Stephen Rochefontaine (born Étienne Nicolas Marie Béchet, Sieur de Rochefontaine; February 20, 1755 – January 30, 1814) was a French-born American military engineer who served as the

Commandant Commandant ( or ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ran ...

of the Corps of Artillerists and Engineers from 1795 to 1798.

Military career

Born in

Aÿ Aÿ (; also Ay) is a former commune in the Marne department in northeastern France. On 1 January 2016 it was merged into the new commune Aÿ-Champagne. Champagne Aÿ is most famous as a centre of the production of Champagne. Aÿ's vineyards are ...

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, Rochefontaine came to

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in 1778 after failing to gain a position in the French Royal Corps of Engineers. He volunteered in General Washington's

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on May 15, 1778 and was appointed captain in the Corps of Engineers on September 18, 1778. For his distinguished services at the

siege of Yorktown The Siege of Yorktown, also known as the Battle of Yorktown, the surrender at Yorktown, or the German battle (from the presence of Germans in all three armies), beginning on September 28, 1781, and ending on October 19, 1781, at Yorktown, Virgi ...

, Rochefontaine was given the brevet rank of major by Congress, November 16, 1781. He returned to France in 1783 and served as an infantry officer, reaching the rank of colonel in the French Army. He came back to the United States in 1792 and

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his first name to Stephen. President Washington appointed him a civilian engineer to fortify the

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coast, in 1794. After the new Corps of Artillerists and Engineers was organized, Washington made Rochefontaine 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 ...

and

commandant Commandant ( or ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ran ...

of the new Corps on February 26, 1795. Rochefontaine started a military school at

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in 1795, but the building and all his equipment were burned the following year. He left the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

on May 7, 1798, and lived in

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, where he died January 30, 1814. He is buried in the churchyard of St. Paul's Chapel in New York.

References

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text from''

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rochefontaine, Stephen 1755 births 1814 deaths American military engineers Continental Army officers from France Burials at St. Paul's Chapel French emigrants to the United States People from Marne (department) United States Army Corps of Engineers Chiefs of Engineers