Jean-Marie Defrance
Encyclopedia
Jean-Marie Defrance was a French General of the French Revolutionary Wars
and the Napoleonic Wars
. He was also a member of the Council of Five Hundred
(the lower house of the legislative branch of the French government under The Directory), and a teacher at the military school of Rebais
, Champagne
.
Defrance had an extensive and successful military career in the French Revolutionary Wars
and the Napoleonic Wars
. After the First Battle of Zurich
, he refused a battlefield promotion to brigadier general, asking instead for a cavalry regiment; he received command of the 12th Regiment of Chasseurs-a-Cheval (light cavalry) as Chef-de-Brigade
, a rank equivalent to colonel. He led this brigade in the campaigns of 1799–1800 in southwestern Germany and northern Italy. By 1805, he had been promoted to brigadier general. At the Battle of Austerlitz
and the Battle of Jena-Auerstadt, he commanded a cavalry brigade of carabinier
s in Étienne Marie Antoine Champion de Nansouty
's First Division. By the Battle of Borodino
in September 1812, he had been promoted to general of division, commanding the 4th Cuirassier Division of Nansouty's reserves, where they charged the Shevardino redoubt. He fought his way across Germany to the Rhine River after the French loss at Leipzig and participated in the Six Days Campaign
.
In the Hundred Days
, he commanded part of Jean Maximilien Lamarque
s Army of the West. At the second Bourbon Restoration
, he retained his titles and honors and subsequently held several command posts until retirement in 1829. He died in 1855.
, in the Champagne
province and died 6 July 1855. On his mother's side, he was the grandson of the French writer Pierre Chompré (16981750); his father, Jean-Claude Defrance, was the medical doctor at the Royal Military School of Rebais, in Champagne. Jean-Marie Defrance married the daughter of the richest jeweler in Paris, by the name Foncier.
during the first Haitian revolt
and served in the volunteers Cape Dragoons. On his return to France in 1792, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the cavalry regiment royal-étranger. After serving in the Army of the North, he was appointed adjutant-general brigadier in the Army of Sambre-et-Meuse
. He also served in the Council of the Five Hundred.
Defrance also served in the Swiss Campaign of 1799 as divisional Chief of Staff of the 1st Division of Jean-Baptiste Jourdan
's Army of the Danube
; after the losses at the battles of Ostrach
and Stockach
in March 1799, the Army of the Danube was combined with the Army of Helvetia
, under the command of Andre Massena
. Defrance continued in his capacity as divisional chief of staff. At the First Battle of Zurich
in June 1799, he was appointed on the field as brigadier general, an honor which he declined, asking instead to be given command of a cavalry regiment. He received command of the 12th Regiment of Chasseurs-a-Cheval. As Chef-de-Brigade, the equivalent of colonel
in France's revolutionary-era field army
, Defrance went to Italy and participated in the actions leading up to the Battle of Marengo. During the winter of 18001801, he campaigned in the Grisons
in Switzerland and returned to France after the Treaty of Lunéville
in 1801.
on 14 June 1804. On 1 February 1805, he accepted a promotion to brigadier general and commanded a brigade in the Danube campaign against Austria and Russia at the battles of Ulm
and Austerlitz
.
In 1806, he campaigned against Kingdom of Prussia
and Russia at the Battle of Jena-Auerstadt. There, and at the Battle of Friedland
on 14 June 1807, he commanded a carabinier
brigade—the first and second regiments—in Étienne Marie Antoine Champion de Nansouty
's First Division. Napoleon raised him to Count of the Empire on 2 July 1808. At the Battle of Wagram
(1809), he again commanded the carabinier brigade.
The confiscation of the Prussian cavalry and draft stock required supervision to integrate the acquisitions into the Grande Armée. After completing several terms as an inspector general of cavalry, Defrance was appointed general of division in August 1811 and joined Joachim Murat
's Cavalry in February 1812 for Napoleon's Invasion of Russia
. At the Battle of Borodino
, he commanded 4th Cuirassier Division, which included three brigades and two horse artillery units of 12 guns. These were assigned to Nansouty's Reserves and assaulted the Shevardino redoubt on 5–6 September.
During the Saxon campaign, Defrance was appointed Inspector General for the Grande Armée. He also commanded the 4th Heavy Cavalry Division at the Battle of Leipzig
in October 1813, and one of his brigades remained at Lindenau to cover a possible retreat.
In January 1814, for the last few months of Napoleon's rule, Defrance commanded four regiments of Imperial Guard
and fought in the action
of 11 February at Montmirail
, during the Six Days Campaign
. On 7 March, with much smaller force than his opponent, he repulsed the Russian assault at Rheims, but on 12 March was forced to relinquish the city as more Coalition troops arrived. The following day, he attacked the Russian cavalry, but was again forced to withdraw when faced with superior numbers.
, Louis XVIII
appointed Defrance as inspector general of cavalry. During the Hundred Days
, Napoleon's brief return to France, Jean-Marie Defrance commanded part of the Armée de l'Ouest. This Army of the West was also called the Army of the Vendée and the Army of the Loire. Under overall command of Jean Maximilien Lamarque
, one of Napoleon's fiercest supporters, it was formed to suppress potential Royalist insurrection in the Vendée
region of France. Defrance did not participate in the Battle of Rocheserviere
, in which Lemarque's army brutally crushed the anticipated Vendéen uprising. He remained instead at his post of the 18th military division, inspecting the cavalry depots in the upper Loire. Defrance retained his rank after the second restoration and commanded the First Military Division in Paris from 1819 to 1822. He also taught at the military school in Rebais.
Defrance's name is engraved on the east side of the Arc de Triomphe
.
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...
and the Napoleonic Wars
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
. He was also a member of the Council of Five Hundred
Council of Five Hundred
The Council of Five Hundred , or simply the Five Hundred was the lower house of the legislature of France during the period commonly known as the Directory , from 22 August 1795 until 9 November 1799, roughly the second half of the period generally referred to as the...
(the lower house of the legislative branch of the French government under The Directory), and a teacher at the military school of Rebais
Rebais
Rebais is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France.-External links:* * *...
, Champagne
Champagne, Eure-et-Loir
Champagne is a commune in the Eure-et-Loir department in northern France.-Demography:-References:*...
.
Defrance had an extensive and successful military career in 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...
and the Napoleonic Wars
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
. After the First Battle of Zurich
First Battle of Zürich
The Helvetic Republic in 1798 became a battlefield of the French Revolutionary Wars. In the First Battle of Zurich on 4 – 7 June 1799, French general André Masséna was forced to yield the city to the Austrians under Archduke Charles and retreated beyond the Limmat, where he managed to fortify his...
, he refused a battlefield promotion to brigadier general, asking instead for a cavalry regiment; he received command of the 12th Regiment of Chasseurs-a-Cheval (light cavalry) as 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...
, a rank equivalent to colonel. He led this brigade in the campaigns of 1799–1800 in southwestern Germany and northern Italy. By 1805, he had been promoted to brigadier general. 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...
and the Battle of Jena-Auerstadt, he commanded a cavalry brigade of carabinier
Carabiniers-à-Cheval
The Carabiniers-à-Cheval were mounted troops in the service of France.Their origins date back to the mid-16th century, when they were created as elite elements of the French light cavalry, armed with carbines but then gradually evolved towards semi-independent status during the XVIIIth century...
s in Étienne Marie Antoine Champion de Nansouty
Étienne Marie Antoine Champion de Nansouty
Count Étienne-Marie-Antoine-Champion de Nansouty was a French cavalry commander during the French Revolutionary Wars who rose to the rank of General of Division in 1803 and subsequently held important military commands during the Napoleonic Wars. Of noble Burgundian descent, he was a student at...
