Divisional-General Jean-Charles Pichegru (French: [ʒɑ̃ ʃaʁlə piʃˈɡʁy]; 16 February 1761 – 5 April 1804) was a French Army officer who served in the French Revolutionary Wars. Under his command, French troops overran the Austrian Netherlands and Dutch Republic in the Flanders campaign before fighting on the Rhine front. Pichegru's Royalist views subsequently led to his fall from grace and imprisonm Divisional-General Jean-Charles Pichegru (French: [ʒɑ̃ ʃaʁlə piʃˈɡʁy]; 16 February 1761 – 5 April 1804) was a French Army officer who served in the French Revolutionary Wars. Under his command, French troops overran the Austrian Netherlands and Dutch Republic in the Flanders campaign before fighting on the Rhine front. Pichegru's Royalist views subsequently led to his fall from grace and imprisonment in Cayenne following the Coup of 18 Fructidor in 1797. After escaping into exile in London and joining the staff of Alexander Korsakov, he returned to France and planned the Pichegru Conspiracy to remove Napoleon from power, which led to his arrest and suicide. Despite Pichegru's defection, his surname is one of the names inscribed on the Arc de Triomphe. Pichegru went to Paris in August 1803 with Georges Cadoudal to head a royalist uprising against the First Consul, Napoleon Bonaparte. Betrayed by a friend, Pichegru was arrested on 28 February 1804, and was later found strangled in prison on the morning of April 6. The government reported that he had committed suicide, but Napoleon has often been blamed for orchestrating the murder. However, there is little evidence that Napoleon was involved. His supporters often argue that Napoleon had nothing to gain from having Pichegru murdered, especially after the execution of d'Enghien, which infuriated royalty across Europe. Pichegru was buried in the cimetière Sainte-Catherine, a Paris cemetery with its entrance in the former rue de Fer, and which was closed in 1824. Divisional-General Jean-Charles Pichegru (French: [ʒɑ̃ ʃaʁlə piʃˈɡʁy]; 16 February 1761 – 5 April 1804) was a French Army officer who served in the French Revolutionary Wars. Under his command, French troops overran the Austrian Netherlands and Dutch Republic in the Flanders campaign before fighting on the Rhine front. Pichegru's Royalist views subsequently led to his fall from grace and imprisonment in Cayenne following the Coup of 18 Fructidor in 1797. After escaping into exile in London and joining the staff of Alexander Korsakov, he returned to France and planned the Pichegru Conspiracy to remove Napoleon from power, which led to his arrest and suicide. Despite Pichegru's defection, his surname is one of the names inscribed on the Arc de Triomphe. In December 1793, Hoche was arrested, probably owing to his colleague's denunciations, and Pichegru became commander-in-chief of the Army of the Rhine and Moselle. He was summoned to succeed Jourdan in the Army of the North in February 1794, subsequently fighting three major campaigns within the year. The forces of the Kingdom of Great Britain, the Dutch Republic and Habsburg Austria held a strong position along the Sambre to the North Sea. After attempting to break the Austrian centre, Pichegru suddenly turned their left, and defeated the Count of Clerfayt at Cassel, Menin and Courtrai, while his subordinate, Joseph Souham, defeated Prince Josias of Coburg in the battle of Tourcoing in May 1794. After a lull, during which Pichegru feigned a siege of Ypres, he again attacked Clerfayt, and defeated him at Roeselare and Hooglede, while Jourdan, commanding the newly named Army of Sambre-et-Meuse, withstood Austrian attacks in the battle of Fleurus (27 June 1794), which eventually led to Allied evacuation of the Low Countries. Pichegru began his second campaign by crossing the Meuse on 18 October, and, after taking Nijmegen, drove the Austrians beyond the Rhine. The Anglo-Hanoverian army withdrew behind the Waal. Then, while Pichegru's troops prepared to go into winter quarters, the Convention ordered the Army of the North to mount a winter campaign. On 27 December two brigades crossed the Meuse on the ice, and stormed the Bommelerwaard. On 10 January Pichegru's army crossed the ice of the Waal between Zaltbommel and Nijmegen, then, on 13 January, entered Utrecht, which surrendered on the 16th. The Anglo-Hanoverian army retreated behind the IJssel and then withdrew to Hanover and Bremen. Pichegru, who had successfully penetrated the frozen Hollandic Water Line, arrived in Amsterdam on 20 January, after the Batavian Revolution had taken place. The French occupied the rest of the Dutch Republic in the next month. This major victory was marked by unique episodes, such as the Capture of the Dutch fleet at Den Helder by French hussars, and exceptional discipline of the French battalions in Amsterdam, who, although faced with the opportunity of plundering the richest city in Europe, showed self-restraint. Pichegru went to Paris in August 1803 with Georges Cadoudal to head a royalist uprising against the First Consul, Napoleon Bonaparte. Betrayed by a friend, Pichegru was arrested on 28 February 1804, and was later found strangled in prison on the morning of April 6. The government reported that he had committed suicide, but Napoleon has often been blamed for orchestrating the murder. However, there is little evidence that Napoleon was involved. His supporters often argue that Napoleon had nothing to gain from having Pichegru murdered, especially after the execution of d'Enghien, which infuriated royalty across Europe. Pichegru was buried in the cimetière Sainte-Catherine, a Paris cemetery with its entrance in the former rue de Fer, and which was closed in 1824.