Berthier, Louis Alexandre

Berthier, Louis Alexandre lwē älĕksäNˈdrə bĕrtyāˈ [key], 1753–1815, marshal of France. He served in the American Revolution and in the French Revolutionary Wars, distinguishing himself under Napoleon in Italy, where he served as chief of staff. He was twice minister of war and from 1805 was chief of staff of the Grande Armée. The emperor made him prince of Neuchâtel and Wagram and arranged his marriage with a Bavarian princess. Berthier accommodated himself to the return of the Bourbons in 1814. Torn by divided allegiance when Napoleon returned from Elba, he withdrew to Bavaria, where he killed himself or was killed on June 1, 1815.

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