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Louis-Alexandre Berthier (20 November 1753 – 1 June 1815),
Prince of Neuchâtel A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...
and
Valangin Valangin () is a former municipality in the district of Val-de-Ruz in the canton of Neuchâtel in Switzerland. On 1 January 2021 the former municipalities of Corcelles-Cormondrèche, Peseux and Valangin merged into the municipality of Neuchâ ...
,
Prince of Wagram Prince of Wagram (; ) was a title of French nobility that was granted to Marshal Louis-Alexandre Berthier in 1809. It was created as a victory title by Emperor Napoleon I after the Battle of Wagram. Berthier had previously been granted the title of ...
, was a French
Marshal of the Empire Marshal of the Empire (french: Maréchal d'Empire) was a civil dignity during the First French Empire. It was created by '' Sénatus-consulte'' on 18 May 1804 and to a large extent reinstated the formerly abolished title of Marshal of France. Ac ...
who served 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 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 ...
. He was twice Minister of War of France and served as chief of staff to
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 ...
. Born into a military family, Berthier served in the French Army and survived suspicion of monarchism during 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, ...
before a rapid rise in the ranks of the
French Revolutionary Army The French Revolutionary Army (french: Armée révolutionnaire française) was the French land force that fought the French Revolutionary Wars from 1792 to 1804. These armies were characterised by their revolutionary fervour, their poor equipme ...
. Although a key supporter of the coup against the
Directory Directory may refer to: * Directory (computing), or folder, a file system structure in which to store computer files * Directory (OpenVMS command) * Directory service, a software application for organizing information about a computer network's u ...
that gave Napoleon supreme power, and present for his greatest victories, Berthier strongly opposed the progressive stretching of lines of communication during the
Russian campaign The French invasion of Russia, also known as the Russian campaign, the Second Polish War, the Army of Twenty nations, and the Patriotic War of 1812 was launched by Napoleon Bonaparte to force the Russian Empire back into the continental block ...
. Allowed to retire by the restored Bourbon regime, he died of unnatural causes shortly before the
Battle of Waterloo The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (at that time in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium). A French army under the command of Napoleon was defeated by two of the armie ...
. Berthier's reputation as a superb operational organiser remains strong among current historians.


Early life

Berthier was born on 20 November 1753 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, u ...
to Lieutenant-colonel
Jean-Baptiste Berthier Jean-Baptiste Berthier (1721–1804) was an officer (Lieutenant-Colonel) in the French Corps of Topographical Engineers during the reigns of Louis XV and Louis XVI. Biography Early life Jean-Baptiste Berthier was born on 6 January 1721 in Tonnerr ...
(1721–1804), an officer in the Corps of Topographical Engineers, and his first wife (married in 1746) Marie Françoise L'Huillier de La Serre. He was the eldest of five children, with the three brothers also serving in the French Army, two becoming generals 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 ...
.


