François-Joseph d'Offenstein

François-Joseph d'Offenstein (27 July 1760 – 27 September 1837), Baron of the Ist Empire, was a French general and military commander during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars.[1] Offenstein joined the army in 1777, aged 16 and held the ranks of Major, Lieutenant Colonel and Brigadier General.[1] After having served as Commandant in Chief of Neuf-Brisach, Offenstein resigned from his post but re-enlisted in the army two years later.

François-Joseph Offenstein
Born27 July 1760
Erstein, Alsace, France
Died27 September 1837(1837-09-27) (aged 77)
Mouzay, Meuse, France
Allegiance French Army
Years of service1777–1816
RankMajor General (Revolutionary Wars)
Brigadier General (First Empire)
Battles/warsFrench Revolutionary Wars
French Directory
French Consulate
First French Empire
AwardsOfficer of the Legion of Honor
Baron of the First French Empire

Following his re-enlistment, Offenstein served in Napoleon I's (1769 - 1821) La Grande Armée, where he received the rank of Brigadier General.[1] After his retirement, he received the title of Baron from Napoleon. Offenstein died in 1837, aged 77 in Meuse, France.[1]

Biography

Early life

Offenstein was born in Erstein, French Alsace, on July 27, 1760 to François-Joseph Offenstein and Catherine Reibel, he grew up in Alsace during the French Ancien Régime before joining the French army in 1777, aged 16.

Military career

Offenstein received the rank of Major in 1790 and then Lieutenant Colonel in 1792. In July 1793, he was nominated for Brigadier General and then received the rank of Major General. Two months after his appointment as Major General, Offenstein became Commandant in Chief of Neuf-Brisach. However, in 1794 he was relieved of his command by the leaders of Hentz and Goujon for having allegedly misreading a map and confusing a river with a road whilst leading a division of 18,000 men in Moselle. Proceeding his demotion he quit the army, but was recalled in 1796 and given the rank of Brigadier Chief.

On July 15 1804, Napoleon I of France made Offenstein Officer de la Legion of Honor during the first awards ceremony of the Legion of Honor at the Invalides of Paris for his participation in all the battles of the Rhine during the French Revolutionary Wars and various conflicts during the French Consulate.

In 1806, he joined the Grande Armée and by 1807 Offenstein was nominated by Napoleon I for the rank of Brigadier General after his heroic acts during the battle of Heilsberg. From 1807, he worked at the General-Staff with the Marshal Brune and on June 26, 1809, Napoleon awarded him the title of Baron of the first Empire. In that way, his family name "Offenstein" became "d'Offenstein".

Death

Offenstein died in 1837, aged 77 during the July Monarchy.

Personal life

Offenstein married Marie Barbe Lamarcq in 1803 and had two sons, Guillaume François (1804–1865) and Eugène Auguste (1808–1863).

Offenstein has a familial connection with the French physician Paul Rohmer (1876–1977), who is considered the father of the modern paediatrics in the east corner of France.[2]

Honours & Titles

Service record

During the Ancien Régime in France
  • 03.10th.1777 : Joins the "Régiment Royal Deux-Pont dragons", but resigns on 12.23rd.1786
  • 01.01st.1787 : Re-enlists as grenadier in the "Régiment d'Alsace-infanterie"

During the French Revolutionary Wars
  • 06.14th.1790 : Major in the National Guard of Erstein
  • 10.02nd.1791 : Elected as Lieutenant Colonel in the 1st battalion of voluntaries of the Bas-Rhin
  • 1792 : Elected as Lieutenant Colonel in the 1st battalion of voluntaries of the Moselle
  • 1793 : Elected as Lieutenant Colonel in the 1st battalion of voluntaries of the Rhine
  • 07.30th.1793 : Nominated Brigadier General
  • 09.22nd.1793 : Nominated Major General
  • 10.04th.1793 : Nominated Commandant in chief of Neuf-Brisach
  • 05.09th.1794 : Assigned with a division of 18.000 men inside the Army of Moselle. He served in Saarlouis before occupied Trèves in Germany. He was sacked by the leaders of Hentz and Goujon for having confused on a map a river with a road. He has been given the rank of Major General despite the fact he was not able to read correctly. After that event, he was deemed unfit for service, nevertheless, in 1796, he was called back by the army thanks to his military experience and his faithfulness in France.

During the French Directory

During the French Consulate
  • 04.28th.1799 : Nominated Brigadier Chief of the "44th régiment d'infanterie de ligne"
  • 07.31st.1799 : Nominated Brigadier Chief of the "12th régiment de chasseurs", he served in Leibdingen and Luciensteig
  • 12.23rd.1802 : Nominated Brigadier Chief of the "7th régiment de cuirassiers"

During the First French Empire
  • 09.23rd.1805 : Nominated Colonel of the 2nd brigade of the division commanded by Charles Joseph de Pully inside the "armée d'Italie"
  • 11.22nd.1806 : Nominated Colonel in the Grande Armée of Napoleon
  • 06.10th.1807 : Wounded during the Battle of Heilsberg
  • 06.25th.1807 : Napoleon named him Brigadier General in order to work at the general-staff with the Marshal Brune
  • 09.12th.1809 : Nominated commandant in chief of the Haute-Marne, and then of the Dordogne
  • 03.02nd.1814 : Military Attaché in the Impérial staff of Napoleon

During the first Bourbon Restoration
  • 24th.12.1814 : Retired temporarily from the Army

During the Hundred Days
  • 05.01st.1815 : Back in the Army, he was nominated Commandement of two regiments of lancers from the National Guard of the Haut-Rhin and the Bas-Rhin, but after having scoffed at Napoleon, he was relieved from his command after only 10 days
  • 05.11th.1815 : Sent to Sélestat

During the second Bourbon Restoration
  • 07.06th.1816 : Retired definitely from the Army even if he asked to rejoin the army

References
  1. Kintz, Jean-Pierre (2007-10-01). "Le Nouveau dictionnaire de biographie alsacienne". Revue d'Alsace (133): 523–528. doi:10.4000/alsace.1512. ISSN 0181-0448.
  2. Grange, Florent (November 2005). Paul Rohmer, une vie au service de l'enfance (in French). Verger. ISBN 9782845740549.

Sources
  • NDBA - Nouveau Dictionnaire de biographie alsacienne
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