Army of the Interior

• 1. Introduction

  ›

  The Army of the Interior was not one army but two, sharing a name across different years of the French Revolution. The first version was born in September 1792, a moment when France was at war with much of Europe and its own internal order was fracturing. The second version, raised in July 1795, had a more intimate mission: keeping order in Paris itself. That second formation would briefly be commanded by a relatively unknown general named Napoleon Bonaparte. What brought these armies into being, who led them, and how did one of them end up as a stepping stone toward one of history's most consequential military careers?

• 2. The 1792 Formation

  ›

  On the 4th of September 1792, Anne François Augustin de La Bourdonnaye stood at the head of a newly assembled force drawn from the Army of the North and the Army of the Centre. His command lasted only until the 22nd of September that year. The army was reorganised on the 21st of October 1792, called upon to assist the camp sous Paris, which had itself been suppressed the day before. Général Berruyer took command of this reorganised force.

  On the 1st of March 1793 the unit became the armée de Réserve, with Berruyer retaining command of its right wing and général Beaufranchet d'Ayat given the left. Two months later, on the 30th of April, it transformed again into the armée des côtes de la Rochelle, keeping its same organisation and commanders. Général Leigonyer and d'Ayat led its right and left wings as interim commanders from the 29th of April to the 27th of May.

  Armand Louis de Gontaut-Biron took command on the 28th of May 1793 and led the force until the 16th of July. A two-week gap followed with no commander at all; during that interlude, général Pilotte led the right division and Alexis Chalbos the left. Jean Antoine Rossignol was appointed on the 31st of July and held the command for the rest of the army's existence, with one brief interruption. From the 25th to the 30th of August 1793, Antoine Joseph Santerre temporarily replaced him. On the 2nd of October 1793, the French Convention decreed that the army of Mayence would merge with the part of the armée des côtes de la Rochelle operating in the Loire-Inférieure department, and the resulting force was named the Army of the West.

• 3. Paris Under Guard

  ›

  The 12th of July 1795 marks the birth of the second Army of the Interior, assembled from the forces of the 17th military division of Paris and reinforced by troops from the Somme, Seine-Maritime, and Eure departments. Its purpose was straightforward: maintaining order in Paris and the surrounding region. Jacques-François Menou, who had previously commanded the 17th Division, became its first commander. Eight days after its formation, on the 24th of July, the French Convention ordered it to gather at a camp just outside the city.

  That camp gathering did not last long as a quiet, precautionary measure. The situation in Paris was volatile, and the army would soon be called on to act rather than simply stand ready. The appointment of Menou had been pragmatic, drawing on a commander already familiar with the military structures of the capital's region. His tenure, however, would prove short.

• 4. Vendemiaire and Bonaparte

  ›

  On the 5th of October 1795, Paul Barras replaced Menou as commander, bringing with him a 26-year-old second in command named Napoleon Bonaparte. That same day, the army put down the Royalist insurrection of 13 Vendémiaire. The force was also deployed to suppress the revolt in the Grenelle camp and lent its support to the French Directory during its Coup of 18 Fructidor.

  Bonaparte took over full command from Barras on the 26th of October 1795. He held the post until the Directory assigned him to lead the Army of Italy on the 2nd of March 1796. Even then, he did not immediately depart. The Directory found themselves unable to install his replacement while he remained, and Bonaparte held both commands simultaneously for a few more days. He left for his new posting on the 10th of March, and Jacques Maurice Hatry stepped in as his successor. The Army of the Interior was disbanded by decree on the 25th of August 1796, with the dissolution taking effect on the 22nd of September.