Jean-Baptiste Jourdan (1762-1833) was a French general who held significant commands in the French Revolutionary Wars (1792-1802) and the Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815). He won a major victory for the French Republic at the Battle of Fleurus in 1794 and was among the first 14 men to be appointed marshal of the empire by Napoleon I in 1804.
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Definition
Timeline
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29 Apr 1762 - 23 Nov 1833Life of Jean-Baptiste Jourdan, marshal of the French Empire.
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1778Jean-Baptiste Jourdan enlists in the French Royal Army at the age of 16, is deployed to the West Indies.
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9 Oct 1779Jean-Baptiste Jourdan sees combat during the failed French assault at the Siege of Savannah in the American War of Independence.
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Jul 1791Jean-Baptiste Jourdan enlists in the French Revolutionary Army with the 2nd Haute-Vienne Volunteers, is elected chef de bataillon.
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27 May 1793Jean-Baptiste Jourdan is promoted to general of brigade.
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22 Sep 1793Jean-Baptiste Jourdan takes command of the Armée du Nord.
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15 Oct 1793 - 16 Oct 1793Battle of Wattignies results in victory for the French Republic over an Austrian army.
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24 Jun 1794The French are victorious at the Battle of Fleurus; their armies remain ascendent for the rest of the War of the First Coalition.
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3 Sep 1796Jean-Baptiste Jourdan is defeated at the Battle of Würzburg, leading to the failure of his Rhineland campaign.
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5 Sep 1798The 'Jourdan Law' is passed, ordering all French unmarried males between the ages of 20-25 be available for conscription.
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May 1804Jourdan is among the first 14 men to be made marshals of the empire by Emperor Napoleon I.
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21 Jun 1813A French army under Joseph Bonaparte and Marshal Jourdan is defeated by Wellington's Allied army at the Battle of Vitoria.
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1819Jourdan is made a Peer of France by the restored Bourbon monarchy.
