Biographies : 187
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BiographyDENON, Dominque Vivant
Denon, one of the key figures in the artistic world of the First Empire, was born in Givry, near to Châlons-sur-Sâone in Franche Comté, 4 January 1747 into a family of the lesser nobility. At eighteen he went to Paris to study not only law (his parents wanted him to be a magistrate) but also […]
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BiographyDOMBROWSKI, Jan Henryk
Polish general Dombrowski was born in Poland, near Krakow. He fought for the Saxon troops from 1770-1784, before taking up service in the Polish army in 1791. After the failed Kosciuszko uprising, of which he was a part of, Dombrowski sought refuge in France in 1795 and formed the Polish legions, with which he fought […]
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BiographyDU PIN, Charles Louis Désiré
Although a marginal figure, particularly amongst other officers of the period, Colonel Du Pin’s importance and reknown was to prove considerable, far exceeding that of many generals who refused to associate with him. Most famously, he was a key but controversial figure in the French intervention in Mexico. Born in Lasgraisses (Tarn) on 28 December, […]
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BiographyDU TAILLIS, Adrien-Jean-Baptiste-Amable Ramond du Bosc (1760-1851), general, Comte
Born into a noble family and a pupil from the engineers' school, Du Taillis joined the Volontaires Nassau-Siegen corps in 1779. On 1st September, 1789, he was capitaine-adjudant-major in the 3rd Battalion of the 6th division of the Garde nationale de Paris. On 3rd August, 1791, he was incorporated into the 14th light infantry battalion […]
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BiographyDubois de Saligny, Alphonse, (1809-1888) diplomat
Alphonse Dubois de Saligny was appointed Secrétaire de légation in 1830 in compensation for his participation in the revolution of the Trois-Glorieuses in 1830. His career was however to be patchy. He was sent to Washington, as chargé d'affaires for the Republic of Texas (from 1839 to 1842), with a mission to prevent that state's […]
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BiographyDUROC, Géraud-Christophe-Michel, général (1772-1813), GRAND MARÉCHAL DU PALAIS
Duroc (Géraud-Christophe-Michel, Duc de Frioul), General from 1772-1813. Duroc embarked on a military career as a cadet at the beginning of 1789. He was driven out of the army and then emigrated in 1792, however he soon returned to France and reassumed his military career. After having been promoted to Lieutenant of Artillery in 1793 […]
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BiographyELGIN, James Bruce (Eighth earl of Elgin)
James Bruce Elgin was born in London on 20 July 1811, the youngest son of Thomas, seventh Earl of Elgin and his second wife, Elizabeth, the daughter of J. T. Oswald. He completed his studies at Eton and Christ Church, Oxford (BA, 1833; MA, 1835). In 1840, following the death of his elder brother, he became […]
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BiographyESPAGNE, Jean-Louis-Brigitte
Jean-Louis-Brigitte was born in 1769 and served as a cavalryman in the Dragons de la Reine in 1787. A brilliant horseman, he went on to serve under Dumouriez in the Alps and distinguished himself at Mont-Cenis. He was then promoted to général de brigade in 1799, and fought under Jourdan and then Moreau. He took […]
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BiographyEugenie de Guzman Palafox Y Portocarrero, Empress of the French (1826-1920)
A privileged childhood immersed in the cult of Napoleon Eugenie was born on 5 May 1826 in Granada. Despite a rather eventful birth (as an earthquake was shaking Andalusia, her mother had to give birth in a tent in the garden), Eugenie’s childhood was an easy one. Her father, Don Cipriano, who had been removed […]
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BiographyFALLOUX DU COUDRAY, Frédéric Alfred Pierre, comte de
Frédéric Falloux du Coudray was born in Angers on 7 May, 1811, into a family of merchants enobled by Louis XVIII in 1825 for their monarchical and clerical zeal. After studying at the college in Angers, Frédéric came up to Paris, and it was here that he made his entrance into society via Madame Swetchine, […]