Description
The Army of the Rhine and Moselle was one of the field units of the French Revolutionary Army. It was formed on 20 April 1795 by merging the Army of the Rhine and the Army of the Moselle.The army figured in two principal campaigns in the War of the First Coalition, although the unsuccessful 1795 campaign concluded with the removal of Jean-Charles Pichegru from command. In 1796, the army, under command of Jean Victor Marie Moreau, proved itself more successful. By this time, many of the changes inaugurated by the French military reform of 1794 had taken hold.On 29 September 1797 the Army of the Rhine and Moselle merged with the Army of Sambre-et-Meuse to form the Army of Germany.Purpose and formationMilitary planners in Paris understood that the upper Rhine Valley, the south-western German territories, and Danube river basin were strategically important for the defense of the Republic. The Rhine was a formidable barrier to what the French perceived as Austrian aggression, and the state that controlled its crossings controlled the river itself. Finally, ready access across the Rhine and along the Rhine bank between the German states and Switzerland, or through the Black Forest, gave access to the upper Danube river valley. For the French, control of the Upper Danube or any point in between, offered an immense strategic value and would give the French a reliable approach to Vienna.
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