Grouchy took part in the
Ulm campaign in 1805, during the
War of the Third Coalition. At the time of the
War of the Fifth Coalition in 1809, Grouchy commanded the cavalry of the
Army of Italy in Viceroy
Eugène de Beauharnais's advance to
Vienna, and contributed to the victories at the battles of
Raab and
Wagram. As a reward for his services, Grouchy was made
Colonel General of the
chasseurs à cheval of the
Grande Armée, and received the title of ''comte d'Empire''. During the
Russian campaign in 1812, Grouchy was appointed commander of the
III Cavalry Corps and led the corps at
Smolensk and
Borodino. During the retreat from
Moscow, Napoleon appointed him to command the
Sacred Squadron, a unit composed exclusively of picked officers and responsible for the emperor's personal protection. His almost continuous service with the cavalry led Napoleon to decline in 1813 to place Grouchy at the head of an army corps, and Grouchy thereupon retired to his estates, taking no part in the
German campaign of 1813. When the allies invaded France in early 1814, Grouchy hastened to take part in the
defensive campaign and asked to return to service. Napoleon gave him the command of a cavalry division, which Grouchy skillfully lead at the battles of
Brienne,
La Rothière,
Vauchamps, and
Craonne, where he was severely wounded. Upon Napoleon's abdication and the
Bourbon Restoration, Grouchy lost his rank of Colonel General of the
chasseurs à cheval, which was given to the
Duke of Berry, and was allowed to retire by King
Louis XVIII.
Hundred Days In March 1815, Grouchy rallied to Napoleon on his return to power during the
Hundred Days. He was made a
Marshal of the Empire on 5 April 1815 (against the recommendation of
Marshal Davout, then Minister for War), and received the command of the 7th, 8th, 9th and 10th divisions. Grouchy directed the operations against the
Duke of Angoulême's Royalist army in Southern France. After the Royalists were defeated, he unwillingly allowed the Duke to leave the country under the terms of the , which Grouchy had initially refused to recognize. He then organized the defences in the
Alpine front, and was made a
Peer of France on 2 June. In the
Waterloo Campaign, Grouchy commanded the reserve cavalry of the army, and after the
Battle of Ligny he was appointed to command the right wing to pursue the Prussians. Napoleon sent Grouchy to pursue a part of the retreating
Prussian army under the command of General
Johann von Thielmann. On 17 June, Grouchy was unable to close with the Prussians. Despite hearing the cannon sound from the nearby
Battle of Waterloo, he decided to follow the Prussians along the route literally specified in his orders, issued by Napoleon via
Marshal Soult, while the Coalition armies attempted to combine forces to defeat Napoleon. He won a tactical victory over the Prussian army's rearguard at the
Battle of Wavre on 18–19 June 1815, but the delaying action by III Corps allowed the main Prussian force to join Wellington at Waterloo while preventing Grouchy from doing the same. So far as resistance was possible after the great disaster, Grouchy made it, gathering up the remnants of Napoleon's army and retiring, swiftly and unbroken, to Paris. After Napoleon's second abdication, he addressed a proclamation to his soldiers in support of
Napoleon II. After interposing his reorganized forces between the enemy and the capital, Grouchy resigned his command into the hands of Marshal Davout. ==Later life==