Jean Augustin Ernouf (Manuel Louis Jean Augustin or Auguste Ernouf) (29 August 1753 – 12 September 1827) was a French general and colonial administrator of the

Revolutionary A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective, to refer to something that has a major, sudden impact on society or on some aspect of human endeavor. ...

and Napoleonic wars. He demonstrated moderate abilities as a combat commander; his real strength lay in his organizational and logistical talents. He held several posts as chief-of-staff and in military administration. He joined the military in 1791, as a private in the French Revolutionary Army; from September 1791 to September 1793, he was promoted from lieutenant to brigadier general. He and his commanding officer were accused of being counter-revolutionaries, disgraced, and then, in 1794, restored to rank. In 1804,

Napoleon I 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 as governor general of the French colony in

Saint-Domingue Saint-Domingue () was a French colony in the western portion of the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, in the area of modern-day Haiti, from 1659 to 1804. The name derives from the Spanish main city in the island, Santo Domingo, which came to refer ...

and

Guadeloupe Guadeloupe (; ; gcf, label=Antillean Creole, Gwadloup, ) is an archipelago and overseas department and region of France in the Caribbean. It consists of six inhabited islands—Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galante, La Désirade, and the ...

, following the suppression of a widespread slave insurrection. Although he was able to reestablish some semblance of order and agricultural production, the British overwhelmed the colony in 1810 and, after a brief engagement, forced him to capitulate. He returned to France on a prisoner exchange, but was charged with treason by

, enraged by the loss of the colony to the British. Before he could be exonerated by a court, 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 use ...

fell; with the

Bourbon Restoration Bourbon Restoration may refer to: France under the House of Bourbon: * Bourbon Restoration in France (1814, after the French revolution and Napoleonic era, until 1830; interrupted by the Hundred Days in 1815) Spain under the Spanish Bourbons: * ...

, he retained his honors, and received command of the III Corps, in Marseille. After the second restoration, he held an administrative position in one of the occupation zones, and later he was elected to the Chamber of Deputies of France.

Military career

After completing school, Ernouf received entered military service as a private in the Revolutionary army. He was commissioned as a lieutenant of infantry in the 1st Battalion of Volunteers of the Orne on the 24 September 1791, and as a

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

on 22 March 1792, and 5 May 1793 he became an ''aide-de-camp'' of General Barthel's Army of the North. On 30 July 1793, he was promoted to the rank of

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 ...

Initial successes in the Lowlands and the lower Rhine

In 1793, during the War of the First Coalition, Ernouf was sent to

Cassel Cassel may refer to: People * Cassel (surname) Places ;France * Cassel, Nord, a town and commune in northern France ** Battle of Cassel (1071) ** Battle of Cassel (1328) ** Battle of Cassel (1677) ;Germany * Cassel, Germany, a city in Hesse renam ...

to strengthen the French position. The

Duke of York Duke of York is a title of nobility in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. Since the 15th century, it has, when granted, usually been given to the second son of English (later British) monarchs. The equivalent title in the Scottish peerage was Du ...

laid siege to

Dunkirk Dunkirk (french: Dunkerque ; vls, label=French Flemish, Duunkerke; nl, Duinkerke(n) ; , ;) is a commune in the department of Nord in northern France.Bergues, on the Belgian border, which had insufficient garrison to fend off the British. Ernouf assembled a force of a thousand men and joined Jean Nicolas Houchard; together they marched to the relief of Dunkirk. Once there, he led a column in attack on the British camp. On ''5 complémentaire an I'' (21 September 1793), which would have been the last day of the first year of the new Republic, he was raised to the rank of brigadier general and was appointed on ''9 vendémiaire an II'' (30 September 1793) as chief of staff to the Army of the North. It was also by his advice that the commander-in-chief, Jean-Baptiste Jourdan, discovered Josias, Prince of Coburg's unfortunate position behind the

Wattignies Wattignies (; nl, Wattenijs) is a commune in the Nord department of northern France. It lies in the south-western part of the Lille conurbation. It covers an area of , and as of 2019 its population was 15,075. Neighboring communes Lille, Fac ...

forest, compelled him to retreat across the

Sambre The Sambre (; nl, Samber, ) is a river in northern France and in Wallonia, Belgium. It is a left-bank tributary of the Meuse, which it joins in the Wallonian capital Namur. The source of the Sambre is near Le Nouvion-en-Thiérache, in the Aisne ...

and subsequently lifted the siege of

Maubeuge Maubeuge (; historical nl, Mabuse or nl, Malbode; pcd, Maubeuche) is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. It is situated on both banks of the Sambre (here canalized), east of Valenciennes and about from the Belgian border ...

: Ernouf's part in this action, the Battle of Hondschoote, earned him his promotion to major general on 23 '' frimaire an II'' (13 December 1793). When Jourdan did not order an aggressive pursuit, both he and Ernouf were recalled by the

Committee of Public Safety The Committee of Public Safety (french: link=no, Comité de salut public) was a committee of the National Convention which formed the provisional government and war cabinet during the Reign of Terror, a violent phase of the French Revolution. S ...

in disgrace. He was suspended on suspicion of being a counter-revolutionary, but reinstated upon the end of the

Reign of Terror The Reign of Terror (french: link=no, la Terreur) was a period of the French Revolution when, following the creation of the First Republic, a series of massacres and numerous public executions took place in response to revolutionary fervour, ...

in 1795. Upon his reinstatement, he was appointed chief of staff of the

Army of the Moselle The Army of the Moselle (''Armée de la Moselle'') was a French Revolutionary Army from 1791 through 1795. It was first known as the ''Army of the Centre'' and it fought at Valmy. In October 1792 it was renamed and subsequently fought at Trier, F ...

and the Army of Sambre-et-Meuse. He held several administrative posts, including a stint in which he helped to develop the topographical and geographical military maps.

Action in Swabia and Switzerland

In 1798, Jourdan appointed him as chief of staff for the Army of Observation. Ernouf was with the Army of Observation when it crossed the Rhine river, in what British historians have called a violation of the Treaty of Campo Formio, resulting in the War of the Second Coalition. On 2 March, the Army was renamed

Army of the Danube The Army of the Danube (french: Armée du Danube, links=no) was a field army of the French Directory in the 1799 southwestern campaign in the Upper Danube valley. It was formed on 2 March 1799 by the simple expedient of renaming the Army ...

, and it marched to Upper

Swabia Swabia ; german: Schwaben , colloquially ''Schwabenland'' or ''Ländle''; archaic English also Suabia or Svebia is a cultural, historic and linguistic region in southwestern Germany. The name is ultimately derived from the medieval Duchy of ...

, where it engaged Archduke Charles' Habsburg force at

Ostrach Ostrach is a municipality in the district of Sigmaringen in Baden-Württemberg in Germany. Geography Ostrach lies between the Danube and Lake Constance, about halfway between Sigmaringen and Ravensburg. It lies on the brook of the same name, w ...

on 21 March, and again on 25 March at Stockach. In both battles, the Habsburg manpower, superior to the French numbers by three to one and two to one respectively, overwhelmed the French lines; Jourdan, the commander of the Army, was unable to concentrate his forces sufficiently to counteract the Habsburg numbers, and withdrew to the Black Forest in late March. Ernouf took command of the Army of the Danube while Jourdan returned to Paris to request more troops. He was replaced as commander of the Army of the Danube by André Masséna, and served as Massena's chief of staff in the Swiss campaign of 1799, during which he saw action in Zurich and central Switzerland; he was again at Zurich for the French victory over

Alexander Rimsky-Korsakov Alexander Mikhailovich Rimsky-Korsakov (russian: Алекса́ндр Миха́йлович Ри́мский-Ко́рсаков) (August 24, 1753May 25, 1840) was a Russian general remembered as an unlucky assistant to Alexander Suvorov during hi ...

