Charles Lallemand
Encyclopedia
François Antoine "Charles" Lallemand (23 June 1774 – 9 March 1839) was a French general who served Napoleon I of France
, tried to found a colony in what is now Texas
, and finally returned to France to serve as governor of Corsica
.
, France
. He joined the cavalry in 1792 and during the French Revolution
served in France
, Egypt
, Santo Domingo
and Spain
. In 1804 he married a 16-year old creole named Marie Charlotte Henriette Lartique (known as Caroline) in New York
. By 1811 he had earned promotion to General of Brigade
, the title of Baron
and commandant in the Legion of Honor
. While leading two regiments of dragoons in Spain, he defeated a British cavalry brigade at the Battle of Maguilla
in 1812. After the retreat from Moscow he served on the staff of Marchal Davout Louis-Nicolas Davout with the XIIIth Cops in Hamburg. During the campaign of the fall af 1813 he served with the Danish troops supporting Napoleon in North Germany, commanding the 30th Light Cavallery Brigade brigade consisting of two squadrons of the 28th French regiment Chasseurs á Cheval and three squadrons 17th (Lithiauian) regiment Lanciers Polonaise. He the commanded a mixed French- Danish Arrieregard; Four squadrons Holstenske Rytter Regiment, 17th (Lithiauian) Regiment Lanciers Polonaise and two battalions Holstenske Skarpskytte Regiment. He received the Grand Cross of the Order of Dannebrog.
. In 1815 he and his brother Henri tried to lead a rebellion against the Bourbon
government but were arrested. When Napoleon returned from Elba
to start the Hundred Days
, he released them and gave them both commands in the Imperial Guard -- Henri commanded the Foot Artillery Regiment and Charles the Chasseurs à Cheval -- and the brevet rank of Général de Division
. After the Battle of Waterloo
, Lallemand accompanied Napoleon to Rochefort
, where Napoleon surrendered. Lallemand tried to follow Napoleon into exile but the British
refused that and imprisoned him in Malta
for two months before he escaped.
Lallemand and other Bonapartist officers were condemned to death in absentia
. The Lallemand brothers were not included in the later amnesties
.
for a Vine and Olive Colony
. There were rumors that Lallemands would try to rescue Napoleon or put his brother Joseph
on a throne in South America
.
The Alabama land grants were sold to finance another colony in Texas. The planned Texas colony, Champ d'Asile
("Field of Asylum") was meant for defeated Napoleonic veterans. Lallemand stated in public that the colony would have military men only for protection; otherwise it would concentrate on agriculture.
On December 17, 1817 150 would-be-settlers sailed from Philadelphia for Galveston, Texas
, where they arrived on January 14. Lallemand and his brother reached New Orleans, Louisiana
on February 2, 1818, gathered new recruits and on March 10 left for Galveston with 120 volunteers. They sailed up the Trinity River
to Atascosito
where they built two small forts.
However, the Mexican governor Antonio Maria Martinez
heard about the French, prepared an expedition to the Trinity River and stationed a force at San Marcos
to guard against possible attacks. When the French heard about this move, they abandoned Champ d'Asile around July 24 and fled to Galveston. Lallemand abandoned the colony and returned to New Orleans. Jean Lafitte
and Amable Humbert
helped some of the survivors to return to Louisiana
and the rest walked back to New Orleans in August 1818.
Lallemand later became a United States citizen. Napoleon left him 100,000 francs in his will and Lallemand used it to cover his debts.
restored the old imperial military grades after the July Revolution
of 1830, Lallemand returned to France. From 1837-1838, he served as military governor of Corsica. Charles Lallemand died in Paris
in 1839.
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...
, tried to found a colony in what is now Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, and finally returned to France to serve as governor of Corsica
Corsica
Corsica is an island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is located west of Italy, southeast of the French mainland, and north of the island of Sardinia....
.
Early years
Lallemand was born in MetzMetz
Metz is a city in the northeast of France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers.Metz is the capital of the Lorraine region and prefecture of the Moselle department. Located near the tripoint along the junction of France, Germany, and Luxembourg, Metz forms a central place...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. He joined the cavalry in 1792 and during 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...
served in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo, known officially as Santo Domingo de Guzmán, is the capital and largest city in the Dominican Republic. Its metropolitan population was 2,084,852 in 2003, and estimated at 3,294,385 in 2010. The city is located on the Caribbean Sea, at the mouth of the Ozama River...
and Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
. In 1804 he married a 16-year old creole named Marie Charlotte Henriette Lartique (known as Caroline) in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. By 1811 he had earned promotion to General of Brigade
Brigadier General
Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...
