Vauban
| Sébastien Le Prestre, Seigneur de Vauban | |
|---|---|
Vauban, French School painting of the 18th century
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| Born |
4 May 1633 Saint-Léger-Vauban |
| Died | 30 March 1707 (aged 73) Paris |
| Cause of death | Pulmonary embolism |
| Resting place | Bazoches. Heart at Les Invalides. |
| Nationality | French |
| Known for | Contributions to military engineering and fortifications |
| Title |
Maréchal de France |
| Awards | Ordre de Saint-Louis |
| Signature | |
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Maréchal de France
Commissaire général des fortifications (1678–1703)
Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban, Seigneur de Vauban and later Marquis de Vauban (1 or 4 May 1633 – 30 March 1707), commonly referred to as Vauban (French: [vobɑ̃]), was a Marshal of France and the foremost military engineer of his age. He is known for his skill in both designing fortifications and breaking through them; his ideas, starting from Pagan's "Les Fortifications", were the dominant model of siegecraft and fortification for nearly 100 years. He also advised Louis XIV on how to consolidate France's borders, to make them more defensible. Vauban made a radical suggestion of giving up some land that was indefensible to allow for a stronger, less porous border with France's neighbours.
Vauban was born in Saint-Léger-de-Foucheret (renamed Saint-Léger-Vauban in his honour in 1867), in Burgundy France, into a family of minor nobility. At the age of ten he was left an orphan in very poor circumstances, and his boyhood and youth were spent amongst the peasantry of his native place. After some time he was put under the care of the Carmelite prior of Semur, who undertook his education, and the grounding in mathematics, science and geometry which was important in his subsequent career.
At the age of seventeen Vauban joined the regiment of Condé in the war of the Fronde. He received the offer of a commission within a year, which he declined on account of poverty. Condé then employed him to assist in the fortification of Clermont-en-Argonne. Soon afterwards he was taken prisoner by the royal troops; but though a rebel he was well-treated, and the kindness of Cardinal Mazarin converted the young engineer into a devoted servant of the king.
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