#François-Joseph Lefebvre

[josefavomjaaga]

Lefebvre jun.

As is probably well-known, Marshal Lefebvre and his wife Cathérine (née Hübscher) had no less than 14 children - almost all of which died in early childhood. Only one son made it to adulthood and even joined the army, where he was nicknamed “Coco” and known mostly for being a spoilt brat.

Papa Lefebvre placed this precious son in Soult’s entourage - possibly because he hoped Monsieur “bras de fer”, known for enforcing the strictest discipline on his troops, might have a positive effect on Junior. If so, he hoped in vain. This is how Soult’s aide de camp Petiet describes Lefebvre jun. in his memoirs:

Lefebvre, sous-lieutenant of dragoons, son of the marshal whose exploits [later] resulted in his being named duke of Dantzick, was attached to the general-in-chief [i.e. Soult] as an orderly. His conduct was very erratic, he ran up scandalous debts on all sides and his taste for the bottle was so pronounced that he would sometimes be picked up in the middle of the street in a state of complete drunkenness.

Soult hoped by threats, arrests, and reprimands to change the bad disposition of this young man, but all was in vain. He had, however, some natural spirit, some nobility of character, but his education had been entirely neglected. According to the intentions of his father, Marshal Soult placed at Lefebvre's disposal six hundred francs per month which he added to his salary. The young orderly claimed that he would always be in debt until he was given the sum of a thousand francs.

"Do you think," the Marshal said to him one day, "that your father, being a sous-lieutenant, had as much money as you demand?" - "That is quite different," he replied spitefully, "my father is the son of an innkeeper [actually a miller, I believe] and I am the son of a marshal of France!"

Lefèbvre appears one day before his father who, irritated to the last degree by his debts and his villainous conduct, raises his cane to strike him. The second lieutenant quickly seized his epaulette, threw it on the table and said to him coldly: "Strike, my father, it is no longer an officer who is before you, it is your son!" The old marshal flung himself at his neck and hugged him.

Soult made him draw a map and he intended to have him write in his office and under his dictation. But, as he had put in the letter the term "catrom" for "quatre hommes", this method of abbreviating the spelling did not at all agree with Marshal Soult who gave up on his project.

I’m starting to wonder if there was anybody normal in Soult’s entourage…

#napoleon's marshals #françois-joseph lefebvre #jean-de-dieu soult

[clove-pinks]

Whoops, maybe too much zoom on this picture of Lefebvre, but at least you can see him in detail! I want a good crop of this painting for @napoleonic-sexyman-tournament

Intriguingly, and unusual for the time, it was made by a female artist, Césarine Davin.

#françois joseph lefebvre #napoleon's marshals #napoleonic #i love his drip in this portrait and don't think it overpowers him! he has the swagger! #i will cope if lefebvre loses to caked-up murat or something #but i will be PISSED if he loses to a fictional character or fugly dude

[hanciiii]

thinking about drawing all 26 marshals at this point, it would be a fun challenge ☆

#napoleonic wars #napoleonic era #art #artists on tumblr #art on tumblr #napoleons marshals #napoleon's marshals #françois joseph lefebvre #marshal lefebvre

[yaggy031910]

A fun little ask: the Marshalate is informed there is cake in the break room. How do each of them react?

Who ever you are, thank you for this sweet little question and I apologise for my late response. 🙈💕

I have ideas for some of them, however I am **not** aware of the maréchals eating habits so any input is welcome here. Also, I don't know all of the marshals well enough but I will try to include as many as possible. Don’t expect any historical accuracy in this.

See this post as a very big headcanon and as one ongoing story where I am going to try to mimic the marshals characters and miserably fail.

Shall we begin? :D

Les Maréchals and cake

Berthier would hear about it and quietly get excited by the idea of having a nice little piece of cake, just for him to be too busy with everything so that he isn't able to leave his desk. Either this or someone (probably one of his adcs) would be nice enough to get for Berthier his piece of cake.

Murat: You bet he is one of the first ones to look at this cake. His reaction might depend on how the cake looks. If it's a huge cake with a lot of golden details, Murat will carry it around so everyone admires this phenomenal cake because it deserves to be looked at.

Augerau and Masséna wonder why there is such a fancy a cake in the break room in the first place and who might have put it there. Augerau asks Masséna with a low voice: “How much money do you want to bet on the cake being poisoned?” Before Masséna is able to answer, Lannes enters the scene.

Lannes runs after Murat with the cake knife demanding to finally get his damn piece of this cake while Murat can't make himself to cut it because this cake is “so damn beautiful that it would be a waste to eat it.” This little game goes on for a minute or two until the other marshals grow impatient, one of them being Ney.

