The Camp-fires of Napoleon. Henry Clay Watson

Чтение книги онлайн.

СКАЧАТЬ He thought that, if one of the loftiest mountains in the world had failed to arrest his progress, a secondary rock could not be capable of vanquishing his courage and his genius. The fort, said he to himself, might be taken by bold courage; if it could not be taken, it still could be turned. Besides, if the infantry and the cavalry could pass by it, with but a few four-pounders, they could then proceed to Ivrea at the mouth of the gorge, and wait until their heavy guns could follow them. And if the heavy guns could not pass by the obstacle which had arisen; and if, in order to get any, that of the enemy must be taken, the French infantry were brave and numerous enough to assail the Austrians and take their cannon. Moreover, he studied his maps again and again, questioned a number of Italian officers; and learning from these that many other roads led from Aosta to the neighboring valleys, he wrote letter after letter to Berthier, forbidding him to stop the progress of the army, and pointing out to him, with wonderful precision, what reconnoissances should be made around the fort of Bard. He would not allow himself to see any serious danger, except from the arrival of a hostile corps, shutting up the debouch of Ivrea; he instructed Berthier to send Lannes as far as Ivrea, by the path of Albaredo, and make him take a stronger position there, which should be safe from the Austrian artillery and cavalry. When Lannes guards the entrance of the valley, added the First Consul, whatever may happen, it is of little consequence, the only result may be a loss of time. We have enough provisions to subsist ourselves awhile, and one way or other we shall succeed in avoiding or overcoming the obstacles which now delay us.

      These instructions having been sent to Berthier, he addressed his last orders to General Moncey, who should debouch by the St. Gothard; to General Chabran, who should come down by the Little St. Bernard, directly in front of the fort of Bard; and then, at last, resolved to cross the Alps in person. Before he set forth, he received news from the Var, informing him that on the 14th of May—the 24th of Floreal—the Baron de Melas was still at Nice. As it was now the 20th of May, it could not reasonably be supposed, that the Austrian general, in the space of six days, could have marched from Nice to Ivrea. It was then on the 20th of May, before daylight, that he set out to pass the defile. His aid-de-camp Duroc, and his secretary Bourrienne, accompanied him.

      Конец ознакомительного фрагмента.

      Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».

      Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.

      Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.

      1

      Thiers.

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

1

Thiers.

СКАЧАТЬ