70] ANNUAL REGISTER, 1800. 



On the twenty-fourth of Novem- 

 ber, 1799, Hedoville, commander- 

 in-chief of what was called the 

 army of England, destined to re- 

 dluce the loyalists to peace, from 

 head-quarters at Angers, addressed 

 them, inaproclamation, as follows : 

 " Frenchmen, the happy change 

 which has taken place in the go- 

 vernment, will bring to our nation 

 peace, internal and external. The 

 legislative committees, and the con- 

 suls of the republic, do not belong 

 to any faction. Their object is the 

 happiness and glory of the French 

 nation. They have the firmest con- 

 fidence in the victories of our ar- 

 mies, and every heart partakes with 

 them in this confidence. There is 

 already a suspension of arms in some 

 of the western departments, and 

 orders have been given for carrying 

 it into execution. It is not to be 

 doubted but the chiefs of insurgents, 

 and the inhabitants of districts, oc- 

 cupied by the republican armies, will 

 submit themselves, without delay, 

 to the laws of the republic. A solid 

 peace in the interior is to be esta- 

 blished only by the united efforts of 

 all good citizens, to conciliate and 

 gain mutual affection. All who 

 shall contribute their endeavours to 

 this end will deserve well of huma- 

 nity and of their country." 



The conditions of the armistice, in 

 substance, were, that all hostilities 

 of every kind ^and degree should 

 entirely cease; that all prisoners and 

 hostages on both sides should be set 

 free, but each party to be at liberty 

 still to receive deserters ; the number 

 of the republican troops in the wes- 

 tern departments not to be aug- 

 mented ; correspondence among the 

 republicans to be carried on either 

 by resolutions transmitted from one 



body to another, or by means of 

 very small detachments; corre- 

 spondence among the disaffected to 

 be protected by the republicans; re- 

 quisitions to be made by the repub- 

 licans for the maintenance of the 

 troops only ; hostilities not to be 

 renewed on either side without eight 

 days previous notice ; no proclama- 

 tion on either side to be published 

 during the suspension of arms. 



This armistice was but ill observed 

 on the part of the discontented, as the 

 insurgent loyalists were at this time 

 called. Predatory parties infested 

 still the districts occupied by the re- 

 publicans, and even made attacks 

 on small detachments and canton- 

 ments of the republican parties : se- 

 parating and reuniting themselves, 

 on certain occasions and signals, as 

 usual. The situation of affairs being 

 reported to the chief consul, bodies 

 of troops were poured into the 

 western departments in succession, 

 and in such numbers as to cut ofi' 

 all hopes of success on the part of 

 the discontented. It was decided 

 by the consul, and peremptory or- 

 ders were transmitted to Hedoville, 

 and the army, if the soft method of 

 persuasion should fail, to employ the 

 troops in such a manner that there 

 should not be left alive one leader of 

 rebellion. Hedoville undertook the 

 task, and had not a doubt, as he 

 wrote to government, of accomplish- 

 ing it. It had been reported at 

 Paris, that the English had landed 

 on the coast of Britanny in immense 

 force. Hedoville, in his letter to 

 the minister at war, says, that all 

 such reports were either entirely 

 false or greatly exaggerated. And 

 he adds, " That nothing could be 

 more desirable than a descent by the 

 English, as in thatcase thewar might 



