Antoine Virgile Schneider (22 March 1779 in

Bouquenom Sarre-Union () is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. It consists of two older towns that were unified on 16 June 1794. On the east bank of the river Sarre is the town of Bouquenom () and on the west bank ...

( Bailiwick of Sarreguemines) – 11 July 1847 in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

) was a French

general A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...

and

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking ...

. He was

Minister of War A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...

under the

July Monarchy The July Monarchy (french: Monarchie de Juillet), officially the Kingdom of France (french: Royaume de France), was a liberal constitutional monarchy in France under , starting on 26 July 1830, with the July Revolution of 1830, and ending 23 F ...

in the second government of

Jean de Dieu Soult Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * Jean (surname) Fictional characters * Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character * Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations * Jea ...

from 12 May 1839 to 1 March 1840.List of his parliamentary terms and biography on the site of the French National Assembly:
Antoine, Virgile Scneider (1779 - 1847)
'

Biography

Antoine Virgile Schneider was born on 22 March 1779 at Bouquenom, and was the son of doctor Christophe Schneider. He was the cousin of

Adolphe Schneider Adolphe Schneider (23 October 1802 – 3 August 1845) was a French financier and industrialist who developed a major metalworking enterprise at Le Creusot, the parent of today's Schneider Electric. Early years Adolphe Schneider was born in Nancy ...

and

Eugène Schneider Joseph Eugène Schneider (29 March 1805 – 27 November 1875) was a French industrialist and politician. In 1836, he co-founded the Schneider company with his brother, Adolphe Schneider. For many years he was a Deputy, and he was briefly Minister ...

, who developed the iron industry at

Le Creusot Le Creusot () is a commune and industrial town in the Saône-et-Loire department, region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, eastern France. The inhabitants are known as Creusotins. Formerly a mining town, its economy is now dominated by metallurgic ...

. Virgil Schneider graduated from the

École Polytechnique École may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * École, Savoi ...

in the year VII of the 1st French Republic (1799). A memoir on the Greek island of Corfu addressed to

Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader wh ...

earned him his appointment as supernumerary in Military engineering. He was

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

during the Polish campaign, Captain during the Spanish Civil War (1808), he took part in the sieges of

Saragossa Zaragoza, also known in English as Saragossa,''Encyclopædia Britannica'"Zaragoza (conventional Saragossa)" is the capital city of the Zaragoza Province and of the autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. It lies by the Ebro river and its tributar ...

(1808–1809) and

Figueres Figueres (, ; , es, Figueras, ) is the capital of the ''comarca'' of Alt Empordà, in the province of Girona, Catalonia, Spain. The town is the birthplace of artist Salvador Dalí, and houses the Teatre-Museu Gala Salvador Dalí, a large museu ...

(1811). He was created a Knight of the Empire on 23 February 1811, he became aide-de-camp to General Clarke. After a mission to the Ionian islands, he was besieged in Danzig in 1813 with General Rapp. He was appointed

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge o ...

in 1815. Prisoner of War, he returned to France in 1814 and was, during the Hundred Days, Chief of Staff of Rapp, who commanded the 5th Corps, assigned to cover the Rhine. Prise de Patras dans le golfe de Lépante par le général de brigade Schneider, le 4 octobre 1828

Prise de Patras dans le golfe de Lépante par le général de brigade Schneider, le 4 octobre 1828

Brought into inactivity by the

Second Restoration The Bourbon Restoration was the period of French history during which the House of Bourbon returned to power after the first fall of Napoleon on 3 May 1814. Briefly interrupted by the Hundred Days War in 1815, the Restoration lasted until the J ...

, he was recalled to service in 1819 and took part in the campaign in Spain and particularly in the siege of

Pamplona Pamplona (; eu, Iruña or ), historically also known as Pampeluna in English, is the capital city of the Chartered Community of Navarre, in Spain. It is also the third-largest city in the greater Basque cultural region. Lying at near above ...

in 1823 as colonel of the 20th Regiment of Light Infantry. Promoted to '' Maréchal de camp'' on 22 May 1825, he participated to the

Morea expedition The Morea expedition (french: link=no, Expédition de Morée) is the name given to the land intervention of the French Army in the PeloponneseMorea is the name of the Peloponnese region in Greece, which was mainly used from the medieval per ...

