François-Joseph d'Offenstein (27 July 1760 – 27 September 1837),

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 ...

of the Ist Empire, was a French general and military commander during 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 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 ...

Wars.

Biography

Early life

Offenstein was born in

Erstein Erstein (, ; gsw, label= Alemannic, Eerstain) is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department, in the region of Grand Est, France. History An important necropolis from the Merovingian era (6th-7th century) has been excavated near Erstein in 1999– ...

, France on 27 July 1760 to François-Joseph Offenstein and Catherine Reibel. He grew up in Alsace during the French

Ancien Régime ''Ancien'' may refer to * the French word for "ancient, old" ** Société des anciens textes français * the French for "former, senior" ** Virelai ancien ** Ancien Régime ** Ancien Régime in France {{disambig ...

before joining the Regiment of Royal Dragoons in Deux-Pont in the French army in 1777 at age 16. He left the regiment in 1786 and reenlisted as a

grenadier A grenadier ( , ; derived from the word '' grenade'') was originally a specialist soldier who threw hand grenades in battle. The distinct combat function of the grenadier was established in the mid-17th century, when grenadiers were recruited fr ...

in the Infantry Regiment of Alsace at the beginning of 1987.

Military career

Offenstein became a

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

in the National Guard in 1790 and 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 ...

of the 1st Battalion of Volunteers of Bas-Rhin in 1971. In 1972 and 1973, respectively, he became the lieutenant colonel of the 1st Battalion of Volunteers of

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 ...

and Rhine. By July 1973, he had been nominated as a

brigadier-general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

; in September, he became a major general. Within weeks, Offenstein was commander-in-chief of Neuf-Brisach. He served in Germany in

Saarlouis Saarlouis (; french: link=no, Sarrelouis, ; formerly Sarre-Libre and Saarlautern) is a town in Saarland, Germany, capital of the district of Saarlouis. In 2020, the town had a population of 34,409. Saarlouis, as the name implies, is located on t ...

and Trier. He was later relieved of his command by

Nicolas Hentz Nicholas Charles Arnould Hentz (5 June 1753, Metz, France – after 1 July 1830, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) was a French revolutionary and politician. After fleeing France in 1815, he assumed the name Charles Arnould. Early life Coming fro ...

and

Jean-Marie Claude Alexandre Goujon Jean Marie Claude Alexandre Goujon (13 April 1766, Bourg-en-Bresse – 17 June 1795, Paris) was a politician of the French Revolution. He was a member of the National Convention from 1793 to 1795, was sentenced to death after the Revolt of 1 Prair ...

after he allegedly misread a map and led troops to what he thought was a road but was actually a river. He left the army following his demotion but returned in 1796, this time as a brigadier chief in the 10th Infantry Regiment. With this regiment, he fought at

Renchen Renchen ( gsw, label= Low Alemannic, Renche) is a small town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, part of the district of Ortenau. Geography Renchen is located in the foothills of the northern Black Forest at the entrance to the Rench valley at the ed ...

Rastadt Rastatt () is a town with a Baroque core, District of Rastatt, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is located in the Upper Rhine Plain on the Murg river, above its junction with the Rhine and has a population of around 50,000 (2011). Rastatt was an ...

Neresheim Neresheim is a town in the Ostalbkreis district, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated northeast of Heidenheim, and southeast of Aalen. It's the home of the Neresheim Abbey, which still hosts monks, was '' Reichsfrei'' until the Germa ...

, Dillingen, Ingolstadt,

Kehl Kehl (; gsw, label= Low Alemannic German, Low Alemannic, Kaal) is a town in southwestern Germany in the Ortenaukreis, Baden-Württemberg. It is on the river Rhine, directly opposite the French city of Strasbourg, with which it shares some munic ...

, and

Geisenfeld Geisenfeld is a town in the district of Pfaffenhofen, in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated on the river Ilm, southeast of Ingolstadt. The town grew up around Geisenfeld Abbey, a convent founded in 1037. Subdivisions Geisenfeld has twelve distr ...

. A year later, he was transferred to the 77th Infantry Regiment. During the Consulate, he was brigadier chief of the 44th Infantry Regiment, the 12th Chasseur Regiment, and the 7th Cuirassier Regiment. In 1804, Offstein received a

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 ...

from

Napoleon I of France 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 ...

during its first award ceremony at the Invalides of Paris for fighting in the French Revolutionary Wars and during the Consulate. In 1805, Charles Joseph de Pully made him a colonel of the 2nd Brigade of his division in the Army of Italy. The following year, he held this role in the

Grande Armée ''La Grande Armée'' (; ) was the main military component of the French Imperial Army commanded by Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte during the Napoleonic Wars. From 1804 to 1808, it won a series of military victories that allowed the French Empi ...

. He was wounded during the

Battle of Heilsberg The Battle of Heilsberg took place on 10 June 1807, during the Napoleonic Wars. Overview On 24 May 1807, the Siege of Danzig (1807), Siege of Danzig ended when Kingdom of Prussia, Prussian General Friedrich Adolf, Count von Kalckreuth capitul ...

and was made a brigadier general by Napoleon, after which he worked with Guillaume Marie-Anne Brune as

general staff A military staff or general staff (also referred to as army staff, navy staff, or air staff within the individual services) is a group of officers, enlisted and civilian staff who serve the commander of a division or other large military un ...

. In 1809, he was made commander-in-chief of Haute-Marne and later Dordogne. In June 1809, Napoleon gave him the title of

of 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 ...

; as such, his last name became ''d'Offenstein.'' He served in Napoleon's military attaché at the beginning of 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: * ...

but decided to retire temporarily ten months later. He returned to the army in 1815 for 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 ...

and became commander of two lancer regiments from the National Guards of Haut-Rhin and Bas-Rhin. He was relieved from his command after only ten days when he reportedly scoffed at Napoleon. At the end of the year, he was sent to Sélestat before retiring permanently in June 1816.

Death

Offenstein died in 1837 in Mouzay, France, at age 77.

Personal life

Offenstein married Marie Barbe Lamarcq in 1803. They had two sons: Guillaume François (1804–1865) and Eugène Auguste (1808–1863). He is distantly related to French physician

Paul Rohmer Paul Rohmer (1 November 1876 – 2 March 1977) was an Alsace, Alsacian physician considered the father of modern pædiatrics in eastern France after World War I. Life Rohmer was born in Huttenheim, Alsace-Lorraine, part of the German Empire, ...

. A street in

Strasbourg Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...

is called François-Joseph d'Offenstein in his honour.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Offenstein, Francois-Joseph 1760 births 1837 deaths People from Bas-Rhin French generals Military leaders of the French Revolutionary Wars French military personnel of the Napoleonic Wars Officiers of the Légion d'honneur Barons Offenstein