Antoine Louis Popon de Maucune (21 February 1772 – 18 February 1824) led a French division against the British in 1811–1813 during the

Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spain ...

. He is referred to as Maucune in English-language sources. He joined the pioneer corps of the French army in 1786 and was a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

by the time the

French Revolutionary Wars The French Revolutionary Wars (french: Guerres de la Révolution française) were a series of sweeping military conflicts lasting from 1792 until 1802 and resulting from the French Revolution. They pitted French First Republic, France against Ki ...

broke out. He fought in the north in 1792 and in the Alps in 1793. Afterward he served in Italy through 1801. During this period, he fought at

Arcole Arcole (pronounced ), historically also known as Arcola, is a ''comune'' with 5,274 inhabitants in the province of Verona. It is known as the site of the Battle of the Bridge of Arcole. History Between 15–17 November 1796, the Battle of Arcole ...

in 1796 and at

Trebbia The Trebbia (stressed ''Trèbbia''; la, Trebia) is a river predominantly of Liguria and Emilia Romagna in northern Italy. It is one of the four main right-bank tributaries of the river Po (river), Po, the other three being the Tanaro River, Tanar ...

, Novi and Genola in 1799. He was appointed to command the 39th Line Infantry Demi-Brigade and led it in the 1800 campaign. During the

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...

Maucune led the 39th in

Marshal Marshal is a term used in several official titles in various branches of society. As marshals became trusted members of the courts of Medieval Europe, the title grew in reputation. During the last few centuries, it has been used for elevated o ...

Michel Ney Michel Ney, 1st Duke of Elchingen, 1st Prince of the Moskva (; 10 January 1769 – 7 December 1815), was a French military commander and Marshal of the Empire who fought in the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars. He was one o ...

VI Corps 6 Corps, 6th Corps, Sixth Corps, or VI Corps may refer to: France * VI Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry formation of the Imperial French army during the Napoleonic Wars * VI Corps (Grande Armée), a formation of the Imperial French army du ...

Elchingen Elchingen is a municipality about 7 km east of Ulm–Neu-Ulm in the district of Neu-Ulm in Bavaria, Germany. Municipality parts: * Thalfingen: 4 211 residents, 8.83 km² * Oberelchingen: 3 024 residents, 7.31 km² * ...

in the 1805 campaign and at

Jena Jena () is a German city and the second largest city in Thuringia. Together with the nearby cities of Erfurt and Weimar, it forms the central metropolitan area of Thuringia with approximately 500,000 inhabitants, while the city itself has a popu ...

Magdeburg Magdeburg (; nds, label=Low Saxon, Meideborg ) is the capital and second-largest city of the German state Saxony-Anhalt. The city is situated at the Elbe river. Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor and founder of the Archdiocese of Magdebur ...

, Soldau, and Eylau in the 1806–1807 campaign. Promoted to

general officer A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED O ...

, he led a brigade at Friedland in 1807. In Spain from 1808 and 1811, he commanded a brigade at Gallegos,

Tamames Tamames is a municipality located in the province of Salamanca Salamanca () is a province of western Spain, in the western part of the autonomous community of Castile and León (Castilla y León). It is bordered by the provinces of Zamora, Vallad ...

Alba de Tormes Alba de Tormes is a municipality in the province of Salamanca, western Spain, part of the autonomous community of Castile and León. The town is on the River Tormes upstream from the city of Salamanca. Alba gave its name to one of Spain's most i ...

Ciudad Rodrigo Ciudad Rodrigo () is a small cathedral city in the province of Salamanca, in western Spain, with a population in 2016 of 12,896. It is also the seat of a judicial district. The site of Ciudad Rodrigo, perched atop a rocky rise on the right bank ...

, Almeida, Bussaco, Casal Novo, and

Fuentes de Oñoro Fuentes de Oñoro is a village and Municipalities of Spain, municipality in the province of Salamanca (province), Salamanca, western Spain, part of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Castile-Leon. It is located from the ...

