Louis de Cormontaigne

Louis de Cormontaigne was born in Strasbourg in 1695. He entered the service of the King in 1713, and began serving as a volunteer in the sieges of Fribourg and Landau, before becoming an engineer in 1715 at the age of twenty, and chief engineer in 1733. He participated in the most memorable sieges up until 1745 when he became brigadier and director of fortifications in the towns of Moselle (Metz, Thionville, Bitche, Verdun, Longwy).

Although he had never known Vauban, Louis de Cormontaigne was one of the most famous successors of this celebrated engineer, developing his ideas and further improving the bases created by his predecessor. Shortly after his death an official report featured the following statement 'All engineers are in agreement that not one of them has all the qualities required for war and the art of fortifications to the extent possessed by Monsieur de Cormontaigne'.