Ney who is known for his hotheadedness tries to save this cake from a disaster aaaaand fails. :) The three of them dispute over who is the actual culprit of this mess.

L: Murat, what have you done? M: I have done nothing. You followed me with a knife. N: You let the cake fall. M: You intervened in my business with Lannes.

The cake has fallen to the ground as Davout, Suchet and Macdonald watched. “Aaand here goes the cake”, Macdonald says; “At least the floor was able to taste it.” Suchet asks: “What do you think was its flavour?” ”Chocolate vanilla.” Davout answers. After a moment of silence, he adds. “Soult has a good recipe.” Mortier walks in, seeing how Lannes, Murat and Ney are loudly disputing while Masséna and Augerau get themselves black coffee and Davout, Suchet and Macdonald talking. Lefebvre who was walking right behind Mortier gestures him to move away from the door so he can get into the break room: “What is going on?”

Suchet: “We found a cake-“ Davout interrupts him: “We found a chocolate vanilla cake which we don’t know how it got here or if it was poisoned and now it’s inedible because his royal highness, the King of Naples, made it fall.”

Murat shouts from the back: “I didn’t let it fall.” Lannes: “Oh, you did.”

Lefebvre offers a solution like the good fatherly figure he is: “Do you still want cake? We could bake a new cake, messieurs.” Davout replies: “This sounds like a smart idea, Monsieur. Maréchal Soult knows an excellent recipe.”

Lefebvre: “Ahh, excellent. Where is our maréchal?”

Mortier: “He is in his office.”

“Then this where our journey goes next.” Lefebvre slams the door open and accidentally hits Oudinot. “Ah, Monsieur, my apologies. If I had known you were there, I wouldn’t have slammed the door as hard as I did. Are you alright? Yes? Until the next time then.”

Davout walks up to his friend to make sure how Oudinot is doing and explains to him in the meanwhile what is going on and also promises Oudinot to bring him a piece of the cake they are going to bake.

Lefebvre takes the lead and walks straight to Soult’s office while Davout and Mortier follow him. Suchet decides to stay behind while Macdonald thinks about it. Lefebvre knocks on Soult’s office door: “Monsieur, le maréchal? Are you here?” *Lefebvre knocks again with his energetic manner.* “Monsieur, le maréchal, it’s me, Lefebvre. Open the door!*

Soult opens the door with his usual unimpressed demeaner: Hm? Lefebvre: “Excusez-moi, mon maréchal, I heard you have a recipe for a delicious cake?” Soult: Cake? What cake? Davout: The chocolate vanilla one… the one you baked for your daughter Hortense’s birthday. The delicious one. Soult: Ah, yeah. That one. What of it? Mortier: We would like to bake this cake, which is why we want to ask if you mind us borrowing the recipe? Soult stares at his co-maréchals for a second, he shuts the door, opens it again with a piece of paper in his hand which he gives to Lefebvre. “Here. Is there anything else you need?” Macdonald who decided to join the baking group walks up to them and asks Soult: “Would you mind to lend us your baking equipment?” - “No. Have a nice day.” Soult shuts his door while Lefebvre shouts: “Thank you for your help, Monsieur Soult.” Macdonald asks: “What are we going to do now?” “We are going to bake the cake now, my good friend”, Davout answers. Mac: “Where? Where do you want us to bake the cake? Do we have the right ingredients?” D: In the kitchen and I don’t see why we shouldn’t have the ingredients. Macdonald looks at Davout with suspicious eyes about the matter if they are going to manage to bake this cake… The group of maréchals appear in the imperial kitchen where they start to gather the right ingredients. While the group is busy with the preparations, les maréchals Pérignon and Sérurier appear, wondering what is going on. As Lefebvre is explaining these two their baking journey up until now, Pérignon and Sérurier decide to join them: “A cake made by maréchals for maréchals.”

What could possibly go wrong with two additional heads in the kitchen? As it turns out: Everything. Pérignon and Sérurier manage to overdo the cake by confusing salt with sugar. The cake tastes salty, the icing itself is fine because it was made by Davout who religiously followed Soult’s directions. In addition to that, monsieur Lefebvre manages to mix up usual paper with baking sheets.

Bernadotte walks into the kitchen as he sees his fellow maréchals working on their baking project. He comments on the scenery: “This is just pure chaos without any discipline, a chaos which can’t possibly create something edible.” Davout replies “Well, have you ever baked anything in your miserable existence which you so call your life?”; to which Bernadotte says: “wELL, no, BUT-“ Davout continues: “Then get out of this room and give me my peace back or shut up.” Bernadotte decides to leave.

