Barthélemy Louis Joseph Schérer (December 18, 1747 – August 19, 1804), born in Delle, near

Belfort Belfort (; archaic german: Beffert/Beffort) is a city in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in Northeastern France, situated between Lyon and Strasbourg, approximately from the France–Switzerland border. It is the prefecture of the Terri ...

, became 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 ...

during the

French Revolutionary Wars The French Revolutionary Wars (french: Guerres de la Révolution française) were a series of sweeping military conflicts lasting from 1792 until 1802 and resulting from the French Revolution. They pitted France against Britain, Austria, Prussia ...

and on three occasions led armies in battle.

Early career

Schérer served in the Austrian army long before the

Revolution In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...

, but defected to France in 1775. In 1780 Schérer became a major in an artillery regiment stationed in Strasbourg. He entered

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

service in 1785 as a major in the ''Légion de Maillebois''. In 1790 he was released from Dutch service with the rank of lieutenant colonel.

French Revolution

He returned to France in 1791 and in 1792 was made a captain in the 82nd Infantry Regiment, serving as aide-de-camp to General Jean de Prez de Crassier at the Battle of Valmy. In 1793 he served as a senior aide-de-camp to general

Alexandre de Beauharnais Alexandre may refer to: * Alexandre (given name) * Alexandre (surname) * Alexandre (film) See also * Alexander Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom o ...

on the

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. In 1794, Schérer was promoted to the rank of ''

général de division Divisional general is a general officer rank who commands an army division. The rank originates from the French (Revolutionary) System, and is used by a number of countries. The rank is above a brigade general, and normally below an army corps ...

'' and commanded a

division Division or divider may refer to: Mathematics *Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication *Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division Military *Division (military), a formation typically consisting ...

in the

Army of the Sambre and Meuse The Army of Sambre and Meuse (french: Armée de Sambre-et-Meuse) was one of the armies of the French Revolution. It was formed on 29 June 1794 by combining the Army of the Ardennes, the left wing of the Army of the Moselle and the right wing ...

, serving with distinction at the Battle of Aldenhoven. On May 3 he married Marie Françoise Henriette Caroline Müller in a civil ceremony at Delle in the Franche-Comté. On November 3, 1794, he was named commander of the Army of Italy before his transfer to command the Army of the Eastern Pyrenees on March 3, 1795. On June 14 a 35,000-strong Spanish army defeated Schérer's 25,000 men in battle at Bàscara in

Catalonia Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a '' nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy. Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the nort ...

province in

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. On August 31, 1795, he was again sent to Italy to replace François Kellerman (the older) as commander-in-chief of the Army of Italy. As commander of the Army of Italy, Schérer won the

Battle of Loano The Battle of Loano occurred on 23–24 November 1795 during the War of the First Coalition. The French Army of Italy led by Barthélemy Schérer defeated the combined Austrian and Sardinian forces under Olivier, Count of Wallis. Context In ...

(November 22–24, 1795) against an Austrian army but failed to exploit his advantage due to his own caution and winter weather. He was relieved of the command of this army on February 23, 1796, and replaced by

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 ...

. Schérer was then unemployed for a number of months until being named Inspector-General of Cavalry, first of the Army of the Interior and then of the Army of the Rhine and the Moselle.

War of the Second Coalition

Schérer served as French Minister of War from July 22, 1797, to February 21, 1799. When the

War of the Second Coalition The War of the Second Coalition (1798/9 – 1801/2, depending on periodisation) was the second war on revolutionary France by most of the European monarchies, led by Britain, Austria and Russia, and including the Ottoman Empire, Portugal, N ...

broke out, Schérer was given command of the Army of Italy once again. He won an initial clash at

Pastrengo Pastrengo is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Verona in the Italian region Veneto, located about west of Venice and about northwest of Verona. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 2,486 and an area of .All demographics an ...

on March 26. But he proved unable to stop the Russo-Austrian advance. He was defeated by Austrian General Pál Kray at the

Battle of Magnano In the Battle of Magnano on 5 April 1799, an Austrian army commanded by Pál Kray defeated a French army led by Barthélemy Schérer. In subsequent battles, the Austrians and their Russian allies drove the French out of nearly all of Italy. Th ...

on April 5. "Schérer went into this battle without forming a reserve and was thus unable to react to crisis or opportunities effectively."Smith, p 151 Forced to retire behind the river

Mincio The Mincio (; Latin: Mincius, Ancient Greek: Minchios, ''Μίγχιος'', Lombard: Mens, Venetian: Menzo) is a river in the Lombardy region of northern Italy. The river is the main outlet of Lake Garda. It is a part of the ''Sarca-Mincio'' ...

, he gave up command to Jean Moreau. Because of his loss of Italy he was forced to appear before a committee of inquiry. After securing an acquittal, he retired to private life on his estate at Chauny in Picardy, where he died in 1804.

References

* Chandler, David. ''The Campaigns of Napoleon.'' New York: Macmillan, 1966. * Smith, Digby. ''The Napoleonic Wars Data Book.'' London: Greenhill, 1998.

Footnotes

External links

website of the city of Delle about Schérer

{{DEFAULTSORT:Scherer, Barthelemy Louis Joseph 1747 births 1804 deaths People from the Territoire de Belfort French generals Military leaders of the French Revolutionary Wars French Republican military leaders of the French Revolutionary Wars French Ministers of War 18th-century French politicians Names inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe