Gouvion Saint Cyr, Laurent de

By education and initial occupation, he is an artist, but despite studying at the Roman Academy of Arts , he decided not to continue his career as an artist. He entered military service during the revolution , and quickly gained popularity among soldiers, began to occupy elected officer posts in the "volunteer revolutionary battalions" - in 1794 he already had the rank of division general, he participated in revolutionary wars with honors.

In 1801, Saint-Cyr helps Lucien Bonaparte in Spain as commander-in-chief of the French forces during the Orange War , and after serving Lucien served as ambassador to Madrid . Then Saint-Cyr fights under the command of Murat in the Kingdom of Naples. At the head of the Naples Army on December 9, 1805, he was replaced by Massena and left his post until the latter arrived, which Napoleon really did not like.

In 1808, during the war on the Iberian Peninsula , he commanded the VII Corps. In this capacity, Saint-Cyr was able to capture the fort of Roses and Barcelona . However, then, refusing to comply with Bertier’s order to simultaneously besiege Girona , Tarragona and Tortosa , he was replaced by Augereau and resigned until the new commander arrived. He lived under house arrest on his estate until 1811.

In the Russian campaign of 1812, he commanded the VIth Corps (Bavarian troops).

08/07/1812 commanded the French troops during the Second Battle of Polotsk , which he lost, but, nevertheless, acted in the course of it against Wittgenstein very talented. 08/27/1812 elevated to the rank of Marshal .

In 1813, he formed the 14th corps, with which he was left in Dresden when Napoleon himself with the main army retreated from the Elbe .

26-27.08.1813 took part in the battle of Dresden . Upon learning of the outcome of the battle of Leipzig , Saint-Cyr tried to connect with the forces of Davout , occupying Hamburg , but this attempt failed.

11/11/1813 he was forced to surrender to General Bulatov .

During military service he often made notebook sketches of everyday, bivouac scenes, sometimes even made cartoons of generals who were opponents of revolutionary France and then Bonapartist France. For example, it is known that he drew several cartoons on A.V. Suvorov , whom he personally met with the military art, being part of the army of General Moreau , defeated at Novi (1799) in Northern Italy.

In 1815 and 1817-1819 he was Minister of War of France .

He was buried in the Pere Lachaise cemetery .

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  Portrait of Marshal Saint-Cyr, painter Horace Vernet (1821).

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  Portrait of a young Saint-Cyr, artist Georges Rouget (1835).

• Count of Gouvion and the Empire ( fr. Comte Gouvion et de l'Empire ; decree of March 19, 1808, patent confirmed in May 1808) ^[1] .

• Badge of the Great Eagle of the Legion of Honor (February 2, 1805)
• Great Officer of the Legion of Honor (June 14, 1804)
• Legionnaire of the Order of the Legion of Honor (December 11, 1803)
• Order of St. Louis (May 1816)

• “Mémoires sur les campagnes des armées du Rhin et Moselle” ( 1829 )
• “Mémoires pour servir à l'histoire militaire sous le Directoire, le Consulat et l'Empire” ( 1829 - 1831 )
• Matériaux pour servir a l'histoire de la guerre d'Espagne ( 1821 ).

• Gouvion-Saint-Cyr // Gimry - Ship engines. - SPb. ; [ M. ]: Type. t-va I. D. Sytin , 1912. - S. 523-524. - ( Military Encyclopedia : [in 18 vol.] / Edited by K. I. Velichko [and others ]; 1911-1915, v. 8).
• Saint-Cyr // Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary : in 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - SPb. , 1890-1907.