His plan was to surprise the Austrians and to appear with his whole army on the plains of Piedmont before it was even suspected that he had crossed the Alps.

He therefore decided to make the passage of the Great Saint-Bernard.

It was for this purpose that he had sent the fifty thousand francs, seized by the Companions of Jehu, to the monks whose monastery crowns that mountain.

Another fifty thousand had been sent since, which had reached their destination safely.

By the help of this money the monastery was to be amply provisioned for an army of fifty thousand men halting there for a day.
Consequently, toward the end of April the whole of the artillery was advanced to Lauzanne, Villeneuve, Martigny, and Saint-Pierre.