NAPOLEON, FIRST CONSUL AND EMPEROR 361 now styled himself 'Hereditary Emperor of Austria,' while Napoleon's title as Emperor of the French was acknowledged. The accession of Austria to the coalition was brought about when the republics of the western half of North Italy were annexed to France, and the eastern half suppressed itself as a republic and invited Napoleon to become its king. Before the coalition declared war, Napoleon designed his great blow against Britain. The French and Spanish fleets were to effect a junction in the West Indies, enticing the main British fleet away. Then they were to return, and in conjunction with the fleet blockaded in Brest were to wipe out the Channel fleet, and so to secure the invasion of England. The Trafalgar Toulon fleet escaped, was pursued across the and Ulm, Atlantic by Nelson, evaded him, returned, was 0ct0 ° er - checked by a squadron off Finisterre, and withdrew to Cadiz, while Nelson was hurrying back. The scheme of invasion was completely wrecked. By this time, Austria and Russia were progressing with their slow preparations, and Austria had pushed an army forward into Bavaria. Napoleon lost no moment after the failure of his in- vasion scheme had revealed itself. With extraordinary speed, the vast force destined for the British shores was hurled from the neighbourhood of Boulogne across Europe into Bavaria. The Austrian army was isolated and compelled to capitulate at Ulm on October 20th. The next day, Nelson caught the com- bined French and Spanish fleets off Trafalgar, where he anni- hilated them ; at the price of the great sailor's life, Britain there won mastery of the seas so decisive that it has never again been challenged. The nightmare of invasion which had hung over England for two years and a half was finally dissipated. But Napoleon never seems to have fully grasped the signifi- cance of the British sea-power. Publicly at least he made light of Trafalgar, which even in the eyes of the dying Austerlitz, Pitt was overshadowed by the events that followed. December. Three weeks had hardly passed when the French were at Vienna. In another three weeks, the advancing Russians, joined by the second Austrian army which had not ventured to interpose between Ulm and Vienna, were decisively routed in one of
