Auguste-Alexandre Ducrot (24 February 1817 – 16 August 1882) was a French general. Ducrot served in the

Crimean War The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia. Geopolitical causes of the war included the ...

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

, the Italian campaign of 1859, and as a division commander in the Franco-Prussian War. At the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War, Ducrot was tasked with overseeing the deployment of French forces due to his familiarity with the terrain near

Wissembourg Wissembourg (; South Franconian: ''Weisseburch'' ; German: ''Weißenburg'' ) is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in northeastern France. It is situated on the little river Lauter close to the border between France and Germany a ...

. His unsupported division was surprised and defeated by a large force of Prussians and Bavarians at the Battle of Wissembourg. At the

Battle of Sedan The Battle of Sedan was fought during the Franco-Prussian War from 1 to 2 September 1870. Resulting in the capture of Emperor Napoleon III and over a hundred thousand troops, it effectively decided the war in favour of Prussia and its allies, ...

on 1 September 1870, he succeeded to command of the French army when

Marshal MacMahon Marie Edme Patrice Maurice de MacMahon, marquis de MacMahon, duc de Magenta (; 13 June 1808 – 17 October 1893) was a French general and politician, with the distinction of Marshal of France. He served as Chief of State of France from 1873 to ...

was wounded early in the morning. By that time, it was obvious that a disastrous defeat was inevitable. Ducrot summed up the situation with the famous remark:

''« Nous sommes dans un pot de chambre, et nous y serons emmerdés. »'' ("We are in a chamber pot, and we're going to be shit on.")

Ducrot ordered the army to withdraw, but then General de Wimpffen presented a commission authorizing ''him'' to succeed MacMahon. Wimpffen overruled Ducrot, and ordered a counterattack that failed completely. Emperor Napoleon III, present on the battlefield, then surrendered the army to the

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...

ns. With de Wimpffen having insisted on command, Ducrot refused to accept responsibility for signing the articles of surrender and was imprisoned by the Prussians. He soon escaped, and took part in the Siege of Paris. Ducrot commanded the most important French attack against the Prussian besiegers (the

Battle of Villiers The Battle of Villiers, also called the Battle of Champigny, was the largest of the French sorties from besieged Paris during the Franco-Prussian War. Background After news reached Paris of the French defeat at the battle of Le Bourget and th ...

, 29 November–3 December 1870). After the defeat of this attack, Ducrot urged the French government to make peace. Cyclist Maarten Ducrot is his great-grandson.

References

1817 births 1882 deaths People from Nevers Politicians from Bourgogne-Franche-Comté Legitimists Members of the National Assembly (1871) French generals École Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr alumni French military personnel of the Crimean War French military personnel of the Franco-Prussian War Grand Officiers of the Légion d'honneur Commanders of the Order of Isabella the Catholic {{France-mil-bio-stub