There were only four days left for me to ready myself for a journey whose consequences we were absolutely unable to imagine.
[H.T. Verhoef after being appointed surgeon to Napoleons army in Russia]
The French Period (1806-1814)
From 1806 to 1810 Louis Napoleon was king of Holland. Louis carried on where the Bataviers had left off. He refused to introduce conscription into the Netherlands. But in an effort to appease his brother in Paris, Napoleon I, he did his best to provide troops for service elsewhere. Dutch troops set out for Spain and Germany to fight against Napoleons enemies.It failed to help: in 1811 Napoleon annexed the Netherlands making it part of France. Conscription was introduced. This form of military service is by lot: whoevers number came up had to go. Rich citizens could hire others to take their place: a substitute. There was much resistance to conscription. But there were also soldiers who entered service for the sake of professional honour or from a spirit of adventure. An estimated 15,000 Dutch took part in the expedition to Russia in 1812, and but a few hundred ever returned.
