Auguste Laurent François Baudin (; 21 November 1800,

Hoogstraten Hoogstraten () is a municipality and city located in the Belgian province of Antwerp. The municipality comprises Hoogstraten, Meer, Meerle, Meersel-Dreef, Minderhout and Wortel (Meersel-Dreef includes the northernmost point in Belgium). Ho ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

(now in Belgium) - 1 August 1877,

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) was a French admiral and colonial administrator. His uncle François-André Baudin was also a naval officer.

Life

Volunteering for the navy in 1817, he was promoted to élève de la marine in 1819,

enseigne de vaisseau Ensign (; Late Middle English, from Old French mark", "symbol", "signal"; "flag", "standard", "pennant" from Latin lural is a junior rank of a Officer (armed forces)#Commissioned officers, commissioned officer in the armed forces of s ...

in 1822,

lieutenant de vaisseau Ship-of-the-line lieutenant (; ) is a naval officer rank, used in a number of countries. The name derives from the name of the largest class of warship, the ship of the line, as opposed to smaller types of warship ( corvettes and frigates). It ...

in 1829,

capitaine de corvette Corvette captain is a rank in many European and Latin American navies which theoretically corresponds to command of a corvette (small warship). The equivalent rank is lieutenant commander in the Royal Navy and other Commonwealth navies, the Uni ...

in 1841,

capitaine de vaisseau Captain is the name most often given in English-speaking navy, navies to the rank corresponding to command of the largest ships. The rank is equal to the army rank of colonel and air force rank of group captain. Equivalent ranks worldwide in ...

in 1846 and finally

contre-amiral Counter admiral is a military rank used for high-ranking officers in several navies around the world, though the rank is not used in the English-speaking world, where its equivalent rank is rear admiral. The term derives from the French . Dependi ...

in 1855. He spent most of his career as a naval officer in the French colonies, becoming governor of Senegal and commander of France's West Africa Coast (Côtes occidentales d'Afrique) naval station from 1847 to 1850 (in which role he proclaimed to

Senegal Senegal, officially the Republic of Senegal, is the westernmost country in West Africa, situated on the Atlantic Ocean coastline. It borders Mauritania to Mauritania–Senegal border, the north, Mali to Mali–Senegal border, the east, Guinea t ...

the abolition of slavery decreed on 27 April 1848 by the

Second French Republic The French Second Republic ( or ), officially the French Republic (), was the second republican government of France. It existed from 1848 until its dissolution in 1852. Following the final defeat of Napoleon Bonaparte at the Battle of Waterlo ...

), then governor and commander in chief of the naval division of

French Guiana French Guiana, or Guyane in French, is an Overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of France located on the northern coast of South America in the Guianas and the West Indies. Bordered by Suriname to the west ...

from 1855 to 1859, and finally commander of the navy in

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

from 1860 to 1862. He was made a grand officer of the

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

on 19 September 1860.

Sources

*Dossier militaire au SHD : Côte S.H.A.M. CC7 ALPHA 125.
Dossier de Légion d'honneur du contre-amiral Auguste Baudin sur le site Leonore.
*Oruno D. Lara : ''Suffrage universel et colonisation, 1848-1852'', L'Harmattan, 2007. {{DEFAULTSORT:Baudin, Auguste 1800 births 1877 deaths French Navy admirals Grand Officers of the Legion of Honour Colonial governors of French Sénégal Colonial heads of Gabon Governors of French Guiana People from Hoogstraten