nary and minister plenipotentiary of his Majesty the King of Great Britain, at the court of Vienna, from which note it appears that the defire of his Britannic Majefty is to fee a termination of the war which divides France and England, the underfigned is fpecially authorized to demand from his Majefty's miniftry farther explanations refpecting the propofition which has been tranfmitted by the court of Vienna; and, at the fame time, as it appears impoffible that at the moment when Auftria and England take a common fhare in the negotiations, France thould find herself under a fufpenfion of arms with Auftria, and a continuation of hoftilities with England, the underfigned is in like manner autho-rized to propofe that a general armistice be concluded between the armies and the fleets of the two ftates, adopting, with refpect to the places which are befieged and blockaded, measures analogous to those which have taken place in Germany, relative to Ulm, Philipfbourg, and Ingolstadt. The underfigned has received from his government the powers neceffary for negotiating and concluding this general armistice. He begs his Excellency Lord Grenville to lay this note before his Britannic Majefty, and to tranfmit to him his Majesty's answer. London, the 6th Fruct. An 8 (Signed) OTTO. (Aug. 24, 1800). (No. 3.) Sir, Downing Street, Aug. 26, 1800. I AM to request that you will endeavour, as foon as you can, to fee M. Otto, and to ask him from me, Whether he has any objection to deliver to you, fealed up for me, the papers to which his last communication refers, as his doing fo will expedite his receiving the answer to it. You will at the fame time apprize him, that you are not informed of the particulars of that communication, or of its tendency; and that you have been charged to make this inquiry, in order to avoid drawing any attention to it. Commiffioner George. (Signed) (No. 4.) GRENVILLE. BONAPARTE, Premier Conful de la république Françoife, en vertu de l'article 41 de la conftitution, donne au Citoyen Otto, commiffaire du gouvernment pour l'echange des prifoniers en Angleterre, pouvoir de propofer, confentir, & figner, conformement à fes inftructions, un armiftice général entre la republique Françoife & fa Majefté le Roi de la Grande Bretagne. ( 168 ) Fait à Paris, au Palais du Gouvernement, le 2 Fructidor, an 8 de la république. (Signé) Par le Premier Conful BONAPARTE. (Signé) Le Secretaire d'Etat HUGUES B. MARET. Tranflation. (No. 4.) M. Otto's full Powers. BONAPARTE, First Conful of the French republic, in virtue of the 41ft article of the conftitution, gives to the Citizen Otto, commiffary of the government for the exchange of prisoners in England, power to propofe, to confent to, and to fign, conformably to his inftructions, a general armiftice between the French republic and his Majefty the King of Great Britain. (Signed) By the First Conful, BONAPARTE. (Signed) The Secretary of State, HUGUES B. MARET. Done at Paris, at the Palace of the Government, the 2d Fructidor, year 8 of the republic. (No. 5.) Sir, Downing Street, Aug. 28, 1800. I HAVE the King's commands to defire that you will, as foon as you can after the receipt of this letter, fee M. Otto; and that you will return to him the original of the paper which he delivered to you on Tuesday laft. In making proper acknowledgments to him for his attention on this occafion, you will mention, that the paper I had wifhed to fee was not this, but Lord Minto's note referred to in that which M. Otto addreffed to me by order of his government on the 24th inftant; but that, while you were with M. Otto, I received, by a meffenger from Vienna, the copy of Lord Minto's note, toge ther with that written on the fame fubject by M. de Thugut to M. Talleyrand. I enclofe for your information a copy of the former, and an extract of the latter of thofe papers, which you will return to me after you shall have feen M. Otto. The reafon of my commu nicating them to you is, to enable you to converfe with M. Otto on the fubject of them, in conformity with the inftructions contained in the minute herewith enclofed, which you are at liberty in the courfe of your converfation to fhow to M. Otto, as contain ing the heads of what you are charged to communicate to him. You will of courfe carefully confine your converfation within the limits of that paper; and you will as foon as poffible deliver to me a written minute of what shall have paffed between you and M. Otto on the fubject. I am, &c. Commiffioner George. (Signed) (No. 6.) GRENVILLE. Minute of Inftructions to Captain George, Auguft 28, 1800. 1. TO declare that the note prefented at Vienna by Lord Minto contains the expreffion of his Majefty's fentiments, and that the King is ready to act in conformity to it. 2. To inquire whether any anfwer has been returned by the French government to the propofal contained in M. Thugut's letter to M. Talleyrand refpecting a place for the meeting of plenipotentiaries to carry on joint negotiation; or whether M. Otto is authorized to agree with this government on that point, agreeably to the fuggeftion contained in M. Thugut's letter. 3. To exprefs in that cafe that either of the places named by M. de Thugut would be agreed to by his Majefty, and a proper perfon fent thither on his Majefty's part to meet the plenipotentiaries of Auftria and France, provided that the French government is willing to enter into fufficient engagements for the freedom of direct communication by couriers with fuch place of negotiation. 