| Born | 1 June 1753 Saumur Maine-et-Loire |
|---|---|
| Died | 29 October 1811 (aged 58) Saumur Maine-et-Loire |
| Allegiance |  |
| Years of service | 1773–1801 |
| Rank | General of Brigade |
| Battles / wars | French Revolutionary Wars Napoleonic Wars |
| Awards | Baron of the Empire, Legion of Honor. |
François Bontemps (1753–1811), later baron d'Abaumont, a brigadier general during the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars. He was born 1 June 1753 at Saumur, and died 29 October 1811 at Saumur (Maine-et-Loire).
François Bontemps was born into a family of craftsmen, workers of copper and bronze, in Saumur. As a boy, his parents hoped he would become a priest and he was sent to study at the College of Saumur, and later Seminary of Angers. Lacking a vocation, however, Bontemps enlisted in an infantry regiment of the Royal Army. In 1784, having reached the rank of company clerk, and remained there for two years, he realized that he could not advance. He accepted a discharge the 4 May and returned to study the priesthood.
In 1789, François Bontemps embraced the principles of the French Revolution, and in 1792 enlisted as a chaplain in the volunteer battalion of the Eure. According to battalion lore, one of the officers of the battalion insulted the priesthood. Bontemps replied that he, as a priest, forgave him, but that as a citizen, he challenged him to a duel. He later killed the man in a duel and within a few months was elected as battalion lieutenant.
His intrepidity and leadership inspired his men to grant him the nickname of Bayard, after the famous medieval French knight. This same intrepidity, and his tendency to lead from the front, caused a serious wound from a musket ball on 3 May 1800 at the Stockach, by Engen. Despite this, he continued to fight and two days later participated in the Battle of Messkirch. Over the summer, though, his injury worsened and he was discharged from the army in 1801.
After his release from active service, Bontemps retired to Saumur, where he died on 29 October 1811. He is buried in the cemetery of Varrains.
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