“Was this hero of Napoleonic France really shot by a firing squad on Dec. 7, 1815?”
“I AM NEY OF FRANCE!” Those were reportedly the last words of an obscure 77-year-old North Carolina schoolmaster whose death in 1846 touched off a mystery that has consumed historians for more than a century and a half.
Was the deceased Peter Stuart Ney more than just a mild-mannered head master who had taught in and around Rowan County, North Carolina for more than 20 years? Was he also Michel Ney, “bravest of the brave,” field marshal to Napoleon, the Duke of Elchingen and veteran of countless battles?
The life story of France’s Marshal Ney reads like something out of a Bernard Cornwell novel. The son of a barrel maker who rose from the ranks as a trooper in the French hussars to eventually lead Napoleon’s Grande Armée, Ney was a bona fide war hero — wounded in battle, captured, released, decorated and later promoted to general.
Nicknamed Ginger for his flowing red hair, he was famous for riding to Napoleon’s rescue at the 1807 Battle of Eylau and for taking on the Duke of Wellington in the Peninsula War. Although eventually earning the title of duke, Ney won the undying respect of even the lowliest foot soldiers when he personally shouldered a musket and fought in the rear guard during the disastrous winter retreat from Moscow in 1812. In fact, Ney is remembered as the last Frenchman to leave Russian soil. Captured after Napoleon’s defeat at Waterloo, the marshal was eventually tried by the new French regime for treason, found guilty and condemned to death.
But was this hero of Napoleonic France really shot by a firing squad on Dec. 7, 1815 or was the execution faked, as some have suggested? Official history reports that Ney was buried in Paris at Père Lachaise Cemetery. But following his death, stories spread like wildfire about a plot hatched by those allied to the exiled emperor to save Ney.
According to the rumours, the firing squad actually shot blanks and the marshal (aware of the scheme) fooled onlookers by bursting blood packs concealed in his shirt. Supposedly, no customary final head-shot was delivered after the musket volley, further fuelling the conspiracy theorists. A body double was placed in the casket, many maintained, while Ney was actually spirited out of France by agents loyal to Bonaparte.
The following year, history records the sudden appearance of one “Peter Stuart Ney” in Charleston, South Carolina. The redheaded immigrant matched the marshal’s physical description. For the next few years, the middle-aged Ney moved about the southern U.S., never staying in the same town for too long, perhaps moving on when suspicions of his true identity heated up.
Eventually, Ney settled in Rowan County, North Carolina, where he became a well-liked and (by most accounts) tireless schoolteacher. According to his former students, Ney would parade and inspect them each morning, much like a field marshal might. He constantly pushed them to better themselves and had a tendency to challenge spirited and disruptive pupils to playful duels with wooden sticks. He even wrote a math textbook and once carved a replica of the globe into a pumpkin in an effort to teach his students world geography.
According the story, there were those who suspected that this mild-mannered teacher might just be the famed veteran of the wars in Europe. They pointed to the fact that Marshal Ney’s father had been named Peter and his mother’s maiden name was Stuart — a strange coincidence. And upon learning of the death of the former emperor in 1821, Ney reportedly drove a knife into his own neck in a fit of grief almost killing himself.
Some have guessed that the people of Rowan County knew full well the true identity of the hero in their midst and went to great lengths to cover for him. In his final hours, Ney reportedly told those at his bedside that he was in fact the famous marshal. His gravestone, which still stands today in Cleveland, North Carolina, reads “A native of France and soldier of the French Revolution under Napoleon Bonaparte.”
In the decades following his death, historians have tried to settle the mystery once and for all. Disappointingly, samples of the two Neys’ handwriting have failed to show similarities and the two occasions that his body was exhumed, in 1887 and again in 1936, no conclusive proof emerged. To this day, the true identity of Peter Stuart Ney remains one of the most intriguing mysteries of North Carolina.
my family history shows that I am related to MarshMarshal Ney I would hope this is true.but can’t find any hard evidence I will keep researching,
In the 1990’s, I was working as a USPS window clerk at the Oakland Station 15213, in Pittsburgh. There was a line of customers, and one particular man really stood out in the line in front of me, who was over 6’2″ with red hair, and an athletic build . When I waited on him, he asked for a large order of first class stamps in rolls, for a mailing for the classes he taught for the University of Pittsburgh. I retrieved the rolls and said that the bill was near $200.00. He asked if he could pay with a cheque. I said “Yes” He gave me a cheque and I noticed the name: “Michael Ney.”. I looked up at him and said: “Are you related to the Marshal?” He replied: “Yes, directly” and exclaimed his gladness that someone knew of such things. He then asked to meet me for lunch tomorrow. We met at the student cafateria, and he brought a sheeve of papers and photos of the grave which was near a town on the Youghiogheny River in SW PA. He told me the whole story of Neys escape and about the efforts of Talleyrand, and the Bits to find and kill him. PS: He was a near “dead-ringer” to the portrait above this. Ney rests in a marked grave, w/a headstone.
