Louis Joseph Vionnet, Vicomte de Maringon, was born in Longueville in 1769, the son of a peasant and a lacemaker. He joined the artillery in 1793 and was promoted to captain in the line in 1794. He fought in Italy in 1796, in the line infantry in 1798 and the Guard grenadiers in 1806, and campaigned in Prussia, Poland and Spain. In 1809 he joined the Fusiliers of the Guard, fought again in Spain in 1811 and then, with the rank of major, he took part in the 1812 Russian campaign, which he survived. He retired in the 1830s and died in 1834.
Jonathan North is a professional editor and a historian specializing in Napoleonic history. He spent a number of years in Eastern Europe before beginning a career in publishing in 1997. His publications include With Napoleon in Russia: The Illustrated Memoirs of Faber du Faur, In the Legions of Napoleon: The Memoirs of a Polish Officer in Spain and Russia, 1808-1812 and Napoleon’s Army in Russia: The Illustrated Memoirs of Albrecht Adam, 1812.
