Alexandre de Beauharnais | |
|---|---|
 Portrait by the Circle ofJacques-Louis David,c. 1793 | |
| President of the Constituent National Assembly | |
| In office 19 June – 3 July 1791 | |
| Preceded by | Luc Dauchy |
| Succeeded by | Charles de Lameth |
| In office 31 July – 13 August 1791 | |
| Preceded by | Jacques Defermon des Chapelières |
| Succeeded by | Victor de Broglie |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1760-05-28)28 May 1760 |
| Died | 23 July 1794(1794-07-23) (aged 34) |
| Resting place | Picpus Cemetery, Paris |
| Spouse | |
| Children | Eugène de Beauharnais (son) Hortense de Beauharnais (daughter) |
| Signature |  |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  Kingdom of France Kingdom of France First French Republic |
| Branch/service | Army |
| Years of service | 1775–1794 |
| Rank | General of division |
| Commands | Army of the Rhine |
| Battles/wars | |
Alexandre François Marie, Viscount of Beauharnais (French pronunciation:[alɛksɑ̃dʁdəboaʁnɛ]; 28 May 1760 – 23 July 1794) was a French politician and general of theFrench Revolution. He was the first husband ofJoséphine Tascher de La Pagerie, who later marriedNapoleon Bonaparte and became empress of France. Beauharnais was executed byguillotine during theReign of Terror.
Beauharnais was born to the nobleBeauharnais family in Fort-Royal (nowFort-de-France),Martinique, in theFrench West Indies. He was the son of GovernorFrançois de Beauharnais, Marquis de La Ferté-Beauharnais, and Marie Anne Henriette Françoise Pyvart de Chastullé. On 13 December 1779 inParis, he married Joséphine Tascher de la Pagerie, the future Empress of France. They had two children,Eugène (1781–1824) andHortense (1783–1837).
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Beauharnais began his military career in an infantry regiment at Martinique.[1] He served in theAmerican Revolutionary War under theCount of Rochambeau, and became acquainted with the court of KingLouis XVI upon his return to France.[1] A supporter of the French Revolution, Beauharnaiswas elected a deputy of thenobility to theEstates-General of 1789, where he was one of the first nobles to go over to theThird Estate, and voted in favor of theabolition of feudalism.[1]
Beauharnais played a prominent role in the succeedingNational Constituent Assembly, serving as its president from 19 June to 3 July 1791 and from 31 July to 14 August 1791. He then returned to the army with the rank of colonel, and was employed in theArmy of the North.[1] Promoted to general in 1792, at the start of theFrench Revolutionary Wars, Beauharnais refused in June 1793 the post of Minister of War.[1] He was appointed commander-in-chief of theArmy of the Rhine in 1793.[1]
On 2 March 1794, theCommittee of General Security ordered his arrest. Accused of having poorly defendedMainz during thesiege in 1793, and considered an aristocratic suspect, he was jailed inCarmes Prison and sentenced to death during theReign of Terror.[1] His wife, Joséphine, was jailed in the same prison on 21 April 1794 but was freed three months later, thanks to thefall of Maximilien Robespierre. Beauharnais wasguillotined, together with his cousin Augustin, on thePlace de la Révolution (today'sPlace de la Concorde) in Paris on 23 July 1794, five days before the end of the Reign of Terror.[1]
His paternal grandparents Claude de Beauharnais (1680–1738) and Renée Hardouineau (1696–1744) were married inLa Rochelle during 1713. His fatherFrançois de Beauharnais, Marquess de la La Ferté-Beauharnais (1714–1800) served asGovernor of Martinique. Alexandre was the third of three sons born to him by his first wife Marie Henriette Pyvart de Chastullé (1722–1767) - the first died in infancy, and the second wasFrancis VI of Beauharnais. His father was remarried in 1796 to Eugenie de Tascher de la Pagerie (1739–1803).
