Joseph Higonet

Joseph Higonet (born December 11, 1771 in Saint-Geniez-d'Olt , † October 14, 1806 died near Poppel, municipality of Lanitz-Hassel-Tal ) was a French infantry colonel .

Life

Higonet is the eldest son of the pharmacist Joseph Higonet and his wife Marie Massabeau; General Philippe Higonet is one of his younger brothers.

On July 4, 1792, Higonet joined the army and was able to distinguish himself very quickly. During the siege of Toulon (September / December 1793) he was already employed with the rank of captain and was wounded there on the left shoulder.

In 1796 he joined Napoleon's Italian campaign and fought near Rivoli (January 14/15, 1797). After further promotions, he reported to the Egyptian expedition the following year . He fought at the pyramids (July 21, 1798) and helped to besiege al-Arish (February 1799) and Acre (March / May 1799).

He was seriously wounded in the battle of Heliopolis (March 20, 1800) as well as in front of Alexandria (March 21, 1801). At that time, Higonet was already a member of the general staff of the invading army.

Higonet came back to France and got well again. In 1805 he fought with the rank of colonel in Austria and Prussia. It proved itself against Haslach-Jungingen (October 11, 1805), Steyr (November 4, 1805), Dürnstein (November 11, 1805), Mariazell (November 8, 1805) and Austerlitz (December 2, 1805).

Higonet took part in the battle of Jena and Auerstedt (October 14, 1806) and was initially very successful. In the course of the day his fate turned and he fell at Poppel. He found his final resting place on the edge of the battlefield.

Honors

• His name can be found on the eastern pillar (18th 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).
• David Chandler: The campaigns of Napoleon . Weidenfeld, London 1993, ISBN 0-297-81367-6 (reprint of the London 1966 edition).
• Philip J. Haythornthwaite: Who Was Who in 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.).