Military career

As a boy, Berthier was instructed in the military art by his father, an officer of the ''Corps de genie'' (Engineer Corps). At the age of seventeen, he entered the army, serving successively in the staff, the engineers, and the Prince of Lambesc's Royal Allemand-Dragoon Regiment. In 1780, Berthier went to North America with General Rochambeau, and on his return, having attained the rank of colonel, he was employed in various staff posts and in a military mission to Prussia. During 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 ...
, as chief of staff of the Versailles National Guard, he protected the aunts of
Louis XVI Louis XVI (''Louis-Auguste''; ; 23 August 175421 January 1793) was the last King of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. He was referred to as ''Citizen Louis Capet'' during the four months just before he was ...
from popular violence, and aided their escape in 1791. In 1792, Berthier was at once made chief of staff to Marshal
Nicolas Luckner Nicolas, Count Luckner (german: Johann Nikolaus, Graf Luckner; 12 January 1722, Cham in der Oberpfalz – 4 January 1794, Paris) was a German officer in French service who rose to become a Marshal of France. Luckner grew up in Cham, in eastern ...
, and he bore a distinguished part in the Argonne campaign of Generals Dumouriez and Kellermann. He served with great credit in the
War in the Vendée The war in the Vendée (french: link=no, Guerre de Vendée) was a counter-revolution from 1793 to 1796 in the Vendée region of France during the French Revolution. The Vendée is a coastal region, located immediately south of the river Loir ...
of 1793–1795, and the next year was made a general of division and chief of staff (''major-général'') to the Army of Italy, which Bonaparte had recently been appointed to command. He played an important role in the
Battle of Rivoli The Battle of Rivoli (14–15 January 1797) was a key victory in the French campaign in Italy against Austria. Napoleon Bonaparte's 23,000 Frenchmen defeated an attack of 28,000 Austrians under General of the Artillery Jozsef Alvinczi, e ...
, relieving General Joubert when the latter was attacked by the Austrian general Jozsef Alvinczi. His power of work, accuracy and quick comprehension, combined with his long and varied experience and his complete mastery of detail, made Berthier the ideal chief of staff. In this capacity, Berthier was Napoleon's most valued assistant for the rest of his career. Berthier accompanied Napoleon throughout the campaign of 1796, and was left in charge of the army after the
Treaty of Campo Formio The Treaty of Campo Formio (today Campoformido) was signed on 17 October 1797 (26 Vendémiaire VI) by Napoleon Bonaparte and Count Philipp von Cobenzl as representatives of the French Republic and the Austrian monarchy, respectively. The treat ...
. He was in this post in 1798 when he entered Italy, invaded the Vatican, organized the
Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( la, Res publica Romana ) was a form of government of Rome and the era of the classical Roman civilization when it was run through public representation of the Roman people. Beginning with the overthrow of the Roman Kin ...
, and took Pope
Pius VI Pope Pius VI ( it, Pio VI; born Count Giovanni Angelo Braschi, 25 December 171729 August 1799) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 15 February 1775 to his death in August 1799. Pius VI condemned the French Revoluti ...
prisoner. Berthier supervised the Pope’s relocation to Valence, where, after a tortuous journey, Pius died. The death of the Pope dealt a major blow to the Vatican's political power which, however, did not prove as ephemeral as that of the First French Empire. After this, Berthier joined his chief in Egypt, serving there until Napoleon's return. He assisted in the
Coup of 18 Brumaire The Coup d'état of 18 Brumaire brought Napoleon Bonaparte to power as First Consul of France. In the view of most historians, it ended the French Revolution and led to the Coronation of Napoleon as Emperor. This bloodless '' coup d'état'' ...
(9 November 1799), afterwards becoming
Minister of War A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...
for a time. During the
Battle of Marengo The Battle of Marengo was fought on 14 June 1800 between French forces under the First Consul Napoleon Bonaparte and Austrian forces near the city of Alessandria, in Piedmont, Italy. Near the end of the day, the French overcame General Mich ...
, Berthier was the nominal head of the Army of Reserve, but the first consul accompanied the army and he acted in reality, as always, as chief of staff to Napoleon. Lest one think that this was a relatively safe job, a contemporary subordinate staff officer, Brossier, reports that at the
Battle of Marengo The Battle of Marengo was fought on 14 June 1800 between French forces under the First Consul Napoleon Bonaparte and Austrian forces near the city of Alessandria, in Piedmont, Italy. Near the end of the day, the French overcame General Mich ...
