French marshal, born in Saint-Amans-la-Bastide, S France. Created marshal of France by Napoleon in 1804, he led the French armies in the Peninsular War (180814) until defeated at Toulouse (1814). A skilled opportunist, he turned Royalist after Napoleon's abdication, but joined him in the Hundred Days, acting as his chief-of-staff at Waterloo. Exiled at the Second Restoration (1815) until 1819, he was gradually restored to all his honours, and presided over three ministries of Louis Philippe (18324, 183940, 18407), and once again professed himself to be a republican when Louis was overthrown in 1848.
| Duc de Dalmatie | |
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| Prime Minister of France | |
|---|---|
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In office October 11, 1832 – July 18, 1834 May 12, 1839–March 1, 1840 October 29, 1840–September 19, 1847 |
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| Preceded by |
Casimir Pierre Perier Comte Molé Adolphe Thiers |
| Succeeded by |
Comte Gérard Adolphe Thiers François Guizot |
| Born |
March 29, 1769 |
| Died |
November 26, 1851 |
| Political party | None |
Nicolas Jean de Dieu Soult, duc de Dalmatie (March 29, 1769 – November 26, 1851) was a French general and statesman, named Marshal of France in 1804.
Biography
Soult was born at Saint-Arnans-la-Bastide (now in the Tarn département), the son of a country notary of that city.
Early military career
He was fairly well-educated, and intended for the bar, but his father's death when he was still a boy made it necessary for him to seek his fortune, and he enlisted as a private in the French infantry in 1785.
For the next five years he was constantly employed in Germany under Jourdan, Moreau, Kléber and Lefebvre, and in 1799 be was promoted general of division and ordered to proceed to Switzerland.
Marshal of France
The victory of Marengo restoring his freedom, he received the command of the southern part of the kingdom of Naples, and in 1802 he was appointed one of the four generals commanding the consular guard.
He played a great part in all the famous battles of the Grande Armée, except the Battle of Friedland (on the day of which he forced his way into Königsberg), and after the conclusion of the Peace of Tilsit he returned to France and was created (1808) duke of Dalmatia. the following year he was appointed to the command of the II corps of the army with which Napoleon intended to conquer Spain, and after winning the Battle of Gamonal he was detailed by the emperor to pursue Sir John Moore, with whom he only caught up at Corunna.
For the next four years Soult remained in Spain, and his military history is that of the Peninsular War. After the Battle of Talavera de la Reina (1809) he was made chief of staff of the French troops in Spain with extended powers, and on November 19, 1809 won the great victory of Ocana.
In 1810 he invaded Andalusia, which he speedily reduced, with the exception of Cádiz. In 1812, however, he was obliged, after the Duke of Wellington's great victory of Salamanca, to evacuate Andalusia, and was soon after recalled from Spain at the request of Joseph Bonaparte, with whom, as with the other marshals, he had always disagreed.
In March 1813 he assumed the command of the IV corps of the Grande Armée and commanded the centre at Lützen and Bautzen, but he was soon sent, with unlimited powers, to the South of France to repair the damage done by the great defeat of Vittoria.
Political career
Such was the military career of Marshal Soult. After the first abdication of Napoleon (1814) he declared himself a Royalist, received the order of St. Louis, and acted as minister of war from December 3, 1814 to March 11, 1815. When Napoleon returned from Elba, Soult at once declared himself a Bonapartist, was made a peer of France and acted as major-general (chief of staff) to the emperor in the campaign of Waterloo, in which role he distinguished himself far less than he had done as commander of an over-matched army.
At the Second Restoration (1815) he was exiled, but not for long, for in 1819 he was recalled and in 1820 again made a marshal of France.
Works
Soult, himself, wrote but little.
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