velopment of firearms, fortifications, and iron-clad
ships make him a significant figure in Japanese military
history.
References: “Oda Nobunaga,” in The Hutchinson Dic-
tionary of Ancient and Medieval Warfare (Oxford, U.K.:
Helicon Publishing, Ltd., 1998), 235; Lamers, Jeroen
Pieter, Japonius Tyrannus: The Japanese Warlord Oda No-
bunaga Reconsidered (Leiden, Netherlands: Hotei Publish-
ing, 2000); Sansom, George, “The Road to Unification,”
in A History of Japan, 1334–1615 (Stanford, Calif.: Stan-
ford University Press, 1961), 273–290; Cooper, Michael,
ed., The Southern Barbarians: The First Europeans in Japan
(Tokyo, Japan: Kodansha Ltd., 1971).
Oudinot, Nicolas-Charles, duc de Reggio
(1767–1847) French general
Nicolas Oudinot was born at Bar-le-duc, France, on
25 April 1767, the son of a farmer. He received a local
education, but at age 17 he ran away from home and
entered the French military, serving in the regiment of
Médoc for three years before his parents convinced him
to return home. He was given an honorable discharge
in 1787, but in 1792, with the outbreak of war, he re-
turned to service with the rank of lieutenant colonel in
the Meuse Volunteers. He saw action at Arlon (June
1793), Saverne (1793), and Gundershofen-Mietesheim
(26–27 November 1793) and was promoted to general
of brigade on 12 June 1794, following his service at the
battle of Kaiserslautern.
During the war against the Swiss in 1799, a part of
the War of the Second Coalition, Oudinot served under
Marshal André masséna, who wrote to the French gov-
ernment, “The greatest praise is owed to the sang froid
and to the talents of this general, the same is owed to
his troops whose courage did not waver by the number
of the enemy or by the lack of munitions.” During the
attack on Austrian forces at Schwyz (14 August 1799),
Oudinot was shot and wounded. Once he recovered, he
returned to service under Masséna, leading the attack on
Zurich in September 1799. Masséna later noted, “I owe
great praise to General Oudinot, my chief of staff, who
knows how to apply his fiery energy to clerical labor,
but whom I am always glad to have back on the battle-
field. He has followed me in everything, and has made
a perfect second-in-command.” Oudinot eventually was
named as inspector general of infantry for the French
military.
naPoleon bonaParte’s rise to power in France
led to his taking over much of the command of the
French military. Napoleon marched into Italy and de-
feated the Austrians at Marengo on 14 June 1800.
Following this battle, Masséna was replaced by Mar-
shal Guillaume-Marie-Anne Brune as commander of
the French Army of Italy, and Oudinot was named as
Brune’s chief of staff. Following the battle of Hohenlin-
den (3 December 1800), the Austrians sued for peace,
and Oudinot returned home to France.
His stay was short: In 1803, war resumed between
France and England, and Oudinot was given the com-
mand of the 1st Division under Marshal Louis-Nico-
las daVout. By 1805, France was facing an alliance
of England, Russia, and Austria, known collectively as
the Third Coalition. Oudinot saw action at Wertingen
(8 October 1805) and Ulm (17 October 1805). His
forces became known as the “Grenadiers Oudinot” and
played an important role in the seizure of the bridges
into Vienna (13 November 1805); they also provided
the critical attack on the Russians at Austerlitz (2 De-
cember 1805). French marshal Joachim murat wrote
to Napoleon: “Oudinot’s division covered itself in glory;
it withstood, repelled, defeated a corps three times as
strong as it [was].” Oudinot was named as commander
of the 2nd Foot Guards in 1806, and he participated in
the siege of Danzig (18 March–27 May 1807) and the
crucial clash at Friedland (14 June 1807). In 1808, he
was named as governor of Erfurt in Germany, and in
1810, following the battle of Wagram (6 July 1809), he
was made a count of the empire. In 1810, he was named
duc de Reggio (duke of Reggio), and he served as the
governor of Holland from 1810 to 1812.
Oudinot played a major role in the French inva-
sion of Russia that began in 1812. Commanding the
II Corps of the Grand Armeé, he saw action at Polotsk
(18 August 1812), where he was wounded, and at
Grossbeeren (23 August 1813), near Berlin, where he
fought to a draw. Napoleon forced him to defend Po-
lotsk against the Russians under Petr Wittgenstein, even
though intelligence had told Oudinot that the Russians
vastly outnumbered his own forces. He managed to hold
the city but was wounded; it was Marshal Gouvion St.
Cyr who completed the defense. Oudinot was finally re-
placed by Marshal Michel ney. He was wounded again
at Berezina (28 November 1812).0 ouDinot, nicolAS-chARleS, Duc De Reggio