October 23, 1766 (Paris) - May 29, 1847 (St-Etienne)
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- Marquis de Grouchy, Emmanuel
An aristocrat, the son of an officer, Grouchy went through the Strasbourg artillery school in 1780, then in the cavalry and in the king's bodyguards with the rank of lieutenant-colonel. Supporter of new ideas, brother-in-law of Cabanis and Condorcet, he left this compromising corps to join cavalry units. Field Marshal in 1792, he took part in the conquest of Savoy and then retired to his family. Recalled in May 1793, he defended Nantes against the Vendeans, but was suspended because he was noble and expelled from the army. He was reinstated in November 1794 and promoted to major general in April 1795. Hoche's Chief of Staff in the Army of the West, he was in Quiberon. After a stint with the Northern Army, he returned to the West and took part in the Irish expedition, not daring to oppose Vice-Admiral Bouvet, who refused to land his troops.
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- Marquis de Grouchy, Emmanuel
Commanding the citadel of Turin in November 1798, Grouchy caused the abdication of the king of Sardinia, Charles-Emmanuel, received fourteen wounds in Novi (August 15, 1799) and fell into the hands of the Austrians Liberated in 1800 he commanded the army of Grisons in summer of 1800 and drove the Austrians out of the Engadine. Then assigned to the Army of the Rhine, he fought at Hohenlinden. His friendship with General Moreau earned Grouchy the suspicion of Bonaparte, who did not give him an important command until 1805, during the Austrian campaign. He invests Ulm before operating in the Tyrol. In 1806, he chased the remnants of the Prussian army after Jena, forced Hohenlohen to capitulate. In 1807, he was in Eylau, in Friedland, where he was wounded. In Spain in 1808, governor of Madrid, he repressed the insurrection of May 1808 there. Count of the Empire at the beginning of the following year, he decided on the victory of the Raab (June 14), covered the of the device with its dragons in Wagram. He commanded the 3rd Cavalry Corps during the Russian campaign, was wounded at the Moskva, fought at Maloiaroslavets, commanded the Sacred Squadron, which protected the Emperor during the retreat.
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- Weapons of Grouchy
He got angry with Napoleon in 1813, the latter wanting to keep him at the head of the cavalry while Grouchy wanted a command in the infantry. He resumed service when France was invaded and took the lead of the cavalry of the Grande Armée, or what was left of it, served at Briennes, La Rochier, Montmirail, Troyes, Craonne, where he was seriously wounded. Inspector general of the cavalry during the first Restoration, Grouchy joined Napoleon on his return from the island of Elba. At the head of the Army of the South, he easily overcame the royalist troops of the Duke of Angoulême, which earned him to be made Marshal of France on April 15, 1815. Gracia's reputation was tarnished by his obedience too strict to orders during the Battle of Waterloo:he pursued elusive Prussians instead of marching to the cannon to the rescue of the Emperor. It will however ensure the withdrawal in good order after the defeat. Proscribed, Grouchy takes refuge in the United States. He would again become Marshal and Peer of France in 1831 and 1832. His name is engraved on the Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile.