Vice-Admiral Louis Thomas Villaret de Joyeuse (29 May 1747 – 24 July 1812) was a French Navy officer and politician who served in the American Revolutionary War and French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Born in Auch, Gascony, after serving in the Indian Ocean under Suffren during the Revolutionary War he rose in rank during the early stages of the French Revolution. Villaret commanded the French navy at the Glorious First of June, where despite suffering a heavy tactical defeat at British hands he ensured the passage of a vital grain convoy to France.
Villaret led the French navy during the disastrous Croisière du Grand Hiver and failed to prevent a British fleet from successfully retreating, with his last battle being a defeat off Groix. He was relieved when he refused to serve for the disastrous French expedition to Ireland. Villaret was then elected at the Council of Five Hundred. He joined the Club de Clichy, a party which supported French colonialism and slavery and harboured Royalist sympathies. After the Coup of 18 Fructidor, Villaret was sentenced to be deported to Cayenne but went into hiding long enough for his sentence to be commuted to exile to Oléron, where he went willingly.
Reinstated in 1801, Villaret took command of the naval component of the Saint-Domingue expedition, and was appointed captain general of Martinique and Saint Lucia alongside the colonial prefect Charles-Henri Bertin. He served in this capacity until the British captured Martinique in 1809. Returned to France, Villaret fell in disfavour for his perceived weak defence during the invasion. After two years, Napoleon pardoned him and appointed him as governor of Venice. Villaret died there of edema in 1812.
Early life
Louis-Thomas Villaret was born in Auch, Gascony on 29 May 1747, the son of a fiscal officer. Unable to enter the elite naval schools, he entered the French Navy as a volontaire in 1768. Promoted to frigate lieutenant in 1773,
Service under Suffren
In 1781, Villaret commanded the fireship in Vice-admiral Pierre André de Suffren's fleet. He ordered him to sail to Madras and warn the French blockading squadron, composed of two ships of the line and two frigates, of the imminent arrival of a superior British force. When Villaret surrendered his sword, Graves allegedly told him "Sir, you have given us a fairly beautiful frigate, but you made us pay dearly for her!"; Naïade was not commissioned in the Royal Navy and was sold. he helped Governor Philibert François Rouxel de Blanchelande transport troops around the island. On 14 March 1792, he swore the "civic oath" to signify his support of the French Revolution, while his brother emigrated from France. Promoted to ship-of-the-line captain in 1792, he was given the command of the 74-gun in 1793; In 1794, Villaret was promoted to counter admiral, the engagement culminated in the Glorious First of June. Although suffering severe losses, Villaret rallied his remaining ships and rescued several from being captured; most importantly, the grain convoy reached Brest unmolested. Supported by Saint-André, Villaret kept his command despite the heavy French tactical defeat. He blamed his losses on the conduct of several of his captains who had allegedly failed to fulfil their duties. On 27 September 1794, Villaret was promoted to vice admiral.
Subsequent campaigns and dismissal
In December, the Committee of Public Safety ordered him to attack British commerce in the Croisière du Grand Hiver. Although the cruise did lead to the capture of a number of British merchant ships, the French fleet was battered by storms in which several ships were sunk and all the surviving ships suffered heavy damage. In June 1795, he sailed with nine ships to relieve a small squadron near Belle Île. During Cornwallis's Retreat, Villaret-Joyeuse tried to engage the small British squadron blockading Belle Île. Unable to bring them to battle, Villaret attempted to return to Brest, but contrary winds forced him towards Lorient. Close to Lorient, Villaret-Joyeuse was discovered by British Admiral Alexander Hood's fleet, guarding the expedition to Quiberon. During the ensuing Battle of Groix, several of Villaret's ships disobeyed his orders and sailed away, with three ships of the line being captured by the British. In 1796, Villaret was appointed to command the fleet for the French expedition to Ireland, an attempt to land General Lazare Hoche's army in Ireland; Villaret was elected to the Council of Five Hundred as a representative of Morbihan.
Revitalised career and death
thumb|upright|1850 portrait of Villaret
In 1801, First Consul Napoleon ended Villaret-Joyeuse's exile and returned him to active command. Initially, he wanted Villaret-Joyeuse to prepare an expedition to capture the British-occupied Dutch Cape Colony, then head into the Indian Ocean. With the Treaty of Amiens, Napoleon decided to attempt to regain control of Saint-Domingue from Toussaint Louverture with the Saint-Domingue expedition. In December 1801, Villaret set out with ten French and five Spanish ships and nine frigates and corvettes, he faced the threats of slave rebellions, yellow fever and the possibility of a British invasion. On 3 November 1802, Villaret founded a 94-strong gendarmerie force, and on 8 July 1803, a company of black chasseurs. He cooperated with Counter-admiral Édouard Thomas Burgues de Missiessy and Vice-admiral Pierre-Charles Villeneuve who sailed into the Caribbean in 1805 during the Trafalgar campaign.
In January 1809, a British expedition invaded Martinique and laid siege to the fortress at Fort-de-France. Once the British were able to bring up their heavy artillery, the month-long siege ended on 24 February with the surrender of Villaret. Another legend holds that he enlisted in the Gendarmes before joining the Navy; or at the age of 18.