's First Division. By 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...
in September 1812, he had been promoted to general of division, commanding the 4th Cuirassier Division of Nansouty's reserves, where they charged the Shevardino redoubt. He fought his way across Germany to the Rhine River after the French loss at Leipzig and participated in the Six Days Campaign
Six Days Campaign
The Six Days Campaign was a final series of victories by the forces of Napoleon Bonaparte as the Sixth Coalition closed in on Paris....
.
In 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 commanded part of Jean Maximilien Lamarque
Jean Maximilien Lamarque
Jean Maximilien Lamarque was a French commander during the Napoleonic Wars who later became a member of French Parliament. As an opponent of the Ancien Régime, he is known for his active suppression of Royalist and Legitimist activity...
s Army of the West. At the second 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 retained his titles and honors and subsequently held several command posts until retirement in 1829. He died in 1855.
Family
Jean-Marie Defrance was born on 21 September 1771 at VassyWassy
Wassy , formerly known as Wassy-sur-Blaise, is a commune in the Haute-Marne department in north-eastern France.Population : 3,294.-History:...
, in the Champagne
Champagne (province)
The Champagne wine region is a historic province within the Champagne administrative province in the northeast of France. The area is best known for the production of the sparkling white wine that bears the region's name...
province and died 6 July 1855. On his mother's side, he was the grandson of the French writer Pierre Chompré (16981750); his father, Jean-Claude Defrance, was the medical doctor at the Royal Military School of Rebais, in Champagne. Jean-Marie Defrance married the daughter of the richest jeweler in Paris, by the name Foncier.
Military career
Defrance was stationed in Santo DomingoSanto 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...
during the first Haitian revolt
Haitian Revolution
The Haitian Revolution was a period of conflict in the French colony of Saint-Domingue, which culminated in the elimination of slavery there and the founding of the Haitian republic...
and served in the volunteers Cape Dragoons. On his return to France in 1792, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the cavalry regiment royal-étranger. After serving in the Army of the North, he was appointed adjutant-general brigadier in the Army of Sambre-et-Meuse
Army of Sambre-et-Meuse
The Army of Sambre-et-Meuse is the best known of the armies of the French Revolution. It was formed on 29 June 1794 by combining three forces: the Army of the Ardennes, the left wing of the Army of Moselle, and the right wing of the Army of the North. It had a brief but celebrated existence...
. He also served in the Council of the Five Hundred.
Defrance also served in the Swiss Campaign of 1799 as divisional Chief of Staff of the 1st Division of Jean-Baptiste Jourdan
Jean-Baptiste Jourdan
Jean-Baptiste Jourdan, 1st Comte Jourdan , enlisted as a private in the French royal army and rose to command armies during the French Revolutionary Wars. Emperor Napoleon I of France named him a Marshal of France in 1804 and he also fought in the Napoleonic Wars. After 1815, he became reconciled...
's Army of the Danube
Army of the Danube
The Army of the Danube was a field army of the French Directory in the 1799 southwestern campaign in the Upper Danube valley. It was formed on 2 March 1799 by the simple expedient of renaming the Army of Observation, which had been observing Austrian movements on the border between First...
; after the losses at the battles of Ostrach
Battle of Ostrach
The Battle of Ostrach, also called the Battle by Ostrach, occurred on 20–21 March 1799. It was the first battle of the War of the Second Coalition. The battle resulted in the victory of the Austrian forces, under the command of Archduke Charles, over the French forces, commanded by Jean...
and Stockach
Battle of Stockach (1799)
On 25 March 1799, French and Austrian armies fought for control of the geographically strategic Hegau region in present day Baden-Württemberg. The battle has been called by various names: First Battle of Stockach, the Battle by Stockach, and, in French chronicles, the Battle of Liptingen...
in March 1799, the Army of the Danube was combined with the Army of Helvetia
Army of Helvetia
The Army of Helvetia, or , was a unit of the French Revolutionary Army. It was formed on 8 March 1798 from the remnants of the first unit to be known as the armée du Rhin...
, under the command of Andre Massena
André Masséna
André Masséna 1st Duc de Rivoli, 1st Prince d'Essling was a French military commander during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars....
. Defrance continued in his capacity as divisional chief of staff. At the First Battle of Zurich
First Battle of Zürich
The Helvetic Republic in 1798 became a battlefield of the French Revolutionary Wars. In the First Battle of Zurich on 4 – 7 June 1799, French general André Masséna was forced to yield the city to the Austrians under Archduke Charles and retreated beyond the Limmat, where he managed to fortify his...
in June 1799, he was appointed on the field as brigadier general, an honor which he declined, asking instead to be given command of a cavalry regiment. He received command of the 12th Regiment of Chasseurs-a-Cheval. As Chef-de-Brigade, the equivalent of 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...
in France's revolutionary-era field army
Field army
A Field Army, or Area Army, usually referred to simply as an Army, is a term used by many national military forces for a military formation superior to a corps and beneath an army group....
, Defrance went to Italy and participated in the actions leading up to the Battle of Marengo. During the winter of 18001801, he campaigned in the Grisons
Grison Alps
The Grison Alps are the mountains of the Graubünden canton of Switzerland . There are many significant peaks in the Grison Alps, including the Tödi and the highest peak, Piz Bernina...
in Switzerland and returned to France after the Treaty of Lunéville
Treaty of Lunéville
The Treaty of Lunéville was signed on 9 February 1801 between the French Republic and the Holy Roman Emperor Francis II, negotiating both on behalf of his own domains and of the Holy Roman Empire...
in 1801.
Career during the Napoleonic Wars
In 1803, with Napoleon's military reorganization, the title Chef-de-Brigade reverted to colonel; Defrance retained his command of the 12th Regiment of Chasseurs-a-Cheval. He was named Officer of the Légion d'honneurLégion 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 14 June 1804. On 1 February 1805, he accepted a promotion to brigadier general and commanded a brigade in the Danube campaign against Austria and Russia at the battles of Ulm
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 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...
.
Honors
|
In 1806, he campaigned against 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...
and Russia at the Battle of Jena-Auerstadt. There, and at the Battle of Friedland
Battle of Friedland
The Battle of Friedland saw Napoleon I's French army decisively defeat Count von Bennigsen's Russian army about twenty-seven miles southeast of Königsberg...
on 14 June 1807, he commanded a carabinier
Carabiniers-à-Cheval
The Carabiniers-à-Cheval were mounted troops in the service of France.Their origins date back to the mid-16th century, when they were created as elite elements of the French light cavalry, armed with carbines but then gradually evolved towards semi-independent status during the XVIIIth century...
brigade—the first and second regiments—in Étienne Marie Antoine Champion de Nansouty
Étienne Marie Antoine Champion de Nansouty
Count Étienne-Marie-Antoine-Champion de Nansouty was a French cavalry commander during the French Revolutionary Wars who rose to the rank of General of Division in 1803 and subsequently held important military commands during the Napoleonic Wars. Of noble Burgundian descent, he was a student at...
's First Division. Napoleon raised him to Count of the Empire on 2 July 1808. At the Battle of Wagram
Battle of Wagram
The Battle of Wagram was the decisive military engagement of the War of the Fifth Coalition. It took place on the Marchfeld plain, on the north bank of the Danube. An important site of the battle was the village of Deutsch-Wagram, 10 kilometres northeast of Vienna, which would give its name to the...
(1809), he again commanded the carabinier brigade.
The confiscation of the Prussian cavalry and draft stock required supervision to integrate the acquisitions into the Grande Armée. After completing several terms as an inspector general of cavalry, Defrance was appointed general of division in August 1811 and joined 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...
