Bonaparte Napoleon

Napoleon's Chief-of-Staff Louis-Alexandre Berthier Confirms Italian Army General's Battlefield Promotion, 1797

 

1p DS in French signed by Louis-Alexandre Berthier (1753-1815), then Chief-of-Staff of Napoleon's Army of Italy, as "alex. Berthier" near bottom right. With "Liberte / Egalite / Armee d'Italie / Etat-Major General" letterhead, partly printed and partly handwritten in a clerical script. The watermarked cream bifold paper is in very good condition; the inner two pages are blank, while the fourth is inscribed with a place name (Rivoli, Italy?). Expected light folds, wrinkles, and isolated discoloration. The text is a little faded. Each page measuring 7.5" x 9.25".

 

This document was issued by Napoleon from Army of Italy headquarters on January 18, 1797, or, according to the newfangled Republican calendar, "29 Nivose l'an 5." It was addressed to French General de Brigade Claude-Victor Perrin, called Victor (1764-1841).

 

Translated in part:

 

"I inform you, my dear General, that the General in Chief [Napoleon] appointed you to the grade of Gal Divl on the field of battle the 27th of this month [January 16, 1797]. I have informed the Commissioner [in this case, Chief Financial Officer] so that he understands your new salary…"

 

Victor had been promoted to the rank of General de Brigade of the Army of Italy a few years earlier, at age 29. His exceptional conduct at the Battle of La Favorita inspired Napoleon to promote him on the spot: literally, while on the actual battlefield! Napoleon's provisional rank of General de Division was later authorized by the Directorate, and announced by Berthier.

 

The Battle of La Favorita was fought near Mantua, Italy on January 16, 1797, when approximately 15,000 troops led by Napoleon faced off against an equal force of Austrians co-commanded by Generals Giovanni Provera and Dagobert Sigismund von Wurmser.

 

Louis-Alexandre Berthier, a career soldier, first served under Napoleon in the Army of Italy during campaigns in the mid-1790s. Napoleon recognized Berthier’s impressive organizational and logistical skills by appointing him his Chief of Staff in 1796. Berthier would serve the emperor in this capacity until 1814. In 1811, Berthier would be appointed Marshal of France.

 

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