: At the close of the campaign, he was employed in civil and diplomatic business. This included a mission to Spain in August 1800, which resulted in the retrocession of
Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...
to France by the Treaty of San Ildefonso on 1 October 1800, and led to the
Louisiana Purchase The Louisiana Purchase (french: Vente de la Louisiane, translation=Sale of Louisiana) was the acquisition of the territory of Louisiana by the United States from the French First Republic in 1803. In return for fifteen million dollars, or app ...
. When Napoleon became emperor, Berthier was at once made a
Marshal of the Empire Marshal of the Empire (french: Maréchal d'Empire) was a civil dignity during the First French Empire. It was created by '' Sénatus-consulte'' on 18 May 1804 and to a large extent reinstated the formerly abolished title of Marshal of France. Ac ...
. He took part in the campaigns of
Austerlitz Austerlitz may refer to: History * Battle of Austerlitz, an 1805 victory by the French Grand Army of Napoleon Bonaparte Places * Austerlitz, German name for Slavkov u Brna in the Czech Republic, which gave its name to the Battle of Austerlitz a ...
,
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, and Friedland. He was made Duke of
Valangin Valangin () is a former municipality in the district of Val-de-Ruz in the canton of Neuchâtel in Switzerland. On 1 January 2021 the former municipalities of Corcelles-Cormondrèche, Peseux and Valangin merged into the municipality of Neuchâ ...
in 1806 and Vice-Constable of the Empire in 1807. When Napoleon deposed King
Frederick William III of Prussia Frederick William III (german: Friedrich Wilhelm III.; 3 August 1770 – 7 June 1840) was King of Prussia from 16 November 1797 until his death in 1840. He was concurrently Elector of Brandenburg in the Holy Roman Empire until 6 August 1806, wh ...
from the principality of Neuchâtel, Berthier was appointed its ruler. This lasted until 1814 and also brought him the title of sovereign prince in 1806. In 1808, he served in the
Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spain ...
, and in 1809, served in the Austrian theatre during the
War of the Fifth Coalition The War of the Fifth Coalition was a European conflict in 1809 that was part of the Napoleonic Wars and the Coalition Wars. The main conflict took place in central Europe between the Austrian Empire of Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor, Francis ...
, after which he was given the title of
Prince of Wagram Prince of Wagram (; ) was a title of French nobility that was granted to Marshal Louis-Alexandre Berthier in 1809. It was created as a victory title by Emperor Napoleon I after the Battle of Wagram. Berthier had previously been granted the title of ...
. He was with Napoleon in Russia in 1812, and took part in the extremely unusual council of war on whether to proceed, being one of several who advised against an advance on Moscow which Napoleon had decided on, encouraged by
Joachim Murat Joachim Murat ( , also , ; it, Gioacchino Murati; 25 March 1767 – 13 October 1815) was a French military commander and statesman who served during the French Revolutionary Wars and Napoleonic Wars. Under the French Empire he received the ...
who was blamed by many for the horse-killing pace of the march into Russia. Berthier is said to have burst into tears at the decision. He served in Germany in 1813, and France in 1814, fulfilling, until the fall of the French Empire, the functions of ''major-général'' of the '' Grande Armée''. Following Napoleon's first abdication, Berthier retired to his 600-acre (2.4 km²) estate, and resumed his hobbies of
falconry Falconry is the hunting of wild animals in their natural state and habitat by means of a trained bird of prey. Small animals are hunted; squirrels and rabbits often fall prey to these birds. Two traditional terms are used to describe a person ...
and
sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...
. He made peace with
Louis XVIII Louis XVIII (Louis Stanislas Xavier; 17 November 1755 – 16 September 1824), known as the Desired (), was King of France from 1814 to 1824, except for a brief interruption during the Hundred Days in 1815. He spent twenty-three years in ...
in 1814 and accompanied the king on his solemn entry into Paris. During Napoleon's short exile on
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 Nationa ...
, he informed Berthier of his projects. Berthier was much perplexed as to his future course and, being unwilling to commit to Napoleon, fell under the suspicion both of his old leader and of Louis XVIII. On Napoleon's return to France, Berthier withdrew to Bamberg, where he died a few weeks later on 1 June 1815 in a fall from an upstairs window. The manner of his death is uncertain. According to some accounts, he was assassinated by members of a secret society, while others say that, maddened by the sight of Russian troops marching to invade France, he threw himself from his window and was killed. The loss of Berthier's skills at Waterloo was keenly felt by Napoleon, as he later stated succinctly:


