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Nicolas Jean de Dieu Soult

Marshal General
Jean-de-Dieu Soult
Duke and Peer, GOLH, KOHS, COSL
Soult2.jpg
Jean-de-Dieu Soult by Unknown (ca. 1840)
10th Prime Minister of France
In office
29 October 1840 – 18 September 1847
Monarch Louis Philippe I
Preceded by Adolphe Thiers
Succeeded by François Guizot
In office
12 May 1839 – 1 March 1840
Monarch Louis Philippe I
Preceded by Mathieu Molé
Succeeded by Adolphe Thiers
In office
11 October 1832 – 18 July 1834
Monarch Louis Philippe I
Preceded by Casimir Perier
Succeeded by Étienne Maurice Gérard
Minister of War
In office
17 November 1830 – 18 July 1834
Prime Minister Jacques Laffitte
Casimir Perier
Preceded by Étienne Maurice Gérard
Succeeded by Étienne Maurice Gérard
Personal details
Born (1769-03-29)March 29, 1769
Saint-Amans-la-Bastide, France
Died November 26, 1851(1851-11-26) (aged 82)
Saint-Amans-la-Bastide, Tarn, France
Political party Resistance Party (1830–1848)
Spouse(s) Jeanne-Louise-Elisabeth Berg (m. 1796; d. 1851)
Children Napoléon-Hector
Josephine-Louise-Hortense
Profession Military officer
Religion Roman Catholicism
Military service
Allegiance  Kingdom of France
 First French Republic
 First French Empire
Service/branch Land Army
Years of service 1785–1815
Rank
Unit Infantry Royal Regiment
Army of Sambre-et-Meuse
Army of Helvetia
110th Infantry Regiment
Battles/wars Napoleonic Wars:

Nicolas Jean-de-Dieu Soult,1st Duke of Dalmatia (French: [ʒɑ̃dədjø sult]; 29 March 1769 – 26 November 1851), was a French general and statesman, named Marshal of the Empire in 1804 and often called Marshal Soult. Soult was one of only six officers in French history to receive the distinction of Marshal General of France. The Duke also served three times as President of the Council of Ministers, or Prime Minister of France.

Soult's intrigues while occupying Portugal earned him the nickname, "King Nicolas," and while he was Napoleon's military governor of Andalusia, Soult looted 1.5 million francs worth of art. One historian called him "a plunderer in the world class."

Soult was born at Saint-Amans-la-Bastide (now called Saint-Amans-Soult, near Castres, in the Tarn departement) and named after John of God. He was the son of a country notary named Jean Soult (1726–1779) by his marriage to Brigitte de Grenier. His paternal grandparents were Jean Soult (1698–1772) and Jeanne de Calvet, while his maternal grandparents were Pierre François de Grenier de Lapierre and Marie de Robert. His younger brother Pierre also became a French general.

Well-educated, Soult originally intended to become a lawyer, but his father's death when he was still a boy made it necessary for him to seek employment, and in 1785 he enlisted as a private in the French infantry.

Soult's superior education ensured his promotion to the rank of sergeant after six years' service, and in July 1791 he became instructor to the first battalion of volunteers of the Bas-Rhin. He was serving in this battalion in 1792. By 1794, he was adjutant-general (with the rank of chef de brigade). After the Battle of Fleurus of 1794, in which he distinguished himself for coolness, he was promoted to brigadier general by the representatives on mission.


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