MOSCOW, RUSSIA—Reuters reports that a team made up of French and Russian researchers has unearthed the possible remains of General Charles-Etienne Gudin, a French aristocrat, in the western Russian city of Smolensk. Gudin, a childhood friend of Napoleon Bonaparte, was killed on August 22, 1812, during the emperor’s unsuccessful attempt to invade Russia. According to historic records, before Gudin died from his battlefield injuries, his left leg was amputated. His right leg was also wounded. The researchers say the remains are consistent with Gudin’s injuries, making the identification highly probable. “Napoleon was one of the last people to see him alive, which is very important, and he’s the first general from the Napoleonic period that we have found,” said archaeologist Pierre Malinovsky. Gudin’s body was buried in Smolensk, but his heart was carried to Paris, where a street is named for him. Gudin’s name is inscribed on the Arc de Triomphe, and a bust of his likeness is in the Palace of Versailles. The researchers will attempt to retrieve DNA from the remains and compare it with samples obtained from the general’s descendants. To read about excavation of a mass grave in Lithuania containing members of Napoleon's army, go to “The Grand Army Diet.”
