François de Chevert (2 February 1695 – 24 January 1769) was a French general. Chevert was born in

Verdun Verdun ( , ; ; ; official name before 1970: Verdun-sur-Meuse) is a city in the Meuse (department), Meuse departments of France, department in Grand Est, northeastern France. It is an arrondissement of the department. In 843, the Treaty of V ...

Meuse The Meuse or Maas is a major European river, rising in France and flowing through Belgium and the Netherlands before draining into the North Sea from the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta. It has a total length of . History From 1301, the upper ...

. He entered service in 1706, became major in Beauce's regiment in

Toul Toul () is a Communes of France, commune in the Meurthe-et-Moselle Departments of France, department in north-eastern France. It is a Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the department. Geography Toul is between Commercy and Nancy, Fra ...

in 1728, later in 1739 lieutenant-colonel. He distinguished himself in

Flanders Flanders ( or ; ) is the Dutch language, Dutch-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, la ...

Piedmont Piedmont ( ; ; ) is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the northwest Italy, Northwest of the country. It borders the Liguria region to the south, the Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna regions to the east, and the Aosta Valley region to the ...

and Germany and was rewarded by a more important command, as lieutenant-colonel of a grenadier regiment. As part of the French force, he and his grenadiers effected the bloodless capture of Prague in 1741 during the

War of the Austrian Succession The War of the Austrian Succession was a European conflict fought between 1740 and 1748, primarily in Central Europe, the Austrian Netherlands, Italian Peninsula, Italy, the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. Related conflicts include King Ge ...

. At the end of the Austrian

Siege of Prague The siege of Prague was an unsuccessful attempt by a Prussian army led by Frederick the Great to capture the Bohemian city of Prague during the Third Silesian War (Seven Years' War). It took place in May 1757 immediately after the Battle of Pr ...

the following year he defended the city for eighteen days with only 1,800 men not sick or wounded, surrendering on honourable terms on 26 December. Promoted to brigadier, he took part in the operations in the

Dauphiné The Dauphiné ( , , ; or ; or ), formerly known in English as Dauphiny, is a former province in southeastern France, whose area roughly corresponded to that of the present departments of Isère, Drôme and Hautes-Alpes. The Dauphiné was ...

and Italy, most famously in the Battle of Casteldelfino, and became maréchal-de-camp in 1744. During the campaign in the

Provence Provence is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which stretches from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the France–Italy border, Italian border to the east; it is bordered by the Mediterrane ...

, he seized the isles of Sainte-Marguerite, after which coup he was named lieutenant-general in 1748. With this title, he commanded the French flanking force at the victory of Hastenbeck. In the following year he also commanded the flanking force in the French victory at Lutterburg. During this illustrious career in the course of which he passed through all important ranks of the hierarchy, Chevert seems to have known nothing but success, save for one small defeat at the battle of Meer (or Mehr) in 1758, where a large component of his corps consisted of militia and inexperienced regular troops. He was a Major by the time he was awarded the order of

Chevalier de Saint-Louis The Royal and Military Order of Saint Louis () is a dynastic order of chivalry founded 5 April 1693 by King Louis XIV, named after Saint Louis (King Louis IX of France). It was intended as a reward for exceptional officers, notable as the fir ...

in 1742, becoming a Commander of that order in 1754 and a Grand Croix in 1758. He was also made a knight of the Polish Order of the White Eagle in 1758. He died in Paris, aged 73, whilst governor of

Givet Givet () (; ) is a commune in the Ardennes department in northern France surrounded on three sides by the Belgian border. It lies on the river Meuse where Emperor Charles V built the fortress of Charlemont. It borders the French municipali ...

and Charlemont.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chevert, Francois de 1695 births People from Verdun French generals 1769 deaths Knights of the Order of Saint Louis Recipients of the Order of the White Eagle (Poland)