Charles-Marie-Esprit Espinasse (2 April 1815 – 4 June 1859) was a French military officer who was briefly Minister of the Interior and Public Security in 1858. He died during the Italian campaign of 1859.

Life

Charles Marie Esprit Espinasse was born in Castelnaudary on 2 April 1815, son of Jean Espinasse and Germaine Robert. He was admitted to the Military Academy of Saint-Cyr in 1833. On graduation he became a sub-lieutenant in the 47th infantry regiment of the line. He went on to the Foreign Legion, where he was promoted to lieutenant in April 1838. Espinasse participated in the campaign 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 1835 to 1849, where he was severely wounded in combat at Aures with four shots to the chest, lower abdomen and thighs. On 17 January 1841 he was a captain in the 1st Regiment of Foot Chasseurs. He was promoted to battalion commander in the regiment of

Zouave The Zouaves () were a class of light infantry regiments of the French Army and other units modelled on it, which served between 1830 and 1962, and served in French North Africa. The zouaves were among the most decorated units of the French Army ...

s, where he served from 20 October 1845 to 1 May 1849. With the 22nd Infantry he participated in the Siege of Rome, where he distinguished himself by being the first to enter the city. In 1851 General

Jacques Leroy de Saint Arnaud Armand-Jacques Leroy de Saint-Arnaud (20 August 1798 – 29 September 1854) was a French soldier and Marshal of France. He served as French Minister of War until the Crimean War when he became Commander-in-chief of the army of the East. He ...

brought him to Paris to command the 42nd Infantry. Espinasse supported

Louis Napoleon Napoleon III (Charles-Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was President of France from 1848 to 1852 and then Emperor of the French from 1852 until his deposition in 1870. He was the first president, second emperor, and last ...

in the coup of 2 December 1851, and became his aide de camp. On 10 May 1852 he was promoted to brigadier general. He was given command of the 3rd infantry brigade at the Helfaut camp near

Saint-Omer Saint-Omer (; ; Picard: ''Saint-Onmé'') is a commune and sub-prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department in France. It is west-northwest of Lille on the railway to Calais, and is located in the Artois province. The town is named after Sa ...

. He married Mary Festugière of

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( ; ; Gascon language, Gascon ; ) is a city on the river Garonne in the Gironde Departments of France, department, southwestern France. A port city, it is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the Prefectures in F ...

in 1853, with whom he had three children. At the start of the

Crimean War The Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the Second French Empire, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the Kingdom of Sardinia (1720–1861), Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont fro ...

he led the 1st Brigade of the 1st Infantry Division. He distinguished himself in the

Battle of the Chernaya The Battle of the Chernaya (also Tchernaïa; Russian: Сражение у Черной речки, Сражение у реки Черной, literally: Battle of the Black River) was fought near the Traktir Bridge on the Chernaya River dur ...

and the

Battle of Malakoff The Battle of Malakoff (, ) or the Storming of the Malakhov Kurgan () was a series of French attacks against Russian forces on the Malakoff redoubt. The first attack was unsuccessful, and occurred on 18 June 1855; subsequent capture of the ...

. He was promoted to major general, commander of the 3rd Infantry Division of General Pierre Bosquet's 2nd Corps. On return to France, Espinasse became inspector general of infantry in 1857. The emperor appointed him Minister of the Interior and Public Security after the assassination attempt by

Felice Orsini Felice Orsini (; ; 10 December 1819 – 13 March 1858) was an Italian revolutionary and leader of the '' Carbonari'' who tried to assassinate Napoleon III, Emperor of the French. Early life Felice Orsini was born at Meldola in Romagna, th ...

on 14 January 1858. He held this position from 7 February to 14 June 1858, when he was appointed senator. Espinasse joined the army of Italy on 2 April 1859 as commander of the 2nd Division of the 2nd Corps of General MacMahon's army. Espinasse was killed in the village of

Magenta, Lombardy Magenta (, ) is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Milan in Lombardy, northern Italy. It became notable as the site of the Battle of Magenta in 1859. The color magenta takes its name from the battle. Magenta is the birthplace of ...

on 4 June 1859, during the

Battle of Magenta The Battle of Magenta was fought on 4 June 1859 near the town of Magenta in the Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia, a crown land of the Austrian Empire, during the Second Italian War of Independence. It resulted in a French-Sardinian victory under ...

References

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Espinasse, Charles-Marie-Esprit People from Castelnaudary 1815 births 1859 deaths French generals French interior ministers Commanders of the Legion of Honour Knights of St. Gregory the Great