André Joseph Boussart
Encyclopedia
André Joseph Boussart or André Joseph Boussard, born 13 November 1758 – died 11 August 1813, enlisted in the army of Habsburg Austria as a youth. A Belgian
by birth, he joined the Brabant Revolution
against Austria and fled to France when the rebellion collapsed. He soon found himself fighting for France during the French Revolutionary Wars
. Promoted to general officer during the French Campaign in Egypt and Syria, he returned to France where he held several non-combat posts.
He commanded a cavalry brigade during the 1805 and 1806-1807 campaigns. During the operations in 1806 he led a highly successful charge against forces of the Kingdom of Prussia
. He transferred to Spain in 1808. During the Peninsular War
, he fought in many battles at the head of Marshal
Louis Gabriel Suchet
's cavalry. Recklessly brave, he suffered many wounds during his military career and died of his injuries in the summer of 1813.
in what is now Belgium
. As a young man, he joined the Austrian army and by 1789 he was a junior leutnant in the cavalry. In that year, he quit the Austrian army and transferred his loyalty to the United States of Belgium
at the time of the Brabant Revolution. He served in the insurgent army as a captain and later escaped to France when the Austrians put down the Belgian revolt. In his new country he enlisted in the Hainault Dragoon
Regiment and was promoted to lieutenant
on 28 July 1792. He became captain on 1 October. He was involved in an action against an Austrian column on 1 March 1793.
Transferred to the Army of Italy
as a chef d'escadron
(major
) of the 20th Dragoon Regiment, Boussart fought at the Battle of Mondovì
on 21 April 1796. In this action he was wounded three times by saber cuts while fighting Piedmontese cavalrymen. At the Battle of Lodi
he crossed the Adda
with the cavalry. At the Battle of Castiglione
on 5 August, he and a party of cavalry captured a group of Austrian hussars. On 7 January 1797 he was promoted to chef de brigade
(colonel
).
Boussart went with Napoleon Bonaparte to Egypt and fought at the Battle of the Pyramids
on 21 July 1798 and the Battle of Abukir
on 25 July 1799. He was named general of brigade on 23 September 1800, which was confirmed when he got back to France. In the Battle of Alexandria
on 21 March 1801, he fought against the British. Wounded three times in the action, he required several months of convalescence. At the end of the Siege of Alexandria
on 2 September 1801, he was ordered to sign the articles of capitulation. He became a member of the legion d'honneur
on 11 December 1803 and served in the Bordeaux
military district as a dragoon commander.
's 2nd Dragoon Division. He fought at the Battle of Austerlitz
on 2 December 1805.
During the War of the Fourth Coalition
against Prussia, Boussart led the 3rd Brigade in Emmanuel Grouchy's 2nd Dragoon Division. The 13th and 22nd Dragoon Regiments, each three squadrons strong, were placed under his command. Grouchy's division missed the Battle of Jena-Auerstedt
but became deeply involved in the pursuit of the defeated Prussian armies. At Zehdenick
on 26 October, Grouchy's division crushed a 1,300-man Prussian brigade, decimating the Königin Dragoon Regiment # 5. The next day, the Gensdarmes Cuirassier
Regiment # 10 blundered into Grouchy's marching column at Wichmannsdorf near Boitzenburg
. Three of Grouchy's regiments attacked the Prussians, trapping them against a marsh and forcing their surrender.
Boussart played a key role in the Battle of Prenzlau
on 28 October. Marshal Joachim Murat
led Grouchy's division, Marc Antoine de Beaumont
's 3rd Dragoon Division, Antoine Lasalle's light cavalry brigade, and 3,000 of Marshal Jean Lannes
' infantry against Frederick Louis, Prince of Hohenlohe-Ingelfingen
's 12,000 Prussians. The Prussians approached Prenzlau
from the northwest while the French came up from the southwest. Murat sent Lasalle's brigade directly against Hohenlohe's covering force while ordering one of Beaumont's brigades to make a wide circuit to the west. Meanwhile, he detached Boussart's brigade and sent it to ford a stream on the western outskirts of the town. Boussart's horsemen charged the Prussian marching column, smashing into it from the side. The attack was a complete success. The French dragoons hacked their way through the column and seized many prisoners. Boussart's troopers cleared the road as far as the city gates, inflicted about 1,000 casualties and captured eight guns. Meanwhile, Beaumont's division surrounded and captured the now-isolated Prussian rear guard. Shortly afterward, Murat bluffed a dazed Hohenlohe into surrendering with 10,000 men.
On 2 and 3 November, the 22nd Dragoons of Boussart's brigade secured the surrender of the small port of Wolgast
on the Baltic Sea
. Hohenlohe's baggage train of 500 wagons with 2,500 teamsters and other non-combatants fell into the hands of the French. Grouchy's division arrived in time to take part in the Battle of Lübeck
on 6 November. After the French infantry cleared the city streets, the dragoons moved through the city to fall upon a Prussian detachment at Krempelsdorf. They forced Major Ende to surrender with 360 cavalrymen and four guns.
Boussart was wounded on 23 December at the Battle of Czarnowo
. Three days later, he was seriously wounded at the Battle of Pultusk
while serving under the command of Nicolas Léonard Beker
. The dragoons of Beker fought on Lannes' left flank.
Boussart fought at the Battle of Eylau
on 7 and 8 February 1807. Grouchy's 2,200-strong division joined in Murat's grand charge at a critical moment during the bloody contest. The dragoons first drove off the Russian cavalry menacing Louis Vincent Le Blond de Saint-Hilaire
's infantry division. Then Murat led them in an attack that defeated the Russian cavalry in the center. By this time the 2nd Cuirassier Division had become isolated after carving a path through two lines of Russian infantry. Marshal Jean-Baptiste Bessières
now led the Guard cavalry to the rescue. After being rebuffed by the Russian second line, Grouchy's troopers joined the Horse Grenadiers of the Imperial Guard and smashed their way through. Finally, the French reserve cavalry had to cut its way out from behind the Russian lines, losing between 1,000 and 1,500 troopers altogether.
in Catalonia
, Suchet encountered 7,300 Spaniards and six artillery pieces under Henry O'Donnell, 1st Count of la Bisbal. The 6,000 Frenchmen included Claude Marie Meunier's division and the 13th Cuirassier and 4th Hussar Regiments. In the event, the 500 cuirassiers won the battle almost single-handed. The French horsemen suffered 100 casualties but rode down O'Donnell's hapless troops. The Spanish lost 500 killed and wounded, plus 2,000 soldiers and four colors captured. The successful Siege of Lerida quickly followed. Between 29 April and 13 May, Suchet forced García Conde to capitulate with six generals, 307 officers, 7,000 soldiers, and 105 cannon. During the siege operations, the Spanish lost 1,700 killed and wounded while the French lost 1,000 out of the 13,000 men in III Corps.
On 16 December 1810, Suchet's 12,000-man Army of Aragon invested Tortosa
. By 2 January 1811, the Siege of Tortosa
was concluded after the French inflicted 1,400 casualties on the defenders, while suffering only 400 killed and wounded. The French forced the 3,974 survivors of Conde de Alacha Lilli's garrison to surrender. Boussart's cavalry, the 13th Cuirassier, 4th Hussar, and 24th Dragoon Regiments, were present during the operation. Boussart participated in the Siege of Tarragona
from 5 May to 29 June 1811. He led his three French regiments plus the Italian Napoleone Dragoon Regiment. The French besiegers lost 4,300 killed and wounded, while the Spanish defenders lost 7,000 killed and 8,000 captured. Twice during the operation, Suchet formed expeditions to chase off armies attempting to relieve the garrison.