As Bernadotte is leaving, Jourdan walks right into the scene with an apple in his hand. A fire starts to break out in the oven and Jourdan, like the team player he is, turns and leaves this mess to his co-maréchals without saying one word.

Nothing is going as Davout had it planned. He sits in a corner, mourning this beautiful chocolate vanilla cake he had in mind. Macdonald sits right next to him with a spoon, telling him: “Well, at least the frosting you made yourself is delicious.” Davout, completely shattered by the fact that he wasn’t able to make his desired chocolate vanilla cake, puts his face into his palms until a surprise visits the kitchen: It’s maréchal Soult. With a cake. A chocolate vanilla cake. A chocolate vanilla cake which is neither burnt nor oversalted. A chocolate vanilla cake according to the recipe. Next to Soult is Oudinot who cuts two pieces of the cake: one for himself and one for his good old friend, Louis Nicolas Davout.

After Soult, Ney and Lannes enter the kitchen. Ney silently takes a piece of Soult’s cake, saying nothing except a simple “thank you”. So do Macdonald and Mortier. Soult tolerates Ney’s presence. Lannes on the other hand goes straight to the oversalted and burnt cake which the older maréchals made and are also eating. Kellermann and Grouchy, as late to the party as ever, also go for Lefebvre’s bad cake while Soult’s good cake is still sitting there. Soult can’t hide his look of disgust.

At some point, Bessières and Murat join or rejoin retrospectively the scene, walking up to Soult’s cake. Bessières, as well mannered as he is, takes one piece of a cake to which Murat comments: “I know how much you like this lovely type of cake, Bessières, take a second piece.” - “No”, Soult replies: “That’s not your cake. Take your piece and leave.” Murat adds: “For whom are the other pieces then? I don’t see anybody who would possibly want to eat this gorgeous baked good. We want to eat your delicious creation of a fabulous cake.” - “One piece each. You can give him your piece if you like to.” Bessières interrupts the two: “I am content with my piece.” Murat doesn’t listen to what Bessières says and continues his conversation with Soult: “My fellow maréchal, I don’t understand, why do you struggle so much with allowing somebody to have one additional piece of cake than the other ones?”

While Murat and Soult continue their dispute which leads to nowhere, one adc enters slowly the kitchen. He looks at Soult who recognises this man as one of Berthier’s adcs. He came to get a piece of cake for his marshal. Soult lets him take one of the few pieces left. All of a sudden, Kellermann seems to be chocking on his salty cake piece. All the maréchals are gathering around him and in the chaos, the last few pieces of Soult’s cake fall to the ground. Soult looks at his cake or what’s left of it. One could argue that everyone who wanted to eat it was able to eat it. One could argue that these fallen pieces can be ignored and Soult could go on with his day never ever thinking about the pieces again. However, we are talking about maréchal Soult here who sees the art in baking. The love, the accuracy of it. Today he didn’t just bring cake to his fellow maréchals. Today he witnessed how some of them have no sense of dignity for what it means to be able to eat good food. Good cake. Soult is leaving the room, not bothered about Kellermann as he wouldn’t be able to help anyway. He is going to his wife, his Louise Berg, who asks him about his day. He tells her the whole of it. How he was surprised by his fellow maréchals who wanted to bake a cake. How he knew that they are going to mess up his recipe. How he baked that cake properly and how a part of it went to waste. “Some of them ate oversalted and burnt cake. Who eats bad cake? Who likes bad cake???”

Davout on the other hand was thankful for Soult. With a smile on his face, Davout enjoyed his so desired chocolate vanilla cake, unbothered by the event surrounding him. The end. :)

#Napoleonic headcanon #headcanon #napoleonic #louis alexander berthier #joachim murat #charles pierre augerau #andré masséna #jean lannes #michel ney #louis nicolas davout #louis gabriel suchet #étienne macdonald #édouard mortier #nicolas charles oudinot #françois joseph lefebvre #jean baptiste bernadotte #jean baptiste bessières #jean baptiste jourdan #jean de dieu soult #louise berg soult #And the rest :) #i am too tired for this #i hope you like it #cake

[ayumunoya]

Absolutely in love with this scene of the Lefebvres 💖💖💖

#marshal lefebvre #catherine hübscher #françois joseph lefebvre #napoleon 1955 #yves montand #patachou #henriette ragon #iam in love with this scene #napoleonic era #napoleon's marshals

[cadmusfly]

Hmm, how about poor unappreciated Marshal Lefebvre?

And would you endure another thousand bullets to maintain your lofty status, is what Lefebvre’s friend did not ask because the answer was too damn obvious. Lefebvre might have even asked, where?

But at that point in his life, he was satisfied. If he died in battle, he would have been satisfied. If Napoleon gave him a nice dukedom for a simple siege, he would have been satisfied.

“You used to be such a Republican! Look at you now!”

“Well, yes,” says Lefebvre, “but I do not see the matter with it. The man gets results!”

But if your son had to endure a thousand bullets, or if your son had to be bought off with fancy titles…

“The man gets results.”

[ Part of me accepting writing prompts for short snippets, and thank you for the prompt! Lefebvre’s a straightforward and hilarious man, this is mostly based on the anecdote where a friend asked him how he got all his nice mansion and stuff and the old man replied that he’d trade places if the friend willingly agreed to be shot at. The one time he seems to falter is in regard to his dying son, but even after that he advocated another battle after Waterloo. ]

#cadmus rambles #cad answers an ask #cadmus writes #napoleonic rpf #historical rpf #françois joseph lefebvre #napoleon’s marshals

[koda-friedrich]

(過去絵) Born in the 1750s!

#歴史創作 #napoleonic wars #my art #Louis-Alexandre Berthier #François Joseph Lefebvre #Pierre Augereau #André Masséna

[napoleonic-sexyman-tournament]

Adam Jerzy Czartoryski

(admin note: even if you don't vote for him, reading about his life is a wild ride)

Propaganda:

"Decided that the way to free Poland was by having a threesome with Alexander and his wife.”

Lefebvre:

Propaganda:

“Total DILF material, and the fiery passion in his eyes was matched only by his fiery personality! This contest may be based on looks (and Lefebvre is a strong candidate on this metric alone); but it's hard not to fall in love with his spicy takes and saucy language. He told Napoleon, "Let us throw the lawyers into the river” after agreeing to help overthrow the Directory (quoted in David G. Chandler, ed., Napoleon's Marshals), and from his English Wikipedia article: When a friend expressed envy of his estate, Lefebvre said, "Come down in the courtyard, and I'll have ten shots at you with a musket at 30 paces. If I miss, the whole estate is yours." After the friend declined this offer, Lefebvre added, "I had a thousand bullets shot at me from much closer range before I got all this." In response to a clueless young man demanding his identity at a social event, he answered, ''Je viens de la lune, où je n'ai jamais vu un Jean-Foutre de ton espèce: Je m'appelle le Général Lefebvre!” [“I come from the moon, where I’ve never seen such a #*$& as you. My name is General Lefevre!”] Quoted in The Secret History of the Cabinet of Bonaparte by Lewis Goldsmith, 1810, which is also hilarious because the author clearly hates Lefebvre, but makes him sound like a cool badass. He earns additional sexy points by sticking by his ex-washerwoman wife, who had a mouth of her own. (tbh Catherine Lefebvre, “Madame Sans-Gêne,” deserves her own Napoleonic Sexyman [gender neutral] nomination).”

#napoleonic sexyman tournament

[armagnac-army]

VOTE FOR A MARSHAL OF THE EMPIRE!!!

SINCE WERE NOT GOING TO APPEAR FOR AGES IN THAT OFFICIAL TOURNAMENT AND THE EMPEROR JUST GOT ROYALLED FUCKED THERE BY A VANISHED ROAST BEEF

HERES A BALLOT JUST FOR US MARSHALS OF THE EMPIRE!!

IN CASE YOU DONT KNOW WHO WE ARE WE'RE THE TOP MILITARY COMMANDERS PROMOTED BY NAPOLEON HIMSELF

AND WE HAVE REALLY BIG HATS

VOTE FOR WHOEEVER THE FUCK YOU WANT WHETHER THATS THE BEST OR THE SEXIEST OR THE MOST PATHETIC I DONT CARE

YOU KNOW YOU WANT TO VOTE FOR ME THOUGH!!!

GO AHEAD AND POST ALL THE PROPAGRANDA YOU WANT, THE ADC WILL SHARE IT IF ITS FUNNY

SORRY TO MONCEY, JOURDAN, BERNADOTTE, BRUNE, MORTIER, KELLERMAN, PERIGNON, SERURIER, VICTOR, MACDONALD, OUDINOT, MARMONT, SUCHET, SAINT-CYR AND GROUCHY, MAYBE WELL HAVE A PITY POLLE LATER

#dispatches from the marshal #napoleon's marshals #napoleonic wars #napoleonic era

[alexlacquemanne]

Mars XXMMIII

Films

Gilda (1946) de Charles Vidor avec Rita Hayworth, Glenn Ford, George Macready, Joseph Calleia, Steven Geray et Joe Sawyer

Le Port de l'angoisse (To Have and Have Not) (1944) de Howard Hawks avec Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Walter Brennan, Dolores Moran, Hoagy Carmichael et Sheldon Leonard

