Admitted to Saint-Cyr, he refused to take the oath of allegiance to Louis-Philippe, whose reign was too liberal for his taste and continued his military studies in Austria, where in 1847 he became a sub-lieutenant in the lancers of the Habsburg emperor.

During the revolutions of 1848 in Lombardy, Veneto and in the duchies of Parma and Modena and Reggio, which were supported by Charles Albert of Piedmont-Sardinia, he served with the Austrian troops sent to suppress the rebellions, during which he demonstrated bravery.

He was appointed captain and aide-de-camp to Field Marshal Joseph Radetzky von Radetz, commander-in-chief of the Austrian troops in Italy.

A devout Catholic, he joined the ranks of the Papal Army in April 1860, under the command of Lamoricière, and was subsequently appointed chief of staff.

In September 1860, the papal troops commanded by Lamoricière moved on Ancona, where they were stopped by the fire of the Piedmontese artillery posted on the heights of Castelfidardo.