An Anglo-Realist attempt to land at Quiberon was crushed by Hoche and the Vendée was pacified, France set off on the path of peace, the continuity of the spirit of the revolution ensured with the law of 3-13 Fructidor a. III (22-30 August), which ensured two-thirds of the seats in the new chamber created by the new constitution to conventional, and defeated the royalists on the day of 13 harvest (5 October) by the work of General Bonaparte, the Convention dissolved on 26 October 1795.
According to naturegnosis, the constitution of the year III represented a return to the census system and to the balance of powers of the Constituent Assembly, with greater emphasis indeed of the latter principle through the establishment of another chamber. In fact, the legislative power was exercised by two chambers, that of the sixteenth century and that of the Elders, and the directorate elected by the councils had to renew the fifth part every year by the councils themselves, which in this way exercised continuous control over it. The first directors were Barras, Carnot, Reubell, Larevellière, Letourneur, and they began to govern in full agreement with the councils, indeed they took from their bosom two of the new ministers: the others were technicians. Politically, the directorate was unable to form a moderate, republican and conservative opinion, by means of newspapers, schools and worship: the best newspapers had tendencies contrary to the established order; the school did not have a vigorous impulse so that it could serve a particular education; the cult oscillated between the more liberal separatist indifferentism to avoid the expense of the cult budget, and the ambitions of anti-clericalism and new religious forms such as theophilanthropism. In the financial field, the crisis continued, although an attempt was made to replace the highly depreciated assigned with territorial mandates over national assets not yet sold, including those of Belgium. We returned to constraint in economic policy, after the brief physiocratic reaction of the Thermidorians, also for the needs of the war: on 6 August 1796 a new customs tariff facilitated the exchange of goods with the satellite republics; on 31 October serious measures were taken against English and neutral products, on 10 November a brand was placed on French products: in a word, anticipating the Napoleonic conception of the continental block, a European economic unit began to be achieved against England.
In the meantime, the continental war against Austria was also being waged in depth: three armies commanded by Jourdan, Moreau and Bonaparte had to conduct a resolute offensive against the Imperials and march in conspiracy on Vienna. Bonaparte began, who separated the Piedmontese from the Austrians in Montenotte and Millesimo and forced the former to the armistice of Cherasco (April 28, 1796), which later became peace (May 15): Nice and Savoy were recognized as belonging to France and a fee was paid. indemnity of three million by the House of Savoy. Still victorious in Lodi, Bonaparte became lord of Lombardy, and forced the dukes of Parma and Modena, the king of Naples, the pope to armistice or peaces with payment of indemnities. At the same time Jourdan and Moreau crossed the Rhine, and Baden, Württemberg, the circle of Swabia negotiated with France. Austria returned to the rescue: in Germany Jourdan was completely beaten by the Archduke Charles and Moreau had to make the famous retreat of the Danube, one of the most perfect retreats that the art of war remembers; in Italy, on the other hand, Bonaparte won Würmser in Lonato, Castiglione, Bassano and locked him up in Mantua. Alvinczy, another Austrian general, tried twice to free Mantua, but was defeated in Arcole and Rivoli, Mantua fell, and the pope, who had broken the truce, was forced to surrender the Legations. The military talent of Archduke Charles was also successful against Bonaparte, having crossed the Rhine again from Hoche and Moreau, who were advancing towards Frankfurt and along the Danube, Austrian pertinacity capitulated to Leoben. Austria renounced Belgium, to the left bank of the Rhine and to Lombardy, obtaining in exchange the promise of having everything that belonged to the republic of Venice. Thus the custom of bartering weak states to balance strong states entered revolutionary diplomacy and the Italian policy of the old French monarchy was reborn. This rebirth has been criticized by many historians, especially the French, as it made the concrete Rhine interests postpone to the random Italian interests, but it should be remembered that once the Austrian alliance policy of the last period of the old regime was rejected, a policy Italian was to be its legitimate corollary: disinterest in Italy was possible only on the basis of an Austro-French agreement.Italy: History).
