André Masséna
André Masséna, prince d'Essling, duc de Rivoli, was a French military commander of the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars. He was one of the original eighteen Marshals of the Empire created by Napoleon I, who nicknamed him "the dear child of victory". He is considered to be one of the greatest generals of the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars.
Beginning his career as an enlisted soldier under the ancien régime, Masséna established himself as one of the best generals of the French Republic during the French Revolutionary Wars. He served as Napoleon Bonaparte's main lieutenant in the Italian campaign of the War of the First Coalition, playing a decisive role in the victories of Arcole and Rivoli, and was at the helm of the advance into Austrian territory that compelled them to open peace negotiations. In 1799, Masséna defeated Second Coalition forces at the Second Battle of Zurich, which had considerable strategic repercussions for France.
Under the French Empire, Masséna continued to demonstrate great competence in his various commands, both under Napoleon's direct orders and at the head of independent forces in secondary fronts. He campaigned in Italy once again in 1805, invaded the Kingdom of Naples in 1806 and played a major role at the battles of Aspern-Essling and Wagram in 1809. Masséna was rewarded by Napoleon with the titles of Duke of Rivoli and Prince of Essling. However, his failed invasion of Portugal in 1810 earned him the disgrace of the Emperor, who no longer appointed him to any major commands during the Empire. Having rallied to the Bourbon Restoration, Masséna died in Paris shortly afterwards at the age of 58.
Although many of Napoleon's generals were trained at the finest French and European military academies, Masséna was among those who achieved greatness without the benefit of formal education. While those of noble rank acquired their education and promotions as a matter of privilege, Masséna rose from humble origins to such prominence that Napoleon referred to him as "the greatest name of my military empire". In addition to his battlefield successes, Masséna's leadership aided the careers of many. A majority of the French marshals of the time served under his command at some point.
Early life and career
André Masséna was born on 6 May 1758 in Nice, in the County of Nice, then part of the Kingdom of Sardinia, the son of Jules César Masséna and Catherine Fabre. He was baptized Andrea Massena the same day at the Cathedral of Saint Reparata by Canon Ignazio Cacciardi. His father's family, originally from Piedmont, had lived for at least three centuries in the Vésubie valley and owned land in Levens, a town in the hinterland of Nice. His father, after serving in the army for seven years, became a wine merchant on his return home in 1754. That same year he married Catherine Fabre, daughter of a contractor and shipowner from Toulon, with whom he had six children. He died from tuberculosis in 1764 and his widow, who quickly remarried, entrusted their children to the care of her first husband's relatives; André, the eldest of three sons, was then six years old.Masséna spent his childhood in the family home in Levens and revealed himself early on a turbulent boy. When he was not yet ten years old, his grandmother, anxious to compensate for his lack of education, tried to make him a baker, but Masséna did not appreciate this career any more than he did working in his uncle's soap factory, where he remained until the age of 14. Giving up on becoming a craftsman, he preferred to run away and became a cabin boy aboard a merchant ship. He sailed in the Mediterranean Sea and on an extended voyage to French Guiana. In 1775, at the age of 17, Masséna definitively gave up sailing and, on the advice of his uncle Marcel, who was already serving in the unit as a non-commissioned officer, enlisted in the stationed in Toulon.
Benefiting from his good physical condition, Masséna learned the profession of arms while his uncle took care of his education. Appointed corporal on 1 September 1776, he was successively promoted to sergeant on 18 April 1777, to quartermaster on 14 February 1783, and finally to adjutant at the age of 26 on 4 September 1784. This was the highest rank a non-nobleman could achieve in the French Royal Army. On 13 April of the same year, Masséna was received as an apprentice in the Toulon masonic lodge Les Élèves de Minerve. His progression within the hierarchy of the lodge was rapid and he became its master of ceremonies on 15 August. On 27 September 1787, the Grand Orient de France created the lodge La Parfaite Amitié within the Royal Italian Regiment itself, of which Masséna became the president.
In 1788, following the restructuring of the Royal Italian, Masséna was sent to Antibes where he joined the corps of Royal Chasseurs of Provence. He stood out as a competent non-commissioned officer; with further advancement blocked, Masséna requested the following year to be transferred to the gendarmerie, but his request was rejected despite the recommendations of his commanding officer. He finally left his regiment on 3 August 1789, in the early days of the French Revolution, to settle in Antibes. There he married Marie Rosalie Lamare, daughter of a master surgeon, on 10 August. With little wealth, Masséna opened up a grocery store and, without much success, engaged in smuggling for about two years. During this time he became an active member of local revolutionary circles. With the establishment of the National Guard in French cities, Masséna was appointed instructor of the Antibes unit due to his military experience. He showed great efficiency in this post and was soon elected instructor captain of the 2nd volunteer battalion of Var on 14 September 1791. He became second lieutenant-colonel on 1 February 1792 and first lieutenant-colonel on 1 August.
