U ANNUAL REClSTEFi, 1794 



While the above negotiations 

 ^ere on foot, the prodi^nous pre- 

 parations of FrdHce for the ensuing 

 Campaign had excited the pro- 

 foundest alarm among all tlie mem- 

 bers of the confederacy. The army 

 wliich the French administration 

 intended for the operations in the 

 Netherlands, amounted to more 

 *han 200,000 men. As it was 

 there principally the decisive blow 

 would be struck, nothing was 

 omitted to render this army no 

 less formidable by its organization 

 than by its numbers. It consisted 

 of the sclectest men, and the most 

 expert and valiant ofhccrs. They 

 were abundantly provided with all 

 the implements and ajipurtenances 

 of war; and- no article, either of ne- 

 cessity or of encouragement, was 

 wanting that foresight or ingenuity 

 Could supply. The principal aim 

 ot the French commanders was, to 

 niake themselves masters of the ma- 

 ritime parts of the low countries, in 

 order to cut off th.-.t quick and easy 

 eommunicationwilhEngland,wl»ich 

 gave the allies so many advantages. 

 For this purpose a strong body 

 ot troops, towards the close of 

 March, marchedinto Flanders. Here 

 they began to establish posts and 

 stations preparatory for the designs 

 ihcy were projecting. They also 

 made incursions into other districts ; 

 where they met alternately with 

 success and defeat. The losses on 

 both sides were nearly balanced; 

 and as no material object was yet 

 proposed on either, the war con- 

 sisted of skirmishes of little or no 

 consequence. 



The court of Vienna, (horoughly 

 sensibleot' the importanceof the Ne- 

 therlands, and deeply anxious for 

 the preservation of the richest por- 

 tion of all her dominions, had made 



the utmost exertions for its de- 

 fence. Tne Austrian forces in the 

 Flemish provinces amounted, intlic 

 commencement of thecampaign, to 

 146,000 men. The excellent or- 

 der and disciplitie of the imperial 

 armies had not however preserved 

 them from the diseases that proved 

 so desthictive at this period to both 

 the allied and republican armies : 

 the number of sick and woimded, 

 among the Austrians, amounted to 

 upwards of 20,000. TiiisAvas an 

 alarming diminution of strength, 

 where so much more was needed 

 than the whole complement of 

 their troops, had they been in per- 

 fect health. Nor is it probable 

 that the list of sick and disabled 

 in the other corps of the combined 

 ariny was less proportionably con- 

 siderable. Previously to the com- 

 mencement of militaiy operations, 

 a great council of war was held at 

 Aeth, about the end of March, in 

 order to form the preliminary 

 arrangements : — ^but this meeting 

 proved a source of difscord among 

 the commanders of the allies. Ge- 

 neral Haddick was commissioned^ 

 on this occasion, by the court of 

 Vienna, to produce the plan it had 

 for the toncerted camjrai in : but it 

 was so manifestly Calculated td 

 throw the whole direction of luili- 

 tary aH-airs into the hands of the 

 Austrians, and torender allthecon- 

 federate forces subservient to the 

 schemes of the Imperial councils, 

 that the Duke ot York explicitly 

 refused to act upon that plan before 

 he had consulted the British court. 

 The Duke it seenis, however it 

 may have been intimated by the; 

 Austrian party. i';id not object to 

 that subordination to General 

 Ciairfait which was assigned him 

 by the Austiian plan, from any un - 



seasonable 