On 15 July 1811, Boussart commanded 1,876 cavalrymen in three regiments. In September, his command numbered 2,405 in 14 squadrons. In late summer, Suchet launched an invasion of the province of Valencia, arriving before the ancient fortress of Saguntum (Sagunto)
on 23 September 1811. After the garrison repelled two French assaults, a relief army of Joaquín Blake y Joyes
appeared and the two sides clashed in the Battle of Saguntum
on 25 October. While the French dispersed Blake's left flank rather easily, the fighting in the center and right of the Spanish line was much tougher. Early in the action, Suchet committed three squadrons of cavalry to retake some ground. Soon afterward, the Spanish cavalry overran a French battery and Suchet sent in 350 troopers of the 13th Cuirassiers. Leading the charge, Boussart scattered the Spanish horsemen and recaptured the guns. Hewing a path through their opponents, the armor-clad heavy cavalrymen captured a Spanish artillery battery before their impetus was spent. When Suchet ordered the 24th Dragoons to attack, the rout of Blake's army became general. For a loss of 1,000 casualties, the French inflicted 6,000 killed and wounded on the Spanish, not counting several hundred prisoners. The 2,500-man Saguntum garrison, disheartened by the spectacle, capitulated the next day.
In the operations immediately preceding the Siege of Valencia
, Suchet concentrated most of his army in an envelopment of the landward flank of Blake's defenses. Fooled by diversionary attacks, Blake failed to detect Suchet's maneuver until too late. Led by one squadron of the 4th Hussars, Jean Isidore Harispe
's division reached a position behind the Spanish left flank. Coming upon the Spanish cavalry reserves near Aldaia
and Torrent
, Boussart recklessly led 60 hussars to attack the vastly more numerous Spanish horsemen. Soon, he was covered in saber wounds and his bravest men were cut down around him. Luckily, Jacques-Antoine-Adrien Delort
came to the rescue with more cavalry. After Harispe and the French cavalry routed the Spanish troopers, they found Boussard lying among the fallen after having been robbed of his medals and sword.
Boussart received promotion to general of division on 16 March 1812. In the middle of fall 1812, his cavalry division counted 1,922 horsemen. At the Battle of Castalla
on 13 April 1813, he led 1,424 troopers in eight squadrons. In a preliminary action at Biar on 12 April, Frederick Adam
fought an effective rear guard
action at Biar
, ambushing the 13th Cuirassiers and keeping the French troops in check. The next day, Suchet sent Boussart to turn John Murray, 8th Baronet's right flank. However, the flank was protected by waterlogged ground, so the cavalry general could only observe his enemies as Suchet's main attack was defeated. The French commander soon recalled Boussart and retreated.
Boussart retired to Bagnères de Bigorre in order to recuperate from his battle injuries. He died there of his many wounds on 11 August 1813.
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
by birth, he joined the Brabant Revolution
Brabant Revolution
The Brabant Revolution took place between January 1789 and December 1790, when a popular revolt broke in the Austrian Netherlands against the unpopular reforms of the Emperor Joseph II...
against Austria and fled to France when the rebellion collapsed. He soon found himself fighting for France 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...
. Promoted to general officer during the French Campaign in Egypt and Syria, he returned to France where he held several non-combat posts.
He commanded a cavalry brigade during the 1805 and 1806-1807 campaigns. During the operations in 1806 he led a highly successful charge against forces of the Kingdom of Prussia
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
. He transferred to Spain in 1808. During the Peninsular War
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...
, he fought in many battles at the head of 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...
Louis Gabriel Suchet
Louis Gabriel Suchet
Louis Gabriel Suchet, 1st Duc d'Albufera was a Marshal of France and one of Napoleon's most brilliant generals.-Early career:...
's cavalry. Recklessly brave, he suffered many wounds during his military career and died of his injuries in the summer of 1813.
Early career
A native of the Austrian Netherlands, Boussart was born on 13 November 1758 in BincheBinche
Binche is a Walloon municipality located in the Belgian province of Hainaut. On January 1, 2006 Binche had a total population of 32,409. The total area is 60.66 km² which gives a population density of 534 inhabitants per km²...
in what is now Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
. As a young man, he joined the Austrian army and by 1789 he was a junior leutnant in the cavalry. In that year, he quit the Austrian army and transferred his loyalty to the United States of Belgium
United States of Belgium
The United States of Belgium, part of Brabant.In October, he invaded Brabant and captured Turnhout, defeating the Austrians in the Battle of Turnhout on October 27. Ghent was taken on November 13, and on November 17 the imperial regents Albert of Saxony and Archduchess Maria Christina fled Brussels...
at the time of the Brabant Revolution. He served in the insurgent army as a captain and later escaped to France when the Austrians put down the Belgian revolt. In his new country he enlisted in the Hainault Dragoon
Dragoon
The word dragoon originally meant mounted infantry, who were trained in horse riding as well as infantry fighting skills. However, usage altered over time and during the 18th century, dragoons evolved into conventional light cavalry units and personnel...
Regiment and was promoted to lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
on 28 July 1792. He became captain on 1 October. He was involved in an action against an Austrian column on 1 March 1793.
Transferred to 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...
as a chef d'escadron
Chef d'escadron
In the French armed forces , Chef d'escadron is the title of a commandant in the Artillery and Baggage Train Corps and in the Gendarmerie....
(major
Major
Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
) of the 20th Dragoon Regiment, Boussart fought at the Battle of Mondovì
Battle of Mondovi
The Battle of Mondovì was fought on 21 April 1796 between the French army of Napoleon Bonaparte and the army of the Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont led by Michelangelo Alessandro Colli-Marchi. The French victory meant that they had put the Ligurian Alps behind them, while the plains of Piedmont lay...
on 21 April 1796. In this action he was wounded three times by saber cuts while fighting Piedmontese cavalrymen. At the Battle of Lodi
Battle of Lodi
The Battle of Lodi was fought on May 10, 1796 between French forces under General Napoleon Bonaparte and an Austrian rear guard led by Karl Philipp Sebottendorf at Lodi, Lombardy...
he crossed the Adda
Adda
Adda can refer to:*Adda in Italy.*River Adda in Wales.*Adda , a concept/slang in South Asia, especial Bengal, also Addabazi.*Adda , an archaeological site in Nigeria.*Adda Corporation, a Taiwanese fan manufacturer....
with the cavalry. At the Battle of Castiglione
Battle of Castiglione
The Battle of Castiglione saw the French Army of Italy under General Napoleon Bonaparte attack an army of Habsburg Austria led by Feldmarschall Dagobert Sigmund von Wurmser on 5 August 1796. The outnumbered Austrians were defeated and driven back along a line of hills to the river crossing at...
on 5 August, he and a party of cavalry captured a group of Austrian hussars. On 7 January 1797 he was promoted to chef de brigade
Chef de brigade
Chef de brigade was a military rank, equivalent to colonel, in the French Revolutionary army, in command of a demi-brigade. Both that unit and that rank were created at the same time, in 1793. The two designations disappeared just before the institution of the French Empire, in 1803, with the...
(colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
).
Boussart went with Napoleon Bonaparte to Egypt and fought at 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...
on 21 July 1798 and the Battle of Abukir
Battle of Abukir (1799)
The Battle of Abukir was Napoleon Bonaparte's decisive victory over Seid Mustafa Pasha's Ottoman army on 25 July 1799 during the French invasion of Egypt...
on 25 July 1799. He was named general of brigade on 23 September 1800, which was confirmed when he got back to France. In the Battle of Alexandria
Battle of Alexandria
The Battle of Alexandria or Battle of Canope, fought on March 21, 1801 between the French army under General Menou and the British expeditionary corps under Sir Ralph Abercrombie, took place near the ruins of Nicopolis, on the narrow spit of land between the sea and Lake Abukir, along which the...
on 21 March 1801, he fought against the British. Wounded three times in the action, he required several months of convalescence. At the end of the Siege of Alexandria
Siege of Alexandria
The Siege of Alexandria was fought between 17 August and 2 September 1801, during the French Revolutionary Wars, between French and British forces and was the last action of the Egyptian Campaign. The French garrison at Alexandria surrendered on 2nd September...
on 2 September 1801, he was ordered to sign the articles of capitulation. He became a member of the legion 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...
on 11 December 1803 and served in the Bordeaux
Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
military district as a dragoon commander.
1805-1807
In the War of the Third Coalition against Austria, Boussart led a brigade in Frédéric Henri WaltherFrédéric Henri Walther
Frederic-Louis-Henri Walther , was an Alsatian-born general of division and a supporter of Napoleon Bonaparte. He fought for France in the Revolutionary and Napoleonic wars....
