In Thiard's words, he was one of the great officers of the Consulate and was among the main actors in the Battle of Marengo. because without the son of the hero of Valmy, the fighting would undoubtedly have taken a different turn on June 14, 1800.
If the name of Kellermann senior is forever associated with the famous battle of Valmy, that of his son will be for around twenty years, being attached to the Napoleonic cavalry. He was born on August 4, 1770, at rue d’Asfeld in Metz, and was baptized the same day; he is the son of the future marshal François Étienne Christophe and Marie-Anne Barbé (1750-1812). His godfather is his uncle François Étienne Barbé, hence his first name. He was just fifteen years old when he embarked on a career in arms.
From the Ancien Régime to the Consulate
Replacement second lieutenant in the Colonel-General of Hussars regiment in 1785, he was named second lieutenant on May 1, 1791. He accompanied the Chevalier de Ternan, ambassador to the United States, and found himself employed at the French consulate in New York. York. Returning to France, appointed lieutenant on May 10, 1792, he became his father's supernumerary aide-de-camp on November 20, 1792, in the Army of the Alps and at the siege of Lyon.
Suspended from his duties on October 12, 1793, at the same time as his father, he was detained at the Abbey and then released. Enlisted as a volunteer in the 1st Hussars in 1794, he was again aide-de-camp to his father in 1795. Appointed adjutant general, head of the brigade on May 8, 1796, he served in Italy (Lodi, Milan, Pavia, Bassano, Arcole, La Piave, Rivoli, Tagliamento being wounded by several saber blows). Bonaparte commissioned him to carry the flags to the Directory and he was named brigadier general on May 28, 1797.
He then served under Masséna in 1799, in the army of England then in the army of Rome and that of Naples. During this campaign, placed in front of the village of Nepi, on December 13, 1798, he resisted the first column, which attacked him with the resolution, and having with him only two battalions, three squadrons of hunters, and two pieces of rifles. light artillery, he still managed to rout 8,000 enemies with a surprising result: 500 killed or wounded, 5 pieces of cannon, 30 boxes of ammunition, 2,000 prisoners, standards, 2,000 rifles, all their baggage and camp effects, which are the trophies of this day. He then headed towards Viterbo and freed the French soldiers who were prisoners. From there, he headed for Rome to join the army which was going to march on Naples.
The famous charge
Kellermann was employed in the Reserve Army in March 1800. He commanded a cavalry brigade under Murat on April 20 then a large cavalry brigade in Harville's division on the 14th. Note that the large cavalry does not yet wear armor but that It is then made up of tall riders carrying long straight sabers and always wearing black felt bicorn hats.
While the battle seems lost, the arrival of Desaix changes everything. Savary gallops towards Bonaparte to deliver his general's message. The latter tells him that he is going to send the order to Desaix to attack the strong Austrian column, then he shows him a black spot in the plain (towards San Giuliano) indicating: “You will find General Kellermann there, who commands this cavalry that you see, you will teach him what you have just communicated to me and you will tell him to charge without counting, as soon as Desaix unmasks his attack. Furthermore, stay close to him; you will indicate to him the point where Desaix must emerge because Kellermann does not even know that he is in the army. » Kellermann will therefore execute a charge, on the left flank of the Austrian column, of which he did not however take the initiative, as we sometimes read, and which will nevertheless be definitive for the victory of the battle.
General Quiot specifies “in flank and reverse.” Returning to his headquarters, around 7 p.m., Bonaparte expressed to Bourrienne his deep regrets at the loss of Desaix and added: “This little Kellermann made a successful charge, he gave well at the right time; we owe him a lot. See how things are going. » A few hours later, the First Consul, however, received Kellermann coldly, telling him only: “You have made a pretty good charge. »Marmont writes in his Memoirs: “Fortune never intervened more decisively; never did a general show more insight, more vigor, and aptness than Kellermann in this circumstance. »
Building on his success, combined with Desaix's attack, Kellermann headed towards the Liechtenstein dragons and put them to flight. There was panic in the Austrian army, and General Mélas left the battlefield thinking the victory had already been achieved; on the other hand, his chief of staff, General Zach, would be killed. Finally, we find in Berthier's official report, relating to the battle, the following comment: "General Kellermann, who had supported the retreat movement of our left, seized the moment when the enemy infantry, after having been shaken, was seeking to attack again. He charged with impetuosity, took more than 6,000 prisoners, took ten pieces of cannon, and General Zach, chief of staff of the army. »
The Austrian general Melas, locked in Alexandria, sent a message to Vienna that same evening in which he explained that “Kellermann's charge had broken the soldiers and this sudden and terrible change of fortune ended up breaking the courage of his troops. The disorder of the cavalry which had disorganized our infantry precipitated its retreat. »
Marriage before the Empire
Kellermann was appointed major general on July 5, 1800, and then commanded a large cavalry division in 1801. He married in Milan on September 11, 1800, Thérèse Gnudi (Bologna, April 28, 1765 – Batignolles, September 30, 1844), of Italian nationality, who is the daughter of Antoine Marquis de la Sammartina, general treasurer of Bologna. She is the divorced wife of Charles-Philippe Count Aldrovandi Marescotti. From his union with François Kellermann (2nd Duke of Valmy) were born Félix, Hippolyte (these first two born before marriage), and Edmond (3rd and last Duke of Valmy, 1802-1868), including only one daughter Henriette (1841-1920).
The general was then appointed inspector of the mounted troops of the Army of Italy on July 24 and then commanded the cavalry located in Hanover in February 1804. The wars of the Empire then began, in which he took part. to Belgium in 1815. In the meantime, he was made a knight of the Legion of Honor on October 15, 1803, and then a grand officer on June 14, 1804.
To the Great Army
Here he is now involved in the famous (first) Grande Armée, as commander of the so-called vanguard division of the 1st corps (Bernadotte), in September 1805. This division includes the 27th light (Colonel Charnotet), the 4th (Colonel Burthe), and the 5th Hussars (Colonel Schwarz): in all 2,045 infantrymen, 987 cavalrymen, and 148 artillerymen. He had Generals Frère and Picard under his command and was wounded at Austerlitz by a bullet that passed through his leg.
The following year, on October 5, 1806, he took command of the cavalry of the 3rd Reserve Corps on the Rhine, a corps placed under the orders of his father, a family and modest role allowed him to recover from his injury as quickly as possible. terms. He was then appointed governor of the principality of Hanau in February 1807.
In the Iberian Peninsula
The war in Spain and Portugal will not be a field where the general will leave a great memory. Appointed commander of the cavalry of the observation corps of the Gironde then of the army of Portugal, under Junot, on August 2, 1807, it was he who was responsible for negotiating and signing the convention of Cintra on August 30, 1808. The January 9, 1809, he took command of the 2nd Dragoon Division which was in Burgos then commanded the reserve army in Castile in March. He won the Duc del Parque at Alba de Tormès on November 28.
Appointed governor of the provinces of Toro, Palencia, and Valladolid on June 4, 1810, he then commanded the Northern Army in Spain in September 1810. He was recalled to France and was accused of abusive requisitions and brigandage. The memoirist Gonneville leaves an unflattering “portrait”: “General Kellermann, son of the marshal of that name, received us very well. I had long wanted to know him, knowing the role he had played at the battle of Marengo, whose success in a desperate moment was almost due to him. He was a little man with a frail and sickly appearance, with an intelligent but false look. During the short stay we had in Valladolid we learned things about him that cruelly lowered our opinion of him. He was a merciless extortionist: under political pretexts, he plunged into the former dungeons of the Inquisition the most notable inhabitants subject to his domination, which constituted a quarter of Spain, then he entered into composition with the families to release his prisoners at the price of money that he put in his pocket. Later, under the Restoration, he had a great reputation for piety. »
In his Memoirs, Thiébault reports a reflection from the general who said: “Did they imagine that I had crossed the Pyrenees for a change of scenery! » That says a lot about his failings.
From Russia to the First Restoration
Commanding the 3rd Light Cavalry Division at Verona on January 9, 1812, then placed in the 3rd Cavalry Reserve Corps under Grouchy, he was appointed to command the 1st Light Cavalry Division in February. Sick while on his way to his command to participate in the Russian campaign, he was unable to serve and was replaced by Chastel. Returning to active duty on April 8, he was responsible for an inspection in the 5th military division in October.
