n were at length within a few miles of Aix. Marthal Belleifle being now appointed to hcommand the French army, instead of M. Maillebois, he waited in the neighbourhood of that place till his reinforcements fhould arrive from Alface, Franche Compte, and the Low Countries. e of Thus stood affairs in Italy, and on its frontiers, at the beginning of 1747. The revolution at Genoa having made the court of Madrid conceive freth hopes, orders were fent for the Spanish troops to march back from Avignon, and join M. -Belleifle. After this General had with mach difficulty got his army affembled, and provided with neceffaries, he fet forward, and paffed the Argens on the 24th January, in order to give C. Brown battle. The Auftrian advanced parties having by this time raised vaft contributions, and quite exhausted the country between the two armies, they now retired is their turn. As the trenches could not be opened before Antibes till the 13th of this month, and it still continued to hold out, so that the Austrians had no port for keping a communication with Italy by fea; as the weather had for fome time been fo bad, that small veffels laden with neceffaries had been wrecked; and the Emprefs-Queen had fent directions to remain upon the defenfive, till the affair of Genoa fhould be decided: therefore Gen. Brown refolved upon a retreat over the Var; and accordingly effected it on the of February. Several detachments hang advanced to harrafs his rear, fome Cading and fkirmishing enfued; but nothing of confequence happened. By accounts which the Auftrians gave of their own lofs, in effecting the whole of this retreat, it amounted only to about 500 men, killed, wounded, and prifoners. The French fwelled it to near as many toofands; but all the particulars they candefcended upon, did not much exceed the Auftrian reckoning. Notwithflandthe unforeseen crofs accident which de this invafion be fo foon difcontinuthe end propofed by it was in fome fure gained, as it obliged the court of Vailles to draw from the Netherlands a body of troops; many of whom Bed, or were ruined in their tedious march. M. Belleifle now cantoned a part of his army along the Var, and the rest retired back farther into the country, for the conveniency of quarters and forage. Gen. Brown's cavalry defiled towards Piedmont; and all the foot that could be fpared from guarding the river, marched by the way of Ventimiglia and Savona, to affift in the attempt meditating for the reduction of Genoa. At that place great pains were taken, first to bring the infurgents under fomething of proper management, and then to prepare for a vigorous defence of the city. For fome time after the revolt, all publick affairs were directed by a council chofen from among the people, to which none of the Nobility were admitted; and during their government a general confufion reigned. At length the Nobility, finding that things had put on a tolerably good face, and having received ftrong allurances of affistance, took such measures as recovered their own authority, and fubje&ted all again to the Doge and legal fenate; in confequence of which, the difturbances greatly abated. It having been next agreed to regulate and difcipline all their force, the city-regiments were faid to con fift of 40,000 men, and thofe of the country were computed at 20,000; befides which, they had about 10,000 regular troops, part of them belonging to the republick, and the reft French and Spaniards, who had been prifoners at large upon their parole, and yet thought fit to act in breach of their faith. After this the fortifications of their capital were repaired, increafed, and mounted with cannon; all the roads leading to it were ruined; and bodies of men appointed to guard the paffes into their territories. In the mean time preparations were made with all diligence for beginning the fiege of this city. Before the 20th of January, the Auftrians had retaken the pafs of the Bochetta, having put the corps which defended it to flight, with the lofs of about 900 men cut to pieces. On the 2d of February, Gen. Schulemberg arrived at Novi, to take the command in this expedition. Befides the Auftrians, who were inunediately put in march thither after repaffing the Var, his Sardinian Ma jelly jefty ordered 20 battalions, and 6000 regular Piedmontese militia, with a train of artillery, to join him; and part of the British fquadron in the Mediterranean came before Genoa, to prevent fuccours being fent thither by fea. Before trying the fate of arms, Gen. Schulemberg had instructions to offer his mistress's pardon and friendship, on condition that the republick would relcafe all the Auftrian prifoners, pay a million of crufades in full as to the article of contributions, and obferve a perfect neutrality for the future during the continuance of the war in Italy. Thefe propofals being rejected, the Emprefs-Queen published a manifefto about the middle of March, intimating, that all the goods and effects belonging to the Genoefe in the Austrian hereditary countries, amounting to 12 millions of florins, had been confifcated. The infurrection at Genoa had already removed the feat of war from the French dominions; and the most effectual way to keep it at a