If the man most foreign to the profession of arms, the most

far removed by his profession or habits from anything that

recalls the war and the fights, is moved, as in spite of
him, reading the epic of the actions which illustrated during
twenty-five years the great generals of the Republic and
of the Empire, there is also no one who is not interested
to history, more modest, no doubt, but no less
noble, of their courageous companions in glory. It is not
no one who does not feel his heart beating at the tale of the dangers
faced, following them, those who shared their
work, which showed the same devotion to France,
the same ardor in the conquest, the same constancy in
reverses, and whose only reward was a rank Painfully acquired at the point of the
sabre, a cross sprinkled with a
blood shed on all the battlefields of Europe.

In this capacity, Lieutenant-Colonel Prévôt, who has just died

in old age and that his many friends regret
as if he should have lived many more years, deserves
a special mention. Caen claims it as a
of its most honorable citizens, for the marriage there
had contracted early, the prolonged stay that there is
fact, his most intimate connections, had made this city
country of his choice.

Louis-Joseph Prévôt was born on February 12, 1770, at two

leagues from Lille, in the small parish of Perenchies. His
Military tastes developed from childhood. At sixteen-year-old,
he enlisted in spite of his family who ransomed him; at eighteen he
was permanently incorporated on July 17, 1788,
in the Montmorency-dragons regiment which has since become
the 2nd. mounted chasseurs regiment.

No sooner had he been in service than the dispositions of the young

Provost for Horsemanship pointed this out to his colo-
nel, who sent him to follow the courses of the famous professor
Garden at the Versailles school (1). Under the direction of this
a skilful squire, he made rapid progress, and when he
came to his corps to enter the campaign, the reputation
accomplished horseman had preceded him there.

Prévôt took his first steps in 1792, on the borders

third of Germany, in a body of partisans (1). Ren-
joined the regiment in 1793, he first distinguished himself by
brilliant action. In one of those little fights where the
French, still badly organized, were doing their apprenticeship
weaving and from which they emerged more often defeated than
winners, he saved the life of the Brigade Commander of the 75th.

infantry regiment which had recklessly engaged

in the wood of Lauterbourg. This act of dedication,
in which the young soldier almost lost his life – he received
a saber cut through the body, earned him his pre-
first ranks: he was appointed brigadier in May 1793
€t shortly after, on September 7, Marshal-des-logis.

A year later, he inaugurated his stripes with new

calves made of arms:
On 7 Brumaire Year IV (29 October 1795), during the re-
deals with the lines of Mainz, accompanied by two or
three comrades, he delivered more than 100 French volunteers
that a detachment of Austrian hussars sabred and
led prisoners, and, the same day, after having had
a knight killed under him, he recaptured from the enemy a brigadier-
quartermaster of his regiment which had been forced to surrender.

(1) The supporters had painted no fixed pay; the state paid them
only what they had taken from the enemy: so much for a gun, so much
for a cannon, so much for a flag, etc. Several generals of
the Empire came out of these bodies; Provost there had been the comrade of
jit of General Bonlesoul.

On the 18th, on the heights in front of Kirchheim, in a discovery made by General

Saint-Cyr, Provost,
at the head of 10 skirmishers, quickly fell on a
grand guard of fifty hussars and as many infantry
and took over their post. In this meeting he was
shot in the jaw.

Another bullet passed through his arm, a few days

afterwards, when the city of Deux-Ponts was taken over, where he
demanded a vanguard and where, says the report of his
squadron leader, "he "distinguished himself by a value without
equal. »

It was around this time that he obtained employment

as a correspondence non-commissioned officer and soon as
aide-de-camp, although not having the title, by the
General La Roche Dubouscat, from whom he received three
wounds, by mounting one of the first to attack the
redoubt of Kniebis; and then by Generals Duhesme
and Vandamme who replaced him during the short
absence which his health obliged him to make.

Provost once again stood out in front of Augsburg, at the

passage of the Lech, seizing two guns which were
cleaved the approach to the bridge, and taking three prisoners
deny. He had a horse killed under him and was again
wounded by a bullet in the thigh. However, Provost's fine conduct had made him
known. General Moreau had information taken
on his account. Here are the two letters he received in response:

10 Thermidor Year IV of the French Republic.

Croutelle, Brigade Commander of the 2nd Chasseurs Regiment in

horse,
To GENERAL MOREAU,
Commander-in-Chief of the Army of the Rhine-and-Moselle.

MY GENERAL ,
Citizen Senig told me that you wanted to have some
me information on moral and political conduct
of citizen Provost, quartermaster to the body that I understand
ask. I satisfy with all the more pleasure your de-
request, that the reports I have to make to you on this sub-
officer can only be very advantageous to him.
Citizen Provost, entered at 2*. regiment of chasseurs towards
the course of the year 1789, has not ceased to give since this
era of the proofs of a good republican, of a bravery
rare, active, intelligent, having, on many occasions,
distinguished by his military talents, adding to these qualities
sobriety, a nice outfit, finally likely to occupy the
officer rank.

I am delighted, my General, that this opportunity has given me

procured the advantage of doing justice to this sergeant.

Hello and fraternity,

CROUTBLE.

Army of Rhine-and-Moselle. 4th. Division.

STAFF.

At the headquarters of Irmdenstad, the 18th Messidor, the year IV.

of the French Republic, one and indivisible.

Brigadier General Laroche to the General-in-Chief of the Army.

You know, General, how the attack on the fort of Kniebis was made and how
appreciable the value of the
troops that I had the honor to command; you have already
rewarded that of the two brave men who seized the
flags, you still have to reward the one who received three
wounds souls sides. This is Citizen Provost, Marshal -
housing on the 2nd. mounted chasseurs regiment. I you
asks for the place of second lieutenant for him, he deserves it,
moreover, by his conduct and his principles.

For General Laroche,

C. BBLLR, aide-de-camp.

These letters, supported by warm recommendations

of General Duhesme and several other leaders who had
saw our assistant at work, produced all their
effect, and he was made second lieutenant, a rank in which
Augereau soon confirmed this. The terms of the decree of
general-in-chief of the army of Germany are too honourable.
rables for Provost so that we do not reproduce them
not, although they make us come back to facts already
known:

At Strasbourg headquarters, 21 Vendémiaire, Year VI.

of the French Republic, one and indivisible.

AUGHRBAU, General-in-Chief of the Army of Germany,

According to the advantageous information given to him
by General of Division Duhesme, on bravery, intelligence
gence, patriotism and the brilliant actions of Citizen Provost.

marshal-des-logis at 2*. regiment of mounted chasseurs, which

received three honorable wounds while riding first to
the assault during the attack on the redoubt of Kniebis, during the
campaign of the year IV, and at the passage of the Lech; seized
two pieces of cannon which defended the approach to the bridge;

Instructed that this soldier exercised the duties of assistant to

camp near Generals Laroche and Vandamme;
Considering that he was replaced as a result of this service;
Appoints the aforesaid Citizen Provost Second Lieutenant following
in memo regiment, 2nd. hunters on horseback; he will enjoy
provisionally of the prerogatives and appointments attached to
his rank.

Chief General,
AUGEREAU.

Colonel of the 2nd. hunters, by transmitting to Provost

copy of this decree, added: "It is your bravery
He alone has earned you this place. »

The job of aide-de-camp, which he had since

the functions for a long time, was also confirmed to him. Little
a short time later, he was made lieutenant.

It was still on the battlefield that Provost

conquered his captain's epaulettes. Following the case
of Mannheim, in 1799, in which he took an active part
and where he received a wound (1), General Ney asked for it
himself the patent for him to the Minister of War.

However, this promotion did not prevent Prévôt from

remain attached to General Laroche's staff. He the
followed in France when he was called to the army of observers.
tion, when he took command of the four departments
ments gathered from the left bank of the Rhine, and then when

(1) Moniteur of 5 Vendémiaire, Year VIII: Dispatch from General Bara-

guay-d'Millier *.

he passed to the command of the lke. military division at

Caen.

