The road to Marchand. Feast of the third anniversary of Independence

In the last days of December 1805, most of the generals of the empire and many colonels and battalion commanders had gathered at Marchand to attend the feast of Independence of 1 January 1806. The sun of the first of January shone in all its splendor. The third anniversary of Independence was celebrated with pomp. The people and the army swore with enthusiasm and pride to live free and independent. The political hatreds that divided the citizens were for a moment forgotten in the presence of this solemn oath, for it gave form to the horror of all foreign domination that animated every heart.