Siege of Toulon

September 18, 1793 - December 18, 1793

French royalists had seized the city of Toulon and opened it up to British and Spanish ships for support. After little progress was made with some incompetent commanders, General Dugommier was given command of the siege to retake the valuable port and put down the insurrection. A young artillery captain, Napoleon Bonaparte, devised a plan to decisively win the siege. Dugommier went ahead with Bonaparte's plan which proved successful when the British withdrew after French advances. Unfortunately for the French, all of their ships were either taken by the British or destroyed, but Toulon was again in the hands of the revolutionaries. Afterwards, Bonaparte received a promotion to général de brigade.

Bibliography

Chandler, David G. Dictionary of the Napoleonic Wars. New York: Macmillan Publishing, 1979.
Smith, Digby. The Greenhill Napoleonic Wars Data Book. London: Greenhill Books: 1998.

Related Pages:

French commander Dugommier
General La Poype
Artillery commander Bonaparte

Updated October 2018