, the title of Baron
Baron
Baron is a title of nobility. The word baron comes from Old French baron, itself from Old High German and Latin baro meaning " man, warrior"; it merged with cognate Old English beorn meaning "nobleman"...
and commandant in the Legion of Honor
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...
. While leading two regiments of dragoons in Spain, he defeated a British cavalry brigade at the Battle of Maguilla
Battle of Maguilla
In the Battle of Maguilla on June 11, 1812, a French cavalry brigade commanded by General of Brigade Charles Lallemand routed a similar-sized British cavalry brigade led by Brigadier General John Slade. This action took place during the Peninsular War....
in 1812. After the retreat from Moscow he served on the staff of Marchal Davout Louis-Nicolas Davout with the XIIIth Cops in Hamburg. During the campaign of the fall af 1813 he served with the Danish troops supporting Napoleon in North Germany, commanding the 30th Light Cavallery Brigade brigade consisting of two squadrons of the 28th French regiment Chasseurs á Cheval and three squadrons 17th (Lithiauian) regiment Lanciers Polonaise. He the commanded a mixed French- Danish Arrieregard; Four squadrons Holstenske Rytter Regiment, 17th (Lithiauian) Regiment Lanciers Polonaise and two battalions Holstenske Skarpskytte Regiment. He received the Grand Cross of the Order of Dannebrog.
Career
When Napoleon was defeated and exiled the first time Lallemand joined the army of Louis XVIIILouis XVIII of France
Louis XVIII , known as "the Unavoidable", was King of France and of Navarre from 1814 to 1824, omitting the Hundred Days in 1815...
. In 1815 he and his brother Henri tried to lead a rebellion against the Bourbon
House of Bourbon
The House of Bourbon is a European royal house, a branch of the Capetian dynasty . Bourbon kings first ruled Navarre and France in the 16th century. By the 18th century, members of the Bourbon dynasty also held thrones in Spain, Naples, Sicily, and Parma...
government but were arrested. When Napoleon returned from Elba
Elba
Elba is a Mediterranean island in Tuscany, Italy, from the coastal town of Piombino. The largest island of the Tuscan Archipelago, Elba is also part of the National Park of the Tuscan Archipelago and the third largest island in Italy after Sicily and Sardinia...
to start 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...
, he released them and gave them both commands in the Imperial Guard -- Henri commanded the Foot Artillery Regiment and Charles the Chasseurs à Cheval -- and the brevet rank of Général de Division
Major General
Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...
. After 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...
, Lallemand accompanied Napoleon to Rochefort
Rochefort, Charente-Maritime
Rochefort is a commune in southwestern France, a port on the Charente estuary. It is a sub-prefecture of the Charente-Maritime department.-History:...
, where Napoleon surrendered. Lallemand tried to follow Napoleon into exile but 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....
refused that and imprisoned him in Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
for two months before he escaped.
Lallemand and other Bonapartist officers were condemned to death in absentia
In absentia
In absentia is Latin for "in the absence". In legal use, it usually means a trial at which the defendant is not physically present. The phrase is not ordinarily a mere observation, but suggests recognition of violation to a defendant's right to be present in court proceedings in a criminal trial.In...
. The Lallemand brothers were not included in the later amnesties
Amnesty
Amnesty is a legislative or executive act by which a state restores those who may have been guilty of an offense against it to the positions of innocent people, without changing the laws defining the offense. It includes more than pardon, in as much as it obliterates all legal remembrance of the...
.
America colonies
Lallemand arrived in Boston in the ship Triton, from Liverpool, under the assumed name of Gen. Cotting. According to the New York Columbian of April 29, 1817, quoting from the Evening Post, he was smuggled on board the Triton at Liverpool. "On leaving the river, as the Custom House boat passed from ship to ship to examine the rolls, the General was passed in a boat to and from several ships, so as to evade the boarding officer." The next day, April 30, 1817, the Columbian reported: "two more of Bonaparte's late officers have arrived at Boston, from Leghorn--Dufresne Cyprion and Liell Memon." Lallemand, at Philadelphia, became a president of the French Emigrant Association, an organization that gained a grant of four townships in what is now AlabamaAlabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
for a Vine and Olive Colony
Vine and Olive Colony
The Vine and Olive Colony was an ill-fated effort by a group of French Bonapartists who, fearing for their lives after the fall of Napoleon Bonaparte and the Bourbon Restoration, attempted to establish an agricultural settlement growing wine grapes and olive trees in the Alabama wilderness...
. There were rumors that Lallemands would try to rescue Napoleon or put his brother Joseph
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...
on a throne in South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
.
