Gaston Alexandre Auguste , Marquis de Galliffet Gaston Alexandre Auguste , Marquis de Galliffet , Prince de Martigues ( Paris , January 23 , 1830 – July 8 , 1909 ) , was a French general , best known for having taken part in the repression of the 1871 Paris Commune . He was Minister of War in Waldeck - Rousseau ' s cabinet at the turn of the century , which caused a controversy in the socialist movement since independent socialist Alexandre Millerand also took part in the same government , and was thus side by side with the " Fusilleur de la Commune " ( " Commune ' s executor " ) . Military interventions and Minister of War . Gaston Galliffet entered the army in 1848 and was commissioned as sub - lieutenant in 1853 . He served with distinction at the Siege of Sevastopol in 1855 , in the Austro - Sardinian War of 1859 , and in Algeria in 1860 , after which for a time he served on the personal staff of the emperor Napoleon III . During Napoleon III ' s intervention in Mexico , Galliffet displayed great gallantry as a captain at the siege and storming of Puebla , in Mexico , in 1863 , when he was severely wounded . When he returned to France to recover from his wounds he was entrusted with the task of presenting the captured standards and colors to the emperor , and was promoted " chef d ' escadrons " . He went again to Algeria in 1864 , took part in expeditions against the Arabs , returned to Mexico as lieutenant - colonel , and , after winning further distinction , became in 1867 colonel of the 3rd " Chasseurs d ' Afrique " . In the Franco - Prussian War of 1870 – 71 he commanded this regiment in the Army of the Rhine , until promoted to be general of brigade on August 30 . At the battle of Sedan , which marked the defeat of Napoleon III and the subsequent dissolving of the Second Empire , he led the brigade of Chasseurs d ' Afrique in the heroic charge of General Margueritte ' s cavalry division , which earned him the admiration of the old king of Prussia . Made prisoner of war at the capitulation , he returned to France during the siege of Paris by the French Army of Versailles , and commanded a brigade during the repression of the 1871 Paris Commune . He was henceforth one of the most criticized figures in French public life , along with Adolphe Thiers who had directed the assault . In the suppression of the Paris Commune he did his duty , as he saw it , rigorously and inflexibly , and earned a reputation for severity , which , throughout his later career , made him the object of unceasing attacks in the press and the chamber of deputies . In 1872 he took command of the Batna subdivision of Algeria , and commanded an expedition against El Golea , surmounting great difficulties in a rapid march across the desert , and inflicting severe chastisement on the revolting tribes . On the general reorganization of the army he commanded the 31st infantry brigade . Promoted general of division in 1875 , he successively commanded the 15th infantry division at Dijon , the IX army corps at Tours , and in 1882 the XII army corps at Limoges . In 1885 he became a member of the " Conseil Supérieur de la Guerre " . He conducted the cavalry maneuvres in successive years , and attained a European reputation on all cavalry questions , and , indeed , as an army commander . Decorated Grand Officer of the Légion d ' Honneur in 1880 by Léon Gambetta , he was appointed governor of Paris . He was latter also decorated with the Grand Cross of the Légion d ' honneur , in 1887 , and received the Military Medal for his able conduct of the autumn manoeuvres in 1891 . After again commanding at the manoeuvres of 1894 , he retired from the active list . Afterwards he took an important part in French politics , as war minister ( 22 June 1899 to 29 May 1900 ) in Waldeck - Rousseau ' s cabinet , and distinguished himself by the firmness with which he dealt with cases of unrest in the army in the midst of the Dreyfus Affair . Galliffet then retired into private life , and died on July 8 , 1909 , aged 79 .