Caribbean appointment

In 1804, Ernouf became a Grand Officer of the

Legion of Honor 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 ...

. Shortly afterward, he was sent to

and

as Captain General of the colony, to restore order in the wake of the slave and mulatto rebellion against slavery and the Saint-Domingue campaign of

Charles Victor Emmanuel Leclerc Charles Victoire Emmanuel Leclerc (17 March 1772 – 2 November 1802) was a French Army general who served under Napoleon Bonaparte during the French Revolution. He was husband to Pauline Bonaparte, sister to Napoleon. In 1801, he was sent to S ...

. Within a year, after burning former slaves who refused to go back to the plantations, Ernouf had restored slavery and agricultural production. From his base on Guadeloupe, he dealt generously with many of the refugee planters who escaped the previous years' carnage. He also took over the Swedish island of St. Barts, where the rebels of St. Domingo had taken refuge, and from which they coordinated privateering 80 million francs. There is some evidence to suggest that he either actively encouraged, or at least permitted, the earlier practice of privateering against British and American shipping; British officers later found open commissions, signed by Ernouf, which suggested he was granting commissions to pirates for "services" rendered. Four privateer ships sailing from Guadeloupe between 1805 and 1810 bore the name ''Général Ernouf'', one of which was the captured sloop-of-war HMS ''Lilly''), which underscores his encouragement of privateering. His task was further complicated by the failure of the Treaty of Amiens and the outbreak of war with Britain. To protect Guadeloupe, he established coastal batteries. The British capture of Martinique in 1809 marked a critical point for the French on Guadeloupe; blockaded on all sides by the naval forces of the British, the French civilians and soldiers were reduced to near starvation. In January 1810, the British initiated an invasion of Guadeloupe; Sir

Alexander Cochrane Admiral of the Blue Sir Alexander Inglis Cochrane (born Alexander Forrester Cochrane; 23 April 1758 – 26 January 1832) was a senior Royal Navy commander during the Napoleonic Wars and achieved the rank of admiral. He had previously captain ...

's naval force landed 11,000 British troops under the command of Lieutenant General George Beckwith landed at '' Capesterre'', or the eastern side of the islands. Attacked on three sides at the end of January 1810, Ernouff's force mounted a spirited, although short defense and capitulated on 6 February 1810, after which he was transported to Britain. He was repatriated to France in a prisoner exchange in 1811. Irritated at the loss of Guadeloupe to the British, Napoleon accused him of abuse of power,

embezzlement Embezzlement is a crime that consists of withholding assets for the purpose of conversion of such assets, by one or more persons to whom the assets were entrusted, either to be held or to be used for specific purposes. Embezzlement is a type ...

, and treason. Ernouf spent 23 months in captivity in France while the courts debated how to proceed.

Restoration

At the

, Louis XVIII suspended the proceedings against him for lack of evidence and Ernouf entered into

Bourbon Bourbon may refer to: Food and drink * Bourbon whiskey, an American whiskey made using a corn-based mash * Bourbon barrel aged beer, a type of beer aged in bourbon barrels * Bourbon biscuit, a chocolate sandwich biscuit * A beer produced by Bras ...

service. He was created ''Chevalier'' of Saint-Louis, on 20 August of that year, and he was appointed Inspector General of Infantry. On 3 January 1815, he went in that capacity in Marseille. In March 1815, he received a command in the 1st Corps, under the general command of Charles, Duke of Angoulême.

Napoleon's return

Ernouf was on an inspection away from this command when Napoleon landed at Cannes. Upon his landing, many of the soldiers of Angoulême's army flocked to Bonaparte's banner, beginning 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 ...

. The mere news of Napoleon's escape from Elba and the defection of some of the troops caused Charles, Duke of Angoulême, to panic and capitulate. Ernouf returned to Marseille, where he learned that André Masséna also had chosen the imperial cause, after which he left for Paris. Napoleon rescinded Ernouf's honors and titles, and dismissed him from his post in the military on 15 April 1815. After Napoleon's final defeat at the Battle of Waterloo, the second restoration of the Bourbons that summer also restored Ernouf's rights and property.