Le Lion et le Vent (The Wind and the Lion) (1975) de John Milius avec Sean Connery, Candice Bergen, Brian Keith, John Huston, Geoffrey Lewis, Steve Kanaly et Vladek Sheybal

Indiana Jones et le Temple maudit (Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom) (1984) de Steven Spielberg avec Harrison Ford, Kate Capshaw, Jonathan Ke Quan, Amrish Puri et Roshan Seth

Mon crime (2023) de François Ozon avec Nadia Tereszkiewicz, Rebecca Marder, Isabelle Huppert, Dany Boon, Fabrice Luchini, André Dussollier et Félix Lefebvre

À notre regrettable époux (1988) de Serge Korber avec Jacqueline Maillan, Alida Valli, Jacques Dufilho, Pierre Tornade, Jean-Pierre Aumont et Hubert Deschamps

The Fabelmans (2022) de Steven Spielberg avec Gabriel LaBelle, Mateo Zoryon Francis-DeFord, Michelle Williams, Paul Dano, Seth Rogen, Keeley Karsten, Julia Butters et Judd Hirsch

Les Caprices de Marie (1970) de Philippe de Broca avec Marthe Keller, Philippe Noiret, Jean-Pierre Marielle, Valentina Cortese, Henri Crémieux, Fernand Gravey, Bert Convy, Colin Drake et François Périer

Le Quai des brumes (1938) de Marcel Carné avec Jean Gabin, Michèle Morgan, Michel Simon, Pierre Brasseur, Édouard Delmont, Aimos et Robert Le Vigan

Le Veau gras (1939) de Serge de Poligny avec François Périer, Elvire Popesco, Armand Bernard, André Lefaur, Gabrielle Fontan, Robert Le Vigan, Marcelle Praince et Raymond Cordy

Séries

Top Gear Saison 16, 12

Surfin' USA - L'Albanie en Rolls-Royce - 1200 km en un plein - Trois camions d'enfer - La fiesta dans tous ses états - Moteur nature - Vietnam Special - Construire l'impossible - En route pour la Côte d'Azur !

Friends Saison 6

Celui qui avait une jolie colocataire - Celui qui avait les dents blanches - Celui qui s'était drogué - Celui qui souhaitait la bonne année - Celui qui avait le derrière entre deux chaises - Celui qui inventait des histoires - Celui qui sortait avec la sœur - Celui qui ne pouvait pas pleurer - Ce qui aurait pu se passer : 1re partie - Ce qui aurait pu se passer : 2e partie - Celui qui avait l'Unagi - Celui qui sortait avec une étudiante - Celui qui avait des problèmes de frigo - Celui qui avait une audition - Celui qui rencontrait le père - Celui qui se la jouait grave - Celui qui achetait la bague

L'agence tous risques Saison 2, 3

Pièces détachées - Nouvelle cuisine - Opération finale - Les cloches de Sainte-Marie - Souvenirs - Au feu ! - Promenade dans les bois - Vacances au bord du lac - Au-delà de la rivière : 1re partie - Au-delà de la rivière : 2e partie - Vacances en Floride - La dernière séance - Double foyer - Echec aux affreux - Voie de garage - Collection - Extorsions - Le nouveau shérif - Le champion - Belle évasion - Les braconniers

Columbo Saison 4, 7, 1

Entre le crépuscule et l'aube - Des sourires et des armes - Poids mort

La Pause Biodiv : Mission pollinis'Actions

La vache ! - Espèce de larve ! - Vive la belle étoile ! - Pile 30 minutes ! - Je végétalise - Sous les pavés, la plante !

Méli Mélo : Démêlons les fils de l'eau

De source sûre ! - Un léger penchant - L'étroite moustiquaire - Culture et Captages - Les sceptique de la fosse ! - Le changement c'est maintenant - Le goût des eaux - Eau propre eau sale ! - Papy lingette ! - Bzz ! - Au prix que ça coûte ! - Sors de ton lit ! - Vive l'herbe libre ! - Allais, allez ! - Des tout petits cachets ! - Tartare de sédiments !

Coffre à Catch

#105 - Un hall of famer à la ECW ! (avec Vinny Brun) - #106 - Hardy Boyz et Poêle à frire ! - #107 : Une nouvelle ceinture pour une nouvelle ère ! - #108 : Mark Henry présente la barre de faire !