's 2nd Dragoon Division. He fought at the Battle of 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...
on 2 December 1805.
During the War of the Fourth Coalition
War of the Fourth Coalition
The Fourth Coalition against Napoleon's French Empire was defeated in a war spanning 1806–1807. Coalition partners included Prussia, Russia, Saxony, Sweden, and the United Kingdom....
against Prussia, Boussart led the 3rd Brigade in Emmanuel Grouchy's 2nd Dragoon Division. The 13th and 22nd Dragoon Regiments, each three squadrons strong, were placed under his command. Grouchy's division missed 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...
but became deeply involved in the pursuit of the defeated Prussian armies. At Zehdenick
Zehdenick
Zehdenick is a town in the Oberhavel district, in Brandenburg, Germany. It is situated on the river Havel, 26 km southeast of Fürstenberg/Havel, and 51 km north of Berlin .-Subdivision:Zehdenick includes the following villages:...
on 26 October, Grouchy's division crushed a 1,300-man Prussian brigade, decimating the Königin Dragoon Regiment # 5. The next day, the Gensdarmes Cuirassier
Cuirassier
Cuirassiers were mounted cavalry soldiers equipped with armour and firearms, first appearing in late 15th-century Europe. They were the successors of the medieval armoured knights...
Regiment # 10 blundered into Grouchy's marching column at Wichmannsdorf near Boitzenburg
Boitzenburger Land
Boitzenburger Land is a municipality in the Uckermark district, in Brandenburg, Germany....
. Three of Grouchy's regiments attacked the Prussians, trapping them against a marsh and forcing their surrender.
Boussart played a key role in the Battle of Prenzlau
Battle of Prenzlau
In the Battle of Prenzlau or Capitulation of Prenzlau on 28 October 1806 two divisions of French cavalry and some infantry led by Marshal Joachim Murat intercepted a retreating Prussian corps led by Frederick Louis, Prince of Hohenlohe-Ingelfingen. In this action from the War of the Fourth...
on 28 October. Marshal Joachim Murat
Joachim Murat
Joachim-Napoléon Murat , Marshal of France and Grand Admiral or Admiral of France, 1st Prince Murat, was Grand Duke of Berg from 1806 to 1808 and then King of Naples from 1808 to 1815...
led Grouchy's division, Marc Antoine de Beaumont
Marc Antoine de Beaumont
Marc Antoine Bonnin de la Bonninière de Beaumont, born 23 September 1763 – died 4 February 1830, a French nobleman, became a page to the king and joined the army of the Old Regime. He stayed in the army during the French Revolution and narrowly escaped being executed...
's 3rd Dragoon Division, Antoine Lasalle's light cavalry brigade, and 3,000 of Marshal Jean Lannes
Jean Lannes
Jean Lannes, 1st Duc de Montebello, was a Marshal of France. He was one of Napoleon's most daring and talented generals. Napoleon once commented on Lannes: "I found him a pygmy and left him a giant"...
' infantry against Frederick Louis, Prince of Hohenlohe-Ingelfingen
Frederick Louis, Prince of Hohenlohe-Ingelfingen
Frederick Louis, Prince of Hohenlohe-Ingelfingen was a Prussian general and the eldest son of Prince John Frederick of Hohenlohe-Ingelfingen....
's 12,000 Prussians. The Prussians approached Prenzlau
Prenzlau
Prenzlau , a city in the Uckermark District of Brandenburg in Germany, had a population of about 21,000 in 2005.-International relations:Prenzlau is twinned with: Uster, Switzerland Barlinek, Poland Świdwin, Poland...
from the northwest while the French came up from the southwest. Murat sent Lasalle's brigade directly against Hohenlohe's covering force while ordering one of Beaumont's brigades to make a wide circuit to the west. Meanwhile, he detached Boussart's brigade and sent it to ford a stream on the western outskirts of the town. Boussart's horsemen charged the Prussian marching column, smashing into it from the side. The attack was a complete success. The French dragoons hacked their way through the column and seized many prisoners. Boussart's troopers cleared the road as far as the city gates, inflicted about 1,000 casualties and captured eight guns. Meanwhile, Beaumont's division surrounded and captured the now-isolated Prussian rear guard. Shortly afterward, Murat bluffed a dazed Hohenlohe into surrendering with 10,000 men.