distance, was vigorously to fupport the revolters. An imbarkation was therefore made on the coaft of Provence for their affistance, confifting of about 6000 French and Spanish troops. The British squadron fell in with them off Monaco on the 20th of March, when they took eleven veffels, with above 1200 officers and foldiers on board. Part of the transports run into Agay, Monaco, Antibes, and the island of Corfica. As they made fresh attempts to reach the place of their deftination, several more of them, with about 1000 men, were afterwards taken at different times. Most of the reft, either at the first or fubfequent effays, got to ports in the Genoefe territories. As there was a confiderable army on foot in the kingdom of Naples, and his Sicilian Majefty had actually obtained a paffage for it through the ecclefiaftical ftate towards Lombardy, it was fuppofed that he would endeavour to make a diverfion in favour of Genoa, fo foon as the operations against it fhould commence. This made it neceffary to leave a good number of Auftrian troops in the Modenese and Mantuan, to oppofe any enterprize from that quarter, which not a little weakened their main army When Gen. Schulemberg had got the forces that could be fpared drawn together, he was faid to have between 35 and 40,000 effective men, with g pieces of battering cannon, and 30 mor tars. Having begun his march from Novi on the 3d of April, within a few days one of his columns had forced their way to Mavazzo, about three miles di ftant from the city, and the other to the valley of Polcevera; and the General fixed his head quarters at Torazza, to keep open a communication between his corps on each fide. There was fighting almost every step, as the Genoefe had pofts every where well fortified, and fup plied with artillery, and fmall forts the end of each half-mile: but by this means a great number of their people were killed, and taken prisoners. A new imbarkation having been made at Marfeilles, in nine veffels, two British men of war fell in with them on the 25th, at the ifles of Hieres, took two, funk as many, and the rest escaped. In one of the latter was the Duke de Boufflers, fent from France to take the chief command at Genoa; where he actually arrived on the 30th. His prefence fo animated the befieged, that they made feveral vigorous fallies; but were repulfed with lofs. As the place was of great com pafs, and furrounded by posts of confi derable ftrength, the Auftrian Genera found the reduction ofit a more difficult tall than he expected. He therefore obtain ed from the King of Sardinia a furthe fupply of troops, which arrived at hi camp on the 16th of May; and an ad ditional train of heavy artillery wa brought from Savona on board som British men of war. Matters now wen on fomewhat more brifkly; fo that be fore the latter end of June the whol Western Riviera was entirely fubdued and the befiegers had made themfelve mafters fucceffively of the convent N. S. de Mifericorde, between the riv Polcevera and the city, the Belvider the fuburbs of Bifagno and St Pier d'Arena. By thefe fucceffes Gen. Sch lemberg had an opportunity of exten ing his army from the mountains qui in the neighbourhood of Nice to reinforce that army, and his brother, the Cheva-. lier, fet out to take the command of it. The Infant Don Philip, with 27 Spanish and a few French battalions, was left to act in the Riviera of Genoa, while M. Belleifle himself, with the remainder of the French, took poffeflion of feveral pofts on the frontiers of Piedmont, to wait the iffue of his brother's enterprize. It was now refolved to raise the fiege of Genoa, and employ the troops for other purposes. Accordingly, on the 5th of July, Gen. Schulemberg began to draw off from that city; all around which he to the fea; befides enabling the British fhips to lie in to the fhore, which they could not do for fome time, whence many fmall craft with fuccours had from time to time eluded their utmost vigilance. Thus was this city at length close invested on all fides; all communication with it by land or fea was entirely cut off; the Auftrians began to fire brifkly against it from feveral batteries; and tho' the fiege had indeed proceeded but very flowly, it muft have proved fuccefsful in the iffue, had no interruption been given to it. The Auftrian garrifons, which had been left in the islands of St Marguerite and d'Honorat on the coast of Provence, left most horrible defolation. Scarce a defended themselves, with the affiftance of fome British men of war, till towards the latter end of May; when they were made prifoners of war. This eye-fore, which had given the French court confiderable uneafinefs, being removed, M. Belleifle received orders to march with all diligence, and endeavour to relieve Genoa, now in the utmost distress; and by this time one fide feared, and the other hoped, that he would be too late. Moft of the Auftrians, with a great part of the Piedmontefe, were either employed in the fiege, or cantoned in proper places to watch the motions of his Sicilian Majety's troops, and C. Brown was retired to Turin; fo that the French army affembled in Provence, confifting of about 70 battalions, paffed the Var without oppofition on the 3d of June. Upon