Fascinating! I had always thought the firing squad was his fate.
I don’t know the veracity of this article (who does?), but I would love to believe that Marechal Ney cheated the firing squad and settled in the USA as a schoolteacher, as the article says, “… like something out of a Bernard Cornwell novel”
Well, the story itself has been reported widely, but is it speculation, conjecture, etc.? Who knows.
My father, not knowing this story, allways dreamd of a big heritage from America.
Thomas: don’t know if you receive this.. but hope so.. please see my reply to Bob Kittl,, Be glad to chat w/ you anytime.. What is your connection to the Marshal?
My english is not so good, so excuse all mistakes, please.
My connection to Marshal Ney? I don’t know, I have no information about my family and where they come from. It’s only the name and the dream of my father.
David
Thomas maybe sometime we could talk my grandmother is Dorothy ney his great great granddaughter thanks …Eddie
Eddie, where does your grandmother live? US of France? I will be in France mid June if she there.. David
I’m currently working on a novel about the good Marshal and came across a Dorothy Ney. Ed Bennett
I had him for a teacher, or so my grandchildren think ! I assure them that I am NOT that old, but they think I am ancient. I do live near Third Creek Church were Marshal Ney is buried.
Interesting legend in the Cleveland community. In fact: I own the home, built in early 1840’s, that Ney reportedly died in.. Nov 1846. Long live the Marshal!
Gotta send a picture of that.
Two old books devoted to the subject: “Marshal Ney: A Dual Life” by L Gette Blythe (1937), and “Marshal Ney: Before and After Execution” by J. Edward Smoot (1929). Both present strong cases for his survival and life in North Carolina, including handwriting evidence. They may be available on ABE Books or one of the other used book sites.
It is my understanding that Marshal Ney was shot in the head during his execution. That would be pretty hard to fake. More power to him if he did, somehow, escape the clutches of Louis XVIII, and make it to America.
I read a book about Peter Stuart Ney about 20 years ago and have actually visited his grave site at the 3rd Creek Presbyterian Church Cemetery near Cleveland, NC. I am convinced that he was Marshal Ney. There are just too many coincidences- 1. His death bed confession. 2. He kept moving farther inland because someone would recognize him and ask if he was Ney. 3. When a book about the Napoleonic Wars was published in the 1820’s or 30’s, he wrote in the margin everything that was incorrect in the book. Davidson College still has that book. 4. When he was executed his body fell forward. Getting hit by 8 to 10– .69″ musket balls simultaneously would have caused him to lurch backward, not forward. 5. His wife was not allowed to view his body. 6. His sons made several unexplained visits to the US during the 1830’s & 40’s. 7. His troops called him ‘Red Peter’ because of his hair. 8. His mother’s maiden name was Stuart, not the more common Stewart spelling. 9. The birth year on his tombstone is correct for Marshal Ney. 10. His grave is enclosed by a brick structure with two glass windows and a shingle roof. Reputedly to prevent wear and tear on it, because so many people were visiting and touching his tombstone
It was around 1950 when a popular American magazine — perhaps Colliers or Saturday Evening Post — ran the Ney story, including the “fake?” firing squad.
A branch of the Ney family lives on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. I once asked Dr. Philip Ney, a physiaytrost still living in Victoria, if he was related to Marshal Ney. He replied that there is a distant connection.
If he was so concerned about being recognised as Ney (why? he was safe from the French authorities as a US citizen) then why did he call himself Ney?
Davidson College reminds their graduates that the seal on their diploma was designed by Peter Nay who may have been Marshall Ney. The college thought so much of him that he was allowed to pass out diplomas to the students at their first graduation. To his day they keep his papers and personal effects in the library vault.
I talked to a gentleman who lives in the house where eventually passed away but never heard anymore from him, not sure if i could ask him what this property is like nowadays and does it retain some of its original appearance?
Bob, be glad to converse more w/ you.. anytime.. Maybe I can get my IT wife to post a picture here of our home.. AND a pic of the upstairs bedroom Ney reportedly died in. Any time. David
Hi I would like to know a lot more about marshal Ney im his great great great great grandson carter ney thank you
Hello Carter. Great to hear from a descendent of the Marshall.