On 2 and 3 November, the 22nd Dragoons of Boussart's brigade secured the surrender of the small port of Wolgast
Wolgast
Wolgast is a town in the district of Vorpommern-Greifswald, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is situated on the bank of the river Peenestrom, vis-a-vis the island of Usedom that can be accessed by road and railway via a bascule bridge...
on the Baltic Sea
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
. Hohenlohe's baggage train of 500 wagons with 2,500 teamsters and other non-combatants fell into the hands of the French. Grouchy's division arrived in time to take part in the Battle of Lübeck
Battle of Lübeck
The Battle of Lübeck took place on 6 November 1806 in Lübeck, Germany between soldiers of the Kingdom of Prussia led by Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher and troops of the First French Empire under Marshals Joachim Murat, Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte, and Nicolas Soult...
on 6 November. After the French infantry cleared the city streets, the dragoons moved through the city to fall upon a Prussian detachment at Krempelsdorf. They forced Major Ende to surrender with 360 cavalrymen and four guns.
Boussart was wounded on 23 December at the Battle of Czarnowo
Battle of Czarnowo
The Battle of Czarnowo on the night of 23–24 December 1806 saw troops of the First French Empire under the eye of Emperor Napoleon I launch an evening assault crossing of the Wkra River against Lieutenant General Alexander Ivanovich Ostermann-Tolstoy's defending Russian Empire forces...
. Three days later, he was seriously wounded at the Battle of Pultusk
Battle of Pultusk
The Battle of Pułtusk took place on 26 December 1806 during the War of the Fourth Coalition near Pułtusk, Poland. Approximately 35,000 Russian soldiers with 128 guns under General Levin August, Count von Bennigsen resisted the attacks of 25,000 First French Empire soldiers under Marshal Jean...
while serving under the command of Nicolas Léonard Beker
Nicolas Léonard Beker
Nicolas Léonard Beker or Nicolas Léonard Becker or Nicolas Léonard Bagert, born 18 January 1770 – died 18 November 1840, joined the French army as a dragoon before the French Revolutionary Wars and rose in rank to become a general officer. In 1800 he married the sister of Louis Desaix, who...
. The dragoons of Beker fought on Lannes' left flank.
Boussart fought 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...
on 7 and 8 February 1807. Grouchy's 2,200-strong division joined in Murat's grand charge at a critical moment during the bloody contest. The dragoons first drove off the Russian cavalry menacing Louis Vincent Le Blond de Saint-Hilaire
Louis Vincent Le Blond de Saint-Hilaire
Louis-Vincent-Joseph Le Blond, comte de Saint-Hilaire was a French general during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars.-Early career:...
's infantry division. Then Murat led them in an attack that defeated the Russian cavalry in the center. By this time the 2nd Cuirassier Division had become isolated after carving a path through two lines of Russian infantry. Marshal Jean-Baptiste Bessières
Jean-Baptiste Bessières
Jean-Baptiste Bessières, 1st Duc d' Istria was a Marshal of France of the Napoleonic Era. His younger brother, Bertrand, followed in his footsteps and eventually became a Divisional General...
now led the Guard cavalry to the rescue. After being rebuffed by the Russian second line, Grouchy's troopers joined the Horse Grenadiers of the Imperial Guard and smashed their way through. Finally, the French reserve cavalry had to cut its way out from behind the Russian lines, losing between 1,000 and 1,500 troopers altogether.
