François Amable Ruffin (; 31 August 1771 – 15 May 1811) was a

general of 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 ...

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

First French Empire The First French Empire or French Empire (; ), also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental Europe at the beginning of the 19th century. It lasted from ...

. He was mortally wounded Fortescue, John (1917)
''A History of the British Army'', Vol. VIII, p. 675. London: Macmillan.
''

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American 501(c)(3) organization, non-profit organization founded in 1996 by Brewster Kahle that runs a digital library website, archive.org. It provides free access to collections of digitized media including web ...

''. Retrieved 14 January 2023. while leading his troops against the British at Barrosa, Spain (March 1811).

Biography

Having been captain of a company of volunteers from

Bolbec Bolbec () is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region in northern France. Its inhabitants are called ''Bolbécais'' or ''Bolbécaises''. Geography A farming, quarrying and light industrial town situated at the heart of ...

, he was named commander of the 7th Battalion of

Seine-Inférieure Seine-Maritime () is a department of France in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the northern coast of France, at the mouth of the Seine, and includes the cities of Rouen and Le Havre. Until 1955 it was named Seine-Inféri ...

on 20 September 1792. He fought in the French Revolution and subsequently in the battles of the

, seeing action at the

Battle of Austerlitz The Battle of Austerlitz (2 December 1805/11 Frimaire An XIV French Republican calendar, FRC), also known as the Battle of the Three Emperors, was one of the most important military engagements of the Napoleonic Wars. The battle occurred near t ...

in 1805 and the

Battle of Heilsberg The Battle of Heilsberg took place on 10 June 1807 off the town of Heilsberg (now Lidzbark Warmiński), during the Napoleonic Wars. Overview On 24 May 1807, the Siege of Danzig ended when Prussian General Friedrich Adolf, Count von Kalckre ...

in 1807. His conduct at the

Battle of Friedland The Battle of Friedland (14 June 1807) was a major engagement of the Napoleonic Wars between the armies of the French Empire commanded by Napoleon I and the armies of the Russian Empire led by General Levin August von Bennigsen. Napoleon and t ...

in 1807 saw him given the title of ''comte de l'Empire'' and promoted to general of division (''général de division''), and he took command of Marshal Victor's I Corps. Ruffin joined the

Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1808–1814) was fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Kingdom of Portugal, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French ...

, leading I Corps into

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

in September 1808. He served at

Somosierra Somosierra is a municipality in the Community of Madrid, Spain, located at 83 km north of Madrid, in the mountain pass with the same name, at an elevation of 1433 metres above sea level, being the northernmost town of Community of Madrid ...

, Ucles, Medellin and Talavera, before commanding one of Victor's divisions at the

Battle of Barrosa The Battle of Barrosa (Chiclana, 5 March 1811, also known as the Battle of Chiclana or Battle of Cerro del Puerco) was part of an unsuccessful manoeuvre by an Anglo-Iberian force to break the French siege of Cádiz during the Peninsular War ...

on 5 March 1811. During the battle for the Barrosa Ridge, Ruffin was shot through the neck, causing him to be paralysed. He was captured by the British army and shipped to England. Although he appeared to be recovering from his wound, he suffered a relapse on the voyage and died aboard the transport ''Gorgon'' on 15 May. He was buried with full military honours at Portsmouth, and RUFFIN is one of the

names inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe The following is a list of the 660 names inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe, in Paris. Most of them represent generals who served during the French First Republic (1792–1804) and the First French Empire (1804–1815). Underlined names signify t ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

References

1771 births 1811 deaths French military personnel of the French Revolutionary Wars French military personnel killed in the Napoleonic Wars French commanders of the Napoleonic Wars French generals Names inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe People from Bolbec Counts of France {{France-mil-bio-stub