Charles Nicolas Fabvier
Encyclopedia
Greek War of Independence
The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution was a successful war of independence waged by the Greek revolutionaries between...
.
Career under Napoleon
He was born at Pont-à-MoussonPont-à-Mousson
Pont-à-Mousson is a commune in the Meurthe-et-Moselle department in north-eastern France.Population : 14,592 . It is an industrial town , situated on the Moselle River...
in Meurthe
Meurthe
Meurthe is a former département of France. Its préfecture was Nancy. It ceased to exist following the annexation of Alsace-Lorraine by Germany in 1871.-General characteristics:...
and was a student at the École Polytechnique
École Polytechnique
The École Polytechnique is a state-run institution of higher education and research in Palaiseau, Essonne, France, near Paris. Polytechnique is renowned for its four year undergraduate/graduate Master's program...
before joining the 1st Artillery Regiment in Napoleon’s army in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
in 1804. He participated in the 1805 Ulm Campaign
Ulm Campaign
The Ulm Campaign consisted of a series of French and Bavarian military maneuvers and battles to outflank and capture an Austrian army in 1805 during the War of the Third Coalition. It took place in the vicinity of and inside the Swabian city of Ulm...
, and was wounded in the battle of Dürenstein
Battle of Dürenstein
The Battle of Dürenstein , on 11 November 1805, was an engagement in the Napoleonic Wars during the War of the Third Coalition...
. In 1807, he was part of the French military mission to the Ottoman
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
Sultan Selim III
Selim III
Selim III was the reform-minded Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1789 to 1807. The Janissaries eventually deposed and imprisoned him, and placed his cousin Mustafa on the throne as Mustafa IV...
, tasked with shoring up the defences of Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
. Fabvier then managed to join the diplomatic mission of General Charles Mathieu Gardanne, Napoleon's envoy to Persia
Qajar dynasty
The Qajar dynasty was an Iranian royal family of Turkic descent who ruled Persia from 1785 to 1925....
, who tried to combat British and Russian influence in the region. Fabvier was tasked with creating an artillery school and arsenal at Esfahān, and was awarded the newly constituted Order of the Lion and the Sun
Order of the Lion and the Sun
The Order of the Lion and the Sun was instituted by Fat’h Ali Shah of the Qajar Dynasty in 1808 to honour foreign officials who had rendered distinguished services to Persia. In 1925, under the Pahlavi dynasty the Order continued as the Order of Homayoun with new insignia, though based on the...
for his efforts.
In 1809, he returned to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
via Russia
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
, and served for a while as a volunteer in the Polish army of the Duchy of Warsaw
Duchy of Warsaw
The Duchy of Warsaw was a Polish state established by Napoleon I in 1807 from the Polish lands ceded by the Kingdom of Prussia under the terms of the Treaties of Tilsit. The duchy was held in personal union by one of Napoleon's allies, King Frederick Augustus I of Saxony...
. Arriving at Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, he was named captain in the French Imperial Guard. He served as aide-de-camp
Aide-de-camp
An aide-de-camp is a personal assistant, secretary, or adjutant to a person of high rank, usually a senior military officer or a head of state...
of Marshal Auguste de Marmont in Spain, and was sent by him to Russia to inform Napoleon on the Battle of Salamanca
Battle of Salamanca
The Battle of Salamanca saw Anglo-Portuguese and Spanish armies under the Duke of Wellington defeat Marshal Auguste Marmont's French forces among the hills around Arapiles south of Salamanca, Spain on July 22, 1812 during the Peninsular War....
. He arrived at Napoleon's headquarters on 6 September 1812, the eve of the Battle of Borodino
Battle of Borodino
The Battle of Borodino , fought on September 7, 1812, was the largest and bloodiest single-day action of the French invasion of Russia and all Napoleonic Wars, involving more than 250,000 troops and resulting in at least 70,000 casualties...
. Fabvier was gravely wounded in this battle, leading the charge during the final assault on the Russian fortifications. Napoleon rewarded him by naming him artillery major in the VI Corps under Marshal Ney
Ney
The ney is an end-blown flute that figures prominently in Middle Eastern music. In some of these musical traditions, it is the only wind instrument used. It is a very ancient instrument, with depictions of ney players appearing in wall paintings in the Egyptian pyramids and actual neys being found...
