A Full and True ACCOUNT Of the LATE REVOLUTION in SAVOY, and of the Motives and Occaſion of the Duke of SAVOY's Declara­tion of WAR againſt FRANCE, and for Reſtoring all the VAUDOIS to their Liberties and Ancient Pri­vileges, who are joined with His Forces againſt the French. As alſo of the ſeveral Defeats given to the French Forces, by the Vaudois and Savoyards. In a Letter to a Perſon of Quality, from Geneva, June 9. 1690.

YOU know, that ſome time ago the French advanced to­wards Piemont, under the Command of Monſieur de Catinat; their Number was reported to be 14000 Men, but the truth is, they were not above Ten Thouſand. The pretence of that Expedition was to make War againſt the Vaudois; they attack'd them the 1ſt and 2d of May: The Vaudois defended themſelves ſtout­ly, and the French loſt many of their Men. After that Catinat made as if he had been willing to fall upon the Mi­laneze; but he came back on a ſudden, and poſted himſelf in the Neighbour­hood of Turin. The firſt thing he de­manded from the Duke of Savoy, was, That he ſhould give him 3000 Men of his Troops to ballance the Succours he had given the Emperour, which was, of 100000 pounds sterl. The Duke anſwered, he had bought ſome Fiefs of the Emperour, and that it was re­ally a Bargain, and not any Succours he had ſent him, when he gave him the ſaid One Hundred Thouſand Pounds. Catinat not being contented with this Anſwer, gave the Duke but twice Twenty Four Hours to take his laſt Reſolution. The Duke finding himſelf ſo cloſely ſtreightned, made as if he had a Mind to enter into a Treaty with France; and for that pur­poſe ſent Couriers to Paris, and pro­miſed Catinat, in the mean time, he would give him the Troops the French King was deſirous of having. Catinat ſeem'd as if he had been ſatisfied with theſe Promiſes, and went back towards the Milaneze, ſeized upon Carignan-Bridge, upon the River Po; and ha­ving left there 1000 Dragoons in Gar­riſon, return'd again towards Turin and declared to the Duke, That h•would ſee the Execution of his Promiſe, and that the King his Maſte•would have, for the ſecurity of his Neutrality, the Citadel of Turin and Verue to be delivered up to him. The Duke, under pretence of Treaty, de­manded ſome time to know the Reſo­lutions of the French King. Catinat's Nephew went immediately to the French Court. During this Negotiation and delay, the Duke got near a Months time, which he diligently imploy'd in gathering ſecretly the Militia of the Country, in Fortifying and Furniſhing with Ammunitions the Citadel of Tu­rin, and the other Frontier Places, cau­ſing a good Guard to be kept in the Night-time. He did likewiſe employ ſome of that time in diſparching En­voys to all the Neighbouring Princes, and eſpecially to the Diet of the Suiſ­ſers, where his Ambaſſador, and that of Spain ſpoke with ſo good ſucceſs a­gainſt the Cheats and Violences of the French Court, that all the Aſſembly was moved ſo far to compaſſion, as to ſhed tears: And the Diet reſolved to ac­quaint the D. of Savoy, That the intenti­on of the Cantons was, That he ſhould order Catinat to draw back his Troops from Piemont, which if he ſhould refuſe to do, the Suiſſers would not fail to give the Duke all the Aſſiſtance they were able to do. The Courier, which Mon­ſieur Amelot, the French Ambaſſador in Suiſſerland, had ſent to Monſieur Catinat, came to him by ſome hours ſooner than he that was ſent to the Duke from the Diet; and hearing the Reſolution of the Cantons, he ſent to Compliment the Duke, praying him to ſend him his Chancellour, and telling him; that he hoped ſome Means ſhould be found out to accommodate all Affairs. The Duke, who knew nothing yet from Suiſſerland, of what had been determined there in his Favour, ſent him his Chancellour, with a deſign to gain more time; but the Courier of Suiſſerland being arriv'd a little while after; the Duke ſent after his Chancellor to call him back, and having Aſſembled the Council of Eſtate, and that of War, it was Reſolved they ſhould have no­thing more to manage with Catinat, but order him to depart the Dukes Dominion within 24 Hours, which if he would not do, they would Attack him and Charge him immediately.

You muſt know that when Catinat received that unwelcom News, his Army was weakned, by a Detachment he had ſent againſt the Vaudois, to keep the Valleys of Pragelas; beſides it was leſ­ſened by 2 Regiments of Suiſſers, who refuſed to fight againſt the Savoyards; Monſieur Catinat to ſecure them, ſent them to Cazal, to have from thence 2 other Regiments, but the Suiſſers in their March meeting with all the Sa­voy Militia in Arms, joined with them, and renounced the French Service. On the other ſide, the Detachment which was ſent againſt the Vaudois had but a bad ſucceſs: the truth is, the Vaudois were forced to retire upon a high Mountain, after they had made a great ſlaughter of the French, many Carts of wounded Perſons were car­ryed to Turin, where they arrived before the Rupture. The Vaudois hearing the Dukes Intentions, they offered themſelves to him to go and ſerve in his Army againſt the French.

After the Duke had taken and de­clared in Council his Reſolution of breaking with France, he came out upon the Piazza, and made a fine Speech to the People, which ſhewed ſo great an Averſion againſt the French, that they offered to employ their Lives and Fortunes for the Ser­vice of His Royal Highneſs; the Prieſts themſelves offered to give the Plate of their Churches, ſaying, They could Officiate in Wooden Cups. There came Ten thouſand Men from Mondovi, and from the Marquiſat of Seve; they demanded leave to Charge the French, and there was ſuch a thronging to take Arms all over Savoy, that they were not able to give them all Powder and Ammunition. They ſet a Guard up­on Monſieur Rebenac Ambaſſador of France; When the Duke had the good News from Suiſſerland, he had at the ſame time ſome likewiſe from the Italian Princes, who encoura­ged him very much in the Reſolution he has taken againſt France.

The Republick of Venice offered him 20000. Pounds Sterling a Month. After this the Duke ſent Couriers to acquaint all the Princes with his Rup­ture with France, and cauſed to be Publiſhed, all over his Dominions, a Proclamation in behalf of the Vau­dois, which gave them leave to come into their Country again, he cauſed the ſame Proclamation to be ſent into Suiſſerland, and other Parts, to Solli­cit the Vaudois to return, aſſuring them, that all the Violences and Cru­elties that were practiſed againſt them did not come from him, but from the French, who were the Au­thors and Executors of them. Acts of Hoſtility are already begun, the Vaudois are come down from their Mountains, and have cut off a Party of 100 French. They ſay Monſieur Catinat has loſt 900 Men, which have been killed by the Country Peo­ple. The Merchants of Lions have at Turin Three or four hundred thouſand Pounds Sterling worth of Goods, which they have left there to ſave themſelves.

Troops advance from the Milaneze, and there are already 3000 Spainards at Aſt. Some Forces are drawing from Germany into the Milaneze, and they expect in Suiſſerland with great impatience the return of King William's Courier, who if he comes back with a good Sum of Money, without queſtion in little time we ſhall ſee an entire Revolution and change of Affairs there, from what they were ſome Months ago.