Inspecteur Barnaby Saison 6

Mort en eau trouble - Le Parcours du combattant - Une touche de sang - La Maison de Satan - Les oiseaux de proie

Meurtres au paradis Saison 12

L'éclipse - Les Survivalistes - Plage à vendre

Affaires sensibles

Gianni Agnelli, le dernier roi d’Italie - François Cevert : dernière course contre la mort - Netflix, l'histoire mouvementée derrière l'écran - L'histoire mouvementée de Metallica - Mars 2002 : massacre au Conseil municipal de Nanterre

Livres

Détective Conan Tome 5 de Gōshō Aoyama

Pourquoi ne faisons-nous rien pendant que la maison brûle ? de Claude Bourguignon et Lydia Bourguignon

Une vie de malade ! de Nadim Aswissri

Les Trois Mousquetaires, tome I d'Alexandre Dumas

#mediatheque #mars23

[joachimnapoleon]

25 October 1755–François-Joseph Lefebvre, future Marshal of France, is born.

He was educated by his uncle, a village priest, who taught him to write a good hand, a smattering of Latin, and enough piety always to make his “act of grace” before going into action. He enlisted in the French Guard when eighteen, gradually working his way up to regimental sergeant major and marrying a happy-souled laundress.... The Revolution made him an instructor of the Paris National Guard, then a general of brigade in 1793, of division in 1794. By 1797 he was handling the equivalent of a corps. The Directory, fearful of a counterrevolution and considering Lefebvre utterly trustworthy, put him in command of the Paris garrison in 1799. It missed the fact that Lefebvre had had a bellyful of the Directory’s neglect of its armies. When Napoleon launched his coup d’état, Lefebvre joined him to “throw the lawyers into the river.” Most of Lefebvre’s subsequent service was with the Old Guard. He always had a Germans accent, a loud voice, and a sergeant’s vocabulary, but he looked after his men as if they were his own children. He exhibited a simple, amazed pride in his late good fortune; when a friend admired his dress uniform, Lefebvre replied that it should be handsome—he had been working on it for thirty-five years! Lefebvre was an outstanding “general of execution,” an excellent tactician and leader of men, but when given a semi-independent mission he was apt to go looking for a head to hit, regardless of orders. “There is such imbecility in Lefebvre’s correspondence,” Napoleon wrote in 1809, “that I can’t comprehend it; I hope [General] Merlin will rejoin him and teach him how to read.”.... Coming out of Russia, Lefebvre kept his head and heart as far as Vilna. There, he had to leave his dying son, and his courage snapped. Summoned back to command the Old Guard in January 1813, Lefebvre answered: “... all his lost for me. I go to hide myself... I take with me my wife who had totally lost her wits... I don’t want to see another soldier... Pardon my scribble.” Lefebvre had no command in 1813; in 1814 he was attached to imperial headquarters and joined the marshals’ mutiny: “Did he believe that when we have titles, honours and lands, we will kill ourselves for his sake?” Yet after Waterloo he called for one battle more.

-John R.Elting, Swords Across a Throne: Napoleon’s Grande Armée

#François-Joseph Lefebvre #Napoleon #Napoleon Bonaparte #Napoleon’s marshals #today in history

[josefavomjaaga]

Lefebvre in 1797

Another description of an encounter with today’s birthday marshal, by the rector of the university in Gießen who during those days nolens volens had to act as a go-between with the French army commanders governing the region. It is taken from the book “Selbstbiographie” by Dr. August Friedrich Wilhelm Crome.

Lefebvre (François Joseph) was the son of a miller from Alsace, hence he spoke poor German.

Yes. I don’t understand a word of Alsatien German either.

As a sergeant in the Garde francaise, he threw himself into the revolution with zeal in 1789, excelled in the conquest of the Bastille in 1789, and soon rose so quickly in the army that he was already commanding as a general after only a few years.

He first appeared in our region in 1796, and remained here until 1798, but without having his headquarters in Giessen. As general in chief, ad interim, he stayed in Wetzlar, and it was from there that we had to take his orders.

Lefebvre may have been very hot-tempered, but he was fair and honest, which I believe I can prove with the following course of events. Colonel Merlin (a nephew of the director Merlin in Paris) commanded the French red hussar regiment, and lay in garrison with it in 1797 in our district of Bingenheim (in the Wetterau), which he completely ruined. There he repeatedly requisitioned, among other things, 50 sugar loaves, just as many bottles of arrack, 50 dozen lemons, 50 pounds of coffee, etc., and each time sent it to his wife in France.

From which we can deduct that Madame Merlin hosted some splendid parties in Paris. Or had a serious drinking problem.

In the process, the inhabitants of this district were brutalised so unbelievably that the then clergyman in Bärstadt, Butte, (now a retired Prussian councillor in Bonn), threatened with maltreatment by Merlin, had to flee to neutral Kassel.

