A Madame Marmont

A Madame Marmont. Watch No. 742, sold on 3 Fructidor an 9 (21 August 1801), for the sum of 1500 Francs. Gold watch with "à toc" quarter-repeating, the case engraved with the crowned monogram of Maréchal Marmont Duc de Raguse. Notes Note: This watch was obviously ordered by Maréchal Marmont, but delivered to his wife whilst he was away on campaign with Napoleon. AUGUSTE-FRÉDÉRIC-LOUIS VIESSE DE MARMONT Duke de Raguse Marshal of France (1774 -1852) Born in Châtillon-sur-Seine in 1774, Auguste de Marmont was from a very early age the object of unfaltering admiration on the part of his family, who harbored great hopes for his future. In his teens, de Marmont was to display keen interest in anything even remotely linked to the military, an attraction which is better understood in light of the family ancestry, which boasts a number of proud military records. De Marmont's father, recognizing the youngster's obvious inclinations, soon gave up any idea of having him follow a career in the administration. Instead he sent him off to Dijon in 1789, to obtain the qualifications which would eventually enable him to be admitted into the army. De Marmont's first encounter with Napoleon Bonaparte dates from that time, neither man foreseeing of course, in those early days, what history had in store for them. In 1792, at eighteen years of age, he graduated with honors from the military school in Châlons, and joined the army shortly after as a Second Lieutenant in the artillery. In N