Joseph Lagrange (soldier)

Joseph Lagrange
General Count Joseph Lagrange.
Born	10 January 1763 (1763-01-10) Sempesserre, France
Died	16 January 1836 (1836-01-17) (aged 73) Paris, France
Allegiance	French First Republic, First French Empire, Kingdom of Westphalia Bourbon Restoration
Service/branch	Infantry
Years of service	1791–1815
Rank	Général de Division
Battles/wars	French Revolutionary Wars Napoleonic Wars
Awards	Count of the Empire 1810
Other work	Inspector General of Gendarmerie

Count Joseph Lagrange (10 January 1763 – 16 January 1836) was a French soldier who rose through the ranks and gained promotion to the rank of general officer during the French Revolutionary Wars, subsequently pursuing a successful career during the Napoleonic Wars and winning promotion to the top military rank of General of Division. His name is inscribed on the west side of the arc de triomphe de l'Étoile. He later became a politician in Gers department - in its capital of Auch there is a portrait of him in the town museum and the gendarmerie barracks was named after him in January 2002.

He was the son of Armand Lagrange, a merchant, and his wife Marianne Baruit. He became mayor of Lectoure in 1791 but three years later joined the army as a captain in the 2nd Gers Volunteer Battalion, fighting in Carinthia and in Tyrol during the 1796 and 1797 Italian campaigns. Rising rapidly through the ranks, he was chosen by Bonaparte to take part in the French invasion of Egypt. He fought in Egypt and Syria and rose to brigadier general on 14 July 1798. He entered Cairo at the head of the vanguard and distinguished himself at the siege of El Arish, the siege of Acre and the battle of Heliopolis. On his return from Egypt he was made inspector general of the gendarmerie and a général de division, before being put in command of the 14th Military Division on 23 September 1800. He was made a knight of the Légion d'honneur on 11 December 1803, rising to grand officer on 14 June 1804.