Jean Isidore Harispe

Jean-Isidore Harispe born the December 7th 1768 with Saint-Etienne-with-Baïgorry, deceased the May 26th 1855 with Lacarre, was Marshal of France.

His/her father was a rich person Basque owner , he made raise his son in a priest. Originating in the the Low-Pyrenees, the Harispe young person began his military career and was used initially in quality as volunteer in 1792; elected official in 1793 commander of an organized frank company with Saint-Jean-Foot-of-Port recruited among Basques; it was distinguished with the Armée with Spain. It was illustrated initially at the Spanish border and made the campaigns of the An III and the An IV with the Armée with the Western Pyrenees. After peace with the Spain, Harispe, with its Basques, was sent in garrison to Bordeaux. It fought then the insurrectionists of the Haute-Garonne in 1799 and in year IX made the Campagne of the Grisons.

Employed with the Armed with Italy under the orders of Moncey then of Guillaume Marie-Anne Brune, the May 18th 1802 it accepted the command of the Basque Chasseurs, become the 16th half-brigade of light infantry in garrison with Angouleme. It passed then to the armed with the coasts of the Ocean under Augereau and made the campaigns of 1805 and 1806 in division Desjardin.

Wounded with the leg with Iéna, the October 14th 1806, Harispe was named Brigadier general, the January 29th 1807. Affected with the body of Soult it ordered then a brigade of division Verdier with the body of Reserve. It was emphasized at Gludstadt, Heilsberg and with Friedland where it was wounded of a glare of grapeshot, under the eyes of the marshal Lannes.

The December 16th 1807, it was named chief of staff of the Corps of Observation of the coasts of the Ocean under the orders of the marshal Moncey whom it followed in Spain in 1808. The November 23rd it fought again under the orders of Lannes, with Tudela. It attended the Siège of Saragossa and when Lannes returned to France, Harispe became chief of staff of Suchet.

It conquered its beautiful military reputation then and with the Bataille of Maria, the June 15th 1809, with 10.000 men it beat 30.000 of them. It paid its valiancy of a new wound and was named Major general. It was still distinguished with the Siège from Lérida and this time accepted the plate of large-officer of the Légion of honor, the June 30th 1811.

It was distinguished under the walls from Tarragone, contributed strongly in 1811 to the conquest of the Royaume of Valence, covered glory with the head of its division, the Bataille of Sagonte and twenty other combat, and was created Count of the Empire the January 3rd 1813.

Harispe was used for the Armée with Aragon until in 1813 and in 1814 it was sent of Barcelona to the army of Soult. In 1814, it was under the orders of Soult, and when the army began its retrograde walk, it defended the ground step by step. During the retirement of the Bidassoa, Harispe, with its division weakened by many losses, resisted all the English army, drove out it Saint-Jean-Foot-of-Port. In its native village of Baïgorry he did not hesitate to destroy his own dwelling, the Château of Channels, to drive out of them the Spaniards who occupied it. He beat in breach his paternal house, the Château of Channels, occupied by Mina with 6.000 men, forced the Spanish chief to evacuate it by leaving only the four walls there, then threw himself in the the Pyrenees, raised the inhabitants in the name of the fatherland in danger and successfully pushed back several times the attempts at invasion.

He protected then the retirement from the French Army with Orthez the February 27th, where he contained a Portuguese division, with Tarbes the March 20th. April 10th, with Toulouse, where Soult had charged it with defending the heights of the Calvinet, whose fears S were hardly completed, it fought until the last end and had the foot crashed to pieces by a ball. There had to suffer the amputation and remained wounded and prisoner in Toulouse; it accepted Wellington and other enemy chiefs of testimonys of the more high consideration. This last in person visited him and made it look after by its personal doctor.

In 1815, the Emperor entrusted again to him the defense of the the Pyrenees.

During the Restoration, the Harispe general was made Chevalier of Saint-Louis and was called with the command of the 15th military division. In March 1815, it took that of the 1e division of the Armée with the Low-Pyrenees, charged with supervising, between Bayonne and Saint-Jean-Foot-of-Port, the border threatened by the Spaniards. At the time of the Hundred Days, Harispe served the Emperor and fought in the army of the Low-Pyrenees.

After the second abdication of the Emperor, at the moment when the Spaniards prepared themselves to penetrate on the French territory, Harispe put at the head national guards country and of its intrepid Basque Chasseurs and stopped the movement of the Spaniards.

After the dismissal, it was withdrawn in its Château of Lacarre, close to Saint-Jean-Foot-of-Port until the Révolution of 1830, following which it elected was appointed and named Pair of France.

The Monarchie of July enabled him to take again active service and to thus join again close relationship with the Soult marshal. Ordering the High ones and the Low-Pyrenees (1830 - 1833), active division of the the Western Pyrenees (1833 - 1840) then of the 20th military division (1840 - 1850), it had, at the time of the First war carlist, to prevent any passage of the Légitimiste S of France in Spain and to help, discreetly, the government of Madrid against Don Carlos.

Appointed the Low-Pyrenees of 1831 with 1835, Grand Cross of the Legion of honor in 1833, Jean-Isidore Harispe was named Pair France in 1835 and was raised with the dignity of Marshal of France by the prince-president, the December 11th 1851. It entered of right to the Senate of the Second Empire in January 1852.

Its name is registered on the Triumphal arch of the Star, west coast.

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