Charles Antoine Morand
Encyclopedia
Charles Antoine Louis Alexis Morand (June 4, 1771, Pontarlier
or Montbenoit
, Doubs
- 1835) Comte de l'Empire
, was a general of the French army army during the French Revolutionary Wars
and Napoleonic Wars
. He fought at many of the most important battles of the time, including Austerlitz
, Borodino
and Waterloo
.
He then fought in the Low Countries
as a part of General Jourdan's
Armée la Sambre et Meuse, and was injured severely in the thigh at Sprimont
.
After leaving the hospital, Morand joined Bernadotte
's 10th division and fought at the Battle of Ourthe
(September 18, 1794), in the Battle of Aldenhoven
(October 2, 1794), the Capture of Kreutznach
(December 1, 1795), at the heights of Koenigstein (July 26, 1796) and at the Battle of Teining (August 22, 1796). Still with Bernadotte, Morand joined the Army of Italy
in January 1797, which then left for Napoleon's Egyptian campaign.
In Egypt, he fought in the Battle of the Pyramids
as Chef de Brigade under Louis Desaix. He gained recognition for battles at Girgeh (April 6, 1799), El Ganaim and especially Samanhoud (August 12, 1799). After Samanhoud, Morand replaced Friant
, who was promoted to temporary division commander, as adjudant general chief of brigade and governor of the province of Girgeh. Morand was promoted to Général de Brigade
on September 6, 1800.
Morand returned to France in 1801 and was attached to the camp at Saint-Omer
.
, where he was wounded.
He was promoted to Général de Division
on December 24, 1805 and on February 14, 1806 he replaced Caffarelli
as commander of the 1st Division of Davout's III Corps
. He commanded the division until 1813.
In October 1806, Morand commanded his division at the Battle of Jena-Auerstedt
, where he performed well and was injured in the arm. He was injured again at the Battle of Eylau
.
In 1807 he was made a grand oficier of the Legion of Honor. In 1808 that year he married Emilienne Parisow, daughter of the Count of Parisow in Warsaw
with Davout present. He was named Comte de l'Empire later that year.
In 1809 he fought in the Five Days Campaign under Lannes
, fighting at Abensberg
, Landshut
, and Eckmühl
on April 20–22. Back with the III Corps, he fought at Wagram
.
In 1810, Morand was appointed governor general of the Hanseatic cities
as part of the Army of Germany. He had trouble with Davout, who was his commander, and asked to be transferred. Napoleon did not transfer him.
and had his jaw smashed at the Battle of Borodino
. He joined the retreat from Russia, and later distinguished himself at the battles of Lutzen
, Bautzen
, Dennewitz
, Hanau
, and Hochheim
in the War of the Sixth Coalition
as the Allies defeated Napoleon. He took command of the IV Corps from Bertrand on November 13, 1813. He led the defense of Mainz
in December 1813 to April 1814, then retreated to Fontainebleau
as Napoleon abdicated.
He was made a Knight of St. Louis by the restored King Louis XVIII but rejoined Napoleon during The Hundred Days. He was a Général de Division
of the Chasseur
division at the Battle of Waterloo
.
Pontarlier
Pontarlier is a commune and one of the two sub-prefectures of the Doubs department in the Franche-Comté region in eastern France.-History:...
or Montbenoit
Montbenoît
Montbenoît is a commune in the Doubs department in the Franche-Comté region in eastern France.-Geography:The commune lies north of Pontarlier in the Jura mountains.-History:...
, Doubs
Doubs
Doubs is a department the Franche-Comté region of eastern France named after the Doubs River.-History:As early as the 13th century, inhabitants of the northern two-thirds of Doubs spoke the Franc-Comtois language, a dialect of Langue d'Oïl. Residents of the southern third of Doubs spoke a dialect...
- 1835) Comte de l'Empire
Count
A count or countess is an aristocratic nobleman in European countries. The word count came into English from the French comte, itself from Latin comes—in its accusative comitem—meaning "companion", and later "companion of the emperor, delegate of the emperor". The adjective form of the word is...
, was a general of the French army army during the French Revolutionary Wars
French Revolutionary Wars
The French Revolutionary Wars were a series of major conflicts, from 1792 until 1802, fought between the French Revolutionary government and several European states...
and Napoleonic Wars
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
. He fought at many of the most important battles of the time, including Austerlitz
Battle of Austerlitz
The Battle of Austerlitz, also known as the Battle of the Three Emperors, was one of Napoleon's greatest victories, where the French Empire effectively crushed the Third Coalition...
