Source of the Danube of Baden): “Danube, the biggest river of Germany, rises at the Martinskapelle in a wild and lonely area of the Black Forest, is called Brege at its origin and forms the river Danube in Donaueschingen where it is unified with the Brigach." (German original: „Donau, der größte Fluß Deutschlands, entspringt bei der Martinskapelle in einer wilden und einsamen Gegend des Schwarzwaldes, heißt am Anfang Brege… und bildet erst in Donaueschingen, wo sie sich mit der Brigach vereinigt, die Donau.“) The identification of the main spring in the uppermost Bregtal (also called Katzensteig) is dependent on a defining convention: Instead of
Army of the Danube for the defense of the Republic. The Swiss passes commanded access to northern Italy; consequently, the army that held those passes could move troops to and from northern and southern theaters quickly. The river was a formidable barrier to what the French perceived as Austrian aggression, and the state that controlled its crossings controlled the river itself. Finally, control of the Upper Danube would allow France to move its troops from Italy to the North Sea, or any point in between, offering immense strategic value. Toward this end, in the early November 1798, Jourdan arrived in Hüningen, near the Swiss