Franz Joseph, Marquis de Lusignan

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Franz Joseph, Marquis de Lusignan
Inhaber
, Infantry Regiment # 16

Franz Joseph, Marquis de Lusignan (23 June 1753 – 23 December 1832), a Spaniard, joined the Habsburg army and fought against Prussian soldiers and Belgian rebels. During the French Revolutionary Wars, he played a significant role at the Battle of Rivoli in 1797 and became a general officer. He led brigade- and division-sized forces during the Italian campaign of 1799. In the Napoleonic Wars, he twice commanded a division and was so badly wounded in 1809 that he was forced to retire from the army. From 1806 until his death he was proprietor of the Lusignan Infantry Regiment.

Early career

Lusignan was born into an old Spanish family on 23 June 1753 at

Fahnrich (ensign) in the Ferraris Infantry Regiment # 14. He fought with a Freikorps during the War of the Bavarian Succession. He became a Major in 1789, when he was stationed in the Austrian Netherlands. The following year he distinguished himself in action near Liège, overthrowing a large body of Belgian rebels with a small force. He received the Knight's Cross of the Military Order of Maria Theresa for his efforts.[1]

While an

Peter Quasdanovich during the actions leading up to the Battle of Lonato in August 1796.[3]

Rivoli

In January 1797,

Adige from the northern arm of Lake Garda, and runs parallel with them. In the winter, it was a featureless wasteland of snow and ice, the highest point of which lay ten miles north of Rivoli, and rose to the not inconsiderable height of 7,279 feet."[5]

Photo of Monto Baldo in summer
Monte Baldo in summer

Not surprisingly, Lusignan's march fell behind schedule in the next few days. However, he persevered under the extraordinary conditions and reached his assigned position. During the

Napoleon Bonaparte's French army. He carried out his orders, but found himself isolated on a hill far from the action. By the afternoon of 14 January, Bonaparte defeated the other Austrian columns. Attacked from the north by André Masséna's troops and blocked from the south by a division under Gabriel Venance Rey, Lusignan tried to break out to the west. His soldiers were captured by the hundreds as they collapsed from their recent exertions.[6] Historian David G. Chandler states that 3,000 men from the 1st Column were taken prisoner.[7] However, Lusignan escaped capture.[1]

On 28 February 1797, Lusignan became a General-Major. While commanding the rearguard two weeks later, he was captured during Archduke Charles's retreat from northeast Italy.[1]

He served in Italy during the

Feldmarschallleutnant on 30 January 1801.[1]

Napoleonic Wars

In 1805, Lusignan took command of a division in the

Feldzeugmeister on 29 May. He died on 23 December 1832 at Ivanovice na Hané in the modern-day Czech Republic
.

Notes

  1. ^ a b c d e f Smith & Kudrna, Lusignan
  2. ^ Smith, p 29
  3. ^ Boycott-Brown, p 378
  4. ^ Boycott-Brown, p 492
  5. ^ Boycott-Brown, p 496
  6. ^ Boycott-Brown, p 515
  7. ^ Chandler, p 120
  8. ^ Smith, p 151
  9. ^ Acerbi, Austrians Advance
  10. ^ Smith, p 155
  11. ^ Smith, 163
  12. ^ Bowden & Tarbox, p 67

References

  • Ascerbi, Enrico. napoleon-series.org The 1799 Campaign in Italy: The Austrians Advance
  • Bowden, Scotty & Tarbox, Charlie. Armies on the Danube 1809. Arlington, Texas: Empire Games Press, 1980.
  • Boycott-Brown, Martin. The Road to Rivoli. London: Cassell & Co., 2001.
    ISBN 0-304-35305-1
  • Chandler, David. The Campaigns of Napoleon. New York: Macmillan, 1966.
  • ISBN 1-85367-276-9
  • Smith, Digby & Kudrna, Leopold. napoleon-series.org Franz Joseph Lusignan
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