François-Paul Brueys d'Aigalliers
| François-Paul Brueys d'Aigalliers | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
February 12, 1753 Uzès, Gard, France |
| Died | August 1, 1798 (aged 45) Abu Qir Bay, Egypt Eyalet |
| Allegiance |
 Kingdom of France Kingdom of the French French First Republic
|
| Service/branch |
 French Navy
|
| Years of service | 1766–1798 |
| Rank | Vice Admiral |
| Battles/wars | Battle of the Nile |
Vice-Admiral François-Paul Brueys d'Aigalliers, Comte de Brueys (February 12, 1753 – August 1, 1798) was the French commander in the Battle of the Nile, in which the French Revolutionary Navy was defeated by Royal Navy forces under Admiral Horatio Nelson. The British victory helped to ensure their naval supremacy throughout the Napoleonic Wars. He was also a Freemason in the La Bonne Foi lodge at Montauban.
Brueys was born to an aristocratic family in Rue Boucairie, Uzès, Gard, southern France in a house which now bears a plaque with his name. Joining the navy at 13, he was a volunteer on the ship-of-the-line Protecteur in 1766, he served in several campaigns in the Levant. Becoming a Garde de la marine in 1768, he fought in the Tunis expedition on the frigate Atalante and the Saint Domingue campaign on the ship-of-the-line Actionnaire, though he was forced to leave the latter due to sickness and return to France, where he served at shore establishments, mostly on France's Mediterranean coast.
He rose to enseigne de vaisseau in 1777 and lieutenant de vaisseau in April 1780, before serving on the ship-of-the-line Terrible then the Zélé in Guichen's squadron. He fought in three battles against Admiral Rodney in April and May 1780, then in the battle against Hood's fleet before Fort-de-France in April 1781. He was present at all the battles involving Grasse's squadron, including the Chesapeake (September 1781) and the capture of Saint Kitts in February 1782. He then moved to the frigate Vestale, by chance he was not present at the battle of Les Saintes. He was made a chevalier de Saint-Louis at the end of the war.
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