We said, at the beginning of this notice, that Pre-

vôt had contracted, during his first stay in Caen,
liaisons that never faded from his memory. A
affable and always equal character, a reserved gaiety, a
letting go full of restraint, qualities so appreciated in
all eras by the inhabitants of the Norman city,
won him the sympathies of all those with
which he met. At the same time his outfit, his
distinguished manners, his good-natured conversation
company, opened the doors of all the salons to him.

It should not be believed, however, that the pleasures of gar-

nison and the few missions for which Provost was sometimes responsible
either on the Channel coasts that had to be watched, or
at St. -Lo where he had a regiment to organize, or around
de Vire where he had to follow the movements that could be attempted
la Chouannerie, sufficed for the activity of his mind. We
see, by fragments of correspondence that we
found, that he regretted life in the camps. Sometimes
he wishes to be reinstated in his regiment, sometimes he
hates to pass in one of the corps sent to the frontier;
at another time, he plans to embark for
Santo Domingo with General Leclerc; finally he is on the
point of accepting Vandamme's proposal, which
asks for aide-de-camp and promises him a nice cam-
loincloth. But he is always restrained by his affection for his general, an
affection, moreover, well shared and of which
Laroche more than once gave him proofs. We can
judging by the following certificate that the latter sent spontaneously
ment to the Minister of War:

I, the undersigned, major general, commanding the 14th.

military division; wishing to give to Citizen Provost, my

aide-de-camp, a shining testimony of my esteem and
my satisfaction and put the Government in the case of
recognize the services he has rendered to his country during
the whole Revolutionary War and the brilliant actions that he
by him. certifies that, for the seven years that this officer
is employed near me, he never ceased to conduct
honorable and distinguished; that wherever I found myself,
notably in the attack on Fort Kniebis, where he received three
shots by my side, at the battles of Ettlingen, Elsingen,
of Reinsheim and Friberg, as well as avant-garde business
of the Army of the Rhine, which it is impossible to enumerate, and to that
of Manheim, where he received a fresh injury, he
led with a boldness and intrepidity which owe him
merit a Saber of Honor, or at least a rank among the
officers who will make up the Legion of the Brave.

Done at the headquarters of Caen, this 10 Ventôse year XI of the

Republic.

THE ROCK.

As the Legion was being organized at the same time-

d'Honneur, this certificate only took effect two years
later, and Prévôt obtained one of the first decorations
which were given after the 1,854 braves that the
Republic had rewarded with weapons of honor
exchanged them for the cross.

Prévôt did not leave Caen until January 1808, to join the 7th regiment at Crema, in
Italy.
of dragons, where he had just been appointed to the post of ad-
judant major. But no sooner was he on his way than he received
the order to go to Portugal, where he was called upon to occupy
the honorable but difficult post of aide-de-camp of
Junot, governor of Lisbon, to whom
conferred the title of Duke of Abrantès. Provost had, indeed
much to suffer, in the beginning, from the character
stiffness and indomitable pride of his superior; he
even offered him his resignation. Gradually, however,
thanks to the gentleness of Provost, his relationship with his boss
became easier, and he ended up designing for him
an attachment so lively that one can say, without exaggeration,
that Junot's devotion to the Emperor had no
matched only by Provost's devotion to Junot.

For his part, the general-in-chief ended up granting him

his fullest confidence. We see in the Memoirs of
the Duchess of Abrantès (1), that, each time he had a
delicate mission, an intimate or embarrassing mission to
to commit to someone's fidelity, it was Provost who
was loaded. The Duchess, reporting these circumstances,
lavishes on him the epithets of a brave and loyal boy (2),

(1) T. XI, p. 259, 263, 266, 268, 292; t. XIII, p. 291, etc

(2) “Brave and loyal lad, the Duke loved him very much. I don't know where
“he is now, but where these Memories will find him, I want-
a that they bring him the assurance of my friendship, as extended to
“the man really attached to Junot. (Mem. of the Duc. d'Abr., t. XI,
p. 259. )

“a clairvoyant friend, a brave and excellent man. " Her

zeal was such that he once traveled from Lisbon to Paris
in ten days (1). Junot soon regarded him as a friend
intimate; and when, following the skirmish at Rio-
Mayor, we had to extract a bullet that had remained with him
in the jaw, he wanted to be assisted only by Provost
whose hands he was holding during the operation. “Mr. Provost,
"said the Duchess (2), had them ill, for several
"days, of the terrible pressure that the pain caused
"to the duke, because he would not cry out." " Then she
adds: "We know that we often give something to
c tighten to those who undergo a painful operation.