. In May 1811, the army was reorganized and Maucune was promoted to lead a division. This started a period of remarkable bad luck. At

Salamanca Salamanca () is a city in western Spain and is the capital of the Province of Salamanca in the autonomous community of Castile and León. The city lies on several rolling hills by the Tormes River. Its Old City was declared a UNESCO World Heritag ...

in July 1812, his isolated division was wrecked by a combination of British infantry and cavalry attacks led by Lieutenant-General

Stapleton Cotton Field Marshal Stapleton Cotton, 1st Viscount Combermere (14 November 1773 – 21 February 1865), was a British Army officer, diplomat and politician. As a junior officer he took part in the Flanders Campaign, in the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War and ...

, (later

Viscount Combermere Viscount Combermere, of Bhurtpore in the East Indies and of Combermere in the County Palatine of Chester, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1827 for the prominent military commander Stapleton Stapleton-Cotton, 1 ...

). In June 1813, the British surprised his troops at

San Millán de la Cogolla San Millán de la Cogolla () is a sparsely populated municipality in La Rioja, (Spain). The village is famous for its twin monasteries, Yuso and Suso (Monasterio de San Millán de Yuso and Monasterio de San Millán de Suso), which were declared a ...

. The division missed the

Battle of Vitoria At the Battle of Vitoria (21 June 1813) a British, Portuguese and Spanish army under the Marquess of Wellington broke the French army under King Joseph Bonaparte and Marshal Jean-Baptiste Jourdan near Vitoria in Spain, eventually leading to ...

but helped fight off the Allied pursuit at Tolosa. His division was scattered at

Sorauren Sorauren is a small village close to Pamplona in Navarre, Spain. It is surrounded by the mountains " Ezkaba", " Lanzador" and " Txaraka". There can be found the famous romanic stone bridge. There are several young associations that work to impr ...

in late July 1813 and at the Bidassoa in October. After these defeats, Marshal

Jean-de-Dieu Soult Marshal General Jean-de-Dieu Soult, 1st Duke of Dalmatia, (; 29 March 1769 – 26 November 1851) was a French general and statesman, named Marshal of the Empire in 1804 and often called Marshal Soult. Soult was one of only six officers in Fren ...

replaced him with

Jean François Leval Jean François Leval (18 April 1762 – 7 August 1834) was promoted to general officer during the French Revolutionary Wars and led a division in a number of battles during the Napoleonic Wars. He rapidly rose in rank during the French Revoluti ...

. Sent to Italy, he was defeated at the

Taro River The Taro (Latin ''Tarus'') is a river in Emilia-Romagna, in northern Italy. It is a tributary of the Po and is long. It flows almost entirely in the province of Parma, west of the city Parma. The Taro flows into the Po near Gramignazzo, a fraz ...

in April 1814 while defending against three-to-one odds. Maucune is one of the

names inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe The following is a list of the 660 names inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe, in Paris. Most of them represent generals who served during the French First Republic (1792–1804) and the First French Empire (1804–1815). Underlined names signify tho ...

on Column 35.

Career

Maucune was adjutant to General of Division François Watrin at the Battle of Trebbia. On the second day of battle, 19 June 1799, he personally led some troops in an attack along the south bank of the

Po River The Po ( , ; la, Padus or ; Ligurian language (ancient), Ancient Ligurian: or ) is the longest river in Italy. It flows eastward across northern Italy starting from the Cottian Alps. The river's length is either or , if the Maira (river), Mair ...

Notes

References

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Maucune, Antoine Louis Popon de French generals French military personnel of the French Revolutionary Wars French commanders of the Napoleonic Wars Knights of the Order of Saint Louis Commandeurs of the Légion d'honneur 1772 births 1824 deaths People from Brive-la-Gaillarde Names inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe Burials at Père Lachaise Cemetery