General Auguste-Jean-Gabriel de Caulaincourt

The younger brother of Armand-Augustin-Louis Caulaincourt, Caulaincourt was a talented cavalry officer. Volunteering to join a cuirassier regiment in early 1792, he served in the Army of the Center and then Army of the Moselle before going on leave in April of 1793. By 1795 he had returned to duty as a sous-lieutenant and aide-de-camp to General d'Aubert-Dubayet. With the Army of the Coasts of Cherbourg, in August he joined the 12th Dragoons, and then in January of hte next year was promoted to lieutenant in the 1st Carabiniers. Transferred to the Army of the Sambre and Meuse, he was promoted to captain with the 21st Dragoons in January of 1797. Around this time, fighting at Vedolago he captured 400 enemy soldiers with only 40 dragoons.

Next Caulaincourt served with the Army of the Rhine and Moselle and joined the 1st Dragoons. During 1798 and 1799 he served with the Armies of the Danube, then the Army of Helvetia, distinguishing himself in fighting at Ostrach and Lieptingen in March of 1799. That May Caulaincourt became aide-de-camp to General Klein, and the next month fought at Zurich, being promoted afterwards to chef d'escadrons by Masséna. Serving under Lecourbe, he fought at the combat of Muotahal in October and was wounded by a lance blow. The next year Caulaincourt joined the Army of the Reserve and fought at Marengo where he was wounded by a shot to the head.

In 1801 Auguste Caulaincourt was promoted to chef de brigade with the 19th Dragoons. Later he served in garrison with the 16th military division until 1804 when he became aide-de-camp to Prince Louis Bonaparte. With the campaign of 1805, he served in the Bourcier's 4th Dragoon Division and fought at Austerlitz, and then was rewarded as a Commander of the Legion of Honor on Christmas Day. The next year he passed to the service of the King of Holland, Louis Bonaparte, remaining as an aide-de-camp and promoted to major general. During this time he served as Master of Horse and in February of 1807 he was awarded a Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of Holland.

In early 1808, Caulaincourt returned to France as a general de brigade and joined a cavalry division forming at Poitiers. Made a Baron of the Empire, he was immediately sent to Spain, where in July he seized de Cuenca. That November he joined the general staff of the Army of the Spain before taking command of the 2nd Brigade of La Houssaye's dragoon division the next month. Over the coming months, General Caulaincourt served under Soult at Chaves and Braga, and fought at Oporto and Penafiel. He commanded the advance guard at Villamagna, in this capacity seizing Amaranthe, and then commanded the rear guard as the French evacuated Amaranthe in May. That September he received a promotion to general de division, and then November took command of five brigades of dragoons of the cavalry of VIII Corps.

In February of 1810, Caulaincourt returned to France due to ill health. That year he became a Count of the Empire, and the next year received the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Reunion. For the Russian campaign of 1812, Caualaincourt was placed in charge of Napoleon's headquarters. During the Battle of Borodino, after Montbrun's death Caulaincourt was ordered to assume Montbrun's command. Arriving and finding Montbrun's aides in tears, he told them, "Follow me! Weep not for Montbrun, but come and avenge his death!" Murat ordered him to charge the Great Redoubt, and he responded, "You shall see me there, dead or alive." As he led the charge of the 5th Cuirassiers, he was killed by a cannonball.

Sources:

Chandler, David G. Dictionary of the Napoleonic Wars. New York: Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc., 1979.

Haythornthwaite, Philip J. Who Was Who in the Napoleonic Wars. London: Arms & Armour, 1998.

Six, Georges. Dictionnaire Biographique des Généraux & Amiraux Français de la Révolution et de l'Empire (1792-1814). Paris: Gaston Saffroy, 2003.