Louis Henri Loison
| Louis Henri Loison | |
|---|---|
Louis Henri Loison
|
|
| Born |
16 May 1771 Damvillers, France |
| Died |
30 December 1816 (aged 45) Chokier, present-day Belgium |
| Allegiance |
 France
|
| Service/branch | Infantry |
| Years of service | 1791-1815 |
| Rank | General of Division |
| Battles/wars |
French Revolutionary Wars Napoleonic Wars |
| Awards | Légion d'Honneur, Grand Officer |
Louis Henri Loison (16 May 1771 – 30 December 1816) briefly joined the French Army in 1787 and after the French Revolution became a junior officer. Blessed with military talent and courage, he rapidly rose to general officer rank during the French Revolutionary Wars. He also got into difficulties because of his fondness for plundering. In late 1795 he helped Napoleon Bonaparte crush a revolt against the government. After a hiatus, he returned in 1799 to fight in Switzerland where he earned another promotion. In 1800 he commanded a division under Napoleon in the Marengo Campaign.
In 1805, Loison led a division in Napoleon's Grande Armée during the Ulm Campaign and served in the War of the Fourth Coalition in 1806 and 1807. He saw much action in the Peninsular War including all three invasions of Portugal, though not always with distinction. In Portugal he earned a bad name for his harshness and the inhabitants called him Maneta or One-Hand. For a brief period, he commanded Michel Ney's famous VI Corps. During the French invasion of Russia he assembled a reserve division, which was later destroyed by the extreme cold weather. He served in the War of the Sixth Coalition before a harsh rebuke from the emperor effectively ended his military career. Loison is one of the names inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe.
Born on 16 May 1771 in Damvillers, France in what later became the department of Meuse, Loison briefly enlisted in a colonial battalion on 29 June 1787. However, he left the unit in September and when he returned on 25 January 1788, he was immediately granted leave. After the outbreak of the French Revolution, his father served as a Deputy in the Constituent Assembly. He was appointed sous-lieutenant in the Meuse Volunteer Battalion on 15 September 1791 and became lieutenant in 1792. Several months later, he emerged as captain of hussars in the Légion du Nord. In May 1793, the Representative-on-mission of the Army of the North (France) promoted him to adjutant general (a rank equivalent to colonel) for bravery. This appointment was later confirmed. On 16 October 1793 at the Battle of Wattignies, he accompanied the 3,500-man column of Jacob Job Élie on the far right flank of the army. In the middle of the night, the outposts were attacked by the Austrians and the untried foot soldiers took to their heels. Élie managed to rally his men but Johann Andreas Benjowski's Austrians launched an assault in a heavy fog at dawn. The second line panicked and fired into the backs of the first line, whereupon the infantry bolted again, throwing away their muskets in order to run faster. They might have been butchered but for Loison who led the cavalry to the rescue and fought off the pursuit. French losses were 400 soldiers and 12 artillery pieces while the Austrians lost 138 men in the clash.
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