Victor François de Montchenu
Encyclopedia
Victor François de Montchenu (6 November 1764, Bougé-Chambalud
- 12 January 1849, Paris) was a French soldier.
, long devoted to military service. He was admitted to the Ecole des chevaux-légers as a child and in 1775 became sous-lieutenant of the Régiment d'Infanterie du Roi, whose posts were reserved for sons of the noble families most deserving for their nobility and their services. He was a captain in this corps during the Nancy Affair
, finding himself beside André Désilles
when the latter died by throwing himself in front of a cannon in a vain hope of stopping the battle between the mutinying patriots and the troops of de Bouillé.
Consistently Monarchist, Montchenu quickly decided in 1792 that the royalist cause was irrevocably separated from the nation's cause and left France to join the armée des Princes
, serving in it as aide-de-camp to général Livarot. In March 1793 he assisted in the defence of Maestricht against Charles François Dumouriez
's force and served as an aide-major in the 1794-95 campaigns in the régiment de Broglie in the pay of England.
Returning to France on the peace of 1814, he was made a croix de Saint-Louis
on 13 August that year and was made brevet maréchal de camp on 30 December. His elder brother was sent to Saint Helena
in 1815 as commissioner of the French government to keep an eye on the behaviour of Napoleon
. Under the Bourbon Restoration
he worked as inspector general of the infantry, becoming knight (18 May 1820) then officer (1 May 1821) of the Légion d'honneur
. He stopped serving after the July Revolution
and was allowed to retire in February 1835.
Bougé-Chambalud
Bougé-Chambalud is a commune in the Isère department in south-eastern France.-See also:*Communes of the Isère department...
- 12 January 1849, Paris) was a French soldier.
Life
He came from one of the oldest families in the DauphinéDauphiné
The Dauphiné or Dauphiné Viennois is a former province in southeastern France, whose area roughly corresponded to that of the present departments of :Isère, :Drôme, and :Hautes-Alpes....
, long devoted to military service. He was admitted to the Ecole des chevaux-légers as a child and in 1775 became sous-lieutenant of the Régiment d'Infanterie du Roi, whose posts were reserved for sons of the noble families most deserving for their nobility and their services. He was a captain in this corps during the Nancy Affair
Nancy Affair
The Nancy affair was the crushing of a military mutiny in Revolutionary France on 31 August 1790. French Army forces under the command of General François Claude de Bouillé entered the city of Nancy in northeastern France, where troops garrisoned their had been protesting about pay, and...
, finding himself beside André Désilles
André Désilles
André Désilles was a French army officer. An officer in the Régiment du Roi infanterie during the mutiny of that regiment, the Mestre-de-Camp and the Régiment de Lullin de Chateauvieux when they were garrisoning Nancy...
when the latter died by throwing himself in front of a cannon in a vain hope of stopping the battle between the mutinying patriots and the troops of de Bouillé.
Consistently Monarchist, Montchenu quickly decided in 1792 that the royalist cause was irrevocably separated from the nation's cause and left France to join the armée des Princes
Émigré armies of the French Revolutionary Wars
The émigré armies of the French Revolutionary Wars were armies raised outside of France by and out of Royalist émigrés, with the aim of overthrowing the French Revolution, reconquering France and restoring the monarchy. These were aided by royalist armies within France itself, such as the Chouans,...
, serving in it as aide-de-camp to général Livarot. In March 1793 he assisted in the defence of Maestricht against Charles François Dumouriez
Charles François Dumouriez
Charles-François du Périer Dumouriez was a French general during the French Revolutionary Wars. He shared the victory at Valmy with General François Christophe Kellermann, but later deserted the Revolutionary Army and became a royalist intriguer during the reign of Napoleon.-Early life:Dumouriez...
's force and served as an aide-major in the 1794-95 campaigns in the régiment de Broglie in the pay of England.
Returning to France on the peace of 1814, he was made a croix de Saint-Louis
Order of Saint Louis
The Royal and Military Order of Saint Louis was a military Order of Chivalry founded on 5 April 1693 by Louis XIV and named after Saint Louis . It was intended as a reward for exceptional officers, and is notable as the first decoration that could be granted to non-nobles...
on 13 August that year and was made brevet maréchal de camp on 30 December. His elder brother was sent to Saint Helena
Saint Helena
Saint Helena , named after St Helena of Constantinople, is an island of volcanic origin in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is part of the British overseas territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha which also includes Ascension Island and the islands of Tristan da Cunha...
in 1815 as commissioner of the French government to keep an eye on the behaviour of Napoleon
Napoleon I of France
Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815...
. 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...
he worked as inspector general of the infantry, becoming knight (18 May 1820) then officer (1 May 1821) of 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...
. He stopped serving after the July Revolution
July Revolution
The French Revolution of 1830, also known as the July Revolution or in French, saw the overthrow of King Charles X of France, the French Bourbon monarch, and the ascent of his cousin Louis-Philippe, Duke of Orléans, who himself, after 18 precarious years on the throne, would in turn be overthrown...
and was allowed to retire in February 1835.