Gabriel Marie Théodore Joseph de Hédouville
| Gabriel d'Hédouville | |
|---|---|
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Portrait by Jean-Baptiste Paulin Guérin
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| Born | 27 July 1755 Laon |
| Died | 30 March 1825 (aged 69) Brétigny-sur-Orge |
| Allegiance |
 Kingdom of France Kingdom of the French First French Republic First French Empire Kingdom of France
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| Rank | général de division |
| Battles/wars | |
| Other work | Diplomat |
Gabriel-Marie-Théodore-Joseph, comte d'Hédouville (27 July 1755 in Laon, Aisne – 30 March 1825) (also Thomas Hedouville) was a French soldier and diplomat.
A student at the royal collège at La Flèche, he became a lieutenant in 1788 and rose to adjutant-general and lieutenant-colonel in 1792. He fought at the Battle of Valmy on 20 September 1792 and was made general de brigade and chief of staff to the Army of Moselle the following March. He then distinguished himself at the Battle of Kaiserslautern. However, he was then suspended and imprisoned as a noble and thus as a suspect, but was freed on 9 Thermidor year II (27 July 1794), brought back into the army at the rank of general of brigade and sent to the Army of the Coasts of Cherbourg (then at Brest). He became general of division in November 1795 and the Cherbourg army's chief of staff in January 1795, under Lazare Hoche. Under Hoche's orders he carried out a policy of pacification and appeasement in the west, which had revolted against the Republican regime.
He temporarily commanded the Army of the Coasts of the Ocean in place of Hoche from 10 July to mid-August 1796.
He then spent a short stay on Saint-Domingue in 1798, where he had been sent to be governor during Sonthonax's second commission. He encouraged the dissension between André Rigaud and Toussaint Louverture which helped to fuel the Haitian Revolution. Toussaint's military leadership during the Haitian Revolution enabled the rebellious slaves to gain the upper hand and to restore most of Saint-Domingue to France. Now that he ruled the island, Toussaint did not wish to surrender power to France and continued to effectively rule the country autonomously. Hédouville was one of the rivals to power Toussaint had to overcome. Hédouville was eventually forced to flee. However, before he left he released André Rigaud from Toussaint's leadership.
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