Jean Antoine Rossignol

Born

7 November 1759

Died

27 April 1802

A former goldsmith’s apprentice and a participant in the storming of the Bastille, Jean-Antoine Rossignol rose with extraordinary speed through the army in 1793. Promoted adjutant-general in July, then successively general of brigade and general of division, he was appointed commander-in-chief of the Army of the Coasts of La Rochelle later that month, succeeding Biron after his dismissal and arrest.

Suspended by two representatives on mission in August, Rossignol returned to Paris, where the Convention annulled their decision on 28 August and restored him to his command. His appointment and reinstatement were politically contentious, but he enjoyed support among prominent Montagnards and sans-culotte circles, including Robespierre, who publicly praised him when he appeared before the Convention.

After the reorganisation of the Republican armies in the west, Rossignol replaced Canclaux as commander of the Army of the Coasts of Brest in October. He briefly held additional command of the Army of the West in November and December, as well as, for a few days, the Army of the Coasts of Cherbourg.

His conduct as a commander was repeatedly criticised by professional officers and representatives on mission, amid persistent disputes over strategy, discipline and responsibility for the Republican reverses of 1793. He lost command of the Army of the West in December but remained at the head of the Brest army until his dismissal in the spring of 1794.

Later implicated in Babeuf’s Conspiracy of the Equals, Rossignol was acquitted by the High Court at Vendôme. Following the attack on Bonaparte in the rue Saint-Nicaise in December 1800, he was among those deported by the Consular government despite no demonstrated involvement in the plot itself. Sent first to the Seychelles and subsequently to the Comoros, he died on Anjouan on 27 April 1802.

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