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Frozen Rivers Enabled Cavalry To Seize A Fleet
- The winter of 1794–95 froze nearly every river in northern Europe, letting French armies march across ice and advance into the Netherlands.
- French cavalry famously captured a frozen Dutch fleet at Den Helder, seizing ships and heavy guns across the ice.
Liberation Quickly Became Occupation
- The Batavian Republic welcomed French troops as liberators but quickly became a client state serving France's military and economic needs.
- Revolutionary rhetoric about exporting rights gave way to occupation and resource extraction for French benefit.
Currency Stabilized By Coercion, Not Market Trust
- The assignat's value rose temporarily under the Committee of Public Safety but relied on forced measures and seized property for backing.
- Price controls and forced loans propped up currency briefly, but enforcement depended on political coercion.