Alexis Joseph Delzons

Born in Aurillac in 1775, Delzons enlisted in a battalion of volunteers from the département of the Cantal as a lieutenant of grenadiers.

He served in the campaigns of 1792 and 1793 in the Army of the Eastern Pyrenees during which he distinguished himself at Jonquière, where he was wounded, and in the Siege of Rosas.

Taking part in Napoleon Bonaparte’s Egyptian campaign, at the age of 23 Delzons was promoted to the command of a demi-brigade.

During Napoleon’s 1812 invasion of Russia, Delzons commanded a division in the corps of Eugène de Beauharnais.

Having repaired the bridges over the Luzha River, Delzons attacked the heights on which the village rested.