Jean-Pierre Travot
Encyclopedia
Jean Pierre Travot was a French general and nobleman, the son of Philibert Travot and Catherine Guodefin.
. After the defeat of Charette, a series of columns were sent to subdue the territory, with Travot receiving the command of one of them. One of his main feats in that role was his capture of Charette on 23 March 1796 at la Chabotterie, a success that led to his promotion to general. He remained in the Vendée until 1802, where the local authorities appreciated him and regretted his departure. The municipal council of Sables-d'Olonne
even went as far as protesting "against his displacement" to Louis Alexandre Berthier
, the Minister for War. He was admitted to the Légion d'honneur
in 1803. He returned to the Vendée in 1807, when he was entrusted with the command of troops newly based in La Roche-sur-Yon
, renamed Napoléon as a completely new prefecture within the department.
Around the end of 1807 he set out to participate in the invasion of Portugal
under the command of Junot
. After this expedition he exercised various territorial commands in France before returning to the Iberian Peninsula in 1812 at the head of the 2nd division of the armée des Pyrénées. In 1813 he became a baron de l'Empire and then in 1814, during the French army's retreat from Spain, he took part in the battle of Toulouse
under marshal Soult, in which Arthur Wellesley
's Anglo-Iberian force forced the French to withdraw despite a strong resistance. On Napoleon's fall general Travot remained in the army under the Bourbon Restoration
, despite being a republican, but rallied to Napoleon on his return at the start of the Hundred Days
. Napoleon made him a peer of France and sent him to the Vendée to put down Royalist military uprising against him. On 16 May 1815 the English landed arms at Saint-Gilles-sur-Vie and in the following days, after a series of confrontations, Travot managed to confiscate most of them. However, it was above all Travot's victory at on 21 June 1815 that hampered the royalists' organisation. The campaign gained him general recognition, especially for stopping the massacres at Aiguillon
.
Travot enjoyed being in the Vendée and even bought an estate in les Mauges during 1815, but he suffered after Napoleon's final defeat at Waterloo, the re-imposition of the Bourbon monarchy and the Royalist backlash in the Vendée in 1816. He came before a council of war presided over by one of his enemies, Simon Canuel, who had fought with the Republicans before switching sides to the Royalists (even joining the Vendéen insurgents Travot had been charged with beating during the Hundred Days). In these circumstances Travot's trial was hardly going to be balanced and Canuel was particularly biased, even going so far as to accuse Travot's defence counsels of lèse majesté
. The trial ended in Travot being condemned to death, later commuted to 20 years in prison. Profoundly affected by his imprisonment, he went mad and died in an asylum in 1836. Travot was called "virtuous" in Napoleon's will, his name is inscribed on the Arc de triomphe
, statues were set up to him in Poligny
and la Roche-sur-Yon
, and a plaque was placed on his birthplace (in a street now named rue Travot after him).
Life
In 1791 Jean Pierre Travot was already a lieutenant-colonel in the volunteers battalion of Jura. Becoming adjutant general, he fought with distinction in the War in the Vendée under general HocheLazare Hoche
Louis Lazare Hoche was a French soldier who rose to be general of the Revolutionary army.Born of poor parents near Versailles, he enlisted at sixteen as a private soldier in the Gardes Françaises...
. After the defeat of Charette, a series of columns were sent to subdue the territory, with Travot receiving the command of one of them. One of his main feats in that role was his capture of Charette on 23 March 1796 at la Chabotterie, a success that led to his promotion to general. He remained in the Vendée until 1802, where the local authorities appreciated him and regretted his departure. The municipal council of Sables-d'Olonne
Les Sables-d'Olonne
Les Sables-d'Olonne is a seaside town in western France, by the Atlantic Ocean. It is a commune and a sub-prefecture of the Vendée department.-Events:...
even went as far as protesting "against his displacement" to Louis Alexandre Berthier
Louis Alexandre Berthier
Louis Alexandre Berthier, 1st Prince de Wagram, 1st Duc de Valangin, 1st Sovereign Prince de Neuchâtel , was a Marshal of France, Vice-Constable of France beginning in 1808, and Chief of Staff under Napoleon.-Early life:Alexandre was born at Versailles to Lieutenant-Colonel Jean Baptiste Berthier ,...
, the Minister for War. He was admitted to the Légion d'honneur
Légion d'honneur
The Legion of Honour, or in full the National Order of the Legion of Honour is a French order established by Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul of the Consulat which succeeded to the First Republic, on 19 May 1802...
in 1803. He returned to the Vendée in 1807, when he was entrusted with the command of troops newly based in La Roche-sur-Yon
La Roche-sur-Yon
La Roche-sur-Yon is a commune in the Vendée department in the Pays de la Loire region in western France.It is the capital of the department. Its inhabitants are called Yonnais.-History:...
