Pierre-Henri Philibert
Pierre-Henri Philibert
Born(1774-01-24)24 January 1774
Saint-Denis, La Réunion
Died(1824-10-31)31 October 1824
Paris
Allegiance France
Service/branch French Navy
RankCaptain

Pierre-Henri Philibert (Saint-Denis,[1] Île Bourbon, 24 January 1774[2][3] — Paris, 31 october 1824) was a French Navy officer.

Career

Philibert was born the family of a Navy civil servant. He joined the Navy in 1786.[3]

During the French Revolution, on 16 November 1793, Philibert was promoted to Ensign.[3] He rose to Lieutenant in 1803,[3] and served as aid to Rear-Admiral Magon on the 74-gun Algésiras.[4] He took part in the Battle of Trafalgar, distinguishing himself by recapturing Algésiras after the battle and sailing her back to Cádiz.[3]

By June 1809, Philibert was in command of Sapho,[5] on which he voyaged to India.[6][Note 1] Sapho sailed from Bordeaux to Port-des-Barques between around 1 July. Philibert was promoted to Commander in 1811, after 26 April.[3][7]

From 7 October 1813, Philibert led a frigate division, comprising Étoile and Sultane, under Abel Aubert du Petit-Thouars,[8] to engage in commerce raiding.[9] Philibert commanded the French forces at the Battle of Jobourg, where both frigates of his squadron were captured.[9]

Philibert was promoted to Captain (second class) in 1814.[3] By 1815, Philibert was a Knight in the Legion of Honour and the Order of Saint Louis.[3]

At the end of the Hundred Days, Philibert was in command of the frigate Saale and led a squadron comprising her and Méduse, under Captain Ponée. A historic rumour has it that with Napoléon's armies in disarray, Ponée proposed to have ferry Napoléon to America on Saale, while Méduse would have engaged HMS Bellerophon in a hopeless battle to prevent her from giving chase.[10] Whether the plan was indeed ever formulated or not, it was never implemented, and Napoléon instead abdicated for the second time.[3] From 14 April 1815 to 15 December, he conducted a mission to India on his frigate, by then renamed to Amphitrite.[11] In 1816, he was in command of a full division, comprising the fluyts Licorne, under Lieutenant and later Commander Rouvroy de Saint-Simon, and Éléphant, under Commander de Cheffontaines, in addition to Amphitrite.[12] By 1817, the Division further comprised the frigate Cybèle, under Captain Achille de Kergariou; the storeships Alouette, under Lieutenant Rigodit, and Girouette, under Ensign Lemaarant de Kerdaniel; and the merchantman Célestine and Louise.[13] In 1818, the Division comprised Cybèle, the fluyts Normande and Rhône and the storeship Durance.

In 1820, Philibert commander the Expédition d'Asie, with his flag on Rhône and later on Durance.[14] His voyages are credited for bringing vanilla to La Réunion, creating the Bourbon vanilla cultivar.[1]

He was promoted to Officer on the Legion of Honour in 1821, and Captain (1st class) in 1822.[3]

Notes and references

Notes

  1. ↑ Roche (p. 405) lists Philibert as a Commander (capitaine de frégate); both Bonnefoux and the Fonds Marine of the Ministry of Defence list him as a Lieutenant at this time.

References

  1. 1 2 Naissance de la Vanille Bourbon, Histoire de la vanille
  2. ↑ Acte naissance Anom St Denis Réunion 1774 (p. 2-3/26)
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Note 246 of the Mémoires du Baron de Bonnefoux, Capitaine de Vaisseau, 1782–1855
  4. ↑ Fonds Marine, p. 338
  5. ↑ Fonds Marine, p. 387
  6. ↑ Roche, p. 405
  7. ↑ Fonds Marine, p. 444
  8. ↑ The Royal Navy: A History from the Earliest Times to the Present, vol.5
  9. 1 2 Fonds Marine, Vol. 2, p. 494.
  10. ↑ Guérin, p. 482
  11. ↑ Fonds Marine, Vol. 2, p. 502.
  12. ↑ Fonds Marine, Vol. 2, p. 507.
  13. ↑ Fonds Marine, Vol. 2, p. 514-515.
  14. ↑ Fonds Marine, Vol. 2, p. 539.

Bibliography

  • "Fonds Marine. Campagnes (opérations ; divisions et stations navales ; missions diverses). Inventaire de la sous-série Marine BB4. Tome deuxième : BB4 1 à 482 (1790-1826)" (PDF). servicehistorique.sga.defense.gouv.fr. Service historique du Ministère de la Défense. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 September 2015. Retrieved 6 May 2013.
  • Guérin, Léon (1857). Histoire maritime de France (in French). Vol. 6. Dufour et Mulat.
  • Roche, Jean-Michel (2005). Dictionnaire des bâtiments de la flotte de guerre française de Colbert à nos jours. Vol. 1. Group Retozel-Maury Millau. p. 169. ISBN 978-2-9525917-0-6. OCLC 165892922.

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