French Revolutionary Wars
Masséna took part in the first Piedmontese campaign in the armies of the Republic. His battalion was assigned to the Army of the Var commanded by General Jacques Bernard d'Anselme, in a brigade that also included the 3rd Var Battalion, the 1st Hérault Battalion and a squadron of dragoons. Masséna quickly built a reputation as a leader who cared about discipline and the upkeep of his unit. General d'Anselme entered the city of Nice on 29 September 1792 at the head of the French troops occupying the County of Nice; shortly afterwards, Masséna's battalion, integrated into General Brunet's column, occupied the Principality of Monaco in October. The exactions committed by the French army angered the local population, and Masséna had to participate in the suppression of the barbet movement that resisted the French occupation of the County of Nice. As a native of the region and knowing it perfectly, he was particularly appreciated by his superiors, who also cited the good conduct of his battalion as an example.On 8 June 1793, Masséna took part in an assault on the Col de Tende. Despite an initial success, he and his men came up against the defensive camp of Pérus, held by the Austro-Sardinians, and had to retreat in disorder. This setback did not hamper Masséna's career, who had the support of the new commander-in-chief of the army, General Dumerbion, a friend of the family. He received command of the Fougasse camp, on the Col de Turini, and proceeded to execute an arrest warrant against General, whose management of the troops was called into question. On 17 August, he was named chef de brigade of the 51st Infantry Regiment, but Dumerbion refused to let him take up his assignment and Masséna therefore remained at the Fougasse camp; five days later, on 22 August, he learned of his promotion to general of brigade. He resisted Sardinian assaults on 7 and 12 September and then, after his transfer to the left wing of the Army of Italy, captured Utelle on 14 November. He soon afterwards requested leave to rest with his relatives at Antibes.
This interlude did not last long: on 14 December, Masséna was detached to the corps carrying out the Siege of Toulon under Dugommier's order. From his arrival, replacing General La Poype at short notice, he personally led a column in an assault on Fort Lartigue, which he captured in the first charge. Masséna then turned the fort's large-calibre cannons against the British fleet in the Toulon harbour, which, combined with the fall of Fort l'Éguillette - in which an officer named Napoleon Bonaparte distinguished himself - precipitated the withdrawal of the British squadron. As a reward for his services, Masséna was promoted to general of division on a provisional basis on 20 December 1793 and appointed governor of Toulon two days later.
Masséna then returned to the Army of Italy in January 1794 and obtained command of its right wing. In late March, in accordance with Dumerbion's orders, he launched an offensive in the Genoa sector which took him as far as Garessio on 19 April and then to Colle Ardente, which he captured at the same time as the mille Fourches camp. In conjunction with General Macquard, commanding the central division, he seized the fort of Saorgio on 29 April and then the Col de Tende on 8 May, opening the way into Piedmont for the Army of Italy. According to Jean-Jacques Prévost, "the execution of the campaign plan ensured by Masséna's brilliant tactical mastery and the effective reorganization of the field artillery due to Bonaparte were the essential factors of this success". Masséna was confirmed in his rank of general of division on 29 August 1794. At the same time, judging his force to be stretched too thin, he decided to fall back with his men to Ormea for fear of an offensive return by the Austrians. On 21 September, he defeated with 18,000 soldiers the 8,000 Austrians of General Wallis at the Battle of Dego. Due to an illness, Masséna left his post on 22 December and his division was entrusted to General Sérurier.
Returning to the army in April 1795, Masséna was placed at the head of the 1st division of the right wing of the Army of Italy. The Italian front then saw little activity but, at the end of June, the Austro-Sardinians went on the offensive and forced the French to retreat to Borghetto, reconquering the ground lost the previous year. Driven out of Melogno on 25 June, Masséna retreated but still managed to maintain discipline among his troops. Following this setback, commander-in-chief Kellermann was replaced by Schérer, who decided, after consulting Masséna, to launch an offensive as winter approached. The main maneuver in the center was entrusted to Masséna, who commanded the Laharpe and Charlet divisions for the occasion, to which was added a reserve contingent. At the Battle of Loano on 23 November, he pushed back the enemy positions as far as Mount Settepani, not without suffering heavy losses, before falling back south towards Finale, on the Mediterranean coast. His forces thus bypassed Loano and the Austrian army of General Wallis positioned on the road to Finale, which finally retreated to Savona, abandoning a large part of its artillery and baggage to the French. Masséna's decisive contribution to the victory earned him the congratulations of General Schérer, and representative on mission wrote to the authorities: "Masséna has done wonders".