Galliffet, Marquis Gaston Auguste de

Born Jan. 23, 1830, in Paris; died there July 8, 1909. French general, one of the butchers of the Paris Commune of 1871. During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71, he was taken prisoner by the Prussians at the capitulation of Sedan; in March 1871 he was released to take part in the struggle against the Commune. While commanding a cavalry brigade in the army of the Versaillais, Galliffet stood out even among the butchers of the Commune for special cruelty during the reprisals against the Communards. He was minister of war from 1899 to 1900.