At the previous founding ceremony of the Southern Alps Republic, General Reynier had fought a duel with Feilier's former master. There had been many reasons for their duel; after all, their grievances ran deep. But one important reason had been related to the manner in which Kléber and Napoleon "ruled."
Reynier was a man who followed orders. No matter how cruel Napoleon's commands were, he carried them out, even if it meant cutting off the heads of those people at Rafah by the Nile River.
That was not a sight farmers who had left their land wished to see. No one with even a shred of humanity could accept such atrocities. Kléber agreed to suppress the revolt, but he did not agree with Bonaparte's methods. Yet in the end, it was Kléber who was assassinated by an assassin.
Not everyone appointed to command others on the battlefield possessed scientific knowledge, nor did everyone possess both the art of governing and the art of war. Some were merely "butchers."
Such disgraceful matters naturally could not be displayed in such a dazzlingly glorious place. Gathered here were diplomats, nobles, and bankers. When Semonville amended the constitution, intending to put people he trusted in control of the Netherlands Parliament, Augereau resisted by using the same method Napoleon had employed during the Coup of 18 Brumaire: dissolving Parliament.
The Belgian Industrial Credit Bank newly established by Napoleon had drawn in nearly every wealthy person in the Netherlands. He could dissolve that bank at any time. Do not think that holding legislative and executive power meant controlling everything, and certainly do not entertain thoughts of carving out an independent domain. England paid military expenses to other members of the Anti-French Coalition through banks in Hamburg. Without money, soldiers would not march—unless one could do what