AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Crisis Made The Directory Vulnerable
- By November 1799 the Directory faced military defeats, conscription unrest, and resurgent neo-Jacobin energy that made it appear near collapse.
- These combined pressures set the stage for an authoritarian alternative focused on order rather than democratic liberty.
Draft Riots And Royalist Schemes
- Peasant resistance to the draft flared across France in 1799 and royalist agents tried to exploit it to spark civil war.
- A major uprising near Toulouse was suppressed by pro-Republican local forces, undermining royalist hopes.
Invaders Misread Local Sentiment
- The Anglo-Russian invasion of the Batavian Republic relied on faulty intelligence and assumed Dutch welcome that never materialized.
- Poor coordination, flooding, and Dutch resistance turned allied numbers into defeat at Castricum and a chaotic retreat.