The Chevalier de Belleifle first made a Baron Leutrum, the Piedmontefe feint, as if he defigned to penetrate toGel, who had only 27 battalions in wards Demont by the valley of Stuthe parts, immediately abandoned ra; but fuddenly changing his route, he Ake, and retreated to Ventimiglia. The French General arrived at this place about the 23d, and attacked the intrenchments that had been thrown up. This obliged Baron Leutrum to make a farther retreat, aving a fmall garrifon in the castle; Which put a stop to the Marshal's progrefs the ft of July, when they furrenderthemfelves prifoners of war. Befides the army under M. Belleifle, French had another of about 25,000 men in Dauphiny, ready to invade Piedoat on that fide. Immediately after reding the caftle of Ventimiglia, the Maral ordered fome regiments he had left VOL. X. ftanding cottage, or any thing like fruittrees or gardens was to be feen. Abundance of fine palaces, not long before capable of lodging princes, had nothing remaining but their walls; all the rich furniture being either destroyed, or carried off, by the foldiers. Part of the Auftrians were left to guard the Bochetta; the remainder of them with the Piedmontese took the route of the Bochetta; and Gen. Schulemberg fet out for Vienda, to give an account of what had paffed during the fiege. There he made fuch complaints against those who should have fupplied him with neceffaries, that the Marquis Pallavicini, Governor of the Austrian eftates in Italy, was deprived of his authority, and Count Harrach appointed to fucceed him. advanced towards Exilles, hoping to gain the pafs or Col della Sieta by furprise. Arriving at the intrenchments thrown up there, on the 19th of July, he found them defended by 4 Austrian and 6 Piedmontefe battalions. His troops made a vigorous attack in three columns, one in front, and one on each flank. After they had charged several times, and been as often repulfed, at length the Chevalier, finding his principal attack not like to fucceed, took a pair of colours in his hand, advanced refolutely, and planted them on the intrenchments; but was im mediately killed dead on the spot, with a great number of officers, who had chofen rather to run the moft evident hazard, than ftay behind him in this defperate attempt. Upon this the French every where gave way, and retreated back to Briançon. Their lofs, in killed, wounded, and prisoners, was com puted from 4 to 6000 men, with about 400 of their beft officers; while that of ⚫the Auftrians and Piedmontefe, according to their own reckoning, amounted only to 120 men. Had not the fiege of Genoa been raifed before this event, it would in all probability have now fallen into the hands of the Auftrians without much more trouble. The Bourbonites made a precipitate retreat from the neighbourhood of Ventimiglia, leaving only a garrifon in the castle, to provide for their own fecurity. Part of them stopped about Nice, the reft repaffed the Var, and fome of thefe, with M. Belleifle himself, marched on to Briançon. As the project of an invafion from Dauphiny had fucceeded fo ill, the French refolved to act on that fide for the future only on the defenfive. They accordingly threw up intrenchments in all the avenues which lead from Piedmont into that country, and formed different camps in order to defend them. Preparations were indeed made for invading the French dominions; but they were too late in the year to have any effect. A confiderable army of Piedmontefe was affembled in the neighbourhood of Coni; Gen. Brown joined it with above 20,000 Austrians; and the King of Sardinia arrived there on the 23d of Auguft, to take the command in chief. Another Auftrian and Piedmontefe army was pofted in the paffes of the mountains, to act towards Briançon; and Gen. Leutrum had a corps near Sofpello, to obferve the French and Spaniards in the county of Nice. The grand army marched from Coni on the 25th, and reached Demont on the ift of September. By the 20th they had formed a chain from thence, by the way of Argentiers, as far as the territory of France; but it was foon found impractible to do any thing of importance, on ount of the fnows that had begun to fall in the Alps; fo they marched back to Coni, and feparated; which afforded M. Belleifle an opportunity of getting his army in the county of Nice rein forced. In the mean time Gen. Leutrum had invefted the castle of Ventimiglia; and tho' he had not heavy artillery to befiege it in form, the garrifon was at length reduced to fuch want of provifions, that it must foon have been obliged to furrender at difcretion. As M. Belleifle judged it of importance to preserve this place, an attempt to revictual it was ne ceffary. He accordingly marched for that purpose, and by the 20th of October had forced the Piedmontese General to raife the blockade, and retire to Bordighera. After this the Marfhal caufed intrenchments be thrown up all around Ventimiglia, left strong detachments there and about Nice under the command of M. Mirepois, led back the greatest part of his troops to the territories of France for winter-quarters, and then fet out for Paris. Gen. Leutrum's corps was cantoned about Bordighera, Savona, and Final; fo that the oppofite powers