Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER III THE CAUSES OF THE VENDEAN WAR Part II In October (1 7 91) the commissioners Gensonne and Gallois who had been sent into the Vendee reported to the new National Legislative Assembly—which had succeeded the National Constituent Assembly — the results of their investigations and inquiries. The salient, decisive fact established by them in " their faithful picture of the political and religious situation of the Vendee at this time" was, that " the imposition on the clergy of the oath was the beginning of the troubles." " Until then the people had enjoyed the most perfect tranquillity . . . they were disposed by their natural character to a love of peace, to the sentiment of order, and a respect of the law; they reaped the benefits of the Revolution without experiencing its storms . . . and they asked no favour beyond having priests in whom they would have confidence and trust." And the commissioners also clearly showed that any excitement or disturbances there, any hostility to the Government, any clerical machinations, all had theirfoundation in that cause, their starting-point from the enforcement of that ill-omened decree. The Assembly listened to the report of the commissioners, and the President, speaking in an oracular way, declared that the Assembly would leave no stone unturned to heal the evils described. To re-establish the public spirit was the first of its desires, as it was the first of its duties. But the Assembly set about this first of its desires, this first of its duties, in a way directly the opposite of that which would lead to quiet. With the ink scarcely dry on the new Constitution of France, and on as solemn a declaration of religious liberty as any constituted body could possibly make, the Assembly counted it no wrong to v...