Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

Jean-Baptiste Vaquette de Gribeauval (15 September 1715 – 9 May 1789) was a French

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," f ...

and engineer who revolutionised the French

cannon A cannon is a large- caliber gun classified as a type of artillery, which usually launches a projectile using explosive chemical propellant. Gunpowder ("black powder") was the primary propellant before the invention of smokeless powder ...

, creating a new production system that allowed for lighter, more uniform guns without sacrificing range. His

Gribeauval system The Gribeauval system (French: ''système Gribeauval'') was an artillery system introduced by Lieutenant General Jean Baptiste Vaquette de Gribeauval during the 18th century. This system revolutionized French cannons, with a new production system ...

superseded the de Vallière system. These guns proved essential to French military victories 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 ...

. Gribeauval is credited as the earliest known advocate for the interchangeability of gun parts. He is thus one of the principal influences on the later development (over many decades by many people) of interchangeable manufacture.

Early life

Jean-Baptiste was born in

Amiens Amiens (English: or ; ; pcd, Anmien, or ) is a city and commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme department in the region of Hauts-de-France. In 2021, the population of ...

, the son of a magistrate. He entered the French royal artillery in 1732 as a volunteer, and became an officer in 1735. For nearly twenty years regimental duty and scientific work occupied him, and in 1752 he became captain of a company of

miners A miner is a person who extracts ore, coal, chalk, clay, or other minerals from the earth through mining. There are two senses in which the term is used. In its narrowest sense, a miner is someone who works at the rock face; cutting, blasting, ...

.Summerfield (2011) ''SOJ-2'', p. 20 In 1755, he was employed in a military mission in

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an em ...

. In 1757, being then a

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

, he was lent to the

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

n army on the outbreak of the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754� ...

, and established the Austrian

sapper A sapper, also called a pioneer (military), pioneer or combat engineer, is a combatant or soldier who performs a variety of military engineering duties, such as breaching fortifications, demolitions, bridge-building, laying or clearing minefie ...

corps. He led the sapping operations at the Siege of Glatz and the defence of Schweidnitz. At Schweidnitz, his 1748 design of fortification gun was tested and significantly improved by Master Carpenter Richter. In 1762, he reported back to the Paris authorities on the Austrian artillery system compared with the existing French de Vallière guns. While with the Austrian army he also worked on the continued development of mining in siegecraft. The empress

Maria Theresa Maria Theresa Walburga Amalia Christina (german: Maria Theresia; 13 May 1717 – 29 November 1780) was ruler of the Habsburg dominions from 1740 until her death in 1780, and the only woman to hold the position ''suo jure'' (in her own right). ...

rewarded him for his work with the rank of ''Feldmarschallleutnant'' and the Grand Cross of the Military Order of Maria Theresa. On his return to France he was made ''

maréchal de camp ''Maréchal de camp'' (sometimes incorrectly translated as field marshal) was a general officer rank used by the French Army until 1848. The rank originated from the older rank of sergeant major general ( French: ''sergent-major général''). Se ...

'' (major general), in 1764 Inspector of artillery, and in 1765 ''

lieutenant général Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

'' and commander of the

Order of St Louis The Royal and Military Order of Saint Louis (french: Ordre Royal et Militaire de Saint-Louis) is a dynastic order of chivalry founded 5 April 1693 by King Louis XIV, named after Saint Louis (King Louis IX of France). It was intended as a rewa ...

.Summerfield (2011) ''SOJ-2'', p. 14

Gribeauval system

Gribeauval cannon de 12 An 2 de la Republique

Subsequently, he was for some years in disfavour at court. However, he became first inspector of artillery in 1776, in which year also he received the grand cross of the St Louis Order. He was now able to carry out the reforms in the artillery arm which are his chief title to fame. The ''Table des constructions des principaux attirails de l'artillerie ... de M. de Gribeauval'' covers all the French artillery equipment in detail. He was also responsible for the ''règlement'' for the French artillery issued in 1776. Although much of the work is not directly attributable to Gribeauval, these systems of organisation and uniformity in ordnance have been called ''le système Gribeauval''.

References

Sources

* Chartrand, René (2003), ''Napoleon's guns 1792–1815 (2)'', Osprey Publishing, * Chevalier de Passac, ''Précis sur M. de Gribeauval'' (Paris, 1816) * Dawson, A. L., Dawson P. L. and Summerfield S. (2007) ''Napoleonic Artillery'', Crowood Press, * Graves, Donald (2011) "Louis de Tousard and his 'Artillerists Companion': An Investigation of Source Material for Napoleonic Period Ordnance", ''Smoothbore Ordnance Journal'', pp. 88–97, * Hennbert, ''Gribeauval, lieutenant-général des armées du roy'' (Paris, 1896) * * Puységur in ''

Journal de Paris The ''Journal de Paris'' (1777–1840) was the first daily French newspaper.(7 October 2014)The first French daily: Journal de Paris History of JournalismAndrews, ElizabethBetween Auteurs and Abonnés: Reading the Journal de Paris, 1787–1789 '' ...

'', supplement of 8 July 1789 * Smith, Digby (trans.) (2011) "The 18 Questions on Austrian Artillery that Gribeauval Answered in his report Dated March 1762", ''Smoothbore Ordnance Journal'', Issue 1, pp. 60–65, * Smith, Digby (trans.) (2011) "Biography of Jean Baptiste de Gribeauval (1715–1789) in Wurzbach 1859", ''Smoothbore Ordnance Journal'', Issue 1, pp. 58–64, * Summerfield, Stephen (2011) "Summary of Gribeauval's Life", ''Smoothbore Ordnance Journal'', Issue 2, pp. 9–23, * Summerfield, Stephen (2011) "Gribeauval in Austrian Service", ''Smoothbore Ordnance Journal'', Issue 2, pp. 24–35, * Summerfield, Stephen (2011) "Gribeauval Garrison Carriage", ''Smoothbore Ordnance Journal'', Issue 2, pp. 36–56, * Summerfield, Stephen (2011) "Gribeauval's Objection towards Regimental Artillery", ''Smoothbore Ordnance Journal'', Issue 2, pp. 57–59, * Veyrines, (1889) ''Gribeauval'' Paris * Wurzbach, Constant von (1859) ''Biographisches Lexikon des Kaiserthums Oesterreich,'' Volume 5, pp. 332–334 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gribeauval, Jean-Baptiste Vaquette De French generals French military engineers 1715 births 1789 deaths Grand Crosses of the Military Order of Maria Theresa Commanders of the Order of Saint Louis