's Cavalry in February 1812 for Napoleon's Invasion of Russia
French invasion of Russia
The French invasion of Russia of 1812 was a turning point in the Napoleonic Wars. It reduced the French and allied invasion forces to a tiny fraction of their initial strength and triggered a major shift in European politics as it dramatically weakened French hegemony in Europe...
. At 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...
, he commanded 4th Cuirassier Division, which included three brigades and two horse artillery units of 12 guns. These were assigned to Nansouty's Reserves and assaulted the Shevardino redoubt on 5–6 September.
During the Saxon campaign, Defrance was appointed Inspector General for the Grande Armée. He also commanded the 4th Heavy Cavalry Division at the Battle of Leipzig
Battle of Leipzig
The Battle of Leipzig or Battle of the Nations, on 16–19 October 1813, was fought by the coalition armies of Russia, Prussia, Austria and Sweden against the French army of Napoleon. Napoleon's army also contained Polish and Italian troops as well as Germans from the Confederation of the Rhine...
in October 1813, and one of his brigades remained at Lindenau to cover a possible retreat.
In January 1814, for the last few months of Napoleon's rule, Defrance commanded four regiments of Imperial Guard
Imperial Guard
The Imperial Guard was originally a small group of elite soldiers of the French Army under the direct command of Napoleon I, but grew considerably over time. It acted as his bodyguard and tactical reserve, and he was careful of its use in battle...
and fought in the action
Battle of Montmirail
The Battle of Montmirail was a battle fought near Montmirail, France, during the Six Days Campaign of the Napoleonic Wars. It was fought on February 11, 1814, and resulted in the victory of the French under Emperor Napoleon I over the Russians under General Fabian Wilhelm von Osten-Sacken and the...
of 11 February at Montmirail
Montmirail, Marne
Montmirail is a commune in the Marne department in north-eastern France.-See also:*Communes of the Marne department...
, during the Six Days Campaign
Six Days Campaign
The Six Days Campaign was a final series of victories by the forces of Napoleon Bonaparte as the Sixth Coalition closed in on Paris....
. On 7 March, with much smaller force than his opponent, he repulsed the Russian assault at Rheims, but on 12 March was forced to relinquish the city as more Coalition troops arrived. The following day, he attacked the Russian cavalry, but was again forced to withdraw when faced with superior numbers.
Late military career
During the first Bourbon RestorationBourbon 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...
, Louis XVIII
Louis 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...
appointed Defrance as inspector general of cavalry. 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...
, Napoleon's brief return to France, Jean-Marie Defrance commanded part of the Armée de l'Ouest. This Army of the West was also called the Army of the Vendée and the Army of the Loire. Under overall command of Jean Maximilien Lamarque
Jean Maximilien Lamarque
Jean Maximilien Lamarque was a French commander during the Napoleonic Wars who later became a member of French Parliament. As an opponent of the Ancien Régime, he is known for his active suppression of Royalist and Legitimist activity...
, one of Napoleon's fiercest supporters, it was formed to suppress potential Royalist insurrection in the Vendée
Vendée
The Vendée is a department in the Pays-de-la-Loire region in west central France, on the Atlantic Ocean. The name Vendée is taken from the Vendée river which runs through the south-eastern part of the department.-History:...
region of France. Defrance did not participate in the Battle of Rocheserviere
Battle of Rocheservière
The Battle of Rocheserviere was fought at Rocheservièreon the 20 June 1815, between Vendéen Royalists, who had remained loyal to King Louis XVIII and the Army of the West, commanded by General Jean Maximilien Lamarque...
, in which Lemarque's army brutally crushed the anticipated Vendéen uprising. He remained instead at his post of the 18th military division, inspecting the cavalry depots in the upper Loire. Defrance retained his rank after the second restoration and commanded the First Military Division in Paris from 1819 to 1822. He also taught at the military school in Rebais.
Defrance's name is engraved on the east side of 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...
.