Claude-Victor Perrin
Command Ratings
Commands
- Commands the Corps Victor of French Force at Montebello (1800, age 36)
- Commands the Corps Victor of French Army of the Reserve at Marengo (1800, age 36)
- Commands the I Corps of Grande Armee at Friedland (1807, age 43)
- Commands the First Corps at Medellín (1809, age 45)
- Commands the I Corps of French Army at Talavera (1809, age 45)
- Commands the French I Corps at Barossa (1811, age 47)
- Commands the II Corps of The Southern Wing of the French Grande Armée at Liebertwolkwitz (1813, age 49)
- Commands the II Young Guard Corps of French Army at Craonne (1814, age 50)
Claude-Victor Perrin, Duke of Belluno (1764–1841), known simply as Victor, was one of Napoleon’s most dependable marshals—less flamboyant than Murat, less cerebral than Davout, but marked by a cool, workmanlike competence that made him indispensable in the Empire’s great campaigns. A veteran of the Revolutionary armies, he first distinguished himself in Italy and Egypt, where his steadiness under fire earned Bonaparte’s trust. Elevated to Marshal in 1807 after his decisive role at Friedland, Victor went on to command with grim efficiency in Spain, where the Peninsular War’s grinding attrition tested even the hardiest of the Emperor’s lieutenants. At Talavera, Barrosa, and the long, bitter struggle for Andalusia, he showed both tactical acumen and a certain inflexibility—virtus. Loyal during the Hundred Days yet ultimately reconciled to the Bourbons, he lived out his later years in dignified retirement. His name on the Arc de Triomphe stands as a reminder that the Empire rested not only on genius but on the unglamorous solidity of men like Victor, whose constancy bore the weight of Napoleon’s ambitions.
He was "Duke of Belluno" in Napoleon's nobility. Enlisted in 1781; X rank in 6/95; X 94-95 in Army of the Pyrenees; X 96 Italy; XX rank on 3/10/97; XX 97 Italy – defeated Papal forces @ Castel Bolognese – 2/3/97, W; XX 99 Magnano, Vapiro & Cassano, Trebbia; XXX 00 Marengo; captured By Prussian Cavalry 1/07 (soon exchanged); XXX 07 Friedland; got his baton in 1807; XXX 08 - 12 Spain W, Ucles (W), Medellin (W), W, Talavera, Barossa (L), L; XX 12 Russia – LL, Berezina; XXX 13-14 Dresden, Leipzig, Hanau, La Rothiere, Montereau, 2nd Bar-sur-Aube; XXX (YGD) Craonne (wounded). (1764-1841)