François Amable Ruffin (31 August 1771 – 15 May 1811) was a

general of division Divisional general is a general officer rank who commands an army division. The rank originates from the French (Revolutionary) System, and is used by a number of countries. The rank is above a brigade general, and normally below an army corp ...

in Napoleon's

First French Empire The First French Empire, officially the French Republic, then the French Empire (; Latin: ) after 1809, also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental ...

. He was mortally wounded while leading his troops against the British.

Biography

Having been captain of a company of volunteers from

Bolbec Bolbec () is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region in northern France. Its inhabitants are called ''Bolbécais'' or ''Bolbécaises''. Geography A farming, quarrying and light industrial town situated at the heart of ...

, he was named commander of the 7th Battalion of

Seine-Inférieure Seine-Maritime () is a department of France in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the northern coast of France, at the mouth of the Seine, and includes the cities of Rouen and Le Havre. Until 1955 it was named Seine-Inféri ...

on 20 September 1792. He fought in 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 conside ...

and subsequently in the battles of the

, seeing action at the

Battle of Austerlitz The Battle of Austerlitz (2 December 1805/11 Frimaire An XIV FRC), also known as the Battle of the Three Emperors, was one of the most important and decisive engagements of the Napoleonic Wars. The battle occurred near the town of Austerlitz i ...

in 1805 and 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 ended when Prussian General Friedrich Adolf, Count von Kalckreuth capitulated to French Marshal François Joseph L ...

in 1807. His conduct at the

Battle of Friedland The Battle of Friedland (14 June 1807) was a major engagement of the Napoleonic Wars between the armies of the French Empire commanded by Napoleon I and the armies of the Russian Empire led by Count von Bennigsen. Napoleon and the French obtain ...

in 1807 saw him given the title of ''comte de l'Empire'' and promoted to general of division (''général de division''), and he took command of

Marshal Victor Claude-Victor Perrin, 1st Duke of Belluno (7 December 1764 – 1 March 1841) was a French soldier and military commander who served during both the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars. He was made a Marshal of the Empire i ...

's I Corps. Ruffin joined 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 Spai ...

, leading I Corps into

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' ( Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

in September 1808. He served at

Somosierra Somosierra is a municipality in the Community of Madrid, Spain, located at 83 km north of Madrid, in the mountain pass with the same name, at an elevation of 1433 metres above sea level, being the northernmost town of Community of Madri ...

, Ucles, Medellin and Talavera, before commanding one of Victor's divisions at the

Battle of Barrosa The Battle of Barrosa (Chiclana, 5 March 1811, also known as the Battle of Chiclana or Battle of Cerro del Puerco) was part of an unsuccessful manoeuvre by an Anglo-Iberian force to break the French siege of Cádiz during the Peninsular War ...

on 5 March 1811. During the battle for the Barrosa Ridge, Ruffin was shot through the neck, causing him to be paralysed. He was captured by the British army and shipped to England. Although he appeared to be recovering from his wound, he suffered a relapse on the voyage and died aboard the transport ''Gorgon'' on 15 May. He was buried with full military honours at Portsmouth, and RUFFIN is one of the

names inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe The following is a list of the 660 names inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe, in Paris. Most of them represent generals who served during the French First Republic (1792–1804) and the First French Empire (1804–1815). Underlined names signify th ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...

. 1771 births 1811 deaths French military personnel of the French Revolutionary Wars French military personnel killed in the Napoleonic Wars French commanders of the Napoleonic Wars French generals Names inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe People from Bolbec {{France-mil-bio-stub