"and the hand of a devoted man was what could

certainly suits best. »

We know how the affairs of Portugal ended.

A stranger to politics, Junot misunderstood his mission in

this kingdom, alienated the spirit of the populations and could not
maintain. After the battle of Vimeiro, which he lost, he
had to sign the Cintra convention and re-embark his
troops. In this battle, Provost performed wonders of
value: he had a horse killed under him, delivered, he fourth,

(1) Mme. d'Abrantès (t. XI, p. 268) says that M. Prévôt had
his six hundred leagues in a fortnight in free stirrups. When his Me-
moires became known to the lieutenant-colonel, he wrote to the Duchess
to express her gratitude for her gracious remembrance and to pray
to make a correction on the time he had taken to come from Lis-
Good. He was singularly fond of his reputation as a squire.

(2) Memoirs of Mwe. cVAUrantes, t. XIII, p, 291.

the general-in-chief surrounded by an English squadron (1) and
was wounded by a bullet at the end of the action.

Barely recovered from his injury, Prévôt returned to Spain.

loincloth with the army of Portugal, and attended, at the end
of February 1809, to that terrible siege of Zaragoza, of which
the French seized only when this city did not
was more than a heap of ruins.
The following year, he was with his general at As-
torga and Salamanca. In Bussago, Portugal, although
wounded in the right shoulder (2), he managed, under the eyes of
Masséna, Prince of Essling, to rally at the foot of the mountain
wins over the scattered skirmishers in a first shock.

In 1812, Prévôt made the campaign of Russia, with the

Westphalian divisions of Ochs and Damascus, forming the
eighth corps of the grand army, commanded by the
Duke of Abrantes. It was put on the agenda for its brilliance.
quickly led to the Battle of the Moskowa, where a Biscayan
hit him in the leg and where he lost two horses in
charging the enemy with a number of soldiers who,
beaten down by the rigor of the cold, refused to walk,
and whose energy raised the courage.

After the retreat from Moscow, during which he remained in

the rearguard, still with Marshal Ney (3),

(1) Memoirs of Mmo. d'Abrantes, t. XII, p. 84.

(2) Id., t. XIII, p. 195.

(3) Marshal Ney's aides-de-camp having all been killed or wounded.

ses, he had asked for Captain Provost of the Duc d'Abrantes.

Provost, returned to Caen to buy horses for the

service of Junot, married MI". Alexandrine du Rosel,
whose hand had been granted to him as early as 1809 but whose
he had always been distant because of his existence
adventurous. By joining a family that enjoyed, in
this city, from a deserved consideration, he became all-
Caennais.

At the time of this marriage, a request was made

to the Duke of Feltre, so that the rank of squadron leader
was conferred on Captain Provost. The Minister made appointments
blessings to the Duc d'Abrantès, and received this
answer :

Trieste, April 30, 1813.

MR Dac,

I received the letter from V. Exc. relating to Mr. Captain

Provost, my aide-de-camp. I will see with the greatest
pleasure that V, Exc. made him obtain the rank of squadron leader,
in a cavalry regiment. He is an officer for whom
I have often applied for this rank on a number of occasions
where he distinguished himself. He is covered with wounds and has made a
action, at the battle of Moskowa, of the most striking,
which I quoted in my report. I therefore thank
advance V. Exc. of his appointment as squadron leader, because I
see, by her letter, that she is disposed to grant him this
favor.

