The famous moulin of Valmy (i.e. Valmy windmill) can be seen from the A6 autoroute from Metz to Paris which we took on our way back from visiting my wife's family in Lorraine. It was a clear day and I could not resist taking a panoramic view of the Valmy position which we had missed some five years ago because of foggy weather. V almy is located in the Argonne region [1] where one of the most decisive engagements of the Wars of the French Revolution was fought on September 20, 1792. It is known as the "cannonade de Valmy" for the opposing sides, although numbering about 34,000 for the Prussians and some 50,000 for the French, never came to grips. It was an artillery duel between the French and the Prussians. The French casualties were around 300 and the Prussians losses about 180 killed and wounded. Although heavy rain brought an inconclusive halt to the battle, the encounter clearly showed the superiority of the French artillery. To everyone's and especially Brunswick's surprise with perhaps the exception of Kellermann and his command, the French stood firm and the Prussians began their inglorious retreat across the Rhine. The psychological importance of this limited victory was immense for the French army which so far, as we will see below, had had no success to speak of in the field. In addition, the political outcome was of crucial importance to the survival of the French Revolution and Sir Edward Creasy was justified in including the action in his Fifteen Decisive Battles of the World. Who Was Kellermann? Kellermann had the distinction of being the only one of Napoleon's Marshals who had been a general before the beginning of the French Revolution in 1789. Francois Etienne Christophe Kellermann was born in Strasbourg on May 28, 1735. His family was not of noble birth. Nevertheless, after the young Kellermann entered the French army as a cadet in 1752, he was commissioned the next year into the Royal Baviere Regiment. He fought in Germany during the Seven Years War and earned a reputation at Bergen and Friedberg. In later years, (1765-6) he carried out missions to the Poles and Tartars and helped organize the cavalry forces raised in the Palatinate of Cracow. Promotions came out steadily and in 1784, he became a brigade commander. [27] A man of such talent, who was not of noble birth, would prove to be of good service to the armies of the Revolution. In February 1791, Kellermann was placed in command of the Upper Rhine. His experience in organizing and training in Poland came to good use. He organized a legion that bore his name with foreign deserters, the debris of the Saxon Hussars and the Royal German Cavalry. He took his legion with him when he was nominated commander-in-chief of the Armee du Centre. His success at Valmy was largely due to sheer hard work and organizational ability. He worked and drilled his men. He taught them how to pitch and strike camp. By linking each regular battalion with one of volunteers, taking the best elements of the poor units and creating new ones, blending the old army with the new recruits, he made his small command of 5000, the Armee du Rhin, the finest in the new French army. When he arrived at Metz with his 5000 men of the Armee du Rhin, he found the fortress in a shambles, without stores and its troops without discipline. He became commander-in-chief of the Armee du Centre only on September 2. He had quite a job to do. In two short weeks, with the help of Berthier, he changed all that. He sent home the volunteer battalions of 1792 that arrived in rags and without weapons. He weeded out the undesirables and drafted the best elements into his most reliable battalions. He also selected a few men from each battalion to use as light troops and sappers. On September 4, Kellermann left Metz and moved up to the right bank of the Moselle where he was joined by a Division under the command of the Duc de Chartres. That division had a high spirit and good morale. At Pont-a-Mousson, he was further reinforced by some 8,500 well trained soldiers of the Armee du Rhin. In two short weeks he had completely transformed his small army which now numbered 22,000. After Valmy, every attention was given to Kellermann by the French government, especially by Fabre d'Eglantine, Danton's confidant, who promised him the baton of Marshal at the end of the campaign. [28] However, after a period of uncertainty during the Terror he was given command of the Army of the Alps and of Italy in 1793, but was arrested as a suspect in October. Found innocent, he was only restored to active duty in his rank in January, 1795. Further service in the Alps and Northern Italy followed. He retired from active command in September 1797. Thereafter, he carried out many administrative duties. In 1799, he became a senator and later president of the Senate. He was created a Marshal of the Empire (the 14th on the seniority list) on May 19, 1804 although he never held a field command in that capacity. During the Empire he carried out much work with reserve formations and the National Guard. In June 1814, the Bourbons made him a peer of France, but in 1815 the old veteran stayed away from the Emperor. He died in Paris on September 13, 1820. Kellermann was the father of the other famous General Kellermann (Francois, Etienne) who led the famous cavalry charge at Marengo, etc. But that is another story. More Battle of Valmy September 20, 1792 Introduction I. The French Army and the Revolution II. The French Revolutionary Army of the Northeast at the Beginning of the War in 1792 III. Battle of Valmy IV. Conclusions and the Aftermath of Valmy Back to Empire, Eagles, & Lions Table of Contents Vol. 2 No. 2 Back to EEL List of Issues Back to MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 1993 by Emperor's Headquarters This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other articles from military history and related magazines are available at http://www.magweb.com