Spain
Napoleon appointed Boussart a Baron of the Empire on 19 March 1808 and posted the much-wounded veteran to Spain. In January 1810, Boussart first appeared in the French order of battle in Spain at the head of Suchet's 1,899-strong III Corps cavalry. On 23 April at MargalefMargalef
Margalef is a village in Catalunya, Spain. It is situated on the edge of Montsant and is a popular ecotourism destination, especially among rock climbers. The rock type is conglomerate and it has more than 500 climbing routes of different grades, from 4 to 9b...
in Catalonia
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
, Suchet encountered 7,300 Spaniards and six artillery pieces under Henry O'Donnell, 1st Count of la Bisbal. The 6,000 Frenchmen included Claude Marie Meunier's division and the 13th Cuirassier and 4th Hussar Regiments. In the event, the 500 cuirassiers won the battle almost single-handed. The French horsemen suffered 100 casualties but rode down O'Donnell's hapless troops. The Spanish lost 500 killed and wounded, plus 2,000 soldiers and four colors captured. The successful Siege of Lerida quickly followed. Between 29 April and 13 May, Suchet forced García Conde to capitulate with six generals, 307 officers, 7,000 soldiers, and 105 cannon. During the siege operations, the Spanish lost 1,700 killed and wounded while the French lost 1,000 out of the 13,000 men in III Corps.
On 16 December 1810, Suchet's 12,000-man Army of Aragon invested Tortosa
Tortosa
-External links:* *** * * *...
. By 2 January 1811, the Siege of Tortosa
Siege of Tortosa (1810)
The Siege of Tortosa opposed the French and the Spaniards. The confrontation took place in December 1810. Tortosa surrendered January 2, 1811.Colonel Rouelle was employed at the siege of Tortosa, where he failed two exits undertaken by the besieged, the December 24, 1810 and December 28, 1810....
was concluded after the French inflicted 1,400 casualties on the defenders, while suffering only 400 killed and wounded. The French forced the 3,974 survivors of Conde de Alacha Lilli's garrison to surrender. Boussart's cavalry, the 13th Cuirassier, 4th Hussar, and 24th Dragoon Regiments, were present during the operation. Boussart participated in the Siege of Tarragona
Siege of Tarragona (1811)
In the Siege of Tarragona from 5 May to 29 June 1811, Louis Gabriel Suchet's French Army of Aragon laid siege to a Spanish garrison led by Lieutenant General Juan Senen de Contreras. A British naval squadron commanded by Admiral Edward Codrington harassed the French besiegers with cannon fire and...
from 5 May to 29 June 1811. He led his three French regiments plus the Italian Napoleone Dragoon Regiment. The French besiegers lost 4,300 killed and wounded, while the Spanish defenders lost 7,000 killed and 8,000 captured. Twice during the operation, Suchet formed expeditions to chase off armies attempting to relieve the garrison.
On 15 July 1811, Boussart commanded 1,876 cavalrymen in three regiments. In September, his command numbered 2,405 in 14 squadrons. In late summer, Suchet launched an invasion of the province of Valencia, arriving before the ancient fortress of Saguntum (Sagunto)
Sagunto
Sagunto or Sagunt is an ancient city in Eastern Spain, in the modern fertile comarca of Camp de Morvedre in the province of Valencia. It is located in a hilly site, c. 30 km north of Valencia, close to the Costa del Azahar on the Mediterranean Sea...
on 23 September 1811. After the garrison repelled two French assaults, a relief army of Joaquín Blake y Joyes
Joaquín Blake y Joyes
Joaquín Blake y Joyes was a Spanish military officer who served with distinction in the French Revolutionary and Peninsular wars.-Early military career:...
appeared and the two sides clashed in the Battle of Saguntum
Battle of Saguntum (1811)
The Battle of Saguntum on 25 October 1811 saw the French Army of Aragon under Marshal Louis Gabriel Suchet fighting a Spanish army led by Lieutenant General Joaquín Blake y Joyes. The Spanish attempt to raise the siege of the castle of Sagunto failed when the French, Italians, and Poles drove...
on 25 October. While the French dispersed Blake's left flank rather easily, the fighting in the center and right of the Spanish line was much tougher. Early in the action, Suchet committed three squadrons of cavalry to retake some ground. Soon afterward, the Spanish cavalry overran a French battery and Suchet sent in 350 troopers of the 13th Cuirassiers. Leading the charge, Boussart scattered the Spanish horsemen and recaptured the guns. Hewing a path through their opponents, the armor-clad heavy cavalrymen captured a Spanish artillery battery before their impetus was spent. When Suchet ordered the 24th Dragoons to attack, the rout of Blake's army became general. For a loss of 1,000 casualties, the French inflicted 6,000 killed and wounded on the Spanish, not counting several hundred prisoners. The 2,500-man Saguntum garrison, disheartened by the spectacle, capitulated the next day.
