Alexandre d'Alton
Alexandre d'Alton (born April 20, 1776 in Brive-la-Gaillarde , † March 20, 1859 in Versailles ) was a French Général de division of the infantry .
Life
D'Alton comes from a wealthy family of Irish / English descent who settled in Brive-la-Gaillarde. Enthusiastic about the ideals of the revolution , d'Alton joined the army as a volunteer on September 15, 1791.
He was able to distinguish himself through bravery in the Revolutionary Wars and therefore promoted very quickly. As an aide-de-camp he came to General Gabriel de Hédouville on April 6, 1795 . The following year he joined General Lazare Hoche's staff and was one of the first to volunteer for Napoleon's Irish expedition . During this campaign (December 1796) the Society of United Irishmen under Theobald Wolfe Tone should be supported in their efforts for independence against the British; this venture failed miserably.
From September 1797 d'Alton served with the rank of captain in the Sambre and Maas army .
After further promotions, he came to General Charles Leclerc d'Ostin in 1802 and served in his expeditionary army. On behalf of Napoleon, they were to fight the rebels on Saint-Domingue ( Hispaniola ) under the leadership of Toussaint Louverture .
D'Alton married in 1814 and had two children: his son Paul became a general in the infantry like him, his daughter Aimée married the writer Paul de Musset in 1861 .
Alexandre d'Alton died in Versailles four weeks before his 83rd birthday and was buried there.
Honors
- 4th February 1804 Officer of the Legion of Honor
- July 8, 1814 Chevalier des Ordre royal et militaire de Saint-Louis
- October 26, 1826 Commandeur des Ordre royal et militaire de Saint-Louis
- April 29, 1833 Grand Officer of the Legion of Honor
- His name can be found on the western pillar (40th column) of the triumphal arch on Place Charles-de-Gaulle ( Paris ).
literature
- Karl Bleibtreu : Marshals, generals, soldiers of Napoleon I. VRZ-Verlag, Hamburg 1999, ISBN 3-931482-63-4 (reprint of the Berlin 1899 edition).
- Philip J. Haythornthwaite: Who was who in the Napoleonic Wars . Arms & Armor, London 1998, ISBN 1-85409-391-6 .
- Charles Mullié: Biography of the célébrités militaires des armées de terre et de mer de 1789 à 1850 . Poignavant, Paris 1851 (2 vols.).
- Georges Six: Dictionnaire biographique des généraux & amiraux français de la Révolution et de l'Émpire. 1792-1814 . Saffroy, Paris 1999, ISBN 2-901541-06-2 (reprint of the Paris 1934 edition).
- Digby Smith : The Greenhill Napoleonic Wars Data Book . Greenhill, London 1998, ISBN 1-85367-276-9 .
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Alton, Alexandre d ' |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | French major general |
| DATE OF BIRTH | April 20, 1776 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Brive-la-Gaillarde |
| DATE OF DEATH | March 20, 1859 |
| Place of death | Versailles |