Finally, the civil servant complained to the war commission in Giessen and brought himself the original papers of these disgraceful requisitions written in the hand of the colonel. I took these to the general in chief, Lefebvre, at Wetzlar, and at the same time handed him a letter from General Championett, stating: Le porteur de cette lettre, M. Crome, qui fait ici les affaires de l'administration militaire de son pays, avec les Generaux francais, m'a toujours dit la verité. Il vous dira, Monsieur le G., des choses du Colonel Merlin, dont un brave Français doit rougir.

[The bearer of this letter, M. Crome, who handles here the business of the military administration of his country with the French Generals, has always told me the truth. He will tell you, Monsieur le G., things about Colonel Merlin, of which a brave Frenchman must be ashamed. ]

As soon as Lefebvre had read this letter, he rushed his wife and all the officers out of the room, grabbed me by the chest and shouted: Out with it, what do you have to tell me that I should blush about?

There you have your hot-tempered but fair and honest treatment, I suppose. Also, it seems Lefebvre was not quite as naive politically as he is often made out to be. Or removing all witnesses before you get to hear something you might not want to hear by then had become a natural precaution. Always keep plausible deniability.

I showed him my [lists of] requisitions from Merlin; he read them and tore them up. He then ordered me not to leave Wetzlar without his permission; tomorrow Colonel Merlin was to be confronted to me. Whichever of us was in the wrong should immediately cross the Rhine, Merlin with his regiment, or I to Hamm. Until then, I would dine at his table at noon and in the evening.

Well, at least he’s getting fed.

With this decision I went to the Chef d'etat major, the excellent General Charpentier. He feared a bad outcome for me, because Merlin had been spared and shunned on account of his uncle (who sat in the directorate in Paris). He then said and advised me as follows: “Lefebvre will seat you next to his wife at the table tonight; she speaks only of turnips and coleslaw. The General himself will not speak at all at table (where you will find 40 people), because he knows that he does not speak well. At 11 o'clock, when the table is lifted, everything hurries away, because the last one must stay there at the general's command and keep him company until about 1 o'clock, when he goes to bed. You must be that man tonight, and there you can speak freely and openly with him, and also easily persuade him to ride with you to Giessen tomorrow to have lunch with Championett ( something he has long since spoken of). There, this general, who is your patron, will keep you and rescue you. Otherwise you will probably have to go to France in eight days.”

All this came true on time. [...] In Giessen, General Championett received us in a friendly manner, very much approved of my means of communication, kept me at table with him, and protected me on his departure against Lefebvre's order to accompany him back to Wetzlar. In the meantime, Colonel Merlin was transferred and had to return with his hussars across the Rhine in eight days.

I’m not always sure how much these German civilians understood of French military procedures. But their impressions often are a fun read.

General Championnet died in 1800 of typhus, if I have found the correct person in Wikipedia. General Charpentier must have been the same to whom Soult had adressed his letter full of complaints about the French army’s conduct some months earlier.

#napoleon's marshals #françois-joseph lefebvre

[clove-pinks]

Couples you wish would ask you to be their third. 😩

#françois joseph lefebvre #catherine hubscher #madame sans-gêne #napoleonic sexymen #(gender neutral) #napoleonic #i would [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED]

[deceptigoons-attack]

François-Joseph Lefebvre, Césarine Davin-Mirvault.

#François-Joseph Lefebvre #Marshal Lefebvre #Césarine Davin-Mirvault #art

[histoireettralala]

How Napoleon chose his marshals.

Promotion: 19/05/1804.

Berthier: Napoleon knew him since the Siege of Toulon. A vital player regarding organization and availability.

Murat: Caroline’s husband. Best cavalryman in Europe. Unflinchingly followed Napoleon since 1795. A key figure in Vendémiaire and Brumaire as well as in battle.

Moncey: Won in Spain in 1795. Trustworthy.

Jourdan: Won in Wattignies & Fleurus. Emblematic of the East & North Armies. As he was opposed to Napoleon’s coup (18 Brumaire), he will be underused. His nomination also honors the late Hoche and Marceau.

Masséna: Unassailable nomination. Bold, victorious, strong personality. Excellent military abilities.

Augereau: friend of Masséna & Lannes. He did great in Italy.

Bernadotte: family. Good military capacities. Did good in Germany.

Soult: good general & excellent flatterer. Served under Masséna and Murat.

Brune: Danton’s friend. Very involved in revolutionary movements. Helped Napoléon during Vendémiaire. Has victories to his name.

Lannes: met in Italy. Intrepid and able to anticipate. Saved Napoléon’s life. Twice.

Mortier: the surprising one. A brave general but not exactly known. Emblematic of the great battles in fought in with the East & North armies.

Ney: remarked while serving under Kléber. Brave, bold.

Davout: met through Desaix. Very young but conquers Napoleon in Egypt with his strategical ability.

