V. These troops fhall be put in motion within two months after the requifition made, and remain at the difpofition of the party attacked during the course of the war. If the requiring party demand these fuccours in money, he fhall receive 600,000 ecus for one thousand infantry, and 800,000 for one thoufand cavalry, which shall be paid in the year, or proportionably each month, and that on the footing of the convention, or of twenty florins. VI. In cafe thefe fuccours are infufficient, the party required will augment them by degrees, according to the urgency of the cafe.

VII. The two contracting powers referve to themfelves the power of inviting the imperial court of Ruffia, the two maritime powers of England and Holland, and the ElecVOL. XXXIV.

tor of Saxony, to unite with them in defenfive engagements, conform able to the above-mentioned ftipulations.

VIII. The two fovereigns oblige themselves to maintain the Germanic conftitution, as it is established by the prefent laws and former treaties.

IX. They will not contract any more alliances.

X. The prefent treaty fhall be ratified in the fpace of three weeks, or fooner if poffible.

Concife Expofition of the Reasons which have determined his Majesty the King of Pruffia to take up Arms against France,

H

Berlin, July the 24th, 1792. IS Pruffian Majcfty flatters himfelf that the powers of Europe, and the public in general, did not wait for this expofition to fix their opinion on the juftice of the cause they were going to defend.-In ef, fect, unless the obligations which the engagements of the King, and his political connections, require of him be willingly denied, or facts defignedly eftablished, and unless peo ple fhut their eyes on the conduct of the prefent government of France, there cannot remain a doubt but every perfon may dif cover that the warlike measures which the King with regret has refolved upon, are only the natural confequences of the violent refolutions which the fury of the party who reigns in that kingdom has made him adopt, and of which it is eafy to perceive the fatal confequences.

Not content with having openly violated, by notorious fuppreflion, P

the

the rights and poffeffions of the German princes in Alface and Lorraine, and the treaties which unite France to the German empire; with having given courfe to the fubverfive principles of all focial fubordination, and thereby affected the repofe and felicity of other nations, and with having fought to fpread in other countries, by the propagation of thefe principles, the feeds of the licentioufness and anarchy which have overthrown France; with having tolerated, received, and fold even the moft outrageous writings and fpeeches against the facred perfons and legal authority of fovereigns; thofe who have feized the reins of the French adminiftration have at length filled the measure of their guilt by declaring an unjuft war against his Majefty the King of Hungary and Bohemia, and having immediately followed this declara tion with effective hoftilities, committed against the Belgic provinces of this monarch.

The German empire, of which the Auftrian Pays Bas is part, as the circle of Burgundy, is neceffarily found included in this aggreffion. But other facts ftill do but too much juftify the fear of hoftile invafions, which the menacing preparations of the French on the frontiers have for a long time given birth to in Germany. The territories of the Bishop of Bafle, an inconteftible part of the empire, have been occupied by a detachment of the French army, and are ftill remaining in its power, and at its difcre

tion.

Incurfions of the troops of the fame nation, or of rebel corps affembled under their aufpices, have laid waste the country of Liege. It is to be forefeen with certainty,

that as foon as the conveniences of war appear to advise them, the other provinces of Germany will experience the fame effects; and it fuffices to know their local pofition to feel for the imminent danger to which they are conftantly expofed.

It would be fuperfluous to enter into a detail of the facts which are now alleged. They are notorious, and the whole empire has been, and is ftill, daily witneffes thereof.

It will alfo equally be difpenfed with, to difcufs here the evident injuftice of the aggreffion of the French. If it were poffible that any doubts could remain on this fubject in the mind of any person whatever, they would be entirely removed by weighing with impar tiality the unanfwerable arguments contained on this point in the diplomatic pieces published by the cabinet of Vienna.

His Pruffian Majefty has with pleafure entertained hopes, that at length, after fo many agitations and inconfequential proceedings, the perfons who direct the French adminiftration would return back to the principles of moderation and wifdom, and thereby avoid the extremities to which things are unfortunately come. It was with this falutary view that, at the commencement of the military preparations of France on the frontiers, founded on the afylum granted by fome ftatcs to the French emigrants, he charged the Count de Goltz, his minifter at Paris, to declare to the miniftry of his Moft Chriftian Majefty (as the Chargé des Affaires of his Majefty the then reigning Emperor had alfo orders to do)" that he looked upon an invafion of French troops on the territories of the German empire as a declara

tion of war, and would oppofe it with all his forces.”

The fame minifter, after receiving orders, found the Chargé des Affaires of his Majesty the Emperor, in a number of reprefentations, making known, in the moft exprefs manner, that the King was invariably pursuing the fame line with his Apoftolic Majefty refpecting the affairs of France. The event has fhewn how little the hope of the King, as to the effect he promised from these energetic declarations, was well-founded; but at least the party whofe furious determinations have brought on hoftilities, can never have any pretext on account of their ignorance of his Majefty's intentions. And it is particularly the general principles publicly manifefted by the two National Affemblies, principles which attack all governments, and endeavour to shake them in their bases, that France has to blame for the effufion of human blood, and the evils which the prefent circumftances have already brought, and may in future bring, upon her.

United with his Apoftolic Majefty by ties of a clofe and defenfive alliance, his Pruffian Majefty cannot act contrary to his engagements, and remain a quiet fpectator of the war declared against this fovereign. He has not then hesitated to recal his minifter from Paris, and to act with vigour in defence of his ally. -As a principal member of the Germanic corps, he is further obligated by his relations in this quality, to march to the fuccour of his co-eftates against the attacks they have already experienced, and with which they are daily threatened.It is thus, under the double connection of ally of his Apoftolic Majefty

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and a powerful ftate of the empire, that his Majefty takes up arms; and it is the defence of the ftates of this monarch and of Germany, which forms the first aim of these armaments. But the King would but imperfectly fulfil the principles he hereby profeffes, if he did not extend the efforts of his arms to another fort of defence which his patriotic fentiments equally impofe on him as a duty.

Every body knows how the National Affembly of France, contrary to the most facred laws of the Droit des Gens, and against the exprefs tenor of treaties, have deprived the German princes of their inconteftible rights and poffeffions in Alface and Lorraine, and the reclamations which a number of these princes themselves have publifhed. The deliberations and arrets of the Diet of Ratisbon on this important matter, will alfo ferve to furnish all those who wish to be informed, with the moft convincing proofs of the injuftice of the proceedings of the French government in this ref pect, which has not hitherto propofed to grant a full indemnity to the aggrieved parties; but, adopting a peremptory language and threatening meafures, only offered indemnities entirely infufficient and inadmiffible. It is worthy of the King and his august ally to have juftice rendered to these oppreffed princes, and thereby to maintain the faith of treaties, the fole basis of union and reciprocal confidence between people, and the effential foundation of their tranquillity and welfare.

It is, in fhort, a last design of the armament of the King, more extenfive ftill than the former, and not lefs worthy of the fage and well-in

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tended