Bertrand Clauzel | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | (1772-12-12)12 December 1772 Mirepoix,County of Foix, France |
| Died | 21 April 1842(1842-04-21) (aged 69) Haute-Garonne, France |
| Allegiance | France |
| Years of service | 1791–1837 |
| Rank | Marshal of France |
| Battles / wars | |
Bertrand, Comte Clauzel (French pronunciation:[bɛʁtʁɑ̃kɔ̃tklozɛl]; 12 December 1772 – 21 April 1842), was a French soldier who served in theRevolutionary andNapoleonic wars. He saw service in theLow Countries,Italy,Haiti, andSpain, where he achieved short periods of independent command.
Clauzel spent the years 1815–1820 in exile in theUnited States before returning to France and becoming politically active in therepublican andliberal opposition to the absolutist governments ofCharles X.
Clauzel would later become aMarshal of France under the Orléans monarchy, following theJuly Revolution. Clauzel would return to active service in theFrench conquest of Algeria, first during the initial French expedition and later as governor.Napoleon listed Clauzel amongst his most skilful generals.
Bertrand Clauzel was born on the 12 of December 1772 inMirepoix, in theCounty of Foix.[1][2]
Bertrand's father, Gabriel Clauzel,[3] was a bankrupt wholesale merchant who had been disinherited by his own father. Gabriel embraced theRevolution, he was on the Committee of Surveillance of Mirepoix. A deputy to theNational Convention would later write that "his presence alone frightens the enemies of the new regime."[4]
Bertrand joined the MirepoixNational Guard at the end of July 1789;[2] the Guard was deployed by his father Gabriel to invest in the episcopal palace of Mirepoix and harass the bishop in 1790.[4]
In his extended family Bertrand had an uncle,Jean-Baptiste Clauzel, who was a politician inAriège during the revolutionary period.[5]
Clauzel enlisted in the 43rd Infantry as one of thevolunteers of 1791. He saw service in thefirst campaign of theFrench Revolutionary Wars.[1] Having distinguished himself repeatedly on the northern frontier (1792–1793) and in the easternPyrénées (1793–1794), Clauzel was made achef de batallion. Clauzel would also be given the honour of bringing twenty four flags taken from the Spanish back to Paris to present to the National Convention.[2]
In 1798, Clauzel became the chief of staff to the division of GeneralEmmanuel de Grouchy within theArmy of Italy. It was within this role, he negotiated theabdication of theKing of Sardinia in December 1798 from his mainland territories, namelyPiedmont (and associated lands in northern Italy).[2][6]
As part of the negotiations, Clauzel sought noble hostages, to ensure the terms of the abdication were honoured. Clauzel did not succeed instead, returning withthe Woman with Dropsy, a painting by the Dutch masterGerard Dou. Clauzel would donate it to theLouvre where it remains today(November 2025[update]).[7][8][9]
Clauzel's efforts were well regarded by his superiors, with Grouchy writing to GeneralBarthélemy Catherine Joubert, then chief of the Army of Italy that:[10]
"my adjutant-general (Clauzel), who, in this instance, supported me with zeal, energy, and devotion"
Clauzel was rewarded in 1799 with a promotion togénéral de brigade on the 5 of February. In this rank, he continued to serve in Italy, where he won great distinction[2] at the battles ofTrebbia andNovi. At Novi, Clauzel fought on the left wing of the army, initially helping to stabilise it against the Austrian attack, but managing to withdraw his own brigade after the enemy breakthrough enveloped much of the French left wing, trapping them against theBormida River.[5]
Clauzel took command of the 4th Division under GeneralLouis-Gabriel Suchet in 1800, taking part in theSiege of Genoa. Clauzel's division saw heavy fighting as delaying actions were fought through mountain passes. During the campaign, he seized the redoubt ofMelogno and participated in the attack on Monte-San-Giacomo [It]. Then, as the Army of Melas pushed towards the city he endured the starvation of the siege before a negotiated surrender led to the armies repatriation to France. Later in December 1800, Clauzel fought atPozzolo.[2][11]
TheTreaty of Amiens enabled Napoleon to organise theLeclerc expedition to reassert French control in the lucrative colony ofSaint-Domingue following theHaitian Revolution. Clauzel seized Fort-Dauphin in December 1802, and became commander atCap Français with a promotion togénéral de division.[2]
During his time in Le Cap, he purchased a house previously owned byToussaint Louverture, at auction. Clauzel invoked this purchase, during a later corruption controversy over property in Algeria, as a model purchase that furthered French national interests encouraging stability in the fragile colony.[12]
GeneralCharles Leclerc died of yellow fever in 1803, under the command of Leclerc's successor,Donatien-Marie-Joseph de Vimeur, vicomte de Rochambeau, Clauzel became disillusioned due to Rochambeau's use of extreme violence and indiscriminate killing in an attempt to reassert French control. Clauzel worked withGénéral de brigadePierre Thouvenot at first to try and influence Rochambeau before they eventually conspired to overthrow Rochambeau and exile him. Rochambeau learned of the plot and, in September 1803, ordered both Clauzel and Thouvenot arrested and deported.[13] The frigateLaSurveillante, carrying Clauzel was shipwrecked off the coast of Florida. He survived the wreck and made his way to New York, where he obtained passage to France.[2]
After his return to France, he was in almost continuous service in a number of coastal garrisons that saw no action. In 1806 when he was sent to the army ofNaples, and made him a Grand Officer of theLégion d'honneur. In 1808–1809, he was under the command of MarshalAuguste de Marmont inDalmatia, and at the close of 1809, Clauzel was assigned to the Army of Portugal under MarshalAndré Masséna.[1][2]
Clauzel initially commanded a division in the Army of Portugal during thePeninsular War.[14] During theSiege of Aslorga, he defeated and drove back the Spanish corps positioned at Villa Franca into Galicia. Then at theBattle of Subiaco, he resisted a vastly superior enemy.[10] These actions set conditions for the subsequentTorres Vedras campaign. Masséna's failures saw him replaced by Marmont, under whom Clauzel worked to re-establish the discipline, efficiency, and mobility of the army, which had suffered severely in the retreat from Torres Vedras.[1]
After the failedinvasion of Portugal in 1812, the French concentrated their forces to besiegeValencia and withdrew other units in preparation for theinvasion of Russia. This left other areas of the Spanish theatre stripped of troops. GeneralLord Wellington, having previously securedkey fortresses at the Spanish–Portuguese border, opted to attack, threatening the northern road connectingMadrid toBurgos and then on to France.[14][15]
Marmont initially retreated in the face of Wellington's superior forces, but once reinforced, he attempted to force the Anglo-Portuguese army to retreat or give battle. Marmont attempted this by marching to turn Wellington's flank, and threaten its lines of communication back to Portugal; it was these manoeuvres that instigated theBattle of Salamanca.[14]
As the battle began, Clauzel's division was initially positioned behind the French left wing. After the rout ofJean Guillaume Barthélemy Thomières's division, Clauzel's division advanced to reinforce the faltering line. With both Marshal Marmont and GeneralJean Pierre François Bonet wounded, Clauzel, as the most senior officer available, assumed command of the French forces under challenging circumstances. Marmont's attempt to flank had exposed the divisions led by Thomières andAntoine Louis Popon de Maucune to an Anglo-Portuguese assault. According toLewis Butler, Clauzel's subsequent actions constituted "a grand attempt to retrieve the battle".[14]
The battlefield was characterised by two small hills, the lesser and the greater Arapiles. The lesser Arapile was situated at the heart of the Anglo-Portuguese army's position, while the greater Arapile occupied a central position in the French army's deployment. Both hills served as crucial points, securing the flanks of each army's formations. Clauzel's strategy aimed to counter the attack on his left flank by launching an assault on the Anglo-Portuguese centre to capture the lesser Arapile.[14][15]
The offensive proved unsuccessful as it was met with staunch resistance from fresh enemy troops. The retreat and resulting disarray among the French forces left them vulnerable to subsequent assaults on their left and centre. The battle culminated in a resounding defeat for the French, with Butler noting that the engagements had rendered the divisions of Maucune, Thomières, and Clauzel incapable of functioning as cohesive military units.[14]
Lievyns reports that Clauzel became known as the "unfortunate hero of the Arapiles" following the battle.[10]
The retreat from Salamanca posed significant challenges to Clauzel due to the substantial losses suffered by the French army. Initially,Maximilien Sébastien Foy's division, the only French unit relatively unscathed, provided cover as the rear guard. However, it suffered a decisive defeat the following day at theBattle of García Hernández. Clauzel managed to salvage what remained of the Army of Portugal as he retreated north of Burgos.[15]
The historian Mullié reports this retreat by the Army of Portugal was compared to theactions of MarshalMichel Ney during theretreat to Russia.[16]
Burgos wasbesieged by Wellington before Clauzel could regroup his forces. With reinforcements fromGeneral Joseph Souham, Clauzel spent some time recovering from a gunshot wound to his right foot. Clauzel later resumed divisional command in the subsequent campaign, which saw Wellington retreat back toCiudad Rodrigo.[2] Despite Wellington's return to his initial position, Clauzel's costly defeat at Salamanca compelled French forces in Spain to focus their efforts against Wellington, leading to the liberation of Andalusia,Extremadura, andAsturias by Spanish forces.[15]
In early 1813, Clauzel assumed command of theArmy of the North in Spain. During theBattle of Vitoria, Clauzel and the bulk of his army were a day's march away and unable to aidJean-Baptiste Jourdan, contributing to the latter's defeat. In the days after Vitoria, Clauzel's army was separated from Jourdan's retreating army and risked being cut off, but Clauzel conducted a skilful retreat throughJaca to concentrate French forces.[2]
After Jourdan was replaced, Clauzel continued in service under the command of MarshalJean-de-Dieu Soult. Clauzel continued to see action throughout the rest of the Peninsular War and the1814 campaign in south-west France, seeing action at the major battles ofNivelle,Orthez, andToulouse as well as personally securing a minor French victory at Aire.[2]
Wellington would communicate news of the Emperor's abdication to French forces in the south in the aftermath of Toulouse. Clauzel was the first to vote at a meeting of generals, that no consideration should be given to such a notification until it was made by the Emperor himself, this proposal was accepted.[10]
Following theBourbon Restoration in 1814, he reluctantly submitted to the restored monarchy, but swiftly joined Napoleon upon his return to France.[1] Throughout theHundred Days, he held command along the Pyrenees.[1] While there were no major battles on the Pyrenean front before Napoleon surrendered, Clauzel earned the particular ire of French royalists with his actions in chasing theDuchess of Angoulême out ofBordeaux.[17]
Clauzel was named among those who had "attacked the person" of the King in the edict of 24 July 1815, by their participation in the Hundred Days. Clauzel left Bordeaux and escaped police detection as he fled through France, aided by anonymous letters sent to police which reported his whereabouts to be in the region of Foix, where he had grown up.Exiled initially in Belgium, he understood the great legal danger he was in and set off for the United States, arriving in Brooklyn on 29 August 1815.[17]
Clauzel's fears were justified, and he would later be condemned to death inabsentia.[1] In the Americas, French societies of exiles organised attempts to purchase land in various countries. Not all of them with entirely peaceful and commercial intentions. The restored Bourbons worried that Clauzel, amongst other exiles such asJoseph Bonaparte and Grouchy, was assembling Napoleonic loyalists in the Americas with a view to freeing Napoleon fromexile on Saint Helena through the hiring of American privateers. Once free, a range of ambitious schemes were dreamt up for Napoleon to join in variousSpanish American independence wars to create a new empire. Clauzel was not directly implicated in such schemes, but in one case, an expedition was organised byLakanal, and he did have letters addressed to him.[17]
Clauzel was amongst those who settled in theVine and Olive Colony in modern-dayAlabama.[1] He was known to tend a vegetable garden and sell produce at the local market. During his time in exile, Clauzel was a personal friend of former General Grouchy.[17]
Clauzel seized the first opportunity to return when he was pardoned in 1820. He assisted theOrléanist Liberal opposition in France, serving in theChamber of Deputies forAriège in 1827, then forArdennes in 1830.[1][2]
His candidacy in the Ardennes constituency was instigated by the entreaties of a former non-commissioned officer who had served under him at Salamanca, what had post-war become a wealthy and influential elector in the area.[5]
He sat on the left and voted for theAddress of the 221, which expressed disapproval of theultra-royalistadministration. Following theJuly Revolution of 1830, he promptly assumed a military command, being appointed the commander of French forces in Algeria.[1]
The invasion of Algiers had begun under the government of the Bourbon absolutistKing Charles in a late measure to shore up popular support for his rule. With the July Revolution, the new constitutional monarchy was governed by liberals who had opposed the Algiers expedition. Victory by French forces at theBattle of Staouéli and the fall of Algiers did not save the absolutist government; however, French success was publicly popular, and the new government was careful to not turn public opinion against itself by abandoning Algeria. The political imperative in Paris was to secure both the loyalty of the troops in Algeria and, begrudgingly, the conquest, albeit with a reduced size for the expedition. Clauzel was sent to replaceLegitimist GeneralLouis-Auguste-Victor de Bourmont as commander in chief of theinvasion of Algeria.[18]
Under Bourmont, French forces had militarily defeated the Deylik, taking control of many major ports across the country. In the case ofOran andBône these would be latter abandoned on hearing of the overthrow of Charles X in France. Bourmont even intended to lead his troops back to France to restore the Bourbons, but, with little support from the rank and file, he opted instead to go into exile in Spain. Clauzel therefore inherited a situation in flux; many units needed new, politically loyal officers, and the size of the expedition was reduced by 50%. Nevertheless, Clauzel oversaw the re-occupation of Oran and Bône but was unable to secure the Algerian interior.[18]
Given his experience fighting during the insurgency in Spain, and mindful of the numerous grievances of Algerians against Ottoman rule, Clauzel attempted to steer French policy away from the likelihood of a protracted engagement. Clauzel's approach involved a political settlement between the French, who would take over as suzerain over theHusaynid rulers of Tunis, who would rule much of Algeria beyond some major ports left to the French. This was done in a system similar to that of thestatus of Algeria under the Ottoman Empire, but with France asoverlord.[18] Clauzel's attempts collapsed; his actions lacking sanction from his superiors in Paris. The arrival of a 500-strong Tunisian contingent led to unrest in Oran, and, having lost support, he was replaced.[18]
Clauzel acted in the absence of orders from theWar Ministry, and while debates were live in parliament about what to do with the territories in North Africa, he set out a clearly defined goal for France in Algeria that matched the military forces available to him given the limited political will in the early 1830s for a large and expensive commitment of troops. The invocation of the Tunisians failed to account for simmering tensions emanating in Algerian society that had been present before the French arrived and were manifested in the unrest that accompanied their arrival.[18]
Elsewhere, Clauzel was an enthusiastic supporter of the first attempt at agriculturalcolonialism in Algeria, especially a model farm in theMitidja.[18] Clauzel would also set up a company to acquire agricultural land and enable settlement by Europeans.[19]
Simultaneous with his removal, Clauzel was appointed aMarshal of France in February 1831.[1][2] In his absence, Algeria sawa small revolving door of successors to Clauzel as governor general. Combined with vacillation in France, this resulted in 'restricted occupation' in Algeria to become the French goal, in the words ofCharles-André Julien, "less a matter of policy than of an absence of policy".[18]
For nearly four years thereafter, he advocated on behalf of Algerian colonists to the Chamber of Deputies,[18] and defended his actions while in military command in Algeria.[1] He advocated for continued occupation, arguing that France's "national honour would be tainted" by withdrawal, not only on account of such an event but also because he believed that France's withdrawal would lead to the massacre of theJewish population of Algeria.[20]
Clauzel wrote and advised the National Assembly and the government on what policy France should take to secure her interests now that the occupation had become permanent, as well as providing information about the physical and human geography of Algeria.[1][20] Amongst these suggestions was support to allowJews to hold positions in local governance and the judiciary, which they had been excluded from underDeylical rule.[20]
Drawing on his own experiences farming in Alabama, Clauzel publicised Algeria as a "Mediterranean Alabama" – suggesting that the climate would be suitable for the cultivation of cotton, sugar, and other colonial produce that France would otherwise have to import.[21]
His first posting to Algeria would also seem Clauzel embroiled in a controversy over property rights over a number of properties in Algeria including the Maison-Carrée and the Ferme de l’Agha, a property that before the conquest had belonged to theAgha of a company ofJanissary cavalry. The farm was seized by French forces under General Loverdo [Fr] immediately after the fall of Algiers, it was converted into a military hospital. Yet later Clauzel would purchase the farm, despite the fact that as commander of French forces he had forbid the purchase of any “corporation property” (biens de corporation) - that is land belonging to the Deylick,waqf endowments for mosques or religious schools or a military estate.[12]
