- Armand Blanquet du Chayla
Count Armand Blanquet du Chayla (1759 – 1826) was an officer in the
French Navy , most famous as second in command of the French fleet during its defeat at theBattle of the Nile .Early actions
Chayla was born in
Marjevols in theLozère department in southeastFrance . As a young naval officer, he distinguished himself during theAmerican Revolutionary War , serving under Admiral d'Estaing. He was captured in 1778, and released two years later. He served under Admiral de Grasse aboard the "Languedoc" and took part in the Battle of Martinique.Chayla also fought at the
Battle of the Chesapeake and at theBattle of St. Kitts , and was wounded at theBattle of the Saintes .After the war, Chayla was promoted to "Lieutenant de vaisseau", and later to "capitaine de vaisseau", obtaining command of the "Tonnant". During the
French Revolutionary Wars , he took part in the campaigns on the Italian coasts. In 1793, he was relieved from command because of his mobility, but was soon reinstated. He served as aide to the Minister of the Navy from 1795 to 1797, before being promoted to division commander in 1796, and tocontre-amiral soon later.Battle of the Nile, and aftermath
In 1798, as a
rear admiral , Chayla hoisted his flag aboard the "Franklin" as second in command of the fleet under AdmiralFrançois-Paul Brueys d'Aigalliers during the . Chayla fought gallantly during the battle and tried in vain to persuade Brueys to order the fleet to set sail. He was severely wounded in the French defeat, and he and the "Franklin" were both captured by theRoyal Navy .After his return to France, Chayla was a fierce critic of the tactics of Villeneuve, Decrès and Ganteaume, and resigned in 1803. He was later reabilitated by Napoléon.
He was made a
Count and honoraryvice-admiral byLouis XVIII of France . Chayla died in Versailles on the 29th of April 1826.External links
* [http://www.netmarine.net/bat/ee/duchayla/celebre.htm Netmarine]
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