The Alabama land grants were sold to finance another colony in Texas. The planned Texas colony, Champ d'Asile
Champ d'Asile
Champ d'Asile was a short-lived settlement started in Texas in 1818 by French veterans of the Napoleonic Wars. It was led by General Charles Lallemand. It was started in January 1818, by 20 Bonapartists from the Vine and Olive Colony. The land was offered to French settlers on March 3 1817, after...
("Field of Asylum") was meant for defeated Napoleonic veterans. Lallemand stated in public that the colony would have military men only for protection; otherwise it would concentrate on agriculture.
On December 17, 1817 150 would-be-settlers sailed from Philadelphia for Galveston, Texas
Galveston, Texas
Galveston is a coastal city located on Galveston Island in the U.S. state of Texas. , the city had a total population of 47,743 within an area of...
, where they arrived on January 14. Lallemand and his brother reached New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
on February 2, 1818, gathered new recruits and on March 10 left for Galveston with 120 volunteers. They sailed up the Trinity River
Trinity River (Texas)
The Trinity River is a long river that flows entirely within the U.S. state of Texas. It rises in extreme north Texas, a few miles south of the Red River. The headwaters are separated by the high bluffs on the south side of the Red River....
to Atascosito
Liberty, Texas
Liberty is a city in and the county seat of Liberty County, Texas, United States and a part of the Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown metropolitan area. The population was 8,033 at the 2000 census....
where they built two small forts.
However, the Mexican governor Antonio Maria Martinez
Antonio María Martínez
Antonio María Martínez was a colonel in the infantry regiment of Zamora and the last governor of Spanish Texas.-History:He was born in Andújar, province of Jaén, Spain. He entered military service on July 7, 1785, and had a distinguished career, winning the Cross of Northern Europe and the Cross...
heard about the French, prepared an expedition to the Trinity River and stationed a force at San Marcos
San Marcos, Texas
San Marcos is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, and is the seat of Hays County. Located within the metropolitan area, the city is located on the Interstate 35 corridor—between Austin and San Antonio....
to guard against possible attacks. When the French heard about this move, they abandoned Champ d'Asile around July 24 and fled to Galveston. Lallemand abandoned the colony and returned to New Orleans. Jean Lafitte
Jean Lafitte
Jean Lafitte was a pirate and privateer in the Gulf of Mexico in the early 19th century. He and his elder brother, Pierre, spelled their last name Laffite, but English-language documents of the time used "Lafitte", and this is the commonly seen spelling in the United States, including for places...
and Amable Humbert
Jean Joseph Amable Humbert
General Jean Joseph Amable Humbert was a French soldier, a participant in the French Revolution, who led a failed invasion of Ireland to assist Irish rebels in 1798....
helped some of the survivors to return to Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
and the rest walked back to New Orleans in August 1818.
Lallemand later became a United States citizen. Napoleon left him 100,000 francs in his will and Lallemand used it to cover his debts.
Return to France
After Louis-PhilippeLouis-Philippe of France
Louis Philippe I was King of the French from 1830 to 1848 in what was known as the July Monarchy. His father was a duke who supported the French Revolution but was nevertheless guillotined. Louis Philippe fled France as a young man and spent 21 years in exile, including considerable time in the...
restored the old imperial military grades 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...
of 1830, Lallemand returned to France. From 1837-1838, he served as military governor of Corsica. Charles Lallemand died in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
in 1839.
Trivia
- Historical novelist C.S. Forrester provides a fictional version of Lallemand's design to colonize Texas as the first step to liberate Napoleon from exile in St. Helena in the first episode of Admiral Hornblower in the West Indies.
- He is a minor character in Eric FlintEric FlintEric Flint is an American author, editor, and e-publisher. The majority of his main works are alternate history science fiction, but he also writes humorous fantasy adventures.- Career :...
's alternate history novel 1824: The Arkansas War1824: The Arkansas War1824: The Arkansas War is a 2006 alternate history novel by American writer Eric Flint.-Plot summary :The story, takes place in 1824–25, ten years after 1812: The Rivers of War...
. He serves as one of the leaders in an armed mob led by Robert CrittendenRobert CrittendenRobert Crittenden was Governor of Arkansas Territory and co-founder of Rose Law Firm. Robert Crittenden was born near Versailles, Kentucky....
and is killed along with his brother in a battle at Arkansas PostArkansas Post, ArkansasArkansas Post, Arkansas is an unincorporated community in Arkansas County, Arkansas, United States. The community is located at the end of Arkansas Highway 169.....
. - Phillipe, a main character in Honoré de BalzacHonoré de BalzacHonoré de Balzac was a French novelist and playwright. His magnum opus was a sequence of short stories and novels collectively entitled La Comédie humaine, which presents a panorama of French life in the years after the 1815 fall of Napoleon....
's novel, The Black Sheep, is a participant in Lallemand's Champ d'Asile colonisation.