Jean Serurier

Fransk general. Kommanderede belejringen af Mantua.

• Mantua, 1796-97

One of the old-school commanders, Jean Serurier was an able, honest and trustworthy soldier who had a lengthy military career in the Seven Years War, Portugal and Corsica before being caught up in the French Revolution.

Arrested by the zealots for being of minor nobility, Serurier survived to become a general of division in Napoleon Bonaparte's extraordinary campaign in Italy.

Unlike many older officers, Serurier liked what he saw in Bonaparte and gave him unswerving loyalty.

His military successes as a senior commander were few, but won considerable respect with his battle-winning efforts at Mondovi.

After being captured at Verderio in 1799, Serurier moved towards politics and served in many official capacities - such as Governor of Venice and of Les Invalides.

Offering support to Bonaparte in 1815 saw him lose much prestige with the Bourbons, but his peerage and marshal's baton were returned just months before his death.