Critics accused Clauzel of abusing his position to enrich himself with property. Investigations into the legality of property transactions made during and just after the conquest including Clauzel's were undertaken by the National Assembly. Clauzel defended himself publicly, relying upon his extensive military record such as his time in Italy (refusing gifts from the King of Sardinia beyond a painting he donated. As well as the expedition to Saint-Domingue, where he was offered houses and plantations as well as local funding for entertainment expenses at his residence by civic organisations, but refused them all instead advocating the need for funding new defences for the town.[12]
Clauzel argued that his purchases were for public good - aimed at encouraging colonialism, stability, and trust and emphasized that, despite opportunities for personal enrichment, he remained relatively poor.[12]
He argued that contested properties were either regulated by official decree, with purchases coming before his own decree to forbid sales, or authorised by the Minister after his departure. His character and prior public service were central to his defence against accusations of misappropriation. The estates would stay in Clauzel's ownership but, the farm had suffered damage from years of use by soldiers quartered there.[12]
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By summer 1835, an uneasy truce had broken down, and hostilities between France andAbd al-Qadir erupted asMakhzen tribes from around Oran sought French protection. On 28 June, a French column was surprised between the low hills around Maqta. The disastrousBattle of Maqta provoked popular outrage in France, and the incumbent governor, General Trèzel, was replaced by Clauzel, who once again returned to North Africa.[1][2] Despite early successes, such as at theBattle of Habra and the capture ofMascara, both in December 1835, and thenTlemcen in January 1836,[2] Clauzel struggled to strike a decicive blow against Abd al-Qadir. These victories were, spoiled as Clauzel by political missteps, such as his imposition of a massiveindemnity upon Tlemcen, thereby failing to turn his conquests into allies, and by Clauzel's inability to bring Abd al-Qadir to battle. The French presence in the Algerian hinterland remained extremely limited.[18]
In the western theatre of Algeria, it took until the summer of 1836 for the French to win a decisive battle against Al-Qadir's forces at theSikkak River, where a ten-thousand-strong contingent of regulars and tribal warriors was routed by GeneralThomas-Robert Bugeaud.[18]
In the east, Clauzel mustered forces to strike at the Beylik of Constantine, with financial and logistical support from the Oran-based merchantJacob Lasry.[22][23] However, due to adverse weather and determined resistance fromAhmad Bey, the 1836attempt to seize Constantine failed.[1] Public and political opinion turned on Clauzel, leading to his recall in February 1837. With French policy shifting to a policy of 'restricted, progressive and peaceful' occupation.[18] This entailed making peace with Abd al-Qadir'ssovereignty with theTreaty of Tafna so they could concentrate forces to avenge Clauzel's defeat.[24] Clauzel's successor was GeneralCharles Marie Denys de Damrémont, who would die during the ultimately successfulsiege of Constantine later in 1837.[18]
Upon his return to France, he retired from active service, vigorously defending his actions before the deputies before withdrawing from public life. HistorianJames McDougall argues in hisHistory of Algeria that General Bugeaud's actions to conclude atreaty subsequent to Clauzel's removal with Abd al-Qadir were short-sighted, and only gave a defeated enemy time to regroup while extracting meaningless concessions. But, this course was necessary if France was to strike at Constantine with the limited forces in theatre. McDougall also, argues Clauzel's arrangements with Tunisian rulers failed to completely understand Algeria as a unique political entity with its own challenges.[18]
Other assessments note the lack of political support in France which limited the success of Clauzel's actions in Algeria.[1][16]
He lived in retirement until his death fromapoplexy at Château du Secourieu inHaute-Garonne in 1842.[1][2]
Because Clauzel donated the Woman with Dropsy, the first painting to be donated to the Louvre Clauzel's name is at the top of the list on the plaque visible in the rotunda of Apollo.[7]
"Clauzel" is one of 660 namesinscribed on theArc de Triomphe, appearing at the top of column 34 on the west side. When asked on Saint Helena which of his generals was the most skilful,Napoleon named Clauzel along with Marshal Suchet andÉtienne Maurice Gérard.[25]
One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Clausel, Bertrand, Count".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 6 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 466.