duc de Raguse Auguste Frédéric Louis Viesse de Marmont

Born in 1774 in Châtillon-sur-Seine, he entered the army during the French Revolution and became an early associate of Napoleon Bonaparte. He served in the Italian and Egyptian campaigns, took part in the coup of 18 Brumaire, and later received the title Duke of Ragusa.

As one of Napoleon’s marshals, he held important commands across Europe, including in Dalmatia, Illyria, and the Peninsular War in Spain. His record showed both skill and setbacks, and his defeat at Salamanca in 1812 became one of the better-known blows to French power in Spain.

His name is remembered most for 1814, when he surrendered Paris and then led his troops over to the Allied side in the final collapse of Napoleon’s empire. Afterward he lived through the Bourbon Restoration and later years of exile, eventually writing memoirs that remain a valuable firsthand source for the period.