Marshal of the Empire was a civil dignity in the

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 Eu ...

between 1804 and 1815. The successor of the dignity, the Marshal of France, is a five-star rank with a

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

code of

OF-10 A five-star rank is the highest military rank in many countries.Oxford English Dictionary (OED), 2nd Edition, 1989. "five" ... "five-star adj., ... (b) U.S., applied to a general or admiral whose badge of rank includes five stars;" The rank is t ...

, equivalent to an

Admiral of France Admiral of France (french: Amiral de France) is a French title of honour. It is the naval equivalent of Marshal of France and was one of the Great Officers of the Crown of France. History The title was created in 1270 by Louis IX of France, du ...

in the

French Navy The French Navy (french: Marine nationale, lit=National Navy), informally , is the maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the five military service branches of France. It is among the largest and most powerful naval forces in t ...

. The distinction was used sporadically and was vacant during parts of its history. A Marshal was a grand officer of the Empire, entitled to a high-standing position at the court and to the presidency of an electoral college. In total, 26 men were awarded a Marshal's baton. The most recent promotions to marshal came in 1815, two years after a break on routine promotions to the rank, when

Napoleon 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 ...

promoted

Emmanuel de Grouchy Emmanuel de Grouchy, 2nd Marquis of Grouchy (; 23 October 176629 May 1847) was a French general and Marshal of the Empire. Biography Grouchy was born in Condécourt (Val d'Oise), Château de Villette, the son of François-Jacques de Grouchy, 1 ...

, one of his Generals, to the dignity. Vereshchagin Napoleon near Borodino

Unlike many positions, the Marshal of the Empire distinction was not a rank, rather a reward, given out by

. Almost all officers to hold the rank of Marshal were professional soldiers in the French Army. Some, including

Józef Poniatowski Prince Józef Antoni Poniatowski (; 7 May 1763 – 19 October 1813) was a Polish general, minister of war and army chief, who became a Marshal of the French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. A nephew of king Stanislaus Augustus of Poland (), ...

, served in foreign armies. Of all 26, 5 were killed in action, or by accident. One Marshal was present at the

Battle of Vitoria At the Battle of Vitoria (21 June 1813) a British, Portuguese and Spanish army under the Marquess of Wellington broke the French army under King Joseph Bonaparte and Marshal Jean-Baptiste Jourdan near Vitoria in Spain, eventually leading to ...

, fought in 1813, where

the Duke of Wellington Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish soldier and Tory statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of 19th-century Britain, serving twice as prime minister of ...

earned the British equivalent of the distinction. Most had defected to the royalists before the

Battle of Waterloo The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (at that time in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium). A French army under the command of Napoleon was defeated by two of the armie ...

and Napoleon's subsequent defeat, with only four others (most notably Marshals

and

Michel Ney Michel Ney, 1st Duke of Elchingen, 1st Prince of the Moskva (; 10 January 1769 – 7 December 1815), was a French military commander and Marshal of the Empire who fought in the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars. He was one o ...

) serving under Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo.

Auguste de Marmont Auguste Frédéric Louis Viesse de Marmont (20 July 1774 – 22 March 1852) was a French general and nobleman who rose to the rank of Marshal of the Empire and was awarded the title (french: duc de Raguse). In the Peninsular War Marmont succeede ...

, born in 1774, was the youngest officer to earn the distinction of Marshal. Francois Kellerman was the oldest, born in 1735. The majority of Marshals were given the title in 1804 (18 out of 26), while Grouchy received the distinction at the latest time, in 1815, shortly before the

List of Marshals

Notes

References

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Marshals Marshal is a term used in several official titles in various branches of society. As marshals became trusted members of the courts of Medieval Europe, the title grew in reputation. During the last few centuries, it has been used for elevated o ...

*First French Empire

Marshals of the First French Empire Marshal is a term used in several official titles in various branches of society. As marshals became trusted members of the courts of Medieval Europe, the title grew in reputation. During the last few centuries, it has been used for elevated o ...

List of Marshals

See also

Notes

References