Gaspard Amédée Gardanne
Encyclopedia
Gaspard Amédée Gardanne (24 April 1758- 14 August 1807) was a French general who fought in the Napoleonic Wars
.
, he joined the French royal army in 1779. After the French Revolution
he joined a volunteer unit as an officer. He fought under Napoleon Bonaparte during the 1796-1797 and 1800 Italian campaigns. He led a division during the Napoleonic Wars
and died from illness in 1807. His surname is one of the Names inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe
.
At the outbreak of the War of the Third Coalition, Gardanne commanded an infantry division in Italy
under Marshal
André Masséna
. The 1st Brigade, led by Louis Fursy Henri Compère
, included the 22nd Light Infantry and 52nd Line Infantry Regiments. The 2nd Brigade comprised the 29th and 101st Line Infantry Regiments under Louis François Lanchatin. Each regiment had three battalions. Attached to the division was the 15/2nd Foot Artillery company and the 23rd Chasseurs à Cheval, four squadrons strong. This was the division's organization at the Battle of Verona
on 18 October 1805 and the Battle of Caldiero from 29 to 31 October.
In early 1806, Gardanne's division formed part of Masséna's I Corps of Joseph Bonaparte
's Army of Naples
. In the campaign that followed, the 1st Brigade included the 20th and 62nd Line Infantry Regiments, three battalions each. The 2nd Brigade was made up of three battalions of the 102nd Line Infantry Regiment, one battalion of the Corsican Legion, and one battalion of the 32nd Light Infantry Regiment. Jean Le Camus led the 1st Brigade while François Valentin commanded the 2nd Brigade. The invasion of the Kingdom of Naples
began on 8 February 1806 and progressed rapidly. The only resistance encountered was the fortress of Gaeta
, where Masséna detached Gardanne to invest the place while Joseph continued on to occupy Naples.
Jean Reynier
, at the head of 6,000 French troops, smashed Roger de Damas
' 10,000-men Neapolitan corps at the Battle of Campo Tenese
on 9 March. The remnant of the Neapolitan field army dissolved or was evacuated to Sicily
by the British
fleet. The Siege of Gaeta
, however, lasted from 26 February to 18 July and absorbed the attention of up to 12,000 French soldiers. The garrison commander Louis of Hesse-Philippsthal proved to be a stubborn opponent. His initial garrison of 4,000 was reinforced by sea to 7,000 during the siege. Losses were about 1,000 killed and wounded on each side. The surviving members of the garrison were released on condition that they not fight against France or her allies for one year.
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...
.
Biography
Born at at Solliès-PontSolliès-Pont
Solliès-Pont is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.-References:*...
, he joined the French royal army in 1779. After the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
he joined a volunteer unit as an officer. He fought under Napoleon Bonaparte during the 1796-1797 and 1800 Italian campaigns. He led a division during the 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...
and died from illness in 1807. His surname is one of the Names inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe
Names inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe
The following is the list of the names of the 660 persons inscribed on the Arc de Triomphe, in Paris. Most of them are generals who served during the First French Empire with additional figures from the French Revolution ....
.
At the outbreak of the War of the Third Coalition, Gardanne commanded an infantry division in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
under Marshal
Marshal of France
The Marshal of France is a military distinction in contemporary France, not a military rank. It is granted to generals for exceptional achievements...
André Masséna
André Masséna
André Masséna 1st Duc de Rivoli, 1st Prince d'Essling was a French military commander during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars....
. The 1st Brigade, led by Louis Fursy Henri Compère
Louis Fursy Henri Compere
Louis Fursy Henri Compère was a French general of artillery in the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars. In 1794, he was promoted to chef de brigade, the equivalent of colonel. On 1 May 1794, he was promoted to general of brigade...
, included the 22nd Light Infantry and 52nd Line Infantry Regiments. The 2nd Brigade comprised the 29th and 101st Line Infantry Regiments under Louis François Lanchatin. Each regiment had three battalions. Attached to the division was the 15/2nd Foot Artillery company and the 23rd Chasseurs à Cheval, four squadrons strong. This was the division's organization at the Battle of Verona
Battle of Verona (1805)
The Battle of Verona was fought on 18 October 1805 between the French Army of Italy under the command of André Masséna and an Austrian army led by Archduke Charles, Duke of Teschen. By the end of the day, Massena seized a bridgehead on the east bank of the Adige River, driving back the defending...
on 18 October 1805 and the Battle of Caldiero from 29 to 31 October.
In early 1806, Gardanne's division formed part of Masséna's I Corps of Joseph Bonaparte
Joseph Bonaparte
Joseph-Napoléon Bonaparte was the elder brother of Napoleon Bonaparte, who made him King of Naples and Sicily , and later King of Spain...
's Army of Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
. In the campaign that followed, the 1st Brigade included the 20th and 62nd Line Infantry Regiments, three battalions each. The 2nd Brigade was made up of three battalions of the 102nd Line Infantry Regiment, one battalion of the Corsican Legion, and one battalion of the 32nd Light Infantry Regiment. Jean Le Camus led the 1st Brigade while François Valentin commanded the 2nd Brigade. The invasion of the Kingdom of Naples
Kingdom of Naples
The Kingdom of Naples, comprising the southern part of the Italian peninsula, was the remainder of the old Kingdom of Sicily after secession of the island of Sicily as a result of the Sicilian Vespers rebellion of 1282. Known to contemporaries as the Kingdom of Sicily, it is dubbed Kingdom of...
began on 8 February 1806 and progressed rapidly. The only resistance encountered was the fortress of Gaeta
Gaeta
Gaeta is a city and comune in the province of Latina, in Lazio, central Italy. Set on a promontory stretching towards the Gulf of Gaeta, it is 120 km from Rome and 80 km from Naples....
, where Masséna detached Gardanne to invest the place while Joseph continued on to occupy Naples.
Jean Reynier
Jean Reynier
Jean Louis Ebénézer Reynier rose in rank to become a French army general officer during the French Revolutionary Wars. He led a division under Napoleon Bonaparte in the French Campaign in Egypt and Syria...
, at the head of 6,000 French troops, smashed Roger de Damas
Roger de Damas
Roger de Damas was a French general who fought against the French Revolutionary forces for the Russian Empire and the Kingdom of Naples.-Biography:...
' 10,000-men Neapolitan corps at the Battle of Campo Tenese
Battle of Campo Tenese
The Battle of Campo Tenese was a battle on 10 March 1806 between the II Corps of Napoleon's Army of Naples under General Reynier and the Royal Neapolitan Army under General Damas...
on 9 March. The remnant of the Neapolitan field army dissolved or was evacuated to Sicily
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
by the British
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the formal name of the United Kingdom during the period when what is now the Republic of Ireland formed a part of it....
fleet. The Siege of Gaeta
Siege of Gaeta (1806)
The Siege of Gaeta of 1806 was a siege of the fortress city of Gaeta by French forces under André Masséna, which began in late February during the War of the Third Coalition....
, however, lasted from 26 February to 18 July and absorbed the attention of up to 12,000 French soldiers. The garrison commander Louis of Hesse-Philippsthal proved to be a stubborn opponent. His initial garrison of 4,000 was reinforced by sea to 7,000 during the siege. Losses were about 1,000 killed and wounded on each side. The surviving members of the garrison were released on condition that they not fight against France or her allies for one year.
External references
- French Wikipedia, Gaspard Amédée Gardanne