had pofts at no great distance from each other in that quarter at the end of the year. After the befieging army retired from Genoa, the troops which had defended it made feveral excurfions into the Weftern Riviera, Montferrat and the Mode nefe; by which means a good many skitmishes with various fuccefs happened be tween them and the different corps left to obferve their motions. At length the Auftrians returning to thofe parts for winter-quarters, obliged them to remain more quiet. The Duke de Boufflers having died at Genoa of the fmall-pox towards the end of the fiege, the Duke de Richlieu was fent from France to take the chief command there in his stead. He has received confiderable reinforcements from time to time; fo that his force is now fufficient for garrifoning all the fortreffes along the Eaftern Riviera.-A quarrel has lately happened between this republick and that of Lucca. The latter, as being weakeft, at first applied to the Auftrians for protection; but after wards wards accommodated the matter by making fome conceffions advantageous to the Genoefe in their present situation. The affairs of CORSICA have been in a fluctuating flate through the year. For fome time all was quiet, and the Genoefe received fome afliftance from thence in their diftrefs. About the middle of fummer, the malecontents beginning again to make fome head, Col. Rivarola, who continued to command them, feized Terra Vecchia, which is a part of Baftia, the capital. He was afterwards driven from it with lofs, and moft of his people difperfed, fo foon as the republick of Genoa could fpare reinforcements for her troops in that island. Col. Rivarola next repaired to Turin, to folicit affiftance. The reception he met with there restored such fpirit to the malecontents, that Gen. Madrafs, who was left to command in his abfence, has again advanced with a body of troops to the walls of Baftia, having made himself mafter of all the neighbouring places. la fummer, fome differences which fubfiled between the court of ROME and that of Vienna were accommodated; and the Pope made the pretender's fecond fon a Cardinal. Tho' his SICILIAN Majefty has not yet actually infringed the neutrality he had agreed to, by marching his troops inta Lombardy, as was for fome time fupeted, the Allies can scarce be without apprehenfions on that fide, if a favourable sportunity fhould offer for acting agreey to his former scheme of politicks, Some of the principal clergy in the kingdom of Naples having begun to establish a court of inquifition without the King's leave, it was nipped in the bud, and a decree was published, declaring, that any fach attempt for the future fhould be looked upon as high treason. No fooner had Ferdinand VI. mounted the throne of SPAIN, than a feparate pace between him and G. Britain began to be talked of. The bad treatment he had formerly received from his ftepmother, the now Queen-dowager, made it fuppofed, that he would not expend the Blood and treasure of his fubjects, by continuing a war in which they had no inter eft, merely to procure a fettlement for her fon, if the differences relating to trade in the Weft-Indies could be adjusted. At that time the face of affairs in Italy was very unpromifing; and fome appearances of difcontent with the court of Versailles on that account, feemed to be further reafons for thinking that his prefent Catholick Majefty might be willing to drop the fchemes which had been concerted in the preceeding reign. Other counfels, however, at laft prevailed; and the French found means, not only to regain his Majefty's confidence, but alfo to get fome of his minifters replaced by others who were better affected to their interest. After this we heard of nothing from him, but declarations, that he could neither give up the caufe of Don Philip, nor hearken to any terms of peace, except a general one, with the confent of his allies. In the month of June, the Queen-dowager was defired to remove directly to Toledo, Valladolid, Burgos, or Saragoffa, any of which towns had been left her to chufe for her refidence by the late King's will; while the Cardinal Infant, her fon, received orders at the fame time to repair to his archbishoprick of Toledo. This again made it be imagined, that the court of Madrid was on the point of changing her politicks; which revived the talk of a feparate peace, till it was found to be without foundation. The Queen-dowager having defired liberty to refide at St Ilde fonfo, till fhe might fix upon the place of her retreat, this requeft was granted; and tho' his Catholick Majefty is far from fhewing great fondnefs for the ftepmother, he seems still refolved to exert himself for procuring a fettlement to the only halfbrother who remains unprovided for. The trade and naval power of FRANCE have fuffered ftill more during 1747, than in any one year fince the commencement of the war. Befides a great number of fingle fhips taken at different times, for which we may fuppofe they made themselves compenfation by captures from the British, feveral of their large convoys have been very roughly treated. In the beginning of January, fome British men of war and privateers met with a fleet of merchantmen, bound from that kingdom B 2 |