Nicolas Léonard Beker

Who was Nicolas Léonard Beker?

Nicolas Léonard Beker or Nicolas Léonard Becker or Nicolas Léonard Bagert, born 18 January 1770 – died 18 November 1840, joined the French army as a dragoon before the French Revolutionary Wars and rose in rank to become a general officer. In 1800 he married the sister of Louis Desaix, who was killed at the Battle of Marengo. He led an infantry brigade in the 1805 campaign and commanded a dragoon division in 1806 and 1807. In 1809 he became chief of staff to Marshal André Masséna but ran afoul of Emperor Napoleon and was banished from the army for several years.

After Napoleon's defeat at the Battle of Waterloo and the collapse of his regime, the interim French government appointed Beker to guard the ex-emperor. The general behaved correctly during the intrigues surrounding Napoleon before he went into exile at Saint Helena. Nevertheless, he was summarily retired during the Bourbon Restoration and only received the honors due him many years later. Beker is one of the names inscribed under the Arc de Triomphe.