Folios 81-84. Unsigned Memorandum, dated at Zurich. Records that for the Allied plans...

Folios 81-84. Unsigned Memorandum, dated at Zurich. Records that for the Allied plans to humiliate France nothing more useful or advantageous could have happened than the declaration that the Duke of Savoy has just made in their favour. In order to defeat France, one must attack in the heart of the Kingdom. By Savoy, the Allies have three places from which they can easily enter France (Bresse, Le Pont-de-Beauvoisin, or Montmélian, which is only 5 miles from Grenoble, the capital of the Dauphiné and seat of the Parliament). Discusses the merits of each. This access to France is all the more favourable as the province of Dauphiné is contiguous with those of Languedoc, Cevennes and Vivarais, which are full of disgruntled protestants. Thus if the Allies are able to penetrate as far as Vienne or Valence, and have a passage on the Rhine, each of these provinces will certainly rise up - the protestants will induce the others with the hope of relief from oppressive taxes and other laws. If the Allies satisfied themselves with war in Piedmont they would not procure through this access into France, given the cities needing to be besieged and the Alps needing to be passed. This is not the case for Savoy, where to prevent entry the French would need to give battle, something which the Germans have always wanted given their cavalry is better than that of the French. Moreover, the loss of a battle for the French would inevitably mean ruin for the Kingdom. For all these reasons the Allies must promptly take advantage of the good disposition of the Duke of Savoy: (1) The French will certainly seek to move first and devastate Savoy as they did the Palatinate, such that the Allied troops will find nothing on which to subsist; (2) They will fortify gates and passages making it more difficult to flush them out; (3) As the provinces of Dauphiné and Languedoc will be dismayed by the Duke of Savoy's declaration, they must take advantage of this context (for example see what happened when the King went to England). The protestants in the neighbouring Provinces are so beaten down and closely watched that without a considerable army being sent to oppose that of France, one should not expect much aid from their part, and if the first engagement were not favourable they would not be able to recover from that. It is not possible to say precisely how many men there are in this country fit to serve as they come and go every day, but it should be possible to know within two-three weeks. Recommends the Count Charles of Schomberg as General for any significant action in this regard, as all have confidence in him and his appointment can prevent the envy and jealousy that is all too prevalent among the refugees. If the Allies are serious about this matter, all the Protestant Princes must give leave to all their French officers and soldiers who will want to come to the aid of their French brethren. Provision will also need to be made for the subsistence of the troops and their families.