Retz was born to a family from
Auvergne. He joined the
French Navy as a
Garde-Marine in 1741. He was promoted to lieutenant in 1756, to commander in 1767, and to captain in 1772. In 1779, Retz captained the 64-gun , part of the division under
De Grasse sent to
D'Estaing as reinforcement. Retz was wounded at the
Battle of Grenada on 6 July 1779, and took part in the
Siege of Savannah in September and October 1779. He also fought in the
Battle of Martinique on 17 April 1780, where
Vengeur, along with and , directly engaged the much stronger British vessels , under
Rodney, and . In 1781, Retz captained the
74-gun at
Brest. In 1782, he transferred to . The same year, he was promoted to
brigadier. Retz retired from the Navy with the rank of in 1786. == Sources and references ==