Louis-Auguste-Victor, Count de Ghaisnes de Bourmont

Louis-Auguste-Victor, Count de Ghaisnes de Bourmont
Louis-Auguste-Victor, Count de Ghaisnes de Bourmont
Born	2 September 1773 (1773-09-02) Freigné, Kingdom of France
Died	27 October 1846 (1846-10-28) (aged 73) Freigné, France
Allegiance	Royalists 1789–1800 First French Empire 1807–1815 France 1815–1830 Portugal 1832–1834
Service / branch	Staff
Years of service	1789–1800, 1807–1830, 1832–1834
Rank	Marshal of France
Battles / wars	French Revolutionary Wars Napoleonic Wars Spanish expedition (1823) Shipwreck of Dellys (1830) Invasion of Algiers in 1830 Liberal Wars
Other work	Minister of War

Louis-Auguste-Victor, Count de Ghaisnes de Bourmont (2 September 1773 – 27 October 1846) was a French general, diplomat and statesman who was named Marshal of France in 1830. A lifelong royalist, he emigrated from France soon after the outbreak of the French Revolution and fought with the counter-revolutionary Army of Condé for two years, then joined the insurrection in France for three more years before going into exile. He was arrested after assisting the Georges Cadoudal conspiracy, but escaped to Portugal.

In 1807 he took advantage of an amnesty to rejoin the French army and served in several campaigns until 1814. He rose in rank to become a general of division. During this period, he was suspected of being an agent of the Comte d'Artois and of passing information to France's enemies. Though he was notoriously anti-Napoleon and many officers did not trust him, he was employed again during the Hundred Days. Immediately after the campaign began, he deserted to the Prussian army with Napoleon's plans. King Louis XVIII of France gave him a command in the Spanish expedition of 1823.

Promoted to Marshal of France, he was put in command of the Invasion of Algiers in 1830. However, after the July Revolution, he refused to recognize King Louis-Philippe of France and was sacked. After being involved in a plot against the new government, he fled to Portugal in 1832. He led the army of Dom Miguel in the Liberal Wars, and when the liberals won, he fled to Rome. He accepted another amnesty, this time in 1840, and died in France six years later.

Early career

On the eve of the French Revolution, Bourmont entered the Gardes Françaises of the French Royal Army but he emigrated in 1789. Bourmont served in Louis Joseph de Bourbon, Prince de Condé royalist army in the campaigns of 1792 and 1793. Then he served as chief of staff in the civil war in lower Anjou from 1794 to 1796. After fleeing to Switzerland in 1796, he took part in another insurrection from 1798-1800. He was arrested in 1801 because of involvement with Georges Cadoudal, but three years later he managed to escape to Portugal.

When Junot invaded Portugal in 1807, Bourmont offered him his services and was employed as chief of staff of a division. Arrested when re-entering France in 1809, he was released upon the intercession of Junot and employed in the Imperial army.

He served in Italy and on the staff of Prince Eugène during the Russian campaign of 1812. Taken prisoner during the retreat from Moscow, he managed to escape and rejoin the French army. After the Battle of Lützen in 1813 he was promoted to general of brigade, he took part in the Battle of Leipzig and in 1814 he was promoted to general of division for defending Nogent-sur-Seine. After the fall of Napoleon, Bourmont rallied to the restored Bourbons.

Bourbon Restoration and the Hundred days

But the Bourbon restoration was not secure, Napoleon escaped Elba and made his way to Paris at Grenoble troops sent to stop him had defected. The government of Louis XVIII of France frantically tried to stop Napoleon's march on Paris. Marshal Ney was ordered to report to Besançon where he was to receive his orders from Bourmont. It irritated the proud Ney, Prince of the Moskva, to take instructions from such a junior general, so he demanded to see the king. During his interview with Louis, Ney boasted to the king that he would bring back the ex-emperor in an iron cage.

By the time Ney arrived in Besançon, he found that the royalist position was rapidly deteriorating and that Bourmont's assignment was to spy on him. At Besançon, Neys direct subordinates were Bourmont and a General Lecourbe. Lecourbe was a strange companion for Bourmont the arch royalist - a committed Republican Lecourbe had been removed from command upon the proclamation of the French empire and deeply detested Napoleon for it.

Napoleon was assessed by Bourmont to have nearly 14,000 men under arms marching with him to Paris, while Ney commanded only 5,000 and of those many were of dubious loyalty. For all of Ney's Bravado the situation was deteriorating. On 11 March 1815, Ney told Bourmont and Lecourbe that he was going over to Napoleon's camp, after lengthy discussion in which Ney justified his actions not as military necessity but instead by complaining about treatment to his honour and his wife's honour by royalists. Ney decided to read a proclamation sent to him by Napoleon, Bourmont and Lecoube did not agree but did give it sanction of their presence. Bourmont even writing the orders calling the troops to assemble for parade.

Bourmont slipped away to Paris on the 15th of March to warn the king with the Bourbon cause collapsing and Louis fled to Belgium, followed by hundreds of royalists, Bourmont not amongst them.

According to historian David Hamilton-Williams, the Comte d'Artois asked Bourmont to remain a royalist agent, so he requested to continue in command. The new Minister of War, Marshal Davout refused to employ Bourmont, writing to Napoleon, "I cannot sit idly and watch this officer wear the uniform of this country; his treasonous statements concerning the Emperor are well known to all; the brigade and regimental commanders of the 14th Infantry Division despise him. Who would trust such a man?" Nevertheless, General Gérard, leader of the IV Corps vouched for him so he retained his position.

On the morning of the 15th of June, as the French Army of the North advanced into Belgium, the 14th Division led the IV Corps column of march. Near Florennes, Bourmont halted his division. On the pretence of scouting ahead, he and his staff, rode ahead with a squadron of lancers. After gaining a suitable distance from French lines, he sent the lancers back with a letter for Gérard. In the missive, he explained that he was deserting but promised, "They will not get any information from me which will injure the French army, composed of men I love." He and his staff put the white Bourbon cockade on their hats and galloped for the nearest Prussian position. He immediately handed over Napoleon's operational plans to the Prussians. Blucher's chief of staff Gneisenau was pleased to receive this windfall. However, Blucher had no use for turncoats and called Bourmont a traitor to his face. When Gneisenau noted that Bourmont was wearing the white cockade, making them allies, Blucher screamed, "Cockade be damned! A dirty dog is always a dirty dog!"

With Napoleon's orders in their hands, the Prussians were able to take the appropriate countermeasures to gather their army. Bourmont's defection enraged the French rank and file. Though their loyalty to Napoleon was absolute, they began to suspect treachery in their generals. Étienne Hulot, who became the acting division commander, was compelled to give a speech that pledged loyalty to Napoleon and the tricolor.

The Trial of Marshal Ney

After the Battle of Waterloo and Napoleon's fall, Bourmont gave evidence at Ney's trial. In the intervening time Lecourbe had died, Bourmont expected not to be presented with Lecourbe's perspective during testimony.

Bourmont testified that he had been a reluctant spectator to the Marshals defection, testifying that in the early morning of the 15th of March, Ney had told he and Lecoube that fighting Napoleon was not possible. But both he and Lecourbe had opposed Ney. Asked why he had joined Ney at the parade, he replied that he had done so only to observe.

The most controversial part of Bourmont's testimony was his statement that;

Marshal Ney, was so thoroughly resolved beforehand to take the side of Bonaparte, that half an hour after reading the proclamation he was wearing the Grand Eagle of the Legion of Honour with the effigy of the usurper.

— Bourmont, at the trial of Ney

If true this statement would undermine Ney's defence that he only changed sides out of necessity and to prevent needless loss of French lives in a civil war. Ney outraged by Bourmonts statements called him a liar and in a short speech reminded Bourmont that a higher tribunal (god) would judge them both and that Lecourbe could still be called to witness at the gates of St Peter.

During questioning by the judge Bourmont admitted to having drawn up the order for the troops to parade. When examined about if resistance by Ney was possible given the difference in numbers of troops, Bourmont replied that;

Everything depended on the first step, if he had taken a carbine and fired the first shot, no doubt his example would have been decisive, for no man had a greater empire over the minds of the soldiers.

— Bourmont, at the trial of Ney

The Execution of Marshal Ney, by Gérôme 1868

Latter testimony given by Lecourbe before his death was read, that partially contradicted Bourmont suggesting that there was no prospect for resistance, and that even in the absence of the proclamation the troops would likely have defected in any case. Further witnesses told of Neys actions after the Parade attempting to paint him as suddenly loyal to Napoleon but even these witnesses who had seen Ney during the Parade and in the days after it contradicted Bourmonts testimony that Ney was wearing the Grand Eagle decoration even if they were otherwise positive to the prosecution case.

Nevertheless the court rendered a guilty verdict and Ney was sentenced to execution.

Service after the second restoration, Spain, Algeria then exile

After the Second Restoration, he was given command of the 16th infantry division in Besançon and took part in the Spanish campaign of 1823 where he won the battle of Sanlucar, and took Seville. King Charles X of France made him minister of war in 1829 and Marshal of France in 1830.

French troops march on Algiers, the 5th July 1830

He was put in command of the Invasion of Algiers in 1830, launched objectively as a response to the fly-whisk affair but in reality launched to shore up support for the absolutist monarchy. Bourmont was sucessul in defeating the Deylik of Algiers but in his absense and before news of his success could reach Paris the July Revolution overthrew Charles X. Bourmont refused to give his allegiance to the new King Louis Philippe and was replaced by Bertrand Clauzel as commander in Algeria. Bourmont hoped to lead his army back to France in the name of Charles but lacking support amongst the rank and file he went into exile in Spain.

In 1832 Marshal Bourmont took part in the rising of Caroline Ferdinande Louise, duchesse de Berry and on its failure fled to Portugal. He commanded the army of the absolutist monarch King Miguel during the Liberal Wars and after the victory of the constitutional party he retired to Rome.

At the amnesty of 1840 he returned to France, where he died on 27 October 1846 at Freigné in Maine-et-Loire.

References

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Wood, James, ed. (1907). The Nuttall Encyclopædia. London and New York: Frederick Warne. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)

• Hamilton-Williams, David. Waterloo - New Perspectives: The Great Battle Reappraised. NY: John Wiley & Sons, 1994. ISBN 0-471-05225-6