General Louis Antoine Pille

A descendant of the 17th century playwright Jean Racine, Louis Antoine Pille joined the National Guard of Dijon as a lieutenant of volunteer chasseurs à cheval in August of 1789. Three months later he was promoted to chef de bataillon and then in August of 1791 he became lieutenant colonel of the 1st Battalion of Volunteers of Côte d'Or. With the Army of the Center in 1792, in November of that year Pille served at Boussu, Jemappes , Anderlecht, Tirlemont, and Varon. In 1793 he served with the Army of the North and he participated in the bombardment of Maestricht and the Battle of Neerwinden before being wounded by a shot to the head at the combat of Pellenberg. When General Dumouriez defected to the Austrians in April, Pille was one of the officers arrested by Dumouriez and delivered into Austrian hands. Pille was exchanged and released in May and he returned to France. Next he was promoted to chef de brigade and employed at Paris and then in December he was promoted to général de brigade and he began serving in the Ministry of War. In 1794 and 1795 Pille served on the commission for the organization and movement of armies and then in November of 1795 he was promoted to général de division. Over the following years he commanded various administrative military divisions.

In 1806 Pille was named inspector general of detachments of conscripts and in 1807 he became inspector general of infantry stationed in Italy and Naples. In 1808 he became inspector general of the 10th and 11th military divisions and in 1809 he became a Knight of the Empire. Pille was named a Commander of the Order of Charles Frederick of Baden in 1812.

After Napoleon's abdication and the Bourbon Restoration in 1814, Pille was named a Knight of Saint Louis and a Commander of the Legion of Honor. He served as inspector general of infantry until his retirement in September of 1815.

Bibliography

• Divry, Arnauld. Les Noms Gravés sur l'Arc de Triomphe. Paris: L'Harmattan, 2017.
• Six, Georges. Dictionnaire Biographique des Généraux & Amiraux Français de la Révolution et de l'Empire (1792-1814). 2 vols. Paris: Gaston Saffroy, 2003.