Character assessment

Berthier was an immensely skilled chief of staff, but he was not a great field commander. When he was in temporary command in 1809, the French army in
Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...
underwent a series of reverses. Despite the fact that his merit as a general was completely overshadowed by the genius of Napoleon, Berthier was nevertheless renowned for his excellent organising skills and being able to understand and carry out the emperor's directions to the minutest detail. General
Paul Thiébault Paul Charles François Adrien Henri Dieudonné Thiébault (14 December 1769, Berlin - 14 October 1846, Paris) was a general who fought in Napoleon I's army. During his military career he wrote a number of histories and memoirs, the last of whic ...
said of him in 1796:
No one could have better suited General Bonaparte, who wanted a man capable of relieving him of all detailed work, to understand him instantly and to foresee what he would need.


Marriage and family

In 1796, Berthier fell in love with Giuseppa Carcano, marquise Visconti di Borgorato, who was to be his mistress for the duration of the First French Empire, despite the emperor's disapproval. Even when Napoleon forced him to marry a Bavarian princess, the Duchess Maria Elisabeth, in 1808, Berthier managed to keep his mistress and his wife together under the same roof, a state of affairs which infuriated the emperor. On 9 March 1808, Berthier married Elisabeth who was the only daughter of
Duke Wilhelm in Bavaria Duke Wilhelm in Bavaria, full German name: ''Wilhelm, Herzog in Bayern'' (born 10 November 1752 in Gelnhausen, Palatinate-Birkenfeld-Gelnhausen; died 8 January 1837 in Landshut or Bamberg, Kingdom of Bavaria) was Count Palatine of Birkenfeld-Gel ...
and Countess Palatine Maria Anna of Zweibrücken-Birkenfeld-Rappoltstein, the sister of King
Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria Maximilian I Joseph (german: Maximilian I. Joseph; 27 May 1756 – 13 October 1825) was Duke of Zweibrücken from 1795 to 1799, prince-elector of Bavaria (as Maximilian IV Joseph) from 1799 to 1806, then King of Bavaria (as Maximilian I Joseph) ...
, and a relative of the Russian emperor through the Wittelsbach line on the Bavarian side and Prussian (Mecklenburg) side of her lineage. They had one son and two daughters : * Napoléon-Alexandre, 2nd Duke and 2nd Prince of Wagram (11 September 1810 – 10 February 1887), married on 29 June 1831 to Zénaïde Françoise Clary (25 November 1812 – 27 April 1884). They had two daughters, Malcy Louise Caroline Frédérique Berthier Princess of Walgram (1832-1884), Elisabeth Alexandrine Maria Berthier Princess of Wagram (1849–1932) and a son,
Louis Philippe Marie Alexandre Berthier, 3rd Prince of Wagram Louis Philippe Marie "Alexandre" Berthier, 3rd Prince of Wagram (24 March 1836, Paris – 15 July 1911, Château de Grosbois) was a French nobleman and prince of Wagram. He was the son of Napoléon Alexandre Berthier and Zénaïde Françoise Cla ...
(1836–1911) *Caroline-Joséphine, Princess of Wagram (22 August 1812 – 1905), married on 9 October 1832 to Alphonse Napoléon, Baron d'Hautpoul (29 May 1806 – 25 April 1889) *Marie Anne Wilhelmine Alexandrine Elisabeth, Princess of Wagram (19 February 1816 – 23 July 1878). Born shortly after her father's death. Married on 24 June 1834 to Jules Lebrun, 3rd Duke of Plaisance (19 April 1811 – 15 January 1872)


In literature

Berthier is mentioned and/or appears in several of
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle (22 May 1859 – 7 July 1930) was a British writer and physician. He created the character Sherlock Holmes in 1887 for '' A Study in Scarlet'', the first of four novels and fifty-six short stories about Ho ...
's
Brigadier Gerard Brigadier Gerard is the comedic hero of a series of 17 historical short stories, a play, and a major character in a novel by the British writer Arthur Conan Doyle. Brigadier Etienne Gerard is a Hussar officer in the French Army during the Napoleon ...
stories, including ''How the Brigadier Was Tempted by the Devil'' (1895) and in Leo Tolstoy's ''
War and Peace ''War and Peace'' (russian: Война и мир, translit=Voyna i mir; pre-reform Russian: ; ) is a literary work by the Russian author Leo Tolstoy that mixes fictional narrative with chapters on history and philosophy. It was first published ...
''.


Notes


References

* ;Attribution


Further reading

*Bukhari, Emir ''Napoleon's Marshals'' Osprey Publishing, 1979, . *Chandler, David ''Napoleon's Marshals'' Macmillan Pub Co, 1987, . *Connelly, Owen, ''Blundering to Glory: Napoleon's Military Campaigns'' SR Books, 1999, . *Elting, John R. ''Swords around a Throne: Napoleon's Grande Armée'' Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1997, . * Haythornthwaite, Philip ''Napoleon's Commanders (2): c.1809-15'' Osprey Publishing, 2002, . *Hittle, James Donald ''the Military Staff: Its History and Development'' Military Service Publishing, 1952. *Macdonell, A. G. ''Napoleon and His Marshals'' Prion, 1997, . *Pawly, Ronald ''Napoleon's Imperial Headquarters (1): Organization and Personnel'' Osprey Publishing, 2004, . *Pawly, Ronald ''Napoleon's Imperial Headquarters (2): On campaign'' Osprey Publishing, 2004, . *Watson, S.J. ''By Command of the Emperor: A Life of Marshal Berthier''. Ken Trotman Ltd, .


Archive sources

The Berthier collection is conserved in the archives of the State of Neuchâtel. It contains more than 2'000 items inventoried in 1895-1896 by Albert Dufourcq. The collection contains correspondence sent and received by the prince in connection with the general affairs of the Principality or particular affairs. *


External links


Alex. Berthier, Relation of the Battle of Marengo


at Newberry Library * *
Louis-Alexandre Berthier Collection
Handcolored, topographical, manuscript maps (111 of them), created by Louis-Alexandre Berthier {{DEFAULTSORT:Berthier, Louis Alexandre 1753 births 1815 deaths 18th-century French politicians 19th-century French sculptors Commanders of the Order of Saint Louis Deaths by defenestration Dukes of the First French Empire French male sculptors French military personnel of the American Revolutionary War French military personnel of the French Revolutionary Wars French Ministers of War Grand Croix of the Légion d'honneur Grand Crosses of the Military Order of Max Joseph Marshals of the First French Empire Members of the Chamber of Peers of the Bourbon Restoration Members of the Sénat conservateur Military leaders of the French Revolutionary Wars Names inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe People from Versailles Princes of Neuchâtel Dukes of Wagram Roman Republic (18th century)