Page:Great Men and Famous Women Volume 2.djvu/97

 NAPOLEON BONAPARTE 265 ament, and to have dreamed of founding a mighty empire from the stand-point of the East, the glow and glamour of which seem always to have had a certain fas- cination for him. He therefore employed the resources of the Army of England to prepare for an expedition to Egypt, and the Directory yielded to his wishes, partly no doubt, through the desire of getting him away from France. But their aggressive policy was at the same time fast bringing on another European war. The expedition sailed from Toulon on May 19, 1798, captured Malta from the Knights of St. John by treachery, and, escaping by great luck from the British fleet under Nelson, arrived at Alexandria on June 30th. The army was disem- barked in haste, for fear lest Nelson should arrive, and on July 8th Napoleon marched on Cairo. He defeated the Mamelukes at Chebreiss and the Pyramids, and entered Cairo on July 24th. He then occupied himself with organizing the government of Egypt, but his position was rendered very hazardous by the de- struction of the French fleet on August ist by Nelson at the battle of the Nile, and he saw that his dream of founding an empire in the East could not be real- ized. He thought, however, that he might create a revolution in Syria, by the aid of which he might overthrow the Turkish power, and march in triumph back to Europe through Asia Minor and Constantinople. He accordingly entered Syria in February, 1 799, with 1 2,000 men, but was brought to a standstill before St. Jean d'Acre. Failing to capture that fortress, supported as it was by the British squadron under Sir Sidney Smith, in spite of the most desperate efforts, he was obliged to return to Egypt. After his return. Napoleon defeated a Turk- ish army which had landed at Aboukir, but learning the reverses that had been suffered by the French arms in Europe, he resolved to leave Egypt and return to France. He embarked secretly on August 2 2d, leaving a letter placing Kleber in command of the Army of Egypt, and landed in France six weeks later. He found matters at home in great confusion. The wars had been misman- aged, Italy was almost lost, and the government, in consequence, was in very bad odor. The revolution of the i8th Brumaire followed (November 9, 1799), when the legislature was forcibly closed, and a provisional executive of three consuls, Siey^s, Roger-Duclos, and Bonaparte, formed to draw up a new constitution. This was promulgated on December 13th ; the executive was vested in three con- suls, Bonaparte, Cambac^r^s, and Lebrun, of whom Bonaparte was nominated First Consul for ten years. He was practically paramount, the two remaining consuls being ciphers, and the other institutions being so organized as to concen trate oower in the executive. Siey^s became president of the Senate. The gov- ernmental crisis being settled, energetic steps were taken with regard to the civil war in the west. A proclamation was issued promising religious toleration at the same time that decided military action was taken, and these measures were so successful that all was quiet at home by the end of February, 1800. Then Na- poleon turned his attention abroad. He made overtures for peace to England and Austria, now the only belligerents, as he wished to lull suspicion by posing as the friend of peace, not as a military ruler ; but he inwardly rejoiced when they rejected his overtures.