4. That with refpect to the propofal of an armistice, the King would fee with great fatisfaction the moment when he could with propriety adopt any measure, the immediate effect of which would be to put a ftop, at leaft for a time, to the calamities of war; but that an armistice, as applying to naval operations, has at no period ever been agreed on between Great Britain and France during the course of their negotiations for peace, or until the preliminaries have been actually figned; that it cannot therefore be confidered as a step neceffary to negotiation; and that from the dif putes to which its execution muft unavoidably be expected to give rife, it might more probably tend to obftruct than to facilitate the fuccefs of thofe endeavours which the two parties might employ for the restoration of peace: that the circumstances of a naval I war are obviously not fuch as to admit of fuch equal arrangements as are easily established with regard to military operations when fufpended by fuch an agreement: that it appears, therefore, at all events premature to enter even into the difcuffion of this queftion, until from the courfe of the negotiations it fhall more clearly appear how far they are likely to lead to a fatisfactory iffue and that no decifion could in any cafe be taken here on fuch a fubject unless the French government had previously explained in what manner it is conceived that the principles of the regulaVOL. X. tions tions adopted in the German armistice with respect to blockaded towns, can be applied to the naval ports and arfenals of France, fo as to carry bona fide into execution, as to the refpective maritime forces, the objects which thofe ftipulations have in view with respect to the military pofitions occupied by the two armies. My Lord, (No. 7.) Park Place, Aug. 29, 1800. IN obedience to his Majefty's commands communicated to me by your Lordship in your letter of yesterday's date, I called upon M. Otto, and had a particular converfation with him on the fubject of the papers delivered to me by your Lordship. I made a proper acknowledgment to him for the readinefs which he fhowed to comply with your Lordship's with of communicating the paper you wifhed to fee, which he conceived to be the one I had the honour to deliver to your Lordfhip; and he appears fully fenfible of the attention fhown him on that occafion. I declared to him, ift, That the note prefented at Vienna by Lord Minto contains the expreffion of his Majefty's fentiments, and that the King is ready to act in conformity to it. 2d, I inquired whether any anfwer had been returned by the French government to the propofal contained in M. Thugut's letter to M. Talleyrand respecting a place for the meeting of plenipotentiaries to carry on joint negotiations, and was informed by him that the place of meeting was fixed at Luneville. 3d, I informed M. Otto that either of the places named by M. Thugut would be agreed to by his Majefty, and a proper perfon Tent thither on his Majefty's part to meet the plenipotentiaries of Auftria and France, provided that the French government is will ing to enter into fufficient engagements for the freedom of direct communication by couriers with fuch place of negotiation; which The promises to communicate immediately to the French government by courier. 4th, I alfo informed M. Otto of the very fubftantial reasons that will prevent his Majesty from agreeing to a general armistice previous to the figning of preliminaries, as detailed in the minute which I had the honour to receive from your Lordship; and was anfwered by him, that he has every reafon to think, and is per fonally convinced, that the continuation of the German armistice will depend upon the conclufion of the English artistice, the advantages of the latter being confidered by France as an equivalent for the very obvious disadvantages of the German one. He obferved, that the regulations contained in the German armistice do not extend to fuch places as were not actually blockaded or attacked by the French; judging therefore from analogy, fuch places places only as are actually blockaded by the English forces could be comprehended in the propofed armiftice; therefore Belleifle, Malta, and Alexandria, fhould be put on the fame footing as Ulm, Philipfburg, and Ingolstadt. M. Otto has been inftructed to require an anfwer to the propofal for a general armiftice before the 3d of September, which makes him conclude that hoftilities may again commence about that time, fhould the propofed armistice be pofitively refused on the part of his Majefty. He farther obferved, that as long as hoftilities on the continent are carried on, there can be no firm bafis on which to ground negotiation, as every change on either fide would occafion a new fubject of difcuffion. M. Otto farther remarked, that if a general armistice fhould be agreed on, he is authorized to enter into any fecurity that may be thought neceffary for the commerce of Great Britain; and that the great importance of the fubject obliges him to inquire whether he is to have a written anfwer on the fubject of the general armistice, or whether he is to confider the prefent verbal communication as definitive against it. I have the honour to be, &c. Right Honourable Lord Grenville. (Signed) R. GEORGE. (No. 8.) Sir, Downing Street, Aug. 29, 1800. AS M. Otto expreffed to you a defire to receive in writing the anfwer of the King's government to his note, I tranfmit to you the enclosed, which I requeft you will communicate to him. Commiffioner George. I am; &c. (Signed) (No. 9.) GRENVILLE. Sir, Downing Street, Aug. 29, 1800. I ENCLOSE to you, by the King's command, the answer which his Majefty has thought proper that I fhould return to the different points contained in the note which I had the honour to receive from you. The mode which you adopted for the tranfmiffion of that paper was perfectly fatisfactory to his Majefty's government; but as Captain George has, from his fituation, the opportunity of unobferved intercourse with you, I will requeft you to tranfmit to me, through him, any further communications with which you may be charged by your government refpecting this bufinefs. M. Ötta. (Signed) GRENVILLE. Z. 2 (No. |