, Borodino
Battle of Borodino
The Battle of Borodino , fought on September 7, 1812, was the largest and bloodiest single-day action of the French invasion of Russia and all Napoleonic Wars, involving more than 250,000 troops and resulting in at least 70,000 casualties...
and Waterloo
Battle of Waterloo
The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815 near Waterloo in present-day Belgium, then part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands...
.
Early career and French Revolutionary Wars
He intended to be a lawyer and received his right to practice in 1791, but a year later joined the 7th Volunteers as a Captain. He was elected lieutenant colonel in the Army of the Rhine on September 5, 1792 and he fought in numerous battles, including the Battle of Hondschoote (September 7, 1793) and the Battle of Wattignies (October 16, 1793).He then fought in the Low Countries
Low Countries
The Low Countries are the historical lands around the low-lying delta of the Rhine, Scheldt, and Meuse rivers, including the modern countries of Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and parts of northern France and western Germany....
as a part of General Jourdan's
Jean-Baptiste Jourdan
Jean-Baptiste Jourdan, 1st Comte Jourdan , enlisted as a private in the French royal army and rose to command armies during the French Revolutionary Wars. Emperor Napoleon I of France named him a Marshal of France in 1804 and he also fought in the Napoleonic Wars. After 1815, he became reconciled...
Armée la Sambre et Meuse, and was injured severely in the thigh at Sprimont
Sprimont
Sprimont is a municipality of Belgium. It lies in the country's Walloon Region and Province of Liege. On January 1, 2006 Sprimont had a total population of 12,782. The total area is 74.28 km² which gives a population density of 172 inhabitants per km²....
.
After leaving the hospital, Morand joined Bernadotte
Bernadotte
The House of Bernadotte, the current royal house of Sweden, has reigned since 1818. Between 1818 and 1905, it was also the royal house of the Norway...
's 10th division and fought at the Battle of Ourthe
Ourthe
The Ourthe is a 165 km long river in the Ardennes in Wallonia . It is a right tributary to the river Meuse. The Ourthe is formed at the confluence of the Ourthe Occidentale and the Ourthe Orientale , west of Houffalize.The source of the Ourthe Occidentale is near Libramont-Chevigny, in the...
(September 18, 1794), in the Battle of Aldenhoven
Aldenhoven
Aldenhoven is a municipality in the district of Düren in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located approx. 5 km south-west of Jülich, 5 km north of Eschweiler and 20 km north-east of Aachen.- Notable people :...
(October 2, 1794), the Capture of Kreutznach
Bad Kreuznach
Bad Kreuznach is the capital of the district of Bad Kreuznach, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is located on the Nahe river, a tributary of the Rhine...
(December 1, 1795), at the heights of Koenigstein (July 26, 1796) and at the Battle of Teining (August 22, 1796). Still with Bernadotte, Morand joined the Army of Italy
Army of Italy (France)
The Army of Italy was a Field army of the French Army stationed on the Italian border and used for operations in Italy itself. Though it existed in some form in the 16th century through to the present, it is best known for its role during the French Revolutionary Wars and Napoleonic...
in January 1797, which then left for Napoleon's Egyptian campaign.
In Egypt, he fought in the Battle of the Pyramids
Battle of the Pyramids
The Battle of the Pyramids, also known as the Battle of Embabeh, was fought on July 21, 1798 between the French army in Egypt under Napoleon Bonaparte, and local Mamluk forces. It occurred during France's Egyptian Campaign and was the battle where Napoleon put into use one of his significant...
as Chef de Brigade under Louis Desaix. He gained recognition for battles at Girgeh (April 6, 1799), El Ganaim and especially Samanhoud (August 12, 1799). After Samanhoud, Morand replaced Friant
Louis Friant
Louis Friant was born in the village of Morlancourt, 8 km south of Albert near the river Somme. The village would later suffer the misfortune of lying along the Western Front trench-lines of World War I....
, who was promoted to temporary division commander, as adjudant general chief of brigade and governor of the province of Girgeh. Morand was promoted to Général de Brigade
Général
Général is the French word for General.In France, Army generals are named after the type of unit they command. In ascending order there are two ranks :* Général de brigade : Brigade General.* Général de division : Divisional General....
on September 6, 1800.