in Greece, under the command of Marshal Maison, and he directed the siege operations of the fortresses of the Peloponnese in October 1828. Nicolas Joseph Maison (Lieutenant-general) : ''dépêches adressées au ministre de la Guerre Louis-Victor de Caux, vicomte de Blacquetot'', octobre 1828, in Jacques Mangeart, Chapitre Supplémentaire des
Souvenirs de la Morée: recueillis pendant le séjour des Français dans le Peloponèse
', Igonette, Paris, 1830. Heading the 3rd Brigade of the expeditionary force, he liberated the city of Patras (on 5 October 1828) and took the “Castle of Morea” of Patras (on 30 October 1828 ) to the Turkish-Egyptian occupation troops of Ibrahim Pasha. After having completely liberated Greece from the occupier, he was appointed commander-in-chief of the occupation troops in place of Marshal Maison, and received, at the time of his recall in July 1831, a sword of honor by the Greek government. Promoted to Lieutenant-General on 12 August 1831 and appointed Chief of Staff at the Department of War on 20 November 1832, he was elected on 21 June 1834 deputy of the 6th district of Moselle ( Sarreguemines), and re-elected on 4 November 1837 and 2 March 1839. He served in the majority but voted against the law of disjunction and was part of the coalition against the Louis Mathieu Molé Ministry. He voted for funding the Duke of Nemours and for the census. Appointed

in the second government of

on 12 May 1839, he had to stand again before his electors, who confirmed his mandate on 8 June 1839. He kept his ministry until 1 March 1840. During his time in government, he improved the lives of the officers and reorganized the General Staff. On 28 November 1840, General Schneider was given command of the troops of the external division of Paris, which cooperated in the work of the fortifications of the capital and, on 17 July 1841, he became president of the infantry committee. Re-elected as a deputy on 9 July 1842 and on 1 August 1846, he voted against the compensation Pritchard and the Rémusat proposal.

Decorations

* Name engraved under the Arc de Triomphe (Northern pillar, Column 7) * Legion_Honneur_GO_ribbon

''Grand-officier'' of the Legion of Honour (22 February 1829) * Legion_Honneur_GC_ribbon

''Grand-croix'' of the Legion of Honour (14 April 1844) * GRE Order Redeemer 2Class

''Grand-commander'' of the Order of the Redeemer (Greece) (Almanach royal et national 1835) * Commander Ordre de Leopold

''Commander'' of the Order of Leopold (Belgium) (Almanach royal et national 1835)

Works

* Virgile Schneider,
Histoire et description des îles Ioniennes
', Dondey-Dupré, Paris, 1823. * Virgile Schneider, '' Résumé des attributions et devoirs de l'infanterie légère en campagne'', Dondey-Dupré, Paris,1823. * Virgile Schneider also collaborated to the ''Spectateur militaire''.

Annexes

Bibliography

* * * Almanach royal et national 1835 * Jean-Louis Beaucarnot, ''Les Schneider, une dynastie'', Hachette Littérature, 1986 *

Elvire de Brissac Elvire de Brissac (born 19 January 1939) is a French novelist and biographer. Her awards include the Prix des Deux Magots, Grand prix des lectrices de Elle, Prix Contrepoint, Prix Goncourt, and the Prix Femina, Prix Femina Essai. Biography Elvir ...

, ''Ô dix-neuvième !'', Grasset,

prix Femina essai The prix Femina essai is a French literary prize awarded to an essay. Established in 1999, it replaced the prix Femina Vacaresco.Elvire de Brissac Elvire de Brissac (born 19 January 1939) is a French novelist and biographer. Her awards include the Prix des Deux Magots, Grand prix des lectrices de Elle, Prix Contrepoint, Prix Goncourt, and the Prix Femina, Prix Femina Essai. Biography Elvir ...

, ''Il était une fois les Schneider'', Grasset, 2007 * Dominique Schneidre, ''Les Schneider, Le Creusot'', Fayard, 1995 * Dominique Schneidre, ''Fortune de mère'', Fayard, 2001 * ''Les Schneider, Le Creusot, une famille, une entreprise, une ville, 1836-1960'', catalogue de l'exposition

External links

* Resources related to his public life
Base Léonore

Base Sycomore
: ** (National Order of the Legion of Honour) *
« List of the parliamentary terms of Antoine, Virgile Schneider (1779 - 1847) », base Sycomore
(French National Assembly).

Linked articles

* Eugène Schneider I * Henri Schneider * Eugène Schneider II * Charles Schneider * Château de la Verrerie *

* List of members of the Morea expedition (1828-1833)

Political offices

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schneider, Antoine Virgile 1779 births 1847 deaths People from Sarreguemines Knights of the First French Empire Politicians from Grand Est French Ministers of War Members of the 3rd Chamber of Deputies of the July Monarchy Members of the 4th Chamber of Deputies of the July Monarchy Members of the 5th Chamber of Deputies of the July Monarchy Members of the 6th Chamber of Deputies of the July Monarchy Members of the 7th Chamber of Deputies of the July Monarchy French generals French military personnel of the Napoleonic Wars Grand Croix of the Légion d'honneur Burials at Père Lachaise Cemetery Names inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe