Guillaume Brune

French Marshal
1763-1815

Another of Napoleon Bonaparte's marshals to die in the lead up to the Waterloo campaign, Guillaume Brune was a fervent republican who had fought for France from 1793 at such actions as Arcola, Rivoli, Alkmaar, Castricum and Marengo.

In 1802, he journeyed to Turkey as ambassador and had other high positions until his vociferous support for the republic got him out of favour with the emperor.

In 1814, he was allowed to rejoin Bonaparte but was offered little in the way of rewards and so took up with the Bourbons.

However, in 1815 he swung his allegiance back to Bonaparte and was moving to join with him when he was set upon by a mob supporting the king and murdered.