In the operations immediately preceding the Siege of Valencia
Siege of Valencia (1812)
The Siege of Valencia from 3 November 1811 to 9 January 1812, saw Marshal Louis Gabriel Suchet's French Army of Aragon besiege Captain General Joaquín Blake y Joyes' forces in the city of Valencia, Spain during the Peninsular War...
, Suchet concentrated most of his army in an envelopment of the landward flank of Blake's defenses. Fooled by diversionary attacks, Blake failed to detect Suchet's maneuver until too late. Led by one squadron of the 4th Hussars, Jean Isidore Harispe
Jean Isidore Harispe
Jean Isidore Harispe, 1st Comte Harispe was a distinguished French soldier of the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, as well as a of the following period. Harispe was created a Marshal of France in 1851.-Early life:...
's division reached a position behind the Spanish left flank. Coming upon the Spanish cavalry reserves near Aldaia
Aldaia
Aldaia is a municipality in the comarca of Horta Oest in the Valencian Community, Spain.-External links:*...
and Torrent
Torrent, Valencia
Torrent is a city located within the metropolitan area of the city of Valencia, Spain. It is the largest municipality of the Horta Sud comarca, with 79,843 inhabitants . It is situated some 7 km from Valencia city proper, to which it is connected via the...
, Boussart recklessly led 60 hussars to attack the vastly more numerous Spanish horsemen. Soon, he was covered in saber wounds and his bravest men were cut down around him. Luckily, Jacques-Antoine-Adrien Delort
Jacques-Antoine-Adrien Delort
Jacques-Antoine-Adrien Delort was a French general and deputy.A National Guardsman at the age of 16 in 1789, he died a Lieutenant General, aide-de-camp to the King and a Peer of France...
came to the rescue with more cavalry. After Harispe and the French cavalry routed the Spanish troopers, they found Boussard lying among the fallen after having been robbed of his medals and sword.
Boussart received promotion to general of division on 16 March 1812. In the middle of fall 1812, his cavalry division counted 1,922 horsemen. At the Battle of Castalla
Battle of Castalla
In the Battle of Castalla on 13 April 1813, an Anglo-Spanish-Sicilian force commanded by Lieutenant General John Murray, 8th Baronet fought Marshal Louis Gabriel Suchet's French Army of Valencia and Aragon. Murray's troops successfully repelled a series of French attacks causing Suchet to retreat....
on 13 April 1813, he led 1,424 troopers in eight squadrons. In a preliminary action at Biar on 12 April, Frederick Adam
Frederick Adam
General Sir Frederick Adam GCB GCMG was a Scottish major-general at the Battle of Waterloo, in command of the 3rd Brigade. He was the fourth son of William Adam of Blair Adam and his wife Eleanora, the daughter of Charles Elphinstone, 10th Lord Elphinstone.-Military career:At the age of fourteen...
fought an effective rear guard
Rear guard
A rear guard or rearguard is that part of a military force that protects it from attack from the rear, either during an advance or withdrawal...
action at Biar
Biar
Biar is a town in the comarca of Alt Vinalopó, province of Alicante, Spain. Biar lies at the foot of the Serra de Mariola and is located 39km from the city of Alicante.The economy in Biar is based on manufacture, particularly dolls, and pottery....
, ambushing the 13th Cuirassiers and keeping the French troops in check. The next day, Suchet sent Boussart to turn John Murray, 8th Baronet's right flank. However, the flank was protected by waterlogged ground, so the cavalry general could only observe his enemies as Suchet's main attack was defeated. The French commander soon recalled Boussart and retreated.
Boussart retired to Bagnères de Bigorre in order to recuperate from his battle injuries. He died there of his many wounds on 11 August 1813.