Robert Anchel

“ The failure of the war, which intensified popular hatred of the Austrian queen, involved the king; and the invasion of the Tuileries on the 20th of June 1792 was but the prelude to the conspiracy which resulted, on the 10th of August, in the capture of the palace and the “suspension” of royalty by the Legislative Assembly until the convocation of a national convention in September. On the 21st of September 1792 the Convention declared royalty abolished, and in January it tried the king for his treason against the nation, and condemned him to death. ”

“ On the 31st of July, therefore, at Barere's suggestion, it was decreed that the woods of the Vendée should be burnt, the harvest carried off to safe places in rear of the army, the cattle seized, the women and children concentrated in camps in the interior, and that every male from the age of sixteen in the neighbouring regions should be called upon to take arms. Further, on the 1st of August, the troops that had formed the garrison of Mainz, which were unavailable against foreign enemies by the terms of their capitulation to the Austrians, were ordered to Vendée. ”

“ But already a party was forming in Paris which demanded his deposition. This first became noticeable in connexion with the affair of the Champ de Mars on the 17th of July 1791. Crushed for a time the party gained strength through the winter of 1791–1792. The declaration of war against the emperor Francis II., nephew of Marie Antoinette, was forced upon the king by those who wished to discredit him by failure, or to compel him to declare himself openly an enemy to the Revolution. Their policy proved effective. ”

“ At the end of August 1793, the republicans had three armies in the Vendée—the army of Rochelle, the army of Brest and the Mayençais; but their generals were either ciphers, like C. P. H. Ronsin, or divided among themselves, like J. A. Rossignol and J. B. C. Canclaux. They were uncertain whether to cut off the Vendéans from the sea or to drive them westwards; and moreover, their men were undisciplined. Although the peasants had to leave their chiefs and work on the land, the Vendéans still remained formidable opponents. ”

“ After the 9th Thermidor attempts were made to pacify the country. The Convention issued conciliatory proclamations allowing the Vendéans liberty of worship and guaranteeing their property. General Hoche applied these measures with great success. He restored their cattle to the peasants who submitted, “let the priests have a few crowns,” and on the 20th of July 1795 annihilated an emigre expedition which had been equipped in England and had seized Fort Penthievre and Quiberon. ”

“ They were equipped partly with arms supplied by England, and partly with fowling-pieces, which at that period were superior to the small-arms used by the regular troops, and their intimate knowledge of the country gave them an immense advantage. ”