Augustin de Lespinasse

Augustin de Lespinasse

Augustin de Lespinasse (born October 8, 1737 in Pouilly-sur-Loire , † November 23, 1816 in Paris ) was a French general de division of the artillery .

Life

Lespinasse came to the Mousquetaires de la garde as a cadet and was soon able to distinguish himself through bravery. In 1769 he was transferred to the Carabiniers as a cornet . He later became aide-de-camp of Colonel Charles Léonard de Baylenx and took part in the Seven Years' War (1756/63) as such .

After the peace treaty of Paris (February 10, 1763) Lespinasse was able to switch to artillery. War Minister Étienne-François de Choiseul was of great help to him and on his behalf he also wrote a memorandum . Convinced of the ideals of the revolution , Lespinasse became part of Napoleon's very early on .

After further promotions, Lespinasse came to the Rhine Army . Despite his military successes, the Welfare Committee demoted him and had him transferred to General Jacques-Léonard Muller .

Under Napoleon, Lespinasse took part in the Italian campaign and fought at Dego (14/15 April 1796), Lodi (10 May 1796), Castiglione (5 August 1796), Rovereto (4 September 1796) and Arcole (15/15 November 17, 1796). During the siege of Mantua he again distinguished himself by bravery.

He was able to return to France unharmed and took over his own command under General Gabriel de Hédouville . Later he devoted himself more to administrative tasks.

After Napoleon's abdication on April 11, 1814, Lespinasse joined the House of Bourbon and on June 4, 1814, King Louis XVIII appointed him . to the pair of France .

Augustin de Lespinasse died in Paris on October 23, 1816 at the age of 79 and was laid to rest in the Père Lachaise cemetery .

Honors

• June 14, 1804 Grand Officier of the Legion of Honor
• 1807 Ordre de la Couronne de Fer
• May 23, 1808 Comte de l'Émpire
• June 4, 1814 Ordre royal et militaire de Saint-Louis
• His name can be found on the western pillar (35th column) of the triumphal arch on Place Charles-de-Gaulle (Paris).

literature

• Kevin F. Kiley: Once there were titans. Napoleon's generals and their battles 1800–1815 . Greenhill, London 2007, ISBN 978-185367-710-6 .
• Charles Mullié: Biography of the célébrités militaires des armées de terre et de mer de 1789 à 1850 . Poignavant, Paris 1851 (2 vols.).
• Adolphe Robert, Gaston Cougny: Dictionnaire des parlementaires francais . Slatkine, Geneva 2000, ISBN 2-05-101711-5 (reprint of the Paris 1890 edition).