Jean-Mathieu-Philibert Sérurier
| Jean-Mathieu-Philibert Sérurier | |
|---|---|
Jean-Mathieu-Philibert Sérurier
|
|
| Born |
8 December 1742 Laon, France |
| Died |
21 December 1819 (aged 77) Paris, France |
| Allegiance |
 Kingdom of France France
|
| Service/branch | Infantry |
| Years of service |
1755–1792 1792–1819 |
| Rank | Marshal of France |
| Battles/wars | |
| Awards | Order of Saint-Louis, 1781 Légion d'Honneur, GC 1805 Order of the Iron Crown |
| Other work | Sénat conservateur, 1799 Count of the Empire, 1808 |
Jean-Mathieu-Philibert Sérurier, 1st Comte Sérurier (8 December 1742 – 21 December 1819) led a division in the War of the First Coalition and became a Marshal of France under Emperor Napoleon. He was born into the minor nobility and in 1755 joined the Laon militia which was soon sent to fight in the Seven Years' War. After transferring into the regular army as an ensign, he was wounded at Warburg in 1760. He fought in the Spanish-Portuguese War in 1762. He married in 1779 after a promotion to captain. A newly minted major in 1789, the French Revolution sped up promotion so that he was colonel of the regiment in 1792. After leading Army of Italy troops in a number of actions, he became a general of brigade in 1793 and a general of division the following year.
Sérurier led a division in Napoleon Bonaparte's Italian campaign of 1796, except during bouts of illness. He especially distinguished himself at the Battle of Mondovì and the Siege of Mantua. In 1799, he again fought in Italy during the War of the Second Coalition at Verona, Magnano and Cassano, being captured in the latter action. After being paroled, he supported Napoleon's rise to political power in the Coup of 18 Brumaire in late 1799. The apex of his career occurred on 19 May 1804 when Napoleon appointed him a Marshal of the Empire. His active military career over, Sérurier served in the French Senate and was ennobled by Napoleon. In 1814 as the First French Empire was crumbling, he burned all the many flags captured by the French armies. His troops called him the "Virgin of Italy" for his rigorous standards of discipline and honesty in an army known for generals who enriched themselves by plundering the conquered territories. His surname is one of the names inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe, on Column 24.
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