England wished to enter into negotiations at Luneville.  To this the First Consul acceded; but, as he saw that England was seeking to deceive him, he required that she should suspend hostilities with France, as Austria had done.  Bonaparte very reasonably alleged that an indefinite armistice on the Continent would be more to the disadvantage of France than a long armistice by sea would be unfavourable to England.  All this adjourned the preliminaries to 1801 and the peace to 1802.

The impatience and indignation of the First Consul had been highly excited by the evasions of Austria and the plots of England, for he knew all the intrigues that were carrying on for the restoration of the Bourbons.  His joy may be therefore conceived when the battle of Hohenlinden balanced the scale of fortune in his favour.  On the 3d of December 1800 Moreau gained that memorable victory which at length put an end to the hesitations of the Cabinet of Vienna.

—­[On the eve of the battle of Hohenlinden Moreau was at supper with his aides de camp and several general officers, when a despatch was delivered to him.  After he had read it be said to his guests, though he was far from being in the habit of boasting, “I am here made acquainted with Baron Kray’s movements.  They are all I could wish.  To-morrow we will take from him 10,000 prisoners.”  Moreau took 40,000, besides a great many flags.—­Bourrienne.]—­

On the 6th of December the First Consul received intelligence of the battle of Hohenlinden.  It was on a Saturday, and he had just returned from the theatre when I delivered the despatches to him.  He literally danced for joy.  I must say that he did not expect so important a result from the movements of the army of the Rhine.  This victory gave a new face to his negotiations for peace, and determined the opening of the Congress of Luneville, which took place on the 1st of January following.

On receiving information of the battle of Hohenlinden, Madame Moreau came to the Tuileries to call on the First Consul and Madame Bonaparte.  She did not see them, and repeated her calls several times with no better success.  The last time she came she was accompanied by her mother, Madame Hulot.  She waited for a considerable time in vain, and when she was going away her mother, who could no longer restrain her feelings, said aloud, before me and several persons of the household, that “it ill became the wife of the conqueror of Hohenlinden to dance attendance in this way.”  This remark reached the ears of those to whom it was directed.  Madame Moreau shortly after rejoined her husband in Germany; and some time after her departure Madame Hulot came to Malmaison to solicit promotion for her eldest son, who was in the navy.  Josephine received Madame Hulot very kindly, and requested her to stay to dinner.  She accepted the invitation.  The First Consul, who did not see her until the hour of dinner, treated her very coolly:  he said little to her, and retired as soon as dinner was over.  His rudeness was so marked and offensive that Josephine, who was always kind and amiable, thought it necessary to apologise, by observing that his mind was disturbed by the non-arrival of a courier whom he expected.