Later years

On 3 May 1816, Louis XVIII granted him the title of

Baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...

with the Commander's Cross of the

Order of Saint 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 rewar ...

, which entitled him to wear a red sash (right shoulder to left hip); he automatically received a pension, and hereditary nobility was granted to the son and grandson of knights. On 11 November 1816, Enrouf received command of the III Division, located at Metz, which was occupied by Allied troops as a condition of the Second Treaty of Paris; his role was to maintain harmony between residents and the foreign soldiers. Elected by the

Moselle The Moselle ( , ; german: Mosel ; lb, Musel ) is a river that rises in the Vosges mountains and flows through north-eastern France and Luxembourg to western Germany. It is a bank (geography), left bank tributary of the Rhine, which it jo ...

, in 1816, he obtained in 1818 permission to sit in the

Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourbon R ...

, and left the command of the III Division when he became eligible for retirement on 22 July 1822. He died in Paris on 12 September 1827.

Family

Ernouf was married to Geneviève Miloent (d. 22 November 1822). Ernouf's son, Gaspard Augustin (8 December 1777 – 25 October 1848), was also a military commander during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Gaspard and his wife, Adelaïde Guesdon, were the parents of the 19th century historian, Alfred Auguste Ernouf (1816–1889).Charles Dudley Warner (ed.). "Alfred Auguste Ernouf." ''Biographical Dictionary and Synopsis of Books Ancient and Modern''. Akron, Ohio: Werner, 1902. Alfred August Ernouf wrote several books, his most enduring being ''The art of gardens, their history, practice, and use'', 1868; ''Recollections of the reign of terror'', which appeared in English editions in 1870, ''Maret, duc de Bassano'', 1878, and a biography of '' Denis Papin'', in 1874. He also edited over 70 volumes, including volumes 11–14 of ''History of France'' by Louis-Pierre-Edouard Bignon, after Bignon's death

Alfred Auguste Ernouf.

Sources

Citations and notes

References

* Roy and Lesley Adkins, Adkins, Roy and Lesley. ''War for all the Oceans.'' New York. Penguin, 2008, 978-0143113928. * Blanning, Timothy. ''The French Revolutionary Wars''. New York: Oxford University Press, 1996. . * Blaufarb, Rafe (ed.). "Pierre-Louis Roederer, Speech Proposing the Creation of a Legion of Honour". ''Napoleon: Symbol for an Age, A Brief History with Documents''. New York: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2008. * Dodge, Theodore Ayrault. ''Napoleon: A History of the Art of War''. vol. 3, Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co, 1904. * Etat civil reconstitué 1798–1860: . Paris: ARFIDO S.A., 2006. * Jourdan, Jean-Baptiste. ''A Memoir of the operations of the army of the Danube under the command of General Jourdan, taken from the manuscripts of that officer''. London: Debrett, 1799. * * * Phipps, Ramsey Weston. ''The Armies of the First French Republic, volume 5: The armies of the Rhine in Switzerland, Holland, Italy, Egypt and the coup d'état of Brumaire, 1797–1799''. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1939. * Smith, Digby, '' The Greenhill Napoleonic Wars Data Book: Actions and Losses in Personnel, Colours, Standards and Artillery, 1792–1815''. Greenhill, Pennsylvania: Stackpole, 1998, . * Warner, Charles Dudley (ed.). "Alfred Auguste Ernouf." ''Biographical Dictionary and Synopsis of Books Ancient and Modern''. Akron, Ohio: Werner, 1902.

External links and sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ernouf, Jean Augustin French generals Governors of Saint-Domingue 1753 births 1827 deaths French commanders of the Napoleonic Wars Military leaders of the French Revolutionary Wars People of the Haitian Revolution Grand Officiers of the Légion d'honneur Knights of the Order of Saint Louis Military personnel from Alençon 1810s in Guadeloupe 19th-century French military personnel