Morand returned to France in 1801 and was attached to the camp at Saint-Omer
Saint-Omer
Saint-Omer , a commune and sub-prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department west-northwest of Lille on the railway to Calais. The town is named after Saint Audomar, who brought Christianity to the area....
.
Napoleonic Wars
Morand fought in Soult's IV Corps at the Battle of AusterlitzBattle of Austerlitz
The Battle of Austerlitz, also known as the Battle of the Three Emperors, was one of Napoleon's greatest victories, where the French Empire effectively crushed the Third Coalition...
, where he was wounded.
He was promoted to Général de Division
Général
Général is the French word for General.In France, Army generals are named after the type of unit they command. In ascending order there are two ranks :* Général de brigade : Brigade General.* Général de division : Divisional General....
on December 24, 1805 and on February 14, 1806 he replaced Caffarelli
Marie-François Auguste de Caffarelli du Falga
Marie-François Auguste de Caffarelli du Falga was a French général de division of Italian descent. Two of his brothers were also generals...
as commander of the 1st Division of Davout's III Corps
III Corps (Grande Armée)
The III Corps of the Grande Armée were few military units during the Napoleonic Wars. The III Corps came to prominence between 1805 and 1809 under the command of Marshal Louis Nicolas Davout, when it repeatedly scored impressive victories single-handedly or in conjunction with other French forces...
. He commanded the division until 1813.
In October 1806, Morand commanded his division at the Battle of Jena-Auerstedt
Battle of Jena-Auerstedt
The twin battles of Jena and Auerstedt were fought on 14 October 1806 on the plateau west of the river Saale in today's Germany, between the forces of Napoleon I of France and Frederick William III of Prussia...
, where he performed well and was injured in the arm. He was injured again at the Battle of Eylau
Battle of Eylau
The Battle of Eylau or Battle of Preussisch-Eylau, 7 and 8 February 1807, was a bloody and inconclusive battle between Napoléon's Grande Armée and a Russian Empire army under Levin August, Count von Bennigsen near the town of Preußisch Eylau in East Prussia. Late in the battle, the Russians...
.
In 1807 he was made a grand oficier of the Legion of Honor. In 1808 that year he married Emilienne Parisow, daughter of the Count of Parisow in Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
with Davout present. He was named Comte de l'Empire later that year.
In 1809 he fought in the Five Days Campaign under Lannes
Lannes
Lannes can refer to:* Jean Lannes, duke of Montebello , Marshal of France* Lannes, Lot-et-Garonne, a commune in the Lot-et-Garonne département, in France* Lannes , a former Province of France...
, fighting at Abensberg
Battle of Abensberg
The Battle of Abensberg took place on 20 April 1809, between a Franco-German force under the command of Emperor Napoleon I of France and a reinforced Austrian corps led by Feldmarschall-Leutnant Archduke Louis of Austria. As the day wore on, Feldmarschall-Leutnant Johann von Hiller arrived with...
, Landshut
Battle of Landshut (1809)
The Battle of Landshut took place on April 21, 1809, between the French, Württembergers and Bavarians under Napoleon which numbered about 77,000 strong, and 36,000 Austrians under the General Johann von Hiller...
, and Eckmühl
Battle of Eckmühl
The Battle of Eckmühl fought on 21 April – 22 April 1809, was the turning point of the 1809 Campaign, also known as the War of the Fifth Coalition...
on April 20–22. Back with the III Corps, he fought at Wagram
Battle of Wagram
The Battle of Wagram was the decisive military engagement of the War of the Fifth Coalition. It took place on the Marchfeld plain, on the north bank of the Danube. An important site of the battle was the village of Deutsch-Wagram, 10 kilometres northeast of Vienna, which would give its name to the...
.
In 1810, Morand was appointed governor general of the Hanseatic cities
Hanseatic League
The Hanseatic League was an economic alliance of trading cities and their merchant guilds that dominated trade along the coast of Northern Europe...
as part of the Army of Germany. He had trouble with Davout, who was his commander, and asked to be transferred. Napoleon did not transfer him.
Invasion of Russia and later
Morand held a command in the I Corps and participated in the Napoleon's Invasion of Russia, crossing the Niemen River in June 1812. He fought at SmolenskBattle of Smolensk (1812)
The Battle of Smolensk, the first major battle of the French invasion of Russia took place on August 16–18, 1812, between 175,000 men of the Grande Armée under Napoleon Bonaparte and 130,000 Russians under Barclay de Tolly, though only about 50,000 and 60,000 respectively were actually engaged...
and had his jaw smashed at the Battle of Borodino
Battle of Borodino
The Battle of Borodino , fought on September 7, 1812, was the largest and bloodiest single-day action of the French invasion of Russia and all Napoleonic Wars, involving more than 250,000 troops and resulting in at least 70,000 casualties...
. He joined the retreat from Russia, and later distinguished himself at the battles of Lutzen
Battle of Lützen (1813)
In the Battle of Lützen , Napoleon I of France lured a combined Prussian and Russian force into a trap, halting the advances of the Sixth Coalition after his devastating losses in Russia. The Russian commander, Prince Peter Wittgenstein, attempting to undo Napoleon's capture of Leipzig, attacked...
, Bautzen
Battle of Bautzen
In the Battle of Bautzen a combined Russian/Prussian army was pushed back by Napoleon, but escaped destruction, some sources claim, because Michel Ney failed to block their retreat...
, Dennewitz
Battle of Dennewitz
The Battle of Dennewitz took place on 6 September 1813 between the forces of the First French Empire and an army of Prussians and Russians of the Sixth Coalition. It occurred in Dennewitz, a village of Germany, in the Prussian province of Brandenburg, near Jüterbog, 40 km. S.W...
, Hanau
Battle of Hanau
The Battle of Hanau was fought on between Karl Philipp von Wrede’s Austro-Bavarian corps and Napoleon's retreating French during the War of the Sixth Coalition....
, and Hochheim
Hochheim am Main
Hochheim am Main is a town in the Main-Taunus district of the state of Hessen, Germany. It is located near the right bank of the Main River three miles above the branch into the Rhine, as well as on the German Framework Road....
in the War of the Sixth Coalition
War of the Sixth Coalition
In the War of the Sixth Coalition , a coalition of Austria, Prussia, Russia, the United Kingdom, Portugal, Sweden, Spain and a number of German States finally defeated France and drove Napoleon Bonaparte into exile on Elba. After Napoleon's disastrous invasion of Russia, the continental powers...
as the Allies defeated Napoleon. He took command of the IV Corps from Bertrand on November 13, 1813. He led the defense of Mainz
Mainz
Mainz under the Holy Roman Empire, and previously was a Roman fort city which commanded the west bank of the Rhine and formed part of the northernmost frontier of the Roman Empire...
in December 1813 to April 1814, then retreated to Fontainebleau
Fontainebleau
Fontainebleau is a commune in the metropolitan area of Paris, France. It is located south-southeast of the centre of Paris. Fontainebleau is a sub-prefecture of the Seine-et-Marne department, and it is the seat of the arrondissement of Fontainebleau...
as Napoleon abdicated.
He was made a Knight of St. Louis by the restored King Louis XVIII but rejoined Napoleon during The Hundred Days. He was a Général de Division
Général
Général is the French word for General.In France, Army generals are named after the type of unit they command. In ascending order there are two ranks :* Général de brigade : Brigade General.* Général de division : Divisional General....
of the Chasseur
Chasseur
Chasseur [sha-sur; Fr. sha-sœr] is the designation given to certain regiments of French light infantry or light cavalry troops, trained for rapid action.-History:...
division at the Battle of Waterloo
Battle of Waterloo
The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815 near Waterloo in present-day Belgium, then part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands...
.
See also
- Order of Battle at the Austerlitz campaignOrder of Battle at the Austerlitz campaignThis is the complete order of battle ofthe French and Third Coalition armies during the Battle of Austerlitz.- La Grande Armée :The French army was under the supreme command of Emperor Napoleon, with Marshal Louis Alexandre Berthier as his chief of staff. General of division Nicolas-Marie Songis...
- Order of battle of the Waterloo CampaignOrder of battle of the Waterloo CampaignThis is the complete order of battle for the four major battles of the Waterloo Campaign.-French Army Order of Battle:L'Armée du Nord under the command of Emperor Napoleon I.Major Général : Marshal Soult, Duke of Dalmatia....
External links
- http://www.souvenir-davout.com/article.php3?id_article=55 (French)
- Waterloo order of battle
- Napoleon.org itineraries