Augustin-Joseph de Mailly

Augustin-Joseph de Mailly was a French general, governor, and nobleman. He was one of the oldest persons to be guillotined during the French Revolution. De Mailly was marquis d'Haucourt and baron of Saint-Amand. In January 1744, he inherited the title of count of Mailly following the death of his cousin Louis de Mailly (1723–1743). At first a musketeer (1726), he served in the gendarmerie (1733–1764) before rising rapidly through the ranks – brigadier on 20 February 1743, maréchal de camp on 1 May 1745, lieutenant-général on 10 May 1748, inspector general of cavalry and dragoons on 21 May 1749, and finally director-general of camps and armies. In disgrace, he was distanced from the court and therefore remained a lieutenant-Général for a very long time, before becoming commander in chief in Roussillon, where he was the originator of great building works and the renewal of the university and played a large rôle in French Freemasonry.