Alfred Chanzy
Antoine Eugène Alfred Chanzy (born March 18, 1823 in Nouart , Ardennes department , † January 4 or 5, 1883 in Châlons-sur-Marne ) was a French Général de division and diplomat .
Life
Chanzy joined the French Navy in 1839 and served in the 5th Artillery Regiment from 1841. From 1841 to 1843 he attended the Saint-Cyr Military School . During the following 16 years he stayed in Algeria , where he was promoted to Chef de bataillon . In the campaign against Italy (1859) he distinguished himself in the battle of Solferino .
From 1860 to 1861 Chanzy took part in the military expedition to Syria . He was promoted to Colonel in 1864 and Général de brigade in 1868 . In this rank he took part in another expedition against the southern tribes in Algeria under General Emanuel Félix de Wimpffen .
At the beginning of the Franco-Prussian War he went to Paris in 1870 to receive a command. However, he was turned down by Secretary of War General Edmond Lebœuf . It was not until the government of national defense that he was promoted to Général de division in October 1870 . He was given command of a division and soon after that of the XVI. Army Corps of the Loire Army . In the battles at Villepion (December 1) and Loigny (December 2) he led the troops with distinction. After the loss of Orléans , the Loire Army was split up and Chanzy was given command of the 2nd Loire Army or Western Army on December 6, 1870. This army fought with great tenacity between December 7th and December 10th in the Battle of Beaugency , but had to retreat to Le Mans via Vendôme . Here she was attacked on January 9, 1871 by Prince Friedrich Karl in the Battle of Le Mans and forced to retreat against Laval on January 12 .
During the armistice , Alfred Chanzy was elected to the National Assembly, where he voted against the peace treaty and advocated the continuation of the war. On March 20, 1871, when he arrived in Paris, he was arrested by members of the Paris Commune . General Camille Crémer was able to obtain his release, but Chanzy had to swear not to take up arms against the insurgents. Until his appointment as commander of the VII Army Corps on September 1, 1872, he participated as a member of the left center in the deliberations of the National Assembly. In June 1873 he was given command of the XIX. Army Corps and was appointed Governor General of Algeria .
In the presidential election in 1879, Chanzy received 99 votes, which prompted President Jules Grévy to depose him in Algeria and further away from France. Chanzy was sent to Saint Petersburg as ambassador . He resigned from this position when Léon Gambetta was appointed head of government and returned to Paris. In 1882 he was returned to active service. He was appointed a member of the Army Upper War Council and the French National Defense Commission. In the same year he took command of the VI. Army Corps in Chalons-sur-Marne, where he died on the night of January 4th to 5th, 1883.
Fonts
- Campagne de 1870–1871: La Deuxième Armée de la Loire , two volumes (text volume and map volume). Plon, Paris 1871 (German 1873).
Others
The passenger ship Général Chanzy of the shipping company Compagnie Générale Transatlantique , built in 1891, was named after him.
Web links
literature
- Arthur Chuquet : Le Général Chanzy (1823-1883) . - Paris: Léopold Cerf, 1884
- Jacques Melchior Villefranche: Histoire de Général Chanzy . - Paris: Bloud & Barral, 1890
- Leonce Grandin: Chanzy dans le passé . - Paris: Tolra, 1895
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Chanzy, Alfred |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Chanzy, Antoine Eugène Alfred (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | French general, diplomat and politician, member of the National Assembly |
| DATE OF BIRTH | March 18, 1823 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Nouart , Ardennes department |
| DATE OF DEATH | January 4, 1883 or January 5, 1883 |
| Place of death | Châlons-sur-Marne |