Adam Philippe, Comte de Custine
| Adam Philippe, Comte de Custine | |
|---|---|
The General, affectionately known as "the Mustaches".
|
|
| Born |
4 February 1740 Metz |
| Died |
28 August 1793 (aged 53) Paris |
| Allegiance |
 Kingdom of France French First Republic
|
| Service/branch | French Army |
| Years of service | 1756–1789; 1791–1793 |
| Rank | General |
| Battles/wars |
War of Austrian Succession Seven Years' War American Revolutionary War French Revolutionary Wars |
| Awards |
Order of Cincinnati Name engraved on Third Column (north pillar), Arc de Triomphe |
| Other work | Estates-General, 1789; National Constituent Assembly, 1789–1790 |
Adam Philippe, Comte de Custine (4 February 1740 – 28 August 1793) was a French general. As a young officer in the Bourbon Royal army, he served in the Seven Years' War. In the American Revolutionary War he joined Rochambeau's Expédition Particulière (Special Expedition) supporting the American colonists. Following the successful Virginia campaign and the Battle of Yorktown, he returned to France and rejoined his unit in the Royal Army.
When the French Revolution began he was elected to the Estates-General and served in the subsequent National Constituent Assembly as a representative from Metz. He supported some of the August Decrees, but also supported, generally, royal prerogative and the rights of the French émigrés. At the dissolution of the Assembly in 1791, he rejoined the army as a lieutenant general and the following year replaced Nicolas Luckner as commander-in-chief of the Army of the Vosges. In 1792, he successfully led campaigns in the middle and upper Rhine regions, taking Speyer and Mainz and breaching the Wissembourg lines. Following Charles François Dumouriez's apparent treason, the Committee of Public Safety investigated Custine, but a vigorous defense mounted by the Revolutionary lawyer Robespierre resulted in his acquittal.
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