He was admitted to retirement for health reasons on March 11, 1813 – with 6,000 francs per year – then recalled to activity at his request. He then served in Saxony, under Ney, in April being present at Rippach (where Bessières was killed), at Lützen, at Königswartha, at the capture of Klix, at Bautzen. Appointed commander of the 4th Cavalry Corps, composed of Poles, he charged to Dresden at the head of his cavalrymen. It is also present in Wachau and Leipzig. For the anecdote, he lost part of his belongings on October 22, 1813, between Gotha and Erfurt, and requested reimbursement, namely: 1 car, 1 embroidered coat, 6 jackets, 6 Casimir breeches, 24 shirts, 24 stockings, and 24 handkerchiefs. Generals Bordessoulle and Milhaud who were in the same situation will each receive 6,000 francs.
At the start of the French campaign, he took command of the 6th Cavalry Corps, which came from Spain and served under Grouchy in Champagne. He was at Mormant on February 17, at Bar-sur-Aube on the 27th, in combat on the Barse on March 3, and at Saint-Dizier on the 26th.
During the First Restoration, he was a member of the War Council for the Royal Guard on May 6, then was appointed inspector general for the organization of the cavalry in Lunéville and Nancy on June 1. Knight of Saint-Louis on June 2, 1814, and Grand Cordon of the Legion of Honor (according to the formulation of the time) on August 23, 1814, he was also Commander of the Iron Crown of the Kingdom of Italy.
After Napoleon's landing at Golfe-Juan, then commanding a cavalry division under the Duke of Berry on March 16, 1815, we find, however, in his file at the Defense Historical Service, a letter written in his hand by mail addressed to the Minister of War on March 7, 1815, who asked for his support... to the Emperor! He was named peer of France on June 2, 1815.
The Belgian campaign
He campaigned in Belgium as commander of the 3rd Cavalry Corps, made up of the divisions of Lheureux and Roussel d'Hurbal. On June 16, the Battle of Quatre Bras took place between Marshal Ney and Wellington's troops. A little after noon, the marshal, on new orders from the Emperor, set out towards the Quatre Bras crossroads with his entire army corps. Around 2 p.m., French troops began combat. Ney, who on this day will have no decisive role as Napoleon expected, decides to strike strongly; he said to Kellermann: “My dear general, it is a question of the salvation of France. It takes an extraordinary effort. Take your cavalry, throw yourself into the middle of the English. Crush them, go over their stomachs! » Kellermann points out, however, that he does not have enough people to achieve decisive success. The marshal promised to have him supported by the rest of his cavalry and Kellermann placed himself at the head of the Guiton brigade composed of the 8th and 11th Cuirassiers (the latter fought without armor). He charges towards the crossroads and pushes through several enemy battalions. However, Ney, despite his promise, did not take steps to support this charge: the French cavalry could not exploit its advantage.
Forced to backtrack, Kellermann fell with his horse, which had just been mortally wounded, and had to cling to the stirrup leathers of two cuirassiers to regain the French lines. Having lost 250 killed or wounded, Kellermann's cavalry retreated to Frasnes. The failure of Quatre Bras is to be attributed to Ney and the inactivity of Drouet d'Erlon's corps who will spend his day between Quatre Bras and Ligny.
Two days later, Kellermann served at Waterloo and was wounded during the great charge. After the campaign, he wrote to the minister and asked to be able to reside in Paris.
From the Restoration to his death
Returning to France and then to Paris, he stayed there with Gérard and Haxo to negotiate with the king on Davout's behalf on July 3. On August 1, 1815, he was placed on standby and then inactive on September 4. He then receives a half-pay of 7,500 francs per year.
The Restoration named him Marquis de Valmy on August 31, 1817, Duke and Peer of France on the death of his father on September 12, 1820, and then he was received in the Chamber of Peers on December 28. Member of the Superior War Council on February 28, president responsible for giving his opinion on the proposed organization of the cavalry on October 4, 1830, he was during the trial of Charles X's ministers in December 1830 one of the five peers who voted the death.
Placed within the framework of activity of the general staff on February 7, 1831, he was available again on the following July 1. However, he died of a liver condition in Paris (10th) on June 2, 1835, and was buried in Père-Lachaise (30th division). His name is engraved on the south pillar of the Arc de Triomphe (21st column). As evidenced by his file in the National Archives, “he gave proof of bravery and talent on all occasions”.
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