83 - General Lecourbe’s Grand Cross of the Order of the Legion of Honor:

General Lecourbe’s Grand Cross of the Order of the Legion of Honor: A large, ornate piece of goldsmith’s work from the First Restoration, presented by Louis XVIII on August 23, 1814. General Lecourbe was awarded the Grand Eagle on June 17, 1815, at the imperial headquarters in Fleurus, on the eve of the Battle of Waterloo, a few months before his death on October 22, 1815, in Belfort. An enameled gold cross with rounded points and a large crown in high relief featuring fleurs-de-lis; note that the fleur-de-lis at the top of the crown has been slightly modified to resemble a cross; the centers are made of two-piece enameled vermeil in the imperial style, though they were replaced at a later date; it is presented with its original large cord; diameter 73 mm, gross weight approximately 75 g (the cord was not unstitched for weighing). (A few small chips in the enamel; a crack in the blue enamel of the center on the reverse; the original grand cordon is worn and has tears). Early Restoration period. Very good condition. General LECOURBE was appointed Grand Eagle on June 17, 1815; he rallied to Louis XVIII on July 23, 1815, and died of illness on October 22, 1815; he likely did not have time to have his cross altered himself; the centers were probably changed later by a family member. PROVENANCE: Descendants of the LECOURBE family, then the Charles BOUCHÉ collection. Claude Jacques LECOURBE, Count, general, born on February 22, 1759, in Rouffey (Jura) according to Legion of Honor records; the “Six” inscription, however, indicates he was born in Besançon in 1758. Brigade commander on May 20, 1794; provisionally appointed brigadier general in the Army of the Ardennes on June 12, 1794; confirmed as brigadier general by the Committee of Public Safety on June 13, 1795; appointed Major General by the Executive Directory on February 5, 1799; appointed Lieutenant General-in-Chief by MOREAU on April 29, 1800; retired on September 8, 1804, as a friend of MOREAU; exiled to the Jura in 1805. Summoned to Paris by the Count of Artois on April 15, 1814; reinstated on April 24; awarded the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honor on August 23, 1814; Commander-in-Chief of the Army of Belfort; made a count on December 31, 1814; Inspector General of Infantry in the 6th and 18th Military Divisions on January 3, 1815. He initially refused to join the Hundred Days, then offered his services to Napoleon I to defend “France under threat”; appointed commander of the 18th Division on March 27; Count of the Empire on April 3, 1815; commander-in-chief of the Jura Observation Corps (later the 8th Corps) on April 16; arrived in Belfort on April 30; became a Peer of France on June 2, 1815; attempted to halt the enemy at the battles of Foussemagne on June 30, Bourogne, and Chèvremont on July 2; Bavilliers on July 8; and signed an armistice at Bavilliers with Austrian General Colloredo on July 11, 1815; switched allegiance to Louis XVIII on July 23; granted a retirement pension of 6,000 francs on September 4, 1815. He had been appointed Grand Eagle at the Imperial Headquarters in Fleurus on June 17, 1815. Text of the appointment: “Napoleon, Emperor of the French, we have decreed and hereby decree the following: Article 1: Lieutenant General Count LECOURBE, Grand Officer of the Legion of Honor, is appointed Grand Eagle. Article 2: Our Grand Chancellor of the Legion of Honor is charged with the execution of this decree. Signed Napoleon—by the Emperor—the Minister Secretary of State, the Duke of Bassano.”