General Barthélemy Catherine Joubert

Army commander during the French Revolution who was Director Sieyès' first choice to lead a coup d'état but was killed at Novi

By Nathan D. Jensen

Born: April 14, 1769

Place of Birth: Pont-de-Vaux, Ain, France

Died: August 15, 1799

Cause of Death: Killed in action

Place of Death: Novi, Italy

Arc de Triomphe: JOUBERT on the south pillar

Pronunciation:

The son of a lawyer and judge, Barthélemy Catherine began his military career in 1784 when at the age of 15 he ran away from school and enlisted in an artillery regiment. Six months later his father had arranged for him to leave the military and he went back to school. At the end of July of 1789 Joubert rejoined the military by joining the National Guard of Paris as a sergeant. With the French Revolution in full swing, in September of 1791 he joined the 3rd Battalion of Volunteers of Ain and then in December he joined a battalion of volunteer grenadiers of Bas-Rhin. At the beginning of 1792 Joubert was commissioned as a sous-lieutenant and he served with the 51st Regiment of Infantry. He joined the Army of Italy and in November of that year he was promoted to lieutenant. During the spring of 1793 Joubert served with a battalion of grenadiers and he fought at the action of Isola in May. He next served at the affairs of Fourches and then in September he defended the redbout of Condamine at the pass of Tende with determination until he was wounded and taken prisoner. Transported to Turin as a prisoner, Joubert was released by the end of the year.

In April of 1794 Joubert was promoted to chef de bataillon. In 1795 he was employed in Sérurier's division and promoted to chef de brigade. After serving in the defense of the redoubt of Little Gibraltar in September, he commanded the 2nd Brigade of Meynier's division at Loano in November. In recognition of his service and potential, the next month he was promoted to général de brigade.

1796 was Joubert's time to shine after General Bonaparte took command of the Army of Italy. After fighting at Montenotte, Joubert fought at Millesimo and was wounded by a blow from a stone during the attack on the chateau of Cossaria. Nevertheless, he continued to serve and fought at Mondovi before taking command of the 1st Brigade of Masséna's division. He fought at Lodi in May and then in June he made his way to Verona leading Masséna's advance guard. In July Joubert was victorious at Bocchetta di Campion, but he was later forced to retreat when attacked at Corona by Wurmser. In early August he served under Augereau and he took part in the fierce fighting at Castiglione .

Two months later in October, Joubert took command at Porto Legnago, and the next month he and his men forced the Austrian forces to collapse near the heights of Campara. After taking command of Vaubois' division, he was promoted to général de division. On January 12th, 1797, Joubert contained Alvinczy, but the next day was forced to fall back from his position, taking up a new position on the plateau of Rivoli and setting the stage for the battle that would begin the next day. During the Battle of Rivoli , Joubert distinguished himself and then began the pursuit once the French forces were victorious. He continued the pursuit and entered Trente and Roveredo in the following weeks. Joubert next took command of multiple divisions and advanced deeper into the Tyrol. In March he seized Clausen and Brixen and then he forced the gorges of Innsbruck. The next month Joubert rejoined General Bonaparte and assisted in the negotiations at Léoben. That June he took command of the 5th Division of the Army of Italy and then in December he returned to Paris on leave and to present captured flags to the Directory.

The Directory did not give Joubert much time off, naming him the commander of the Army of Batavia that same month. In January of 1798 Joubert took up his command, which he held for six months before becoming the commander of the Army of Mainz. In October he was named commander of the Army of Italy, but in December he resigned his command. The Directory ordered him to take command again, so he did, but he again resigned, this time in January of 1799.

By June of 1799 Joubert was commanding the 17th military division in Paris and around this time he married Mademoiselle de Sémonville. Due to his popularity with both the people and the army, the Director Sieyès considered Joubert the best available general to bring in army support of a coup d'état against the Directory.¹ Joubert was willing to support the coup, and complained, "They lose time in words. When they like, I will finish it all with twenty grenadiers."²

The next month General Joubert was sent to take command of the Army of Italy and he arrived and took command on the 5th of August. On the 13th he attacked Bellegarde at Acqui and then two days later he fought Suvarov at Novi . At the beginning of the Battle of Novi, Joubert was calling out to his men, "Soldiers, march to the enemy!" when he was struck by a ball in the heart, killing him instantly. His widow later remarried to Marshal Macdonald, and Director Sieyès instead looked to General Bonaparte for the support of the army in a coup d'état.

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Updated July 2024