Denis Decrès (18 June 1761 – 7 December 1820) was an officer of the
French Navy
The French Navy (french: Marine nationale, lit=National Navy), informally , is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in t ...
and
count
Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...
, later
duke
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...
of the
First Empire First Empire may refer to:
* First British Empire, sometimes used to describe the British Empire between 1583 and 1783
* First Bulgarian Empire (680–1018)
*First French Empire (1804–1814/1815)
* First German Empire or "First Reich", sometimes u ...
.
Early career
Decrès was born in
Châteauvillain
Châteauvillain () is a commune in the Haute-Marne department in north-eastern France.
Geography
The Aujon flows north-northwestward through the western part of the commune and crosses the village.
See also
*Communes of the Haute-Marne depart ...
,
Haute-Marne
Haute-Marne (; English: Upper Marne) is a department in the Grand Est region of Northeastern France. Named after the river Marne, its prefecture is Chaumont. In 2019, it had a population of 172,512.De Grasse. He took part in all the combats which this fleet had to sustain. While he was a member of the crew of the ''Richmond'', during the
Battle of the Saintes
The Battle of the Saintes (known to the French as the Bataille de la Dominique), also known as the Battle of Dominica, was an important naval battle in the Caribbean between the British and the French that took place 9–12 April 1782. The Brit ...
on 12 April 1782, he went in a boat under fire from British ships to attach a tow cable to the ''Glorieux'', which had been dismasted out of the danger in which it was placed. He was rewarded with a promotion to ''
enseigne de vaisseau
Ensign (; Late Middle English, from Old French (), from Latin (plural)) is a junior rank of a commissioned officer in the armed forces of some countries, normally in the infantry or navy. As the junior officer in an infantry regiment was tra ...
''. This event is commemorated on one side of his tomb. He was in
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
when the
French Revolution
The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...
broke out.
Revolutionary era
In October 1793, Decrès was sent as a messenger to request assistance for the Isle de France (now
Mauritius
Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ...
). He was arrested on his arrival in
Lorient
Lorient (; ) is a town (''Communes of France, commune'') and Port, seaport in the Morbihan Departments of France, department of Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in western France.
History
Prehistory and classical antiquity
Beginn ...
, on 10 April 1794, for being a member of the nobility. He was restored to his rank of
capitaine de vaisseau
Captain is the name most often given in English-speaking navies to the rank corresponding to command of the largest ships. The rank is equal to the army rank of colonel and air force rank of group captain.
Equivalent ranks worldwide includ ...
in June 1795, and promoted to command of the 80-gun ship ''Formidable'' in October 1795. While in command of her, he took part, as a division commander, in the failed attempt to invade
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
Malta
Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...
.
Napoleon
Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
appointed him to command the frigate squadron accompanying Brueys's fleet in the expedition to Egypt, and took part in the disastrous French defeat at the
Battle of the Nile
The Battle of the Nile (also known as the Battle of Aboukir Bay; french: Bataille d'Aboukir) was a major naval battle fought between the British Royal Navy and the Navy of the French Republic at Aboukir Bay on the Mediterranean coast off the ...
on the 40-gun frigate ''Diane'' and managed to escape to
Malta
Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...
, where he hoisted his flag aboard the 80-gun ship ''Guillaume Tell''. During the period of 1799 - 1800, Decrès had under his command a rear admiral,
Jacques Bedout
Jacques Bedout (January 13, 1751, Quebec – April 17, 1818, Pauillac) was a Canadian born naval officer who had both a merchant marine and Royal Navy career in France.
He was born to parents Marie Françoise Barolet and Jean-Antoine Bedout, the ...
, whom he saw fit to relieve of his command. Bedout's subsequent resignation was refused and in 1802, Napoleon gave Bedout a five-ship squadron. The flagship was the ''Argonaute''.
Consulate and First Empire
Attacked by three British ships as he was trying to break the blockade of Malta on 30 March 1800, with 200 sick and 1000 soldiers aboard, he surrendered early next day with half of his crew killed or wounded. He was exchanged in August 1800, and returned to France, where the
First Consul
The Consulate (french: Le Consulat) was the top-level Government of France from the fall of the Directory in the coup of 18 Brumaire on 10 November 1799 until the start of the Napoleonic Empire on 18 May 1804. By extension, the term ''The Con ...
personally gave him an honour sabre - a grant of the "Arms of Honour" which Napoleon had introduced as a decoration before instituting the
Légion d'honneur
The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...
- and appointed him as maritime prefect at Lorient. From 3 October 1801 to the end of the Empire on 1 April 1814, he served as Napoleon's
Minister of the Navy Minister of the Navy may refer to:
* Minister of the Navy (France)
* Minister of the Navy (Italy)
The Italian Minister of the Navy ( it, Ministri della Marina del Regno) was a member in the Council Ministers until 1947, when the ministry merged ...
. During this period, he was again promoted - this time to vice-amiral - on 30 May 1804,
In 1808, he was made a
count of the empire
As Emperor of the French, Napoleon I created titles of nobility to institute a stable elite in the First French Empire, after the instability resulting from the French Revolution.
Like many others, both before and since, Napoleon found that th ...
. In April 1813 he was made a duke, and on 3 November that year he married Marie-Rose Rosine Clary of the influential Clary family, she was the cousin by birth of
Julie Clary
Marie Julie Clary (26 December 1771 – 7 April 1845), was Queen of Naples, then of Spain and the Indies, as the wife of Joseph Bonaparte, who was King of Naples from January 1806 to June 1808, and later King of Spain and the Spanish West Indi ...
. Marie-Rose had previously been married to General Saligny until the latter's death in 1809. Through marriage Dècres became brother-in-law to Marshal Suchet, and nephew of both
Marshal Bernadotte
sv, Karl Johan Baptist Julius
, spouse =
, issue = Oscar I of Sweden
, house = Bernadotte
, father = Henri Bernadotte
, mother = Jeanne de Saint-Jean
, birth_date =
, birth_place = Pau, ...
and
Joseph Bonaparte
it, Giuseppe-Napoleone Buonaparte es, José Napoleón Bonaparte
, house = Bonaparte
, father = Carlo Buonaparte
, mother = Letizia Ramolino
, birth_date = 7 January 1768
, birth_place = Corte, Corsica, Republic of ...
. Upon Napoleon's return from
Elba
Elba ( it, isola d'Elba, ; la, Ilva) is a Mediterranean island in Tuscany, Italy, from the coastal town of Piombino on the Italian mainland, and the largest island of the Tuscan Archipelago. It is also part of the Arcipelago Toscano National ...
to France, Decrès briefly resumed his post as Minister of the Navy again during the
Hundred Days
The Hundred Days (french: les Cent-Jours ), also known as the War of the Seventh Coalition, marked the period between Napoleon's return from eleven months of exile on the island of Elba to Paris on20 March 1815 and the second restoration ...
from 20 March to 22 June 1815, and from then until his successor was appointed on 7 July. He died in a fire at his house in
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
on 7 December 1820, set by one of his servants who was trying to kill and rob him. He is buried in
Père Lachaise Cemetery
Père Lachaise Cemetery (french: Cimetière du Père-Lachaise ; formerly , "East Cemetery") is the largest cemetery in Paris, France (). With more than 3.5 million visitors annually, it is the most visited necropolis in the world. Notable figures ...
. His tomb has a low relief sculpture depicting his brave actions in rescuing the Glorieux during the
Battle of the Saintes
The Battle of the Saintes (known to the French as the Bataille de la Dominique), also known as the Battle of Dominica, was an important naval battle in the Caribbean between the British and the French that took place 9–12 April 1782. The Brit ...