Charles Mathieu Isidore Decaen
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Charles Mathieu Isidore Decaen (French pronunciation: [ʃaʁl matjø izidɔʁ dəkɑ̃], 13 April 1769 – 9 September 1832) was a French general who served during the French Revolutionary Wars, as Governor General of Pondicherry and the Isle de France (now Mauritius) and as commander of the Army of Catalonia during the Napoleonic Wars.
French Revolution
Decaen, born in
general of brigade
, Decaen was captured in the attack on Frantzenthal. After having given his parole he was exchanged.
In 1796 he served under Moreau in the operations near the Rhine and he distinguished himself in the passage of the river and the
Major-General
).
Service to the Empire
In Pondicherry
Possibly singled out for "exile" by
Île Bourbon (Réunion) and Isle de France (Mauritius) against all the efforts of the British. Ultimately overwhelmed by superior numbers, he obtained an honorable capitulation. He released Matthew Flinders from house arrest in April 1810, a few months before the Battle of Grand Port
(August) and the capitulation to the British on 3 December of the same year.
Spain and fall of the Empire
Upon his return he was made a count and made the head of the Army of
Napoleon I from Elba
in 1815.
After the royal princes had left France, Decaen rejoined the emperor's side and during the
Louis-Philippe I
in 1830. He died two years later.
Honours
- Name inscribed on the Arc de Triomphe
Footnotes
References
- Arnold, James R. Marengo & Hohenlinden. Barnsley, South Yorkshire, UK: Pen & Sword, 2005. ISBN 1-84415-279-0
- Glover, Michael. The Peninsular War 1807-1814. London: Penguin, 2001. ISBN 0-14-139041-7
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