Accept, etc.
The Duke of ABRANTES.

first his position in the regiment of Chasseurs a

valley of the Dauphin (t), he even sent him the certificate of
Knight of St. Louis; but the Hundred Days having changed
the King's dispositions towards the old army, he was put
retired.

Since that time, Lieutenant-Colonel Prévôt made

vain efforts to get back into service. He
always failed, despite the strongest recommendations
lively of those of his former comrades who, happier
that he, had remained in favor with the court, no-
especially those of General Bordesoul. An attempt he
made in 1830 had no better result.

From then on, Lieutenant-Colonel Prévôt resigned himself to the

hobbies which his family presented to him were sweet and easy; her
time was divided between her, her friends and the distractions
which riding (2) and the study of horses gave him,
favorite passions of his whole life. The young officers listened
were his advice, and he is not one of our famous ele-

(1) The first nine regiments of battle, the first six of in-
light fanterie, the first five of cuirassiers, dragoons and spearmen, the
first eight chasseurs and the seven regiments of hussars had
received, in 1814, the names of the King, the Queen, the Dauphin and the princes&
of the sanor.

(2) Lieutenant-Colonel Prévôt still rode on horseback in the

last years of his life. L'Union, Le Mans newspaper, October 7, 1851,
reports that he witnessed, that same day, on a horse he did not know
not, at the review of honor which ended General d'Astorg's inspection,
one of his old companions in the Peninsular Wars, and that there
addressed an energetic speech to the soldiers of the 7th. dragons.

Norman verses who did not take advantage of his advice to which
long experience lent a real character of innovation
fallibility.

In his relations with his friends, Colonel Prévôt

loved, like all old soldiers, to talk about the battles
and the feats of arms in which he had taken part; but he puts-
rarely concealed his personality, we had to
pressed him for a long time to obtain from him some detail on
the role he had played on such and such an occasion, where,
however, he had stood out. Chance alone has
taught his children some of the actions that make him
the most honor. We can cite, among others, this
trait of humanity, which would have remained ignored if the recognition
of him who was the object of it would not have revealed it.

In 1793, Prévôt, being still only a simple soldier,

forced to surrender the Chevalier d'Auchin, who was serving
in the allied armies against France. As party-
san, he was entitled to a large reward for capturing
of an emigrant, taken arms in hand; but delivering his
prisoner to the representatives of the people, he sent him to
the scaffold. This consideration stopped Provost; he proposed
to the knight various expedients, among others, his incorporation
ration in a French regiment: each of the offers was
rejected, as unworthy of a man of honour. SO,
the young soldier, not wanting to have on his conscience the

death of a vanquished enemy, decided to bring him back

to the Austrian outposts and was content with him

to swear that he would no longer bear arms against the

France.

It was M. d'Auchin himself who related this anecdote.

dowry to the son-in-law of Mr. Prévôt, using ex-
pressures of deepest gratitude. The lieutenant-
Colonel had never said anything about it.

Colonel Prévôt kept, until his last moments,

the same kind and considerate character; he never
refused a service he could render; his fellow citizens,
without exception, esteemed and loved him.

He retained his energy and moral strength until the

END. However, his body, riddled with wounds, is weakening.
know little by little, and he died on November 20, 1858, in
her daughter's arms, like Fontenelle, "without illness,
“without pain, by the sole necessity of dying. To
The crowd wanted to follow the
old soldier who had served his country so valiantly. A
detachment of 50 men, commanded by a captain,
a lieutenant and a second lieutenant, surrounded the coffin,
covered with the sword, epaulets and decorations of the
col. The borough deputy, two colonels
retired and a surgeon-major, held the corners of the
pan. The city's fire brigade
followed immediately, unarmed, behind the troops (1).

(1) Lieulenanl-Colonel Prévôt appreciated the courageous devotion

firefighters; he regarded them as the most useful of all bodies
armed and took a genuine interest in them. When founding the
We finally noticed, in this numerous and imposing
, motorcade, all former retired officers, General
Chatry de Lafosse, with his orderly, the
Colonel of 1SC. de Ligne and several of the officers of the
, garrison, which. had hastened to come and return the
* last duties to a brave man who had