Anne Gilbert de Laval Anne Gilbert de Laval or Anne - Gilbert Laval or Anne Guilbert de La Val ( 9 November 1762 – 6 September 1810 ) became a general officer during the French Revolutionary Wars and led a division in the Napoleonic Wars . Like many other officers , he saw rapid promotion during the French Revolution . He commanded a demi brigade beginning in 1794 . He fought in numerous actions during the 1796 campaign in Germany , including the battles of Ettlingen and Neresheim . In 1799 he was promoted to general of brigade shortly after the First Battle of Zurich . Afterward , he fought at Second Zurich , Stockach , and Messkirch . In 1808 he led a brigade in the invasion of Spain and was promoted to general of division the next year . He led a division under Louis Gabriel Suchet at Alcañiz and Belchite in 1809 . He received a patent of nobility in June 1810 and died at Mora de Rubielos a few months later . His surname is one of the Names inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe , on Column 36 . Revolution . Laval was born on 9 November 1762 at Riom in the province of Auvergne , France . Today Riom is part of the Puy - de - Dôme department . On 4 July 1794 Laval was promoted chef de brigade of the 103rd Line Infantry Demi Brigade . In the " amalgame " of 1796 the 103rd became part of the new 100th Line Infantry Demi Brigade . Laval assumed command of the 100th Line on 16 February 1796 . In June 1796 the 100th Line was part of Guillaume Philibert Duhesme ' s division , which had 7 , 438 infantry and 895 cavalry . This formation belonged to Laurent Gouvion Saint - Cyr ' s Left Wing of Jean Victor Marie Moreau ' s Army of Rhin - et - Moselle . The demi brigade participated in a victory over Imperial troops at Renchen on 28 June . During Moreau ' s advance into southern Germany , Laval ' s troops were present at the battles of Ettlingen on 9 July 1796 Neresheim on 11 August , and Friedberg on 24 August . As the Army of Rhin - et - Moselle withdrew , it is probable that the 100th Line fought at the battles of Biberach on 2 October 1796 , Emmendingen on 19 October , and Schliengen on 24 October . The 100th Demi Brigade served during the Siege of Kehl . This operation lasted from 10 November 1796 to 9 January 1797 when the French withdrew . One source showed Laval commanding a brigade at the battles of Ostrach and Stockach in March 1799 , though this may be a mistaken identification of Jean François Leval . On 4 June 1799 , the 100th Demi Brigade fought in the 4th Division at the First Battle of Zurich . Laval was promoted to general of brigade less than a week later on 10 June 1799 . At the Second Battle of Zurich on 25 and 26 September 1799 , he led a brigade in Nicolas Soult ' s 3rd Division . Soult ' s 11 , 000 troops crossed the Linth River , surprising and defeating 13 , 000 Austrian and Russian defenders . The success resulted in the death of Austrian commander Friedrich Freiherr von Hotze and the severing of Alexander Suvarov ' s escape route . Under the command of Honoré Théodore Maxime Gazan , the 3rd Division participated in the unsuccessful effort to trap Suvarov ' s army in the Alps . From 30 September through 5 October , actions were fought at Klöntalersee , Muotathal , Näfels , and Schwanden . In April 1800 , Laval led a brigade in Moreau ' s Army of the Rhine . His division commander was Dominique Vandamme and the component units were the 1st Light Infantry and the 36th , 83rd , and 94th Line Infantry Demi Brigades , and the 8th Hussars . Vandamme ' s division belonged to Claude Lecourbe ' s Right Wing . Vandamme cowed the fortress of Hohentwiel into surrendering on 1 May 1800 . Two days later , the division was in action at the Battle of Stockach . On 5 May , Vandamme ' s troops fought at the Battle of Messkirch . Laval missed the Battle of Hohenlinden on 3 December 1800 . During the fall campaign , he led a brigade in Charles - Étienne Gudin ' s division of Lecourbe ' s Right Wing . On 14 December at Salzburg , the Austrian rear guard repulsed elements of Lecourbe ' s wing , including Gudin ' s division . Empire . By this time Napoleon Bonaparte made the poor decision to take Spain by force and replace King Charles IV . The French introduced 70 , 000 French troops into Spain and on 16 February 1808 seized control of a number of fortresses and cities . On 2 May 1808 , the Spanish people rebelled against the French occupation forces , starting the Peninsular War . Laval and Claude Rosthollant were the brigade commanders in Bernard - Georges - François Frère ' s 3rd Division which belonged to Pierre Dupont de l ' Étang ' s 2nd Corps of Observation of the Gironde . Frère ' s division included the 1 , 160 - strong 15th Light Infantry Regiment , the 2 , 870 - man 2nd Legion of Reserve , and the 1 , 174 - strong 1st Battalion of the 2nd Swiss Infantry Regiment . The division was detached from the corps and did not share in the Bailén disaster . Instead Frère was sent from Madrid to reopen communications with Marshal Bon - Adrien Jeannot de Moncey ' s corps in its retreat after the Battle of Valencia . The two forces united on 8 July 1808 and withdrew to Madrid . Laval was promoted to general of division on 1 April 1809 . In May 1809 , the III Corps in Spain received a new leader , Louis Gabriel Suchet . Laval assumed command of the 1st Division with 4 , 000 soldiers in eight battalions . The 2nd Division was led by Louis François Félix Musnier and the cavalry by Pierre Watier . Altogether , the corps mustered only 11 , 000 men . After the successful Siege of Zaragoza , the French overran the southern part of Aragon . Since war with Austria was looming , Napoleon withdrew half of Aragon ' s occupation troops leaving the French weak . The Spanish guerillas became active again , compelling the French to evacuate some districts . Soon , a Spanish army under General Joaquín Blake y Joyes appeared and threatened French control of Aragon . Suchet attacked the Spanish army in the Battle of Alcañiz on 23 May 1809 . The French