“ He enlisted in the cavalry in 1800, and forthwith obtained a commission. He served with General Macdonald in the Grisons in 1800–1801, and published an account of the campaign in 1802. By the influence of Colonel Duroc (afterwards duc de Frioul) he was attached to the personal staff of Napoleon. He served through most of the important campaigns of the first empire, and was frequently employed on diplomatic missions. During the campaign in Poland in 1807 he was taken prisoner by the Russians, but was exchanged at the peace of Tilsit. ”