, renamed Napoléon as a completely new prefecture within the department.
Around the end of 1807 he set out to participate in the invasion of Portugal
Peninsular War
The Peninsular War was a war between France and the allied powers of Spain, the United Kingdom, and Portugal for control of the Iberian Peninsula during the Napoleonic Wars. The war began when French and Spanish armies crossed Spain and invaded Portugal in 1807. Then, in 1808, France turned on its...
under the command of Junot
Jean-Andoche Junot
Jean-Andoche Junot, 1st Duke of Abrantès was a French general during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars.-Early life:...
. After this expedition he exercised various territorial commands in France before returning to the Iberian Peninsula in 1812 at the head of the 2nd division of the armée des Pyrénées. In 1813 he became a baron de l'Empire and then in 1814, during the French army's retreat from Spain, he took part in the battle of Toulouse
Battle of Toulouse (1814)
The Battle of Toulouse was one of the final battles of the Napoleonic Wars, four days after Napoleon's surrender of the French Empire to the nations of the Sixth Coalition...
under marshal Soult, in which Arthur Wellesley
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, KG, GCB, GCH, PC, FRS , was an Irish-born British soldier and statesman, and one of the leading military and political figures of the 19th century...
's Anglo-Iberian force forced the French to withdraw despite a strong resistance. On Napoleon's fall general Travot remained in the army under the Bourbon Restoration
Bourbon Restoration
The Bourbon Restoration is the name given to the period following the successive events of the French Revolution , the end of the First Republic , and then the forcible end of the First French Empire under Napoleon – when a coalition of European powers restored by arms the monarchy to the...
, despite being a republican, but rallied to Napoleon on his return at the start of the Hundred Days
Hundred Days
The Hundred Days, sometimes known as the Hundred Days of Napoleon or Napoleon's Hundred Days for specificity, marked the period between Emperor Napoleon I of France's return from exile on Elba to Paris on 20 March 1815 and the second restoration of King Louis XVIII on 8 July 1815...
. Napoleon made him a peer of France and sent him to the Vendée to put down Royalist military uprising against him. On 16 May 1815 the English landed arms at Saint-Gilles-sur-Vie and in the following days, after a series of confrontations, Travot managed to confiscate most of them. However, it was above all Travot's victory at on 21 June 1815 that hampered the royalists' organisation. The campaign gained him general recognition, especially for stopping the massacres at Aiguillon
Aiguillon
Aiguillon is a commune of the Lot-et-Garonne department in south-western France.It lies near the two rivers junction that gives name to the department.-History:Attached to the English crown in 1318, it was conquered by Du Guesclin in 1370...
.
Travot enjoyed being in the Vendée and even bought an estate in les Mauges during 1815, but he suffered after Napoleon's final defeat at Waterloo, the re-imposition of the Bourbon monarchy and the Royalist backlash in the Vendée in 1816. He came before a council of war presided over by one of his enemies, Simon Canuel, who had fought with the Republicans before switching sides to the Royalists (even joining the Vendéen insurgents Travot had been charged with beating during the Hundred Days). In these circumstances Travot's trial was hardly going to be balanced and Canuel was particularly biased, even going so far as to accuse Travot's defence counsels of lèse majesté
Lèse majesté
Lese-majesty is the crime of violating majesty, an offence against the dignity of a reigning sovereign or against a state.This behavior was first classified as a criminal offence against the dignity of the Roman republic in Ancient Rome...
. The trial ended in Travot being condemned to death, later commuted to 20 years in prison. Profoundly affected by his imprisonment, he went mad and died in an asylum in 1836. Travot was called "virtuous" in Napoleon's will, his name is inscribed on the Arc de triomphe
Arc de Triomphe
-The design:The astylar design is by Jean Chalgrin , in the Neoclassical version of ancient Roman architecture . Major academic sculptors of France are represented in the sculpture of the Arc de Triomphe: Jean-Pierre Cortot; François Rude; Antoine Étex; James Pradier and Philippe Joseph Henri Lemaire...
, statues were set up to him in Poligny
Poligny, Jura
Poligny is a commune in the Jura department in Franche-Comté in eastern France.The town stands on the edge of the "Premier Plateau" of the Jura region, with limestone cliffs rising to its east and south, and a steephead valley leading to the village of Vaux-sur-Poligny to the east...
and la Roche-sur-Yon
La Roche-sur-Yon
La Roche-sur-Yon is a commune in the Vendée department in the Pays de la Loire region in western France.It is the capital of the department. Its inhabitants are called Yonnais.-History:...
, and a plaque was placed on his birthplace (in a street now named rue Travot after him).
Further reading
- www.histoiredevendee.com Military history of the Vendée (in French)