Abel Douay

Divisional-General Charles Abel Douay (2 March 1809 – 4 August 1870) was a French Army officer who served in numerous military campaigns during the 19th century. During the Franco-Prussian War, he was recalled to active duty and killed in action at the age of sixty-one while fighting against Prussian forces near Wissembourg.

Early life and military career

Charles Abel Douay was born in the city of Draguignan on 2 March 1809. He became a well-known and well-respected military officer, described roundly as an "able" and "intrepid" soldier. He served in the French conquest of Algeria, Crimean War, second French intervention in Mexico and Second Italian War of Independence. (Because of their similar names and overlapping careers, the elder Douay is most frequently referred to as "Abel Douay".) At the beginning of the Franco-Prussian War, Abel Douay had already settled into his position as president of the military academy at Saint-Cyr.

Franco-Prussian War and death

Recalled to active duty at the outbreak of war in 1870, the academy president was given command of a division under Marshal Patrice de Mac-Mahon at the frontline, The subsequent Battle of Wissembourg (4 August 1870) proved a disaster for the French. Demoralized by the loss of their commander,

On 3 August 1870, the 61-year-old Douay led the forward division of Mac-Mahon's army group, a force of approximately 8,600, into the frontier town of Wissembourg in Alsace, the border region between the two combatant nations. Faulty intelligence had characterized the Prussians' border positions as weak and unready,

At 8:30am the next day, batteries of undetected Prussian artillery began pummelling the French position, and though Douay attempted a rapid defensive posture, The massive scale of the attack quickly became apparent – total Prussian forces are estimated between 50,000 and 80,000. The withdrawal turned into a rout, with over 1,000 French soldiers killed and a thousand more taken prisoner. and gave a profound shock to the nation at large. Félix Douay was stationed along the same front as his older brother and fought at Sedan until the final surrender. He too served as a field commander, leader of the French 7th Corps. Douay was buried in a stately tomb just outside Wissembourg together with many of his fallen soldiers. A large monument to the battle was erected near his tomb at the end of the First World War.

20 years after the battle, an apocryphal story was published in Germany proffering a different story of Douay's death: a German "eyewitness" claimed that the general had been shot by one of his own men, allegedly for ordering a retreat. This story perhaps derived from the reported words of Frederick III who, advancing through the battlefield, had come upon Douay's corpse and made the bald observation that the general had died beyond the range of German rifle fire.