François Ignace Ervoil d'Oyré

Pierre François Ignace Ervoil d'Oyré (born May 27, 1739 in Sedan , France ; † July 5, 1799 or 17th Messidor VII in Warcq , France) was a French general who excelled in the First Coalition War , especially during the siege of Mainz by Prussian and Austrian troops.

biography

Oyre was the son of an engineer who had already served in Saxony and Flanders. Overall, the family has a military tradition since 1300. He was given the title of lieutenant-général and appointed director of the fortifications of the defenses on the Meuse . He was then promoted to Lieutenant du corps of the artillery and in May 1756 to Ingénieur du génie ( engineer force ).

The siege of Mainz in 1793

On January 1, 1759, he was sent on a mission to Austria. From October 1763 to September 1765 he served as captain . Its further use was since March 1, 1780 in America, for which it was awarded a kind of pension. At 31 he became Lieutenant-Colonel on April 1, 1791 , then Colonel on February 8, 1792 and finally Maréchal de camp on October 9, 1792 .

It was used in Mainz since November 9, 1792 . After the siege and surrender, he remained hostage as a guarantee for the correct execution of the articles of the surrender agreements. During that time he was charged with treason, but apologized about a month later on defense by Merlin de Thionville . He returned to France on December 23, 1794 and retired on March 31, 1796.

There is a portrait of François Ignace Ervoil d'Oyré made by Jean-Baptiste Greuze .

literature

• Ed .: Franz Dumont , Ferdinand Scherf , Friedrich Schütz : Mainz - The history of the city . Verlag Philipp von Zabern, Mainz 1998 (first edition).
• Alfred Börckel : Mainz as a fortress and garrison from Roman times to the present . Published by J. Diemer, Mainz 1913.