The National Register. — London, England, 1808-09-19 00:00:00

A THE NATIONAL REGISTER. OUT fling, Conaitution, anb katno, No 38. MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 19, 1809. PRICE Sd. lx, l l 1 1 11'1 1111111 i .. .} 11 ::11 1 1' ! ' 1111 I. 1 II .. ';I I 1 ' 111, ,--•-• - 1:.:i I 1 . I • , ~:` - .; II 1111 i ~-- l p - 1-! ..- , 111 Kg. 1 ,jl' [1! 1! ,I . . ... _el _..... : ii I ! p ' ' : -. 1... f2 .l ' .. ,:- Milet - ' • „ ' I i 1 1 :911 11 liiii, y,,,,• -, . , :,„.... o‘,-_---,,,- ,- ~,-, ! ~ , ,'.--X - - ~.:. '• . , ;,, \-5. --'-------- titA --,,---- - ..-..------- •,,.- -- 0 _ LIFE F GENERAL JUNOT, DUKE D'ABII INTES, Notwithstanding the frequent boast of originaNto of idea, amongst both the actors in, and partizans of, the French Revo lution, yet the whole of their conduct has been marked by a servile imitation either of the Romans, or of the f ranks ; as a proof of this we need only advert to the assumption of Roman appellatives in the first stages of equal liberty, and tile humble imitation of Charlemagne by the present Republican Emprror. If this imitation bad been really an imitation of their sirtues, we would have been less offended at their more trifling child's Pinot but when it is merely an assumption of name joined to (feeds even more atrocious than the most horrid ravages of the hordes of northern savage's who inundated Europe,—when we see rank and distinction ussumed by those who have sprung from the very lowest orders of society, and who have emerged from their pristine obscurity merely from pre-eminence in villnitiy— We would be prompted to close the page of history with detes tation and disgust, it it were not t:mt curio.fit4 is moo metro par totlarly awake, to contemplate the present rapid changes of F^ene on the great theatre of Europe, and to eroptire into the origin :111 , 1 merits of the diffrreut actors ; and as we may soon expect the curtain to fall on this motley groupe, v. hen the names and character: of all but a few of the arch fiend.: must sink into the stream of oblivion. we have jodgel that an accurate poi trait of General 3unot, with some authentic particulars of his life, would not he unacceptable to our Readers. Many of the anec dotes have been collected on Cie Continent, and handed to us through a source of undoatited authenticity and by particular favour, the others are confirmed by a reference to the best his tories of the times. Thy guhiret of this dav's biography, thougl! new culling him self Duke D'Abrantes, boasts w hther lineage than his d irtfost Non XXX Vl.ll.—Vul. 1, Vaster. General Junot was born at Orleans, where his father .vas a corn chandler, of the lowest description in the trade; • ithout education beyond its mere rudiments, or the slighteet etention to his morals, the young Juno was occupied in the ;lost laborious drudgery of the business, emit the year 1789, hen having been tempted to make rather free with the till, in irder to gratify hievicious !sessions, his father turned him out )f the house, giving him the wide world In which to follow his disposition. Paris was at that moment the foyer of the tissolute and discontented, and this young pupil of liberty and oquality having turned his steps to the capital, his active phila ,aphy soon gained him admittance into the Jacobin Club, those great patron's of revolutionary genius, who, finding him fit for their every purpose, retained him as a follower, and initiated him in all the revolutionary jargon and polio of the day. In the early scenes of the Revolution, in the horrible massacres at bbayr, and through the whole progress of lanternization, emot was an active assistant, and having bathed himself deep in blood, was considered as fit fir the departments; of course, a hen the operations on the southern frontier required an aug mentation of the national army, this elrve of liberty, in his zeal to regenerate the country of Nice, which at that period was still unenlightened, shouldered his musquet, and marched for Provence. It would be beyond our limits to detail the horrors of this expeditio n , to enumerate the murders of loyalty and the violations of innocence; there is, however', one anecdote of which (1113 monster is said frequently to have boasted, and which merits notice. In a small village near Antibes, where a de tachment of the revolutionary army was frolerni:ed, Citizen .I mint look up his (plasters in the house of a poor peasant, who had seen better days ; the man was loyal, but his wife, charmed with patriotism, yielded to the ardour of this military philoses pher ; in a short time, however, in consequence of some :Wean. tages gained by the loyal party, this district was Os en up to the fury of the soldiery, whets the philanthropic reeirmer not only aided, butt joined in the violation of the wife and d m glees of his host, who was coolly and tauntingly murdered, are r heing obliged to witness his own degradation. After ibis display of revolutionary virtue, he extended his services and ci visin to the neightmerhoed of Toulon, previous to its evacuation by the British mil Spanish forces t here during the short siege he served with the artillery, and attrar'cd the notice of Bormparte, who was then Chef de Brigade. It has been stated, that the Corsican Ciiief, during a heavy eannmeele, enquired if any one near him could write ; .Tenot immediately tittered his services, and whilst employ:el on a drumhead, a shot striking the ground close to his side. covered him with dust; undisturbed by the oc currence, he coolly said, " that u ill do I I wanted sand for my letter." etrecis with his behaviour, Bonaparte este:timed, " You are a Erase fellow I how con I serve sottl"ess" CZive me pronestion," replied Junot, " I will not disgrace it ;" he was instantly taken from the ranks, and repainted by Napoleou his ceded} seejeant, from which, for his abilities and cooltoee, he. was promoted to tee rank of an officer. When Toulon surren dered, he had a fresh opeortunity of displaying his thee :NU tics, and vss partictearly net's: ed for his activity in esseeiug in the atrocities which were inflicted on all those who had favour. ed the British, and when all those who had even ln,Led an Eneiiseman in their houses, or who were suspeerce of bring fn. eottralee to the came of losalty, were assembled by a tresdicr. ous preclarnation in the Chadip f!li Mars, and butchered et colti hetet], to t=ie nmetineof 1501) men. women, tied childreu ; en evioit bowed of by his friend, when be wrote to the `Zobeets•