Augustin-Marie d'Aboville

Born on 20 April 1776 in La Fère, in a noble family from northern France, he was the second son of General François-Marie d'Aboville (1730–1817),^[1] both his father and his elder brother General Augustin Gabriel d'Aboville (1773-1820) were fellow artillery commanders.^[2]

On 12 March 1792 he became a student in the artillery school and held the rank of sublieutenant. He graduated on 1 September with the rank of lieutenant in the 7th Regiment of Artillery.^[2]

Seeing active service at the outbreak of the French Revolutionary Wars, he took part in the campaign of 1792 and served in the French "Army of Italy", attaining the rank of captain.^[2]

He would be transferred to the "Army of the Moselle", but during the radical phase of the Revolution, he was suspended from his duties, because of his noble origins, but was quickly reinstated on 25 November 1794. He subsequently served in numerous artillery and staff posts (including as aide-de-camp to the father) with the 7th and latterly the 8th artillery regiments as they were transferred between the armies of "Rhine and Moselle" and "of Italy", seeing continuous active service from 1797 to 1800.^[2]

Promoted to Battalion Commander on 2 October 1802, he became a Major of the 2nd regiment of horse artillery (22 May 1803). Between 1803 and 1804, his unit was integrated into the "Army of England",^[2] a force with which Napoleon intended to invade the United Kingdom. D'Aboville received the prestigious Legion of Honour in 1803.^[3]

The debut of the Napoleonic Wars saw d'Aboville join the expedition to Martinique, under the orders of General Lauriston. During the return trip of the expedition, d'Aboville was placed in command of the 36-pounder battery of the ship of the line Bucentaure, and saw combat in the battle of Cape Finisterre against the Royal Navy squadron commanded by Admiral Robert Calder.^[2][3]

Returning to France in June 1804, he received orders to join the "Grande Armée". He took a conspicuous part in the War of the Fourth Coalition, during which he attained the rank of colonel and was given the distinction of Officer of the Legion of Honour (1807), for saving the artillery of the 6th Corps under Marshal Michel Ney, which had been attacked by a numerous pulk of Cossacks, on the banks of the river Passarge.^[2][3]

Appointed at the command of the Horse Artillery of the Imperial Guard on 13 September 1808, he was particularly noted at the bloody Battle of Wagram, where he was at the head of a company of thirty pieces, and had his right arm torn by a cannonball, an injury which almost cost him his life.^[2] The Emperor made him a brigadier general on 9 July 1809 and gave him the command of the artillery school of La Fère, as well as the title of Baron of the Empire. He did not see active service again until 1814, when he was called to command the artillery during the defence of Paris, where he was ordered by Joseph Bonaparte to place 84 guns in position on the high ground at Montmartre and Belleville^[2][4] Despite d'Aboville stoutly checking the best efforts of the enemy, inflicting considerable losses in the process, Paris would fall after two days of fighting.^[3]