Jean-Baptiste Cervoni

Soveria Soveria is a commune in the Haute-Corse department of France on the island of Corsica. Population Transport The town is served by a station on the Corsican Railways. See also *Communes of the Haute-Corse department The following is a ...

(29 August 1765 – Eckmühl 22 April 1809) became a

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 ...

in the French army during 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 ...

and was killed in action in 1809 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 ...

Revolution

Born a Corsican in 1765, Cervoni enlisted in the French army as a private in the Royal Corsican Regiment in 1783. His father forced him to quit the military in 1786 to study law. In 1792 Cervoni rejoined the army as a

sous-lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until 19 ...

in a cavalry unit. He served as aide to General Raphael Casabianca. He distinguished himself at the

Siege of Toulon The siege of Toulon (29 August – 19 December 1793) was a military engagement that took place during the Federalist revolts of the French Revolutionary Wars. It was undertaken by Republican forces against Royalist rebels supported by Anglo-Spa ...

in 1793. During the siege he was wounded twice and promoted to ''

chef de battalion A chef is a trained professional cook and tradesman who is proficient in all aspects of food preparation, often focusing on a particular cuisine. The word "chef" is derived from the term ''chef de cuisine'' (), the director or head of a kitche ...

'' and later ''

chef de brigade Chef de brigade was a military rank in the French Royal Artillery and in the revolutionary French armies. Before the revolution ''Chef de brigade'' was equivalent to major in the French Royal Corps of Artillery. Each regiment of artillery was div ...

''. At this time he may have been associated with Representative of the People Antoine Christophe Saliceti, a fellow Corsican. He was also a friend of the

Bonaparte family Italian and Corsican: ''Casa di Buonaparte'', native_name_lang=French, coat of arms=Arms of the French Empire3.svg, caption=Coat of arms assumed by Emperor Napoleon I, image_size=150px, alt=Coat of Arms of Napoleon I, Emperor of the French, typ ...

. Promoted to

general of brigade Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed to ...

on 14 January 1794, he was posted to the Army of Italy. Under the command of

André Masséna André Masséna, Prince of Essling, Duke of Rivoli (born Andrea Massena; 6 May 1758 – 4 April 1817) was a French military commander during the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars.Donald D. Horward, ed., trans, annotated, The Fre ...

, he fought at the

Battle of Loano The Battle of Loano occurred on 23–24 November 1795 during the War of the First Coalition. The French Army of Italy led by Barthélemy Schérer defeated the combined Austrian and Sardinian forces under Olivier, Count of Wallis. Context In ...

in November 1795. In the spring of 1796,

Napoleon Bonaparte 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 ...

took command of the army of Italy. At the beginning of the Montenotte Campaign on 10 April, Cervoni's 3,500-man brigade was attacked by 10,000 Austrians led by Johann Beaulieu at Voltri (now a suburb of

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...

). Cervoni "conducted a masterly withdrawal to the west, eluding the trap."Chandler, p 470 Bonaparte quickly counterattacked, compelled the

Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont The Kingdom of Sardinia,The name of the state was originally Latin: , or when the kingdom was still considered to include Corsica. In Italian it is , in French , in Sardinian , and in Piedmontese . also referred to as the Kingdom of Savoy-S ...

to make peace, and forced the Austrians to retreat. During the pursuit of the Austrian army, Cervoni helped rally the troops at the

Battle of Lodi The Battle of Lodi was fought on 10 May 1796 between French forces under Napoleon Bonaparte and an Austrian rear guard led by Karl Philipp Sebottendorf at Lodi, Lombardy. The rear guard was defeated, but the main body of Johann Peter Beaulie ...

. Later, he fought at the Siege of Mantua and the battles of

Lonato Lonato del Garda (before 1 July 2007 simply Lonato; lmo, label=Eastern Lombard, Lonad, ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Brescia, in Lombardy, northern Italy. Lonato is located about halfway between Milan and Venice, on the southwes ...

, Castiglione,

Arcola Arcola may refer to: Places ; Australia * Arcola, Grafton, a heritage-listed house in New South Wales ;Canada * Arcola, Saskatchewan, a town in the Province of Saskatchewan * Arcola Airport, an airport in the Province of Saskatchewan ;England * ...

, and Rivoli.

Empire

Cervoni was named

general of division Divisional general is a general officer rank who commands an army division. The rank originates from the French (Revolutionary) System, and is used by a number of countries. The rank is above a brigade general, and normally below an army corp ...

in February 1798. After putting down a revolt in Rome, he commanded a military division that included four departments in southwest France. On 14 June 1804, he became a commandant in 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 ...

. Named

chief of staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supporti ...

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 ...

Jean Lannes Jean Lannes, 1st Duke of Montebello, Prince of Siewierz (10 April 1769 – 31 May 1809), was a French military commander and a Marshal of the Empire who served during both the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. He was one of Napoleon's ...

in 1809, he joined the forces massing against the

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire (german: link=no, Kaiserthum Oesterreich, modern spelling , ) was a Central-Eastern European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs. During its existence, ...

. On 22 April a cannonball took Cervoni's head off during the

Battle of Eckmühl The Battle of Eckmühl, fought on 22 April 1809, was the turning point of the 1809 Campaign, also known as the War of the Fifth Coalition. Napoleon I had been unprepared for the start of hostilities on 10 April 1809, by the Austrians under th ...

. CERVONI is engraved on column 17 of the

Arc de Triomphe The Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile (, , ; ) is one of the most famous monuments in Paris, France, standing at the western end of the Champs-Élysées at the centre of Place Charles de Gaulle, formerly named Place de l'Étoile—the ''étoile'' ...

in Paris.

References

Books

* Boycott-Brown, Martin. ''The Road to Rivoli.'' London: Cassell & Co., 2001. * Chandler, David. ''Dictionary of the Napoleonic Wars.'' New York: Macmillan, 1979. * Smith, Digby. ''The Napoleonic Wars Data Book.'' London: Greenhill, 1998.

External links

The Names of 660 persons inscribed on the Arc de Triomphe

Cervoni by Martin Boycott-Brown

Footnotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cervoni, Jean-Baptiste French generals Military leaders of the French Revolutionary Wars French military personnel of the French Revolutionary Wars French military personnel killed in the Napoleonic Wars French military personnel of the Napoleonic Wars 1765 births 1809 deaths Names inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe