Despite the misgivings of the French military, who believed that an attack on Jersey would be a futile waste of resources, with any success being short-lived, the government approved a plan put forward by Baron Philippe de Rullecourt, who had accompanied the Prince of Nassau-Siegen in 1779. De Rullecourt was an adventurer and a colonel in the French Army. King Louis XVI had promised de Rullecourt the rank of General and the "Cordon rouge" as soon as he had control of the town of Saint Helier, the island's capital.