Théobald de Lacrosse - Misplaced Pages

French soldier and politician

Bertrand Théobald Joseph de Lacrosse
Théobald de Lacrosse
Born	(1796-01-29)29 January 1796 Brest, Finistère, France
Died	28 March 1865(1865-03-28) (aged 69) Paris, France
Nationality	French
Occupation(s)	Soldier and politician
Known for	Minister of Public Works

Bertrand Théobald Joseph de Lacrosse (29 January 1796 – 28 March 1865) was a French soldier and politician. He was twice Minister of Public Works during the French Second Republic.

Early years

Bertrand Théobald Joseph de Lacrosse was born in Brest, Finistère, on 29 January 1796, son of Admiral Jean-Baptiste Raymond, Baron Lacrosse (1765–1829). He was descended from an ancient family of the Agenais. He was a student at the Collège Sainte-Barbe. In 1809 he entered the navy, and became a cadet in 1811. After a few campaigns on the frigate Hortense and the pram Ville de Mayence he joined the Army. He graduated from cavalry school in 1813 with the rank of second lieutenant in the cavalry of the Imperial Guard. He distinguished himself at the Battle of Dessau, where he was wounded, and took part, as a first lieutenant in the Battle of Craonne (1814), where he received seventeen injuries. His conduct earned him the Cross of the Legion of Honour and the rank of captain. He was discharged in 1815 and lived in retirement until the July Revolution of 1830.

July Monarchy

On 1 August 1830 Lacrosse was appointed Lieutenant-Colonel of the National Guard of Brest. In 1831 he was promoted to colonel. He was also a member of the General Council of the Finistère. On 21 June 1834 he was elected as deputy for the 1st constituency of the Finistère, running on a Liberal platform. Lacrosse sat with the left and was mildly opposed to the policy of the ministers of King Louis Philippe. He was reelected on 4 November 1837, and joined the coalition against the Louis-Mathieu Molé ministry.

Lacrosse was again elected on 2 March 1839, supported the policy of Adolphe Thiers and opposed François Guizot. In 1842, after the ministerial journal le Globe had published allegations against his father, he fought a duel with the journalist Adolphe Granier de Cassagnac in which he was hit by a ball that fractured his thigh. He was reelected on 5 July 1842 and 1 August 1846. Throughout his time as deputy in the July Monarchy he paid special attention to naval affairs.

Second Republic

After the February Revolution of 1848, Lacrosse was elected representative of Finistère in the Constituent Assembly. In June he was given command of the departmental national guards. He was one of the secretaries, then one of the Vice-Presidents of the Assembly. He then joined the Conservative party, voting regularly with the right.

After the presidential election of 10 December 1848 Lacrosse gave his full support to the Government of Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte, who made him Minister of Public Works from 29 December 1848 to 30 October 1849. For a few months he was also interim Minister of the Interior. He was reelected on 13 May 1849, representing the Finistère in the Legislative Assembly. He fully supported the government and the majority. He was named vice-president of the Assembly. From 26 October 1851 to 2 December 1851 he was again Minister of Public Works. During his two terms in this office he inaugurated the railways of the North, the East and Nantes. He began clearances near the Louvre and prepared for its final completion.

Second Empire

After the coup of 2 December 1851 Lacrosse was appointed a member of the Consultative Commission, and President of the section of the Navy and Finance in the interim Council of State. On 26 January 1852 he promoted to the senate, of which he became the secretary. He supported imperial policy in the senate until his death. Théobald de Lacrosse died in Paris on 28 March 1865, aged 69.

References

Citations

^ Robert & Cougny 1889.

Sources

Robert, Adolphe; Cougny, Gaston (1889). "Bertrand, Théobald, Joseph LACROSSE". Dictionnaire des parlementaires français de 1789 à 1889 (in French). National Assembly of France. Retrieved 2014-01-09.

v t e First cabinet of Odilon Barrot (20 December 1848 to 2 June 1849)
Under the Presidency of Louis Napoleon
President of the Council, Minister of Justice	Odilon Barrot	Odilon Barrot President of the Council
Interior	Léon de Maleville Léon Faucher
Foreign Affairs:	Édouard Drouyn de Lhuys
Finance	Hippolyte Passy
Agriculture and Commerce	Jacques Alexandre Bixio Louis Buffet
Public Works	Léon Faucher Théobald de Lacrosse
War	Joseph Marcellin Rulhières
Navy and Colonies	Victor Destutt de Tracy
Public Education and Religious Worship	Frédéric Alfred Pierre, comte de Falloux

v t e Second cabinet of Odilon Barrot (2 June 1849 to 31 October 1849)
Under the Presidency of Louis Napoleon
President of the Council, Minister of Justice	Odilon Barrot	Odilon Barrot President of the Council
Interior	Jules Armand Dufaure
Foreign Affairs:	Alexis de Tocqueville
Finance	Hippolyte Passy
Agriculture	Victor Lanjuinais
Public Works	Théobald de Lacrosse
War	Joseph Marcellin Rulhières
Navy and Colonies	Victor Destutt de Tracy
Public Education and Cults	Frédéric Alfred Pierre, comte de Falloux

v t e Last cabinet of the French Second Republic (26 October 1851 – 2 December 1851)
Under the Presidency of Louis Napoleon
Justice	Eugène Corbin Alfred Daviel
Foreign Affairs	Louis Félix Étienne, marquis de Turgot
Interior and Beaux-Arts	René de Thorigny Charles de Morny, Duke of Morny
Finance	Antoine Blondel François-Xavier Joseph de Casabianca
War	Jacques Leroy de Saint Arnaud
Navy and Colonies	Hippolyte Fortoul
Public Works	Théobald de Lacrosse
Agriculture and Commerce	François-Xavier Joseph de Casabianca Noël Lefebvre-Duruflé
Education and Religious Affairs	Charles Giraud

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