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Marshal of the Empire Bon-Adrien Jeannot de Moncey duc de Conegliano | |
|---|---|
 Portrait byJacques-Luc Barbier-Walbonne (1806) | |
| Born | 31 July 1754 |
| Died | 20 April 1842 (1842-04-21) (aged 87) |
| Allegiance |  Kingdom of France Kingdom of the French French First Republic First French Empire Bourbon RestorationJuly Monarchy |
| Branch | Army |
| Years of service | 1774–1814 1816–1823 |
| Rank | Marshal of the Empire |
| Unit | Army of the Western Pyrenees |
| Battles / wars | |
| Other work | Governor of Les Invalides |
Bon-Adrien Jeannot de Moncey (orJannot de Moncey),1st duc deConegliano (31 July 1754 – 20 April 1842) was aFrench military officer and a prominent commander in theFrench Revolutionary Wars and later aMarshal of the Empire during theNapoleonic Wars. He later becamegovernor of theHôtel des Invalides. Moncey is one of the names inscribed under theArc de Triomphe, on Column 33.
Moncey was born on 31 July 1754 inPalise orMoncey, Doubs. His father was a lawyer fromBesançon. During his childhood, he twice enlisted in the French Army, but his father procured his discharge on both occasions. His desire to be in the army was at last gratified when he received a commission in 1778.
Moncey married Charlotte Prospère Remillet (1761–1842). The couple had three children:
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Moncey was a captain when, in 1791, he embraced the principles of the French Revolution. He won great distinction in the campaigns of 1793 and 1794 during theWar of the Pyrenees, rising from the commander of a battalion to the commander-in-chief of theArmy of the Western Pyrenees in a few months.[1] His successful operations were instrumental in compelling the Spanish government to make peace. After this, he was employed in the highest commands until 1799, when the government, suspecting him of being a royalist, dismissed him.
Thecoup d'état of18 Brumaire in 1799 brought Moncey back to the active list, and duringNapoleon's Italian campaign of 1800, he led a corps from Switzerland into Italy, surmounting all the difficulties of bringing horses and guns over the formidableGotthard Pass. In 1801, Napoleon made him inspector-general of theFrench Gendarmerie, and on the assumption of the imperial title, made him a Marshal of the Empire. In 1805, Moncey received the Grand Cordon of the Legion of Honour.
In July 1808, Moncey was madeduc de Conegliano ("Duke of Conegliano"; it was aduché grand-fief, a rare hereditary honor. The title was later confirmed under theBourbon Restoration, and, since he had no surviving son, Moncey was granted permission to pass it to his son-in-law (with his newly granted title of "Baron of Conegliano" andPeer of France).
In late 1807 Moncey entered Spain at the head of the Corps of Observation of the Ocean Coast,[2] part of France's first Army of Spain, whereafter he occupied the area aroundMadrid. After theDos de Mayo Uprising and the beginning of thePeninsular War he advanced onValencia to put down the revolt there, but he wasunable to take the city.[3] Moncey then took a leading part in the emperor's campaign on theEbro and in theSiege of Saragossa in 1809.
He refused to serve in theinvasion of Russia, and therefore had no share in the campaign of theGrande Armée in 1812 and 1813. However, when France was invaded in 1814, Moncey reappeared in the field and fought the last battle for Paris on the heights ofMontmartre and at the barrier ofClichy.
In 1814, he supportedLouis XVIII and was made a Peer of France as "Baron of Conegliano" (confirmed in 1825). He remained neutral during Napoleon's return to power, feeling himself bound to Louis XVIII by his engagements as a Peer of France, but afterWaterloo he was punished for refusing to take part in thecourt martial of MarshalMichel Ney; by imprisonment and the loss of his marshalate and peerage.
In 1816, Moncey was given back his title of marshal by the king and he re-entered the Chamber of Peers three years later. He continued his military career as his last active service was as commander of an army corps of theHundred Thousand Sons of Saint Louis in 1823. From 1833 to 1842, Moncey was governor of theHôtel des Invalides (a home for veterans in Paris).
By the 1830s Moncey was among the last marshals of the first empire, and on 15 December 1840 Napoleon's funeral was to take place after hismortal remains were brought back to France. The 86-year old marshal, gravely ill, and barely able to move, wanted to pay a final tribute to the emperor. Already seriously ill before the arrival of the coffin, he begged his doctor to stuff him with just enough drugs and medicine to be able to attend the emperor's funeral, saying, "Doctor, make me live a little longer, I want to honour the Emperor". He was brought to the altar on a wheelchair, awaiting the arrival of Napoleon's corpse. When the emperor was brought in, Moncey tried to get up but, weakened, fell back onto his wheelchair. He was brought to the coffin, kissed the hilt of Napoleon's sword. After the ceremony, he said "Now let's go home to die".[4] He died little more than a year later.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Moncey, Bon Adrien Jeannot de".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 18 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 693.| Military offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Commander-in-chief of theArmy of the Western Pyrenees 1 September 1794–12 October 1795 | Succeeded by disbanded |
| Preceded by | Interim Commander-in-chief of theArmy of Italy 8 March–19 June 1801 | Succeeded by disbanded |
Marshals of theFirst French Empire | |||
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