Jean-Baptiste Bessieres (6 August 1768-1 May 1813) was a Marshal of the Empire of the First French Empire under Napoleon I. Known for his dandyish personality (he wore an out-of-fashion powdered hairstyle), for his undeserved promotion to Marshal, his massive debts, and for his skills as a cavalry leader, Bessieres fought in both the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars, and he was made commander of Napoleon's cavalry after his attempts at independent command were unsuccessful. Bessieres was killed in a skirmish in Germany in 1813.
Biography[]
Jean-Baptiste Bessieres was born in Prayssac, France on 6 August 1768, and he served in the National Guard before serving as a non-commissioned officer in the French Revolutionary Army during the war with Spain from 1793 to 1795. In 1796, Captain Bessieres fought alongside Napoleon Bonaparte during the Italian Campaign of the French Revolutionary Wars, and he led a brigade during the 1798 Egyptian Campaign and led a successful cavalry charge at the 1800 Battle of Marengo. Bessieres formed a rivalry with Marshal Jean Lannes during the battle, as Lannes claimed that Bessieres had failed to support him during the battle.
Marshal of the Empire[]
In 1804, Napoleon made him a Marshal of the Empire due to his friendship and loyalty to Napoleon, and many said that his promotion was undeserved. However, he would prove to be an able commander of Napoleon's Guard Cavalry, and he was made Duke of Istria in 1809. Bessieres briefly fought as an army commander in Spain before being sent to command solely the cavalry, and Napoleon congratulated Bessieres on making his guards cry after Bessieres was unhorsed and nearly killed at the Battle of Wagram. Bessieres would fight off the British attack on Walcheren before briefly returning to the Spanish front in 1811. In 1812, his reputation suffered after he advised Napoleon to not use his guard for a breakthrough at the Battle of Borodino, although he would preserve the guard in doing so, and he was made commander of all of Napoleon's cavalry in 1813. On 1 May 1813, just three days after the start of the War of the Sixth Coalition, Bessieres was killed by a ricocheting cannonball near the Poserna-Rippach defile in Saxony, Germany. Napoleon decided to settle his massive debts, and Bessieres' family was looked after by both Napoleon and the Bourbon Restoration monarchy.