Napoleon's soaring popularity inevitably attracted his opponents. General Mallet publicly criticized," This unkempt, insufferably arrogant little dwarf... would one day pay the price for his boastful glory! General Clark claimed that Napoleon was the new Alexander the Great to the Directorate-General, and this statement soon spread throughout Europe.
When the people of Venice tried to rebel against the new Alexander, he had already set out to plunder new regions and cities, making the already endless spoils of war even more endless, while ensuring that his territorial claims were consolidated. Vienna paled at the mention of this.
On August 17, 1797, the 28-year-old Napoleon received a letter from a French field doctor he had never heard of. The envelope was written by the citizen General Napoleon, the commander-in-chief of the Italian army. This letter showed the legendary hero, the conqueror of northern Italy, the other side of the war. This was the first of the 17 similar letters he received in the 18 years of the war.
I hesitated for a long time before I picked up my pen to write. The letter began with,"How dare a humble junior military doctor, unknown as I am, write to Your Excellency, the conqueror of Italy?" Turio, who had been fighting in Italy since the Battle of Montenette on April 12, 1796, had participated in almost all the battles since then. The hero of victory and freedom whom he had followed believed that his sole purpose in going to Italy was to spread the good news of the revolution and equality among these still enslaved people. He insisted that bloodshed was inevitable for this noble and friendly mission.
However, how high was the price to pay? The military doctor witnessed everything with his own eyes. My soul was baptized in the blood and fire of the continuous bloody battle. For the first time, I saw how restrained and solemn the nameless military doctor was! Turio pointed out that all the medics had suffered-far more than General Napoleon had ever known. Most of their wounded died because of the almost complete lack of first-aid medicine, beds, and clothes. 2,000 wounded men were lying alone on the streets of Brescia! However, a doctor named Dominica Jean Larey created a miracle. In every battle since then, if the name of General Napoleon could arouse the passion of the army, then we could see the enthusiasm aroused by Dr. Larey in the pale faces of the wounded with shrapnel and in their tears of gratitude and hope. Even so, we still need a lot. We need regular, well-organized, well-equipped field military hospitals, and a large number of well-trained medical personnel. We tried, but the incompetent and tyrannical government lied to us, and the evil military officials plundered our military supplies. If we didn't stop them, we wouldn't be able to see the light of day. Turio insisted that only General Napoleon could stop such fraud, eliminate a large number of corrupt and incompetent people, and stop the theft of medical supplies and funds.
This month, when the preliminary terms were signed in Leoben, our hospitals were still full of twenty-five thousand sick and wounded... most of the illnesses were caused by poor hygiene, pollution and insufficient food, the filthy camps and the smoky moors around them... If these wounded soldiers were not crammed into shacks, they would have to lie on the damp ground without.. mattresses, without covers, He didn't even have basic nursing care…The current situation shouldn't be so bad. Because of the lack of food in our hospital, we watched the wounded starve to death. In Bazola, a worker in a hospital took out his 4 Francs to buy some food…just to save a few wounded people who were about to starve to death.
Typhobia has swept through our hospitals and barracks like a wildfire... For the fighting armies, fatal typhobia is caused by the filth of the station, the lack of fresh air, the neglect of personal hygiene, and the complete lack of care... Indeed, even at Milan, the sick and wounded are left in the darkest corners without any help, because our officers (including Joseph Bonaparte) have stolen and sold hospital supplies and even mattresses.
We don't know if Napoleon replied to Turio's letter, but Napoleon responded to the contents of the letter: The corruption of the officers responsible for providing medical supplies to the various armies spread all the way up to the commander of the Army and the influential politicians in Paris, until the end of Napoleon's career. Though he might occasionally make promises and later enact laws, the situation was getting worse. Tureo didn't know that what he said was good, but the situation in the future would be much worse.
Crossroads
On the first of June, 1797, Napoleon received us in the magnificent halls of the great castle of Montebello, and not in the military headquarters where we were usually received, as I had expected. The French diplomat, Count Merritto, recalled. He had long been dominated by the strict etiquette around him. Even his adjutant and officers could no longer be received in his palace, because the guests allowed to enter the palace had to go through his harsh screening. His invitation was an honor that everyone could only dream of, and a rare one at that... He was by no means embarrassed or bewildered by these excessive honors, but took them as if they were normal. His reception room and the huge tent in front of the palace were always full of guests, with generals, governors, and Italian dignitaries coming and going like a lantern, just to be received by his favorite for a short time. In short, everyone was submissive in front of the arrogant behavior of this victor. He was no longer a general of the Republic, but a conqueror who imposed his laws on the conquered for his own benefit. At the age of 27, Napoleon had achieved far more success than the average young man could ever dream of. As the commander-in-chief of the Italian army, he won a much-needed victory for the French Republic. Austria became a shameful loser. As thousands of four-wheeled carriages loaded with gold, silver, and art treasures looted from ancient palaces and churches in Venice and Lombardy, the birthplace of the Renaissance, flowed into the empty French treasury and the pockets of the Directorate-General, all villages, towns, and cities in France sang praises of General Napoleon. General Napoleon's own troops did not forget to share the spoils of war. Generals, junior officers, and even non-commissioned officers all made a windfall (Massena was the biggest one). Napoleon left a large amount of stolen goods to his mother Letizia and younger brother Lucien, while Joseph and Louis seized them themselves. On a table in Napoleon's study, Brenner was in charge of a large safe filled with gold and silver coins, which was only used for temporary needs. Napoleon created his Arabian Nights on the Lombardy Plain, and Paris was very appreciative of it. The reformists were particularly impressed by his achievements, while the sympathisers of the Bourbon Dynasty accepted this fact on the surface, but in fact secretly planned to let Louis XVIII return to the throne. Nevertheless, the Directorate found that this new sword was a double-edged one, because behind the conquest was the conqueror himself, a man with undisguised ambition.
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