Antoine Charles Louis de Lasalle

  

 General Antoine Charles Louis de Lasalle led the Infernal Brigade (the 5th and 7th Hussars) in the 1806 campaign against Prussia. The brigade moved rapidly through enemy territory in search of information and supplies. Lasalle and his 500 hussars arrived at the fortified city of Stettin following the Battle of Jena. A garrison of 5,000 and over 150 cannon guarded the fortress. Lasalle pretended the entire French army was with him and demanded the surrender of the city or 50,000 troops would assault the town. His bluff succeeded, and the city surrendered without resistance. Napoleon wrote that if the light cavalry continued to capture fortified towns, he would have to melt down his artillery and discharge his engineers.

Tactical creativity and audacity marked the hussars, and the daring Lasalle was the perfect commander for this flamboyant cavalry. The general was known for his wit, charm, and personal exploits, including affairs and duels; he remarked that any hussar who wasn't dead by the age of thirty was contemptible. Serving in the army of Italy, he was captured and eventually released. Bonaparte elevated him to the rank of major, rather than court martialing him, after he gathered important intelligence by leading a contingent of hussars inside enemy territory to his lover's house. On the way back, his men were surrounded by 100 Austrian hussars. He escaped by leaping his horse over the bridge wall. He led his men through the enemy, became isolated but escaped, wounding four of the Austrians, losing his horse, and swimming the river to rejoin the rest of his men. At Rivoli, his squadron captured an entire Austrian battalion. 

He went to Egypt with Bonaparte and distinguished himself at the Battle of the Pyramids, thereafter advancing to the rank of colonel. At the Battle of Remedieh, he rescued General Davout as he was about to be cut down by Mamluks, cutting off the hands of one attacker and breaking his sword over the head of the Mamluk leader. He restored order and drove the enemy back. 

At Marengo, he served as on of Napoleon's aides-de-camp. 

On an occasion when Lasalle had gambled away a huge sum of money the emperor had awarded him, instead of punishing the general, Napoleon ordered he be given the amount again to pay for his wedding. Napoleon indicated that a prefect could be created with the stroke of a pen, but that twenty years were required to create a Lasalle.

 During the Battle of Heilsburg in 1807, in command of a cavalry division, Lasalle saw Murat in trouble, surrounded by Russian dragoons. He led a charge to rescue Murat, who returned the favor later during the same battle.

After serving in Spain under Bessieres, now 33 years old, he returned for the 1809 campaign on the Danube. At the Battle of Wagram, he sensed that his death was imminent. He sent a petition to Napoleon asking him to take care of his children after Lasalle's death. He wrote a letter to his wife, telling her that his heart was hers, but his blood belonged to the emperor, and his life to honor. On the night of the second day, he received permission to pursue the enemy. Lasalle became separated from his own division, but led a charge of cuirassiers against Austrian infantry. Although he was shot in the chest, the general continued to charge and the enemy broke and fled. However, as the charge carried on, a second shot hit Lasalle between the eyes, killing him instantly.

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On the writing front, I remain unwounded in spite of my numerous charges against the blank pages of the battlefield. I have completed 25 chapters of the sequel to Accidental Pirates - just 5 more chapters to completion. Adventure, battle, and a final twist await.