French victory declared by telegram. French minister for war Lazare Nicolas Marguerite Carnot (1753-1823) announcing the news on 1 September 1794 of a French military victory. The news was sent using the Chappe visual telegraph system completed in August 1794. From the tribune in the Convention in Paris, Carnot announced the recapture of the town of Conde (today near the Belgian border) from Austrian forces. The assembled representatives (the government of the First French Republic) cheered and applauded. Artwork from 'Electricite' (1911) by Max de Nansouty, part of the 'Les merveilles de la science' series of 1867-1891 by Louis Figuier.