Jean-Baptiste Olivier
Jean-Baptiste Olivier (born December 25, 1765 in Strasbourg , Alsace , † September 27, 1813 in Witternesse , Département Pas-de-Calais ) was a French general de division of the cavalry .
Live and act
Olivier was the son of the officer Jean-Baptiste Olivier and his wife Louise Weisbroch. On July 1, 1770, Olivier came as enfant des troupes to the Régiment d'Aquitaine of the royal army. There he received a rudimentary education and later also served as a cadet in this regiment.
Olivier soon became an enthusiastic supporter of Napoleon and was able to distinguish himself several times through courage and bravery during the Revolutionary Wars . In 1789 Olivier married Marie-Anne Lambert and had nine children.
He was promoted quickly and already fought with the rank of general before Kaiserslautern (28/30 November 1793) under the leadership of General Lazare Hoche and in the Battle of Fleurus (June 26, 1794) under the leadership of General Paul Grenier .
When Napoleon began his Italian campaign in 1796 , Olivier became a member of his staff. When the Armée de Mayence was set up on December 9, 1797 , Olivier took over the leadership of the 5th Division under General Jacques Maurice Hatry .
Jean-Baptiste Olivier died on September 27, 1813 at Château de Saint-André near Witternesse and found his final resting place in the old cemetery there in the soldiers' department.
Honors
- July 14, 1804 Grand Officier of the Legion of Honor
- January 19, 1811 Baron de l'Émpire
- Ordre de la couronne fer
- His name can be found on the north pillar (7th column) of the Triumphal Arch on Place Charles-de-Gaulle ( Paris )
- His name is listed on the plaque at the officers' mess in Strasbourg (Place Broglie).
literature
- David G. Chandler : The campaigns of Napoleon . Weidenfeld, London 1993, ISBN 0-297-81367-6 (reprint of the London 1966 edition).
- Alphonse Halter: Jean-Baptiste Olivier . In: Christian Baechler (Ed.): Nouveau dictionnaire de biographie alsacienne, Vol. 28 . Fédération des SHAA, Strasbourg 1996, ISBN 2-85759-027-X , p. 2906.
- Charles Mullié: Biography of the célébrités militaires des armées de terre et de mer de 1789 à 1850 . Poignavant, Paris 1851 (2 vols.).
- Stephen Pope: The Cassell Dictionary of the Napoleonic Wars . Cassell, London 1999, ISBN 0-304-35229-2 .
Individual evidence
- ^ Entry in the database of the Legion of Honor , accessed on March 17, 2014
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Olivier, Jean-Baptiste |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | French division general of the cavalry |
| DATE OF BIRTH | December 25, 1765 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Strasbourg , Bas-Rhin department |
| DATE OF DEATH | September 27, 1813 |
| Place of death | near Witternesse , Department Pas-de-Calais |