French Revolutionary Wars
Despite his aristocratic birth and his connection to the court, Grouchy was a convinced supporter of the French Revolution in 1789, along with his brother-in-law, the Marquis de Condorcet, and had in consequence to leave the Life Guards. Refusing to emigrate, Grouchy remained faithful to the revolutionary cause and rejoined the army. By 1791 he was lieutenant colonel of the 12th Regiment of chasseurs à cheval. In 1792 he served during the invasion of Savoy, first as colonel of the 12th Regiment of chasseurs à cheval then of the 2nd Dragoon Regiment. After the campaign of 1793, Grouchy was promoted to brigade general and was made a cavalry commander in the Army of the Alps.
In 1794, Grouchy was sent to the War in the Vendée, where he distinguished himself defending Nantes from Royalist rebels led by François de Charette, for which he received the rank of general of division. Shortly afterwards, he was expelled from the army as being of noble birth, and remained as a simple soldier in the National Guard. Grouchy was reinstated to his rank the next year and returned to Western France, where he served under General Lazare Hoche in the defence against the Quiberon Expedition in July 1795. In late 1796, he took part in the abortive expedition to Ireland as Hoche's second-in-command, and the next year he was assigned to the Army of the North.
Grouchy was deployed to Italy in 1798 under the orders of General Jean-Baptiste Jourdan. By skillful measures, he was able to persuade the King of Sardinia, Charles Emmanuel IV, to renounce his rule over Piedmont, then received from the Directory the task of organizing the conquered territory. He asked to join the Egyptian campaign, but General Napoleon Bonaparte preferred General Louis-Alexandre Berthier to him. Remaining with the Army of Italy, Grouchy distinguished himself greatly as a divisional commander in the 1799 campaign against the Austrians and Russians. In covering the retreat of the French after the defeat at the Battle of Novi, Grouchy received fourteen wounds and was taken prisoner.
During his captivity, which lasted nearly a year, Grouchy protested in a letter against Bonaparte's coup d'état of 18 Brumaire that established the Consulate, and had this letter signed by several officers. Despite this protest, upon his release he was at once re-employed by the First Consul, and distinguished himself again at the Battle of Hohenlinden. After the Peace of Lunéville he was appointed Inspector General of the Cavalry. Following the Cadoudal affair, Grouchy was under Bonaparte's suspicion for some time due to his association with General Jean Moreau, but soon returned to favor, and in 1803 he received the mission of having Charles Louis recognized as King of Etruria.
