General Armand Augustin Louis de Caulaincourt

Armand Augustin Louis de Caulaincourt
Aide-de-camp to Napoleon and notable ambassador to Russia


Born: December 9, 1773

Place of Birth: Caulaincourt, Aisne, France

Died: February 19, 1827

Place of Death: Paris, France

Arc de Triomphe: CAULAINCOURT, L. on the west pillar

Pronunciation:



The son of a senator and noble, Armand Augustin Louis de Caualaincourt began his military career in the Royal Foreign regiment in 1788. The next year he was commissioned as a sous-lieutenant and then in 1791 he became an aide-de-camp to his father who was serving as a general. They served with the Army of the North and then on May 20th of 1792 Armand de Caulaincourt became an aide-de-camp to his uncle General Harville. Two days later he was dismissed from the army for his noble birth. Undeterred, the next month Caulaincourt enlisted and volunteered to join the Paris National Guard, and the following year he fought at Cambrai. In early 1794 he joined the 16th Chasseurs à Cheval with the Army of the Coasts of Cherbourg and in 1795 he was promoted to capitaine. He also became an aide-de-camp to Aubert-Dubayet and that December he was promoted to chef d'escadrons.

In early 1796 Aubert-Dubayet was sent as ambassador to Constantinople and Caulaincourt followed him there, getting his first taste of foreign diplomacy. During the summer of 1797 Caulaincourt returned to France and in August he began serving with the Army of the Sambre and Meuse. In late 1798 Caulaincourt began serving in the 8th Cavalry with the Army of the Rhine. The following March he fought at Stockach and then in July was promoted to chef de brigade of the 2nd Carabiniers. In November of 1799 Caulaincourt was wounded by two shots at Weinheim, but he was back in action the next year to fight at Messkirch and Neresheim.

Later in the year 1800, Caulaincourt was sent to Russia on a diplomatic mission. Upon his return in 1802, Napoleon made him an aide-de-camp and then in 1803 Napoleon promoted him to général de brigade. In March of 1804 Caulaincourt traveled to Strasbourg and was allegedly complicit in the arrest of the Duke of Enghien, though he would vehemently dispute any involvement in this event for the rest of his life. Made Master of Horse in June of that year, the next year he was promoted to général de division and rewarded with the Grand Eagle of the Legion of Honor. Caulaincourt went on to serve on the staff of the Grande Armée throughout the campaigns of 1805 to 1807.

In November of 1807 Caulaincourt was sent as ambassador to Russia in November of 1807. The next year he was rewarded again by being made the Duke of Vicenza. Despite earning a mutual respect and friendship with Tsar Alexander, he was recalled to France in 1811 when it became clear that the French and Russian governments could not break their diplomatic impasse. As the expert on Russia, Caulaincourt was by Napoleon's side throughout the 1812 campaign. Caulaincourt repeatedly warned Napoleon of the dangers and risks of invading Russia, but to no avail. Still by Napoleon's side at the Battle of Borodino in September, when word reached them of his brother Auguste Jean Gabriel de Caulaincourt's death in battle, Caulaincourt maintained his composure despite the tears streaming down his face. Asked by Napoleon if he wished to retire, he raised his hat to acknowledge Napoleon's sympathy, but otherwise was silent and stayed by the Emperor's side.1 During the retreat from Russia, when Napoleon finally decided to leave the army and return to Paris, Napoleon traveled in disguise as Caulaincourt's secretary with a small escort.2

In 1813 General Caulaincourt became a senator and he represented France at many of the diplomatic negotiations of the year. After Duroc's death, he also became Grand Marshal of the Palace temporarily until Bertrand fulfilled that position. That summer Caulaincourt was ordered to represent France at the armistice of Pleswitz and the Congress of Prague. In November of 1813 he became Minister of Foreign Affairs, replacing Maret, and he fulfilled this position until Napoleon's abdication in April of 1814. During the negotiations for the Treaty of Fontainebleau, Caulaincourt used his influence with the tsar to obtain guarantees that Napoleon would be exiled to Elba and allowed to rule there.

Unemployed by the Bourbons, when in 1815 Napoleon returned from exile for the Hundred Days, Caulaincourt again became Minister of Foreign Affairs, replacing Talleyrand. Made a Peer of France by Napoleon, after Napoleon abdicated a second time the restored Bourbons proscribed him for rejoining Napoleon. However, due to Caulaincourt's friendship with Tsar Alexander stemming from his days as ambassador, Alexander ordered that Caulaincourt be removed from the proscription lists, and the Bourbon government complied.3 Caulaincourt retired from public life immediately afterwards, and later he wrote memoirs based on his daily notes.


Notes

  1. Philip J. Haythornthwaite, Who Was Who in the Napoleonic Wars, (London: Arms & Armour, 1998), 64.
  2. David G. Chandler, The Campaigns of Napoleon, (New York: Macmillan Publishing, 1966), 849.
  3. John R. Elting, Swords Around a Throne: Napoleon's Grande Armée, (USA: Da Capo Press, 1997), 71.



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Updated October 2024

© Nathan D. Jensen