General Honoré Théodore Maxime Gazan

Général de division known for his service with the Grande Armée from 1805 to 1807 and then in Spain for six years

Born: October 29, 1765

Place of Birth: Grasse, Alpes-Maritimes, France

Died: April 9, 1845

Place of Death: Grasse, France

Arc de Triomphe: GAZAN on the south pillar

Pronunciation:

The son of a lawyer, Honoré Théodore Maxime Gazan joined a regiment of cannoneers of the coast guard of Antibes as a sous-lieutenant in 1780. In 1786 he joined the guard of the king in the Scottish company. After the arrival of the French Revolution, in December of 1789 Gazan joined the National Guard of Grasse as a lieutenant. The next year he was promoted to capitaine, and then in September of 1791 he became a lieutenant colonel in the 2nd Battalion of Volunteers of Var. The following January he was assigned the rank of capitaine in the 27th Infantry and he began serving with the Army of the Rhine. In May of 1794 Gazan was promoted to chef de bataillon and in July he was promoted to chef de brigade of the 11th Light. Two days later he fought at Trippstadt under Gouvion St. Cyr.

In 1795 Gazan served with the Army of the Rhine and Moselle, and in the summer of 1796 he fought at Kuppenheim, Ettlingen, Neresheim , and Geisenfeld. In November of that year he fought at Kehl where he was wounded by a shot. Gazan spent the next few years serving with different armies, and in April of 1799 he was promoted to général de brigade. Taking command of the 2nd Brigade of Oudinot's division, he fought at Frauenfeld. In September he commanded the advance guard at the Battle of Zurich where he seized the suburbs and was promoted to général de division on the battlefield. In October Gazan commanded the 4th Division of the Army of Switzerland and with them he seized Winterthur and Constance.

In December of 1799 General Gazan transferred to the Army of Italy where he took command of the 3rd Division. While in Italy he served against the revolts of the valley of Fontana Buona, and then he took part in the defense of Genoa under General Soult. While defending Genoa, Gazan seized Acqua Santa, de Verreria, and de Sassello, but when trying to take the redoubt of Coronata on May 2nd he was wounded in the head. Once back in action, he took part in the attack on Monte-Cretto on May 13th. After the siege was over, in July Gazan took command of the 1st Division of the Army of Italy. In December of 1800 he fought at Vola, Pozzolo, and Bassano.

In September of 1801, Gazan requested to be put on non-activity and this request was granted. A year later he returned to take command of a subdivision of the 27th military division. In 1805 he was designated for the Army of the Coasts of the Ocean, and when the Grande Armée marched to war he took command of the 2nd Division of Marshal Lannes' V Corps. During the campaign of 1805, in October he was detached from Lannes' corps and attached to Mortier's corps and then he fought at Dürenstein in November. Afterwards Gazan's division rejoined V Corps, and the next year he fought at Jena and Pultusk . In 1807 Gazan and his men served at Ostrolenka.

In 1808 Gazan's division was transferred with V Corps to the Army of Spain. That year he was also named Count of La Peyrière. In 1809 he served during the siege of Saragossa and the crossing of the Tagus, and then in 1810 he served in Andalusia, notably winning over Ballesteros at El Ronquillo in March. That November he was named chief of staff to the Army of the South. Gazan continued fighting in 1811, in January he won at Villanova de Castillejos, and then over the following months he was wounded at the siege of Badajoz and then wounded again at Albuera . In 1813 Gazan took command of the Army of Andalusia in January, and then he temporarily assumed command of the Army of the South in Spain. After the loss of the Battle of Vitoria , his wife was captured by the British Army, but Wellington had her escorted back to Gazan in her own carriage.¹ As the French retreated from Spain, Gazan was named chief of staff of the Army of the Pyrenees under Marshal Soult.

After Napoleon's abdication in 1814, Gazan was well treated by the restored Bourbons, being rewarded as a Knight of Saint Louis and receiving the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honor. As Napoleon marched back to Paris in March of 1815, Gazan maintained loyalty to the Bourbons but then fled from Grasse as Napoleon approached after advising the army of resistance to Napoleon. Once back in power, Napoleon put Gazan in charge of the National Guard of the 1st military division and the defense of Somme and also named Gazan a Peer of France. After Napoleon's second abdication, Gazan was selected to replace General Maison on the council of war to judge Marshal Ney. Ultimately the council of war found itself incompetent and the trial was moved to the Chamber of Peers.²

Gazan was placed on non-activity in January of 1816 but he resumed his career briefly in late 1818 before being relieved of his position at his request. He retired in 1825 but came out of retirement in late 1830. In late 1831 he was named a Peer of France again and he retired in 1832.

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Updated April 2025