He entered the army at age 15 and distinguished himself in the American Revolutionary War. Originally from Guadeloupe, he was elected deputy to the Convention, he was responsible for retaking Toulon from the hands of the English. After this success, he left to command the army of the Pyrénées-Orientales. He will be killed during the decisive battle of Montagne-Noire in 1794. Very impressed by Bonaparte in Toulon, the glowing reports he made to the Convention favored the rise of the young Corsican.
Employed in the kings stables, he became a sergeant in the National Guard. Commanding the army of Moselle in 1793, he pushed back the Austrians and the Prussians. Imprisoned as a suspect following a denunciation by Pichegru, he was released after 9 Thermidor. From 1794 to 1796, he pacified the Vendé