François Claude comte du Barail (25 May 1820, in

Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, ...

– 30 January 1902) was a major general, and French Minister of War under the presidency of Marshal MacMahon. At nineteen, he enlisted in the Oran lancers, and distinguished himself by his bravery at

Mostaganem Mostaganem ( ber, Mustɣanem; ar, مستغانم) is a port city in and capital of Mostaganem province, in the northwest of Algeria. The city, founded in the 11th century lies on the Gulf of Arzew, Mediterranean Sea and is 72 km ENE of O ...

in February 1840, was mentioned in dispatches from the army in 1842, and appointed the same year, Lieutenant. Decorated for his conduct in making the tribe of Abd al-Qadir, he obtained the rank of Lieutenant after the

battle of Isly The Battle of Isly () was fought on August 14, 1844 between France and Morocco, near the . French forces under Marshal Thomas Robert Bugeaud routed a much larger, but poorly organized, Moroccan force, mainly fighters from the tribes of , but als ...

, where he was wounded, and, after fighting at

Laghouat Laghouat ( ar, الأغواط; en, Laghwat) is the capital of the Laghouat Province, Algeria, south of the Algerian capital Algiers. Located in the Amour Range of the Saharan Atlas, the town is an oasis on the north edge of the Sahara D ...

, he was promoted squadron leader in the 5th regiment of hussars. The following year, he was promoted lieutenant colonel, and given command of the upper circle of Laghouat, he left for chasseurs to pass the guard. Appointed Colonel of the 1st Regiment Cuirassiers on 30 December 1857, he returned to Africa in 1860, as head of the 3rd Chasseurs and took part, with two squadrons of the regiment in the Mexican War in 1862. During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–1871, Barail was given command of a cavalry division comprising four regiments of ''

Chasseurs d'Afrique The ''Chasseurs d'Afrique'' were a light cavalry corps of chasseurs in the French Armée d'Afrique (Army of Africa). First raised in 1831 from regular French cavalry posted to Algeria, they numbered five regiments by World War II. For most of ...

''. His conduct earned him the rank of brigadier general on 23 March 1871. From May 1873 to May 1874 he was War Minister in the government of Albert de Broglie. He is notably the authority on the general organization of the army. Here ends his career. At the time of the fall of MacMahon (1879), friends of Gambetta, and during his retirement he devoted himself to writing his memoirs.

Works

* "Mes Souvenirs: La Succession de Fleury", ''

La Revue hebdomadaire ''La Revue hebdomadaire'' was a literary magazine founded in 1892 by and published until 1939. History Until the beginning of 20th century, the journal was directed by Pierre Mainguet with as editor. In 1908, it absorbed the monthly magazine '. ...

''. N°82. (T.XIX, 3ème livraison). Paris, Plon-Nourit, 16 décembre 1893 * ''Mes souvenirs'', Plon, 1897-1898

External links

* 1820 births 1902 deaths People from Versailles French generals French Ministers of War Politicians of the French Third Republic French military personnel of the Franco-Prussian War {{France-mil-bio-stub