Having been captain of a company of volunteers from Bolbec, he was named commander of the 7th Battalion of Seine-Inférieure on 20 September 1792. He fought in the French Revolution and subsequently in the battles of the First French Empire, seeing action at the Battle of Austerlitz in 1805 and the Battle of Heilsberg in 1807. His conduct at the Battle of Friedland in 1807 saw him given the title of "comte de l'Empire" and promoted to general of division ("général de division"), and he took command of Marshal Victor's I Corps.