. He distinguished himself further during the operations of the War of the Sixth Coalition
War of the Sixth Coalition
In the War of the Sixth Coalition , a coalition of Austria, Prussia, Russia, the United Kingdom, Portugal, Sweden, Spain and a number of German States finally defeated France and drove Napoleon Bonaparte into exile on Elba. After Napoleon's disastrous invasion of Russia, the continental powers...
in Germany, and was raised to colonel of the General Staff and made baron de l'Empire
Nobility of the First French Empire
Napoleon Bonaparte created titles of nobility to institute a stable elite in the First French Empire, after the instability resulting from the French Revolution....
. He participated in the retreat into France, and on 31 March 1814, on behalf of Marshals Marmont and Mortier
Édouard Adolphe Casimir Joseph Mortier
Édouard Adolphe Casimir Joseph Mortier, 1st Duc de Trévise was a French general and Marshal of France under Napoleon I.-Biography:...
, he signed the surrender
Battle of Paris (1814)
The Battle of Paris was fought during the Napoleonic Wars in 1814. The French defeat led directly to the abdication of Napoleon I.-Background:...
of 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...
to the Coalition armies.
During 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 joined the frontier defence forces as a volunteer.
Life after Napoleon
After Napoleon's downfall in 1815, he continued to serve in the royal French army. In 1817, he accompanied Marshal Marmont as chief of staff in quelling the riots at LyonLyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
, provoked by the harsh conduct of the local military governor, General Simon Canuel. Soon after, he was suspended from his military duties for his liberal
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
beliefs, and was arrested in August 1820 and charged with participation in a military conspiracy. Although he was released for lack of evidence, he was later called as a witness, but refused to disclose a name demanded by the public prosecutor, for which he was fined 500 francs.
In 1822, he was charged with aiding the flight of four sergeants at La Rochelle
La Rochelle
La Rochelle is a city in western France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department.The city is connected to the Île de Ré by a bridge completed on 19 May 1988...
, but was acquitted. In 1823 he decided to leave France and went to Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, to help the Greeks during their ongoing War of Independence
Greek War of Independence
The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution was a successful war of independence waged by the Greek revolutionaries between...
. His first task was the supervision of the fortifications of Navarino
Navarino
Navarino or Navarin may refer to:*Pylos , a Greek town, on the Ionian Sea**Battle of Navarino, 1827 naval battle off Navarino*Navarino, Wisconsin, a town, United States...
. Then he travelled to Britain to drum up support among the Philhellenes
Philhellenism
Philhellenism was an intellectual fashion prominent at the turn of the 19th century, that led Europeans like Lord Byron or Charles Nicolas Fabvier to advocate for Greek independence from the Ottoman Empire...
. Returning again to Greece, he was appointed head of the small Greek regular army, with which he participated in several battles, most notably the Siege of the Acropolis of Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
in 1826. In 1828, he returned to France, only to return to Greece alongside the French Morea expedition
Morea expedition
The Morea expedition is the name given in France to the land intervention of the French Army in the Peloponnese, between 1828 and 1833, at the time of the Greek War of Independence....
.
In 1830, he returned to France and took part in 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...
. Initially chief of staff to General Étienne Maurice Gérard
Étienne Maurice Gérard
Étienne Maurice Gérard, comte Gérard was a French general and statesman. He served under a succession of French governments including the ancien regime monarchy, the Revolutionary governments, the Restorations, the July Monarchy, the First and Second Republics, and the First Empire , becoming...
, on 4 August Fabvier was named military commander of Paris. In 1831, he resigned his commission and retired with the rank Lieutenant General
Lieutenant General
Lieutenant General is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages where the title of Lieutenant General was held by the second in command on the battlefield, who was normally subordinate to a Captain General....
. Fabver was made a peer of France in 1845, and in 1848, he was sent as the French ambassador to Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
, and thereafter to Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
. Back in France he was elected to the National Assembly of France as a representative of Meurthe
Meurthe
Meurthe is a former département of France. Its préfecture was Nancy. It ceased to exist following the annexation of Alsace-Lorraine by Germany in 1871.-General characteristics:...
. There he sided with the conservative group of the assembly. He retired from public life on 2 December 1851, and 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...
four years later.