Henri de Rigny

Marie Henri Daniel Gauthier, count of Rigny is an admiral and politician French, born with Toul (Lorraine) the February 2nd 1782 and died in Paris the November 6th 1835.

Biography

He was nephew of Joseph-Dominique Louis known as baron Louis and wire of a former captain to the regiment of Penthièvre-Dragons, withdrawn strong young person of the service, and which died by leaving five boys in low age, of which his/her brother the general future of Rigny. The French revolution made it leave the school of Pont-à-Mousson, where it had been sent any child. Henri de Rigny, ten years old then, had lost his father; his/her mother was registered on the list of the emigrants. An aunt collected the young family, made up of a sixteen year old young girl and five boys, whose Henri was the elder one.

A marked vocation and the last will of his/her father called Henri de Rigny with the service of the marine . After a stay of a few months to the special School of Brest, where it had been sent to finish its studies there, old sixteen years hardly, in 1798, it entered the marine in the capacity as candidate of second class under the orders of the admiral Bruix. In 1799 it is named Aspirant, it embarks on Fraternity .

It attended with the Blocus of Oporto-Ferrajo and the Bataille of Algeciras; then it made the Campagne of Egypt, and took share with forwardings of Saint-Domingue, Corsica and Spain. In 1803, Mr. de Rigny having obtained the rank of Sign of vessel. In 1803 it is named Enseigne of vessel and in this quality sent to the Camp of Boulogne; it is in charge of the command of a corvette Triumphing It .

Challenged by Napoleon i on opportunity of making leave to the tide all the buildings the flotilla intended for a descent in England, the young sailor made with the Emperor an answer as firm as concise. Incorporated with the sailors of the Guard in the Army, in 1806 and 1807, Mr. de Rigny made in the current of these two years the campaigns of Prussia, Poland and Poméranie; fought with Iéna, with Pultusk, the Siège of Stralsund and Graudentz, where it accepted an extremely serious wound. Passed with the Armed with Spain in 1808 and become assistance-of-camp with the marshal Bessières, it was distinguished with the Bataille from Rio-Seco and was wounded with the Combat of Sommo-Sierra, then it attended the Prise of Madrid, in 1809, and with the Bataille of Wagram.

Promoted with the rank of Lieutenant in this same year 1809, Mr. de Rigny was in 1811 Commander, and accepted the order to go to install for the English cruising which blocked Cherbourg and Le Havre. He achieves with intrepidity this perilous mission. In 1813, it was wounded again, whereas it removed the village of Barselen occupied by the English and defended by two formidable batteries.

Mr. de Rigny who, in 1816, had been high with the rank of Captain, accepted in 1822 the command of the naval forces gathered in the Mers of Raising. He raised soon the French house daily exposed in this water to the insults of the pirates Turkish and Greeks; its intelligent care fixed in the Archipelago the police force of navigation, and the French captain was, according to his characteristic and picturesque expression, true a Justice of the Peace charged to preserve useless furies two people then divided by a keen war. Named Rear-admiral in 1823, Mr. de Rigny had in September 1827 to ensure the resolution of the France, the Russia and the England, which had been linked to tear off the Greece with the Turkish domination.

In 1827 it orders the French fleet with the Bataille of Navarin. It was worth with Mr. de Rigny the cross of the Ordre of the Bath and of the Ordre of Saint-Alexandre-Newki and Vice-amiral titrates it.

Of return in France after the evacuation of the Morée, which it had chaired, the admiral de Rigny was created count and named maritime police chief with Toulon in 1829.

In 1829 Charles X grants to him the title of count de Rigny, but he refuses with the August 8th even year, the wallet of the Navy, in the ministry Polignac.

The admiral count de Rigny went in the Raising to take again the command of the fleet. Returned in Toulon due to health, have September 1830, it was named member of the council of admiralty and accepted the decoration of large officer of the Legion-D' Honor.

Called in 1831 with the House of Commons by a double election, the admiral de Rigny accepted, the March 3rd same year, of Louis-Philippe, the wallet of the marine. Charged, the April 4th 1834, of the department of the foreign affairs, it made in this administration proof of a new activity. The March 12th 1835, the care which its health required, become more and more staggering, forced it to resign its functions of minister; however, in August, it accepted a short mission with Naples. It was hardly of return at the end of October, when it felt the first attacks of the terrible evil to which it succumbed in the night of the 6 to the November 7th, at the 52 years age. One of the richest heirs to the Belgium, he was still heir to the baron Louis.

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