#MB87
1830
Folio (ca. 29x18 cm). 1 p. Black ink on watermarked laid paper. A very good letter.
The certificate was given to one Michel Lastrén, “2nd maitre cannonier,” who “served under my command in 1829-30 and acted with the greatest zeal, the function of his grade. <…> Apart from the indispensable knowledge of his profession, he set an example of obedience, submission, zeal, courage and devotion”. The commander recalls of an incident on the 18th of July 1829, when a sailor fell off board the “Vulcain”, and “Lastrén was the first one to rush to his rescue. <…> [he] launched a small boat, grabbed the hurt man who was about to sink, and brought him on board. <…> The expeditions to Algeria and Tripoli de Barbarie have not allowed our mariners to show their courage and the devotion. Lastrén would have been the first one to show it. I’ve mentioned that officer in my report of advancement as extraordinary, and I give him this certificate as a proof of my esteem wishing that it will be useful one day” (in translation).
The “Vulcain” under command of lieutenant Baudin was a part of the reserve squadron of the French naval forces during the Invasion of Algiers (14 June – 7 July 1830).
“The Invasion of Algiers in 1830 was a large-scale military operation by which the Kingdom of France, ruled by Charles X, invaded and conquered the Ottoman Regency of Algiers. The invasion of Algiers began on 5 July 1830 with a naval bombardment by a fleet under Admiral Duperré, and a landing by troops under Louis Auguste Victor de Ghaisne, comte de Bourmont. The French quickly defeated the troops of Hussein Dey, the Ottoman ruler, but native resistance was widespread. This resulted in a protracted military campaign, lasting more than 45 years, to root out popular opposition to the colonisation. The so-called "pacification" was marked by resistance of figures such as Ahmed Bey, Abd El-Kader and Lalla Fatma N'Soumer. The invasion marked the end of several centuries of Ottoman rule in Algeria and the beginning of French Algeria. In 1848, the territories conquered around Algiers were organized into three départements, defining the territories of modern Algeria” (Wikipedia).
