Symphorien Casimir Joseph Edouard Boitelle (23 February 1813 – 22 November 1897) was a French soldier, administrator, chief of the Paris police, deputy and senator.
Early years
Symphorien Casimir Joseph Edouard Boitelle was born in Fontaine-Notre-Dame, Nord, on 23 February 1813.
His parents were Casimir Joseph Boitelle (born c. 1783) and Marguerite Huguet (born c. 1787).
He entered the
On 10 December 1851 Boitelle was appointed sub-prefect of Clamecy, Nièvre, but he did not take up the post.
On 1 February 1852 he was appointed sub-prefect of Saint-Quentin.
He was made Knight of the Legion of Honour on 1 January 1853.
He was appointed Prefect of
Aisne
Aisne ( , ; ; pcd, Ainne) is a French department in the Hauts-de-France region of northern France. It is named after the river Aisne. In 2019, it had a population of 531,345.Yonne from 8 September 1856.
In the winter of 1856–57 Boitelle and Deluns-Montaud picked a quarrel while at a masked ball, and fought a duel on the Bois de Boulogne while still dressed as Harlequin and Pierrot.
Boitelle was run through the chest with a sword, and at first thought to be dead, but recovered.
The duel was the subject of paintings and plays.
Boitelle was made Prefect of Police of Paris on 16 March 1858, replacing Pierre Marie Pietri, who had resigned after the attack of Orsini.
He was promoted to Officer of the Legion of Honour of 23 August 1858.
He was entrusted with general direction of public security by an imperial decree.
He was made a grand officer of the Legion of Honour on 14 August 1862.
In 1863 Boitelle set up a service to inspect factories and suppress those that were thought to be harming a neighborhood, particularly those where public complaints were made about the smells.
In September 1863 Boitelle said he was generally satisfied with relations between the church and the state, which were engaged in a power struggle at the time.