army included 7 , 292 infantry in 14 battalions , 526 cavalry in six squadrons , and 18 artillery pieces . Blake ' s force was made up of 8 , 101 foot soldiers , 445 horsemen , and 19 guns . Laval ' s 1st Division counted two battalions each of the French 14th Line Infantry Regiment and the Polish 3rd Legion of the Vistula . Blake arrayed his troops on three hills in front of the town of Alcañiz . Laval made a tentative attack on the Spanish right flank , but it was driven off . Suchet then ordered Musnier to crack Blake ' s center . Musnier formed five of his battalions into a massed column and sent it marching toward Blake ' s line . After being pounded by all 19 Spanish guns and riddled by musketry , the French and Poles ran away . At this , the wounded Suchet withdrew his corps from the field . In the fighting , the III Corps lost 800 killed and wounded , while Blake suffered only 300 casualties . Suchet subsequently abandoned much of Aragon , while Blake received 25 , 000 new recruits . Luckily for the French , not enough muskets were available to supply them all with weapons . After his victory , Blake marched on Zaragoza . He divided his 20 , 000 men into three divisions and advanced down the Huerva River . Juan Carlos de Aréizaga ' s division marched on the right bank while Blake took two divisions down the left bank . Suchet detailed Laval and one 2 , 000 - man brigade to contain Aréizaga , while massing Musnier ' s division and Pierre - Joseph Habert ' s brigade against Blake . In the Battle of María on 15 June 1809 , Suchet defeated Blake and forced him to retreat . The Spanish army remained intact , though it lost 16 of its 25 guns . The French and Poles lost 700 or 800 casualties out of 10 , 000 infantry , 800 cavalry , and 12 guns . The Spanish suffered losses of 1 , 000 killed , 3 , 000 to 4 , 000 wounded , and hundreds captured out of 14 , 000 infantry and 1 , 000 cavalry . Habert ' s brigade , which was part of Laval ' s division , included the 14th Line and 3rd Vistula Legion . The next day , Suchet tried to bring the combined Spanish army to battle at Botorrita , but Blake slipped away . On 18 June 1809 , Blake made a stand in the Battle of Belchite . The Spanish army deployed on some hills before the town of Belchite . Suchet ordered Musnier to assault the Spanish left and Habert to attack the right . Musnier ' s troops drove back Blake ' s left wing . As Habert ' s offensive gained momentum , a lucky hit detonated a number of Spanish ammunition wagons . The explosion panicked Blake ' s troops and they all fled . Suchet left Musnier to watch Blake ' s force and marched back to Zaragoza with Laval to restore order . The Spanish suffered 2 , 000 casualties out of 11 , 000 infantry and 870 cavalry , plus all nine of their remaining guns . The French lost only 200 killed and wounded . In addition to the units forming Habert ' s brigade , Laval had the 44th Line Infantry Regiment on hand . Laval spent the next few months pacifying the northern part of Aragon . At the end of August he took 3 , 000 troops and successfully assaulted the monastery of San Juan de la Peña near Jaca . Colonel Renovales withdrew and was later trapped between III Corps troops and French national guards . Under the terms of his surrender the Spaniard was allowed free passage to Catalonia where he continued his guerilla operations . But Aragon was quiet in September and October . In December , Laval occupied the area near Teruel , forcing the Junta of Aragon to flee . In January 1810 , the 23 , 140 - man III Corps was organized into three infantry divisions under Laval , Musnier , and Habert , and a cavalry brigade under General of Brigade André Joseph Boussart . Laval ' s 1st Division included 6 battalions and 4 , 290 effectives . The division was made up of two battalions each of the 2nd Legion of the Vistula and the 14th and 44th Line Infantry Regiments . The 3rd Legion of the Vistula was nominally part of the division but detached elsewhere . At this time , the division ' s headquarters were at Mont - ral . Suchet wanted to move against Mequinenza and Lérida , but King Joseph Bonaparte insisted that he advance on Valencia instead . Accordingly , he set out for the city and reached there on 6 March . His main column consisted of 8 , 000 men from Laval ' s division and part of Musnier ' s . They set out from Teruel and later rendezvoused with Habert ' s division . Suchet found Valencia ' s Spanish defenders determined to resist . Without heavy artillery to breach the walls , the French withdrew only four days later . While Suchet was absent from Aragon , the guerillas became very active in the province . Near Teruel , 300 French soldiers and four artillery pieces were captured by partisans . Back in Aragon , Suchet mounted the successful Siege of Lérida . Since he was left behind to defend Aragon , Laval did not participate in the siege or in the subsequent Siege of Mequinenza in June . Laval was named Baron of the Empire on 14 June 1810 . With Lérida captured , new orders arrived from Napoleon to seize Tortosa . The new commander in Catalonia , Marshal Jacques MacDonald was ordered by the emperor to cooperate with Suchet . In July , Suchet sent a force close to Tortosa while he assembled his siege equipment at Mequinenza . At the beginning of August , Henry O ' Donnell led 2 , 500 Spanish regulars to Tortosa . On 3 August , O ' Donnell marched out of Tortosa to attack Laval ' s division , which was watching the city . The Spanish troops broke through the first defensive line but were unable to defeat the French and had to retreat . O ' Donnell subsequently returned to Tarragona . Soon afterward , Suchet chased away the Army of Valencia which was threatening the force in front of Tortosa . By mid - August , MacDonald and 16 , 000 soldiers were finally cooperating with Suchet . Laval died at Mora de Rubielos on 6 September 1810 . The sources do not say whether he died from enemy action or from another cause . His name is on the Arc de Triomphe on Column 36 .