The Sun.
London, England, 1854-10-09 00:00:00

THE LATE MARSHAL DE ST. ARNAUD.

The Illustrated London Hews, in a recent num-
ber, published the following notice of the life and
professional services of tie late Marshal de St.
Arnaud, Commander-in-Chief of the French ex-
pedition to the East. The Marshal died of anguina
pectoris:—
The military success of Marshal de Saint Arnaud is
one of the most striking examples of rapid advancement
which has bpen achieved in the French army of occupa-
tion in Algeria. Thanks to the energetic resistance
given to French domination by the people of Northern
Africa, that vast country, almost unknown before
France converted it into a theatre of war, has be-

come a ntost valuable training school for those who

wish to acquire military knowledge. In that school all
the most distinguished French officers of the present
day have been trained, and, without reference to the
other benefits which have resulted from the possession of
Algeria, it has been of much advantage to France, by
strengthening and sustaining the military spirit of its
army. For nearly 20 years continual warfare was car-
ried on against the numerous tribes which refused to
submit to France, and it was in the midst of that long-
protracted war that Marshal de Saint Arnaud achieved
the high position which he now occupies..
M. do Saint Arnaud was born at Paris, in 1801, of a
family not distinguished by fortune. He was young when
he entered the army, and, like most of those youths who
embraced the military profession during the tranquil reign
of Louis XVIII., he gavefull play to the love of pleasure
and dissipation. During the reign of Charles X. he
was for a short time in tho body guard of that monarch ;
but he shortly after resigned his situation, and came to
England, where he resided some time. Soon after the
Revolution of 1830 he returned to France, and once
more entered the army. It was at this time, while the
regiment to which he belonged was on duty at Fort de
Blaze, where the Duchesse de BerH was imprisoned,
that he obtained the favourable notice of Marshal Bu-
geaud, commandant of the citadel, by his intelligence
and activity.
In 1837, as captain, he went to Algiers, in the Fo-
reign Legion, which was chiefly composed of political
refugees who had sought employment in the armies of
France. In that corps M. de Saint Arnaud, distin-
guished alike by his intrepidity and his military skill,
contributed powerfully to the success of many impor-
tant enterprises. In less than ten years he rose
through the various grades from that of chief of the bat-
talion to the dignity of Marshal of France. Among the
exploits in which he distinguished himself, the most impor-
tant were the expedition he directed, in 1842, against the
unsubdued tribe of Beni-Bondonan, in the west of Mi-
lianah ; the attack of the Beni-Ferrah tribe in the fol-
lowing year ; the defeat of the Flizza-el-Bahr ; and the
submission of the Cherif Bou Maza, who had provoked
an insurrection in the Dahra.

Having been appointed to the command of the province
of Constantine in 1849, he rapidly overran that im-
mense territory, which had been disorganised by the
revolt of the numerous tribes inhabiting it, re-established
peace, .and gained the good will and attachment of
many chiefs whom no one had previously been able to
subdue. The expedition which M. de Saint Arnaud
undertook in 1851 against the Kabyles was one of the
most glorious campaigns ever gained by the French army
in Algeria. At the head of an army of little more than
G,OOO men he overran the whole of that savage moun-
tainous region, in spite of the resistance made by its
warlike tribes.

In 1351 M. de St. Arnaud returned to France, with
the rank of lieutenant•general. His energetic and deter-
mined character recommended him to the notice of Louis
Napoleon, then President of the Republic, as one of the
firmest supporters of Lis views ; and in the month of
October, 1851, the future Emperor confided to him
the confidential post of Minister of `Vat. In 1852
he was raised to the dignity of Marshal of France,
and scion after to that of Senator, which was followed
by his appointment to the post of Grand Ecuyer to the
Emperor. Unfortunately, in the midst of so many
marks of distinction, M. de St. Arnaud's health is
such as to make his friends fear that ho will not be able
to continue at the head of that important expedition to
which he has been recently appointed.
M. de Saint Arnaud has been twice married. By his
first marriage he had one daughter (married to M. de
Preysigur) and a son, who became a soldier, and was
killed in one of those campaigns in Algeria where his
father won so much renown.