Beauharnais, Alexandre, vicomte de

Beauharnais, Alexandre, vicomte de (äleksäN'dru vēkôNt' du bōärnā') [key], 1760–94, French general, b. Martinique. He fought with the colonials in the American Revolution and, as a supporter of the French Revolution, was a commander in the French Revolutionary Wars. A moderate member of the National Assembly, he was guillotined in the Reign of Terror. His widow later became the empress Josephine.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

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