Jean Dominique Compans
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Count Jean Dominique Compans (; 26 June 1769, Salies-du-Salat – 10 November 1845,
Blagnac Blagnac (; ) is a Communes of France, commune of the greater Toulouse area in the Haute-Garonne Departments of France, department in southwestern France. The city hosts the aviation museum Aeroscopia. It is the third-largest suburb of the city o ...
) was a French
Divisional General 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 ...
from 1811 and a participant of
Napoleonic Wars {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Napoleonic Wars , partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg , caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...
.


Biography

Upon the outbreak of the French Revolution, Compans enlisted as a volunteer in 1789. At age 23 he was promoted to captain in the 3rd battalion of the volunteers of the
Haute-Garonne Haute-Garonne (; , ; ''Upper Garonne'') is a department in the southwestern French region of Occitanie. Named after the river Garonne, which flows through the department. Its prefecture and main city is Toulouse, the country's fourth-largest. ...
. In 1793 his commanding general Dugommier promoted him to command a battalion in the brigade of
Jean Lannes Jean Lannes, 1st Duke of Montebello, Prince of Siewierz (; 10 April 1769 – 31 May 1809), was a French military commander and a Marshal of the Empire who served during both the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. He was one of Napol ...
. Compans distinguished himself in the campaigns in Spain and Italy (1793-1797). In 1798 he was put in command of a corps of 16.000 men with which he took the towns of
Fossano Fossano () is a town and ''comune'' of Piedmont, Northern Italy. It is the fourth largest town of the province of Cuneo, after Cuneo, Alba and Bra. It lies on the main railway line from Turin to Cuneo and to Savona, and has a branch line to Mon ...
and
Savigliano Savigliano () is a of Piedmont, Northern Italy, in the Province of Cuneo, about south of Turin by rail. It is home to ironworks, foundries, locomotive works (once owned by Fiat Ferroviaria, now by Alstom) and silk manufactures, as well as sugar ...
. In June 1799 he received a temporary promotion to General de brigade, which was made permanent in October. In 1800 Compans was wounded by a musket ball at San Giacomo. Having recovered, he distinguished himself at Montebello and Marengo. After the
Peace of Lunéville Peace is a state of harmony in the absence of hostility and violence, and everything that discusses achieving human welfare through justice and peaceful conditions. In a societal sense, peace is commonly used to mean a lack of conflict (such a ...
Compans was appointed the governor of the province of Coni. In this province, he operated against bandits but having been taken prisoner by them he was released without harm. Compans was wounded at Austerlitz. He distinguished himself as chief of staff of
Soult Marshal General of France, Marshal General Jean-de-Dieu Soult, 1st Duke of Dalmatia (; 29 March 1769 – 26 November 1851) was a French general and statesman. He was a Marshal of the Empire during the Napoleonic Wars, and served three times as P ...
’s 4th Corps at the
Battle of Jena A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...
after which he was promoted to general de division. During
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 ...
’s invasion of Russia Compans distinguished himself at
Smolensk Smolensk is a city and the administrative center of Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Dnieper River, west-southwest of Moscow. First mentioned in 863, it is one of the oldest cities in Russia. It has been a regional capital for most of ...
,
Borodino The Battle of Borodino ( ) or Battle of Moscow (), in popular literature also known as the Battle of the Generals, took place on the outskirts of Moscow near the village of Borodino on 7 September 1812 during Napoleon's invasion of Russia. T ...
and
Maloyaroslavets Maloyaroslavets () is a town and the administrative center of Maloyaroslavetsky District in Kaluga Oblast, Russia, located on the right bank of the Luzha River ( Oka's basin), northeast of Kaluga, the administrative center of the oblast. Pop ...
. In the 1813 campaign Compans served with honour at
Lützen Lützen () is a town in the Burgenlandkreis district of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Geography Lützen is situated in the Leipzig Bay, approximately southwest of the Leipzig city limits and northeast of Weißenfels. The town has access to the Bun ...
,
Bautzen Bautzen () or Budyšin (), until 1868 ''Budissin'' in German, is a town in eastern Saxony, Germany, and the administrative centre of the Bautzen (district), district of Bautzen. It is located on the Spree (river), Spree river, is the eighth most ...
and
Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...
, where he was wounded by bullets and sabre cuts. Recovered he served in the 1814 campaign at La Fère-Champenoise. After Napoleon's abdication, Compans served
Louis XVIII of France Louis XVIII (Louis Stanislas Xavier; 17 November 1755 – 16 September 1824), known as the Desired (), was King of France from 1814 to 1824, except for a brief interruption during the Hundred Days in 1815. Before his reign, he spent 23 ...
on the War Council. During the
Hundred Days The Hundred Days ( ), also known as the War of the Seventh Coalition (), marked the period between Napoleon's return from eleven months of exile on the island of Elba to Paris on20 March 1815 and the second restoration of King Louis XVIII o ...
he rejoined Napoleon but declined a command in the Army of the North. Having been named a Pair of France by Louis XVIII, in the trial of
Marshal Ney Michel Ney, 1st Prince de la Moskowa, 1st Duke of Elchingen (; 10 January 1769 – 7 December 1815), was a French military commander and Marshal of the Empire who fought in the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars. The son of ...
he voted for the death penalty. His name is inscribed on the eastern column of the
Arc de Triomphe The Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile, often called simply the Arc de Triomphe, is one of the most famous monuments in Paris, France, standing at the western end of the Champs-Élysées at the centre of Place Charles de Gaulle, formerly named Plac ...
.


References

French generals 1769 births 1845 deaths Counts of France Peers of France Burials at Père Lachaise Cemetery French military personnel of the French Revolutionary Wars French commanders of the Napoleonic Wars Names inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour {{France-mil-bio-stub