Jean-Marie Defrance | |
|---|---|
 Jean-Marie Defrance | |
| Born | (1771-09-21)21 September 1771 Vassy, Champagne |
| Died | 6 July 1835(1835-07-06) (aged 63) |
| Allegiance | France |
| Branch | French Revolutionary Army French Imperial Army French Royal Army |
| Service years | 1792–1829 |
| Rank | General of Division |
| Conflicts | Haitian Revolution French Revolutionary Wars Napoleonic Wars |
| Awards | Officier of the Légion d'honneur |
| Other work | Deputy to theNational Convention Council of Five Hundred |
Jean-Marie Defrance (French pronunciation:[ʒɑ̃maʁidəfʁɑ̃s]; 1771–1835) was a French military officer and politician who was a General in theFrench Revolutionary Wars and theNapoleonic Wars. He was also a member of theCouncil of Five Hundred (the lower house of the legislative branch of the French government underThe Directory), and a teacher at the military school ofRebais,Champagne.
Defrance had an extensive and successful military career in theFrench Revolutionary Wars and theNapoleonic Wars. After theFirst Battle of Zurich, he refused a battlefield promotion to brigadier general, asking instead for a cavalry regiment; he received command of the 12th Regiment ofChasseurs-a-Cheval (light cavalry) asChef-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 theBattle of Austerlitz and theBattle of Jena–Auerstedt, he commanded a cavalry brigade ofcarabiniers inÉtienne Marie Antoine Champion de Nansouty's First Division. By theBattle 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 theShevardino redoubt. He fought his way across Germany to theRhine River after the French loss at Leipzig and participated in theSix Days' Campaign.
In theHundred Days, he commanded part ofJean Maximilien Lamarque's Army of the West. At the secondBourbon Restoration, he retained his titles and honours and subsequently held several command posts until retirement in 1829. He died in 1835.
Jean-Marie Defrance was born on 21 September 1771 atVassy, in theChampagne province and died 6 July 1835. On his mother's side, he was the grandson of the French writerPierre Chompré (1698 – 1760); 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.[1]
Defrance was stationed inSaint-Domingue during the firstHaitian revolt and served in the volunteersCape Dragoons. On his return to France in 1792, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the cavalry regimentroyal-étranger. After serving in theArmy of the North, he was appointed adjutant-general brigadier in theArmy of Sambre and t-Meuse. He also served in theCouncil of Five Hundred.[1]
Defrance also served in the Swiss Campaign of 1799 as divisional Chief of Staff of the 1st Division ofJean-Baptiste Jourdan'sArmy of the Danube; after the losses at the battles ofOstrach andStockach in March 1799, the Army of the Danube was combined with theArmy of Helvetia, under the command ofAndré Massena. Defrance continued in his capacity as divisional chief of staff. At theFirst 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.[1] He received command of the 12th Regiment ofChasseurs-a-Cheval.[2] AsChef-de-Brigade, the equivalent ofcolonel in France's revolutionary-erafield army, Defrance went to Italy and participated in the actions leading up to theBattle of Marengo. During the winter of 1800–1801, he campaigned in theGrisons in Switzerland and returned to France after theTreaty of Lunéville in 1801.[1]
In 1803, with Napoleon's military reorganisation, the titleChef-de-Brigade reverted to colonel; Defrance retained his command of the 12th Regiment ofChasseurs-a-Cheval. He was named Officer of theLégion d'honneur 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 ofUlm andAusterlitz.[3]
Honors[1]
|
In 1806, he campaigned againstKingdom of Prussia and Russia at theBattle of Jena–Auerstedt. There, and at theBattle of Friedland on 14 June 1807, he commanded acarabinier brigade—the first and second regiments—inÉtienne Marie Antoine Champion de Nansouty's First Division.[4] Napoleon raised him toCount of the Empire on 2 July 1808.[3] At theBattle of Wagram (1809), he again commanded the carabinier brigade.[1]
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 joinedJoachim Murat's Cavalry in February 1812 for Napoleon'sInvasion of Russia. At theBattle of Borodino, he commanded 4th Cuirassier Division, which included three brigades and two horse artillery units of 12 guns.[5] These were assigned to Nansouty's Reserves and assaulted theShevardino redoubt on 5–6 September.[6]
During the Saxon campaign, Defrance was appointed Inspector General for theGrande Armée.[1] He also commanded the 4th Heavy Cavalry Division at theBattle of Leipzig in October 1813, and one of his brigades remained at Lindenau to cover a possible retreat.[7]
In January 1814, for the last few months of Napoleon's rule, Defrance commanded four regiments ofImperial Guard and fought in theaction of 11 February atMontmirail, during theSix Days' Campaign. On 7 March, with much smaller force than his opponent, he repulsed the Russian assault atRheims, 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.[1]
During the firstBourbon Restoration,Louis XVIII appointed Defrance as inspector general of cavalry. During theHundred Days, Napoleon's brief return to France, Jean-Marie Defrance commanded the cavalry element of theArmy of the West. Under overall command ofJean Maximilien Lamarque, one of Napoleon's fiercest supporters, it was formed to suppress potential Royalist insurrection in theVendée region of France.[8] Defrance did not participate in theBattle 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.[1]
Defrance's name is engraved on the east side of theArc de Triomphe.[1]
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Dominique-Andre De Neil Chef de Brigade 1793–1799 | 12th Regiment of Chasseurs-a-Cheval 1799–1805 Colonel 1803–1805 Chef de Brigade 1799–1803 | Succeeded by |