Bessières: met in Italy. Faithful and devoted partisan. Leads the Garde consulaire.

Kellermann: the prestigious winner of Valmy.

Lefebvre: important for Brumaire.

Pérignon: won against the Spaniards.

Sérurier: won in Mondovi, figure of the Armée d’Italie.

Jean-Claude Banc, Dictionnaire des Maréchaux de Napoléon.

#napoleonic #the marshals #dictionnaire des maréchaux de napoléon #louis alexandre berthier #joachim murat #bon adrien jeannot de moncey #jean-baptiste jourdan #andré masséna #pierre augereau #jean-baptiste bernadotte #nicolas jean-de-dieu soult #guillaume brune #jean lannes #édouard mortier #michel ney #louis nicolas davout #jean-baptiste bessières #françois étienne kellermann #françois-joseph lefebvre #catherine-dominique de pérignon #jean-mathieu philibert sérurier #a very short how and why #promotion 1804

[cadmusfly]

Tag Yourself: Unabridged Shitty Drawing Marshal of the Empire Edition

Yes All 26 Of Them + Bonus 2

drawn and compiled by yours truly, initial and probably inaccurate research assisted by Chet Jean-Paul Tee, additional research from Napoleon and his Marshals by A G MacDonnell, Swords Around A Throne by John R Elting and a bunch of other books and Wikipedia pages

captions under images

mike (Michel Ney)

- full of every emotion

- always has ur back

joe (Joachim Murat)

- it's called fashion sweetheart

- will not stop flirting

lens (Jean Lannes)

- bestie who will call u out on ur shit

- does not like their photo taken

bessie (Jean-Baptiste Bessieres)

- actually nice under the ice

- was born in the wrong generation

dave (Louis-Nicolas Davout)

- overachiever

- 20 year old boomer

salt (Jean-de-Dieu Soult)

- people think ur up to no good

- doesn’t cope with sudden changes 2 plans

andrew (Andre Massena)

- actually up to no good

- sleepy until special interest is activated

bertie (Louis-Alexandre Berthier)

- carries the group project

- voted most likely to make a stalker shrine

auggie (Pierre Augereau)

- shady past full of batshit stories

- will not stop swearing in the christian minecraft server

lefrank (François Joseph Lefebvre)

- dad friend

- in my day we walked to school uphill both ways

big mac (Étienne Macdonald)

- brutally honest

- won't let you borrow their charger even if they have 100%

gill (Guillaume Brune)

- love-hate relationship with group chats

- pretends not to care, checks social media every 2 minutes

ouchie (Nicholas Oudinot)

- needs to buy bandages in bulk

- a little aggro

pony (Józef Antoni Poniatowski)

- can't swim

- tries 2 hard to fit in, everyone secretly loves them anyway

grumpy (Emmanuel de Grouchy)

- can't find them when u need them

- complains about the music, never suggests alternatives

bernie (Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte)

- always talks about their other friendship group

- most successful, nobody knows how

monty (Auguste de Marmont)

- does not save u a seat

- causes drama and then lurks in the background

monch (Bon-Adrien Jeannot de Moncey)

- last to leave the party

- dependable

morty (Édouard Mortier)

- everyone looks up 2 them literally and figuratively

- golden retriever friend

jordan (Jean-Baptiste Jourdan)

- volunteers other people for things

- has 20+ alarms but still oversleeps

kelly (François Christophe de Kellermann)

- old as balls but still got it

- waiting in the wings

gov (Laurent de Gouvion Saint-Cyr)

- infuriatingly modest about their art skills

- thinks too much before they speak

perry (Catherine-Dominique de Pérignon)

- low-key rich, only buys things on sale

- “let’s order pizza” solution to everything

sachet (Louis-Gabriel Suchet)

- dependable friend who always brings snacks

- lowkey keeps the group together

cereal (Jean-Mathieu-Philibert Sérurier)

- unnervingly methodical and precise about fun

- will delete your social media after u die

vic (Claude Victor-Perrin)

- loves spicy food but can’t handle it

- says they're fine, not actually fine

Bonus!

june (Jean Andoche Junot)

- chaotic disaster bisexual

- will kill a man 4 their bestie

the rock (Géraud Duroc)

- keeps a tidy house

- mom friend with snacks

#napoleon’s marshals #napoleonic era #napoleonic shitposting #napoleonic wars #history shitposting #cadmus draws #I thought it would be funny if it was hand drawn #i had to draw these over a few weeks or else my RSI ridden fingers would explode #I will reblog this a few times because this is so stupid and I’m proud of this #yes chatgpt helped because I’m not actually familiar with most of the 26 #ended up editing a lot of it but some entries are less based on history and more based on vibes #and as we know vibes are extremely accurate