Best place for you to start is just Google Marshall Ney, and Peter Stuart Ney.. Do that then contact me. Be glad to chat w/ you. Maybe you’ve seen in earlier posts, but we believe he died in my home in NC.
Hi David. I am a descendant of the Foard family, and a researcher of the Ney controversy. Is your home the former Osborne Giles Foard home? If possible, I would love to correspond with you.
Hi, My name is Roland Berggren and I have heard and seen that four of my fathers half sisters left Sweden 19.5.1902 with ship to USA their father was Carl Berggren the son of Niclas Berggren. They did not dare to mention that they eventually where relatives to Nicholas Ney later Peter Stuart Ney. I have met many relatives in USA 1979 together with my family and my father. He had most of his relatives in USA. We are doing som research and we believe that one of Ney´s sons came with Carl tee 14 th Johan later King of Sweden named Bernadotte. We can keep the contact if you are interested to know more about Ney.
Greatings,
Roland Berggren
Gävle Sweden
My grandfather and father wrote about his possible Indiana connection in 1987 in the Outdoor Indiana Magazine and visited Peter Ney’s grave in NC. Here is the included link for the article (pgs. 25-29 of the online pages). I know from traveling many times to the cave mentioned and camping there it is a truly special place and this was at the ripe age of 6. It has stuck with me. The cross I hope still survives that is inside the cave. I’ve since moved to Charleston, SC where Ney may have entered the US and have tried looking for records to no success. Hope this helps or is at least interesting for those who want to know more about Mr. Ney : http://webapp1.dlib.indiana.edu/metsnav3/general/index.html#mets=http%3A%2F%2Fpurl.dlib.indiana.edu%2Fiudl%2Fgeneral%2Fmets%2FVAA3736-1987-04&page=25
Although I love the idea of Marshal Ney surviving and living his last days in America, I believe there is ample evidence to discount this. First, the Marshal had ample opportunity to depart France before his capture, and he had received encouragement to do so (I am referencing Andrew Hilliard Atteridge’s work, “The Bravest of the Brave”). Second, during his trial, his attorneys had devised a brilliant defense that Ney was in fact NOT a Frenchman by birth (true) and as such the French court could not condemn him. Ney, however, rebuked this defense, stating in no uncertainty that he was French, so great was his love for the country he served. Third, by all accounts Ney was desperately in love with his wife and children, who held no special position after Ney’s downfall… and Madame Ney loved him just as greatly. Nothing would have prevented them from departing France if they had believed Ney alive, and nothing would have prevented Ney from sending for them once he established himself in America. Record-keeping in the early 1800’s was very poor by modern standards, and the entire Ney family could have vanished into obscurity. Fourth, I’ve seen many records of the Marshal’s parentage, and his mother’s birth name is listed as Grewelinger, NOT Stuart. More likely, there were many Frenchmen departing Europe after Waterloo, and many who still idolized Ney in memory of the retreat from Moscow. Someone needing a new identity could easily have honored the Marshal by taking on his last name. No one likes to think of heroes being mortal, and I believe this is a mystery similar to the legend of Elvis Presley
David K, I have to admit that a lot of what you said does make sense and please do not think that I am trying to dispute what you said in your post. The notions that you put forth in your post do offer compelling reasons to believe that Marshal Ney and Peter Stuart Ney were not the same man. However, consider this, if Marshal Michel Ney was living in the U.S. under the alias of Peter Stuart Ney then there was a reason for that. That reason was that he WANTED the world to believe that he perished in front of that firing squad in France in 1815. Ney perhaps felt that this might be the best way to not only protect his own life but the lives of wife and children as well. Ney might very well have felt that if he went into exile as Marshal Michel Ney that possibly agents of the new French regime or the British or the Prussians might sooner or later have tried to assassinate him and his family. That would be the only reason that I can think of that would possibly make him want to live in another country under an assumed name. True, he may have initially balked at the idea of leaving France but that’s not to say that the man may have changed his mind after considering all of alternatives. Even the rebuking of his defense at the trial may have been part of his plan to make everyone believe that he died a martyr. As far as the part about why his family never came to America to be with him it might be that Ney never felt comfortable having them here or it could be as simple as the fact that they just didn’t want to move to the U.S. Either way, If Peter Stuart Ney was really Marshal Michel Ney in hiding then there was a reason he was in hiding to begin with. As I said, I’m not trying to dispute what you said, I am merely offering other alternatives as to why the Marshal Ney/Peter Stuart Ney story may be true. I really don’t believe any of us will ever know the truth, either way. The only way that I can see to ever find out would be thru DNA testing and I don’t know if there would be enough of his physical remains left to do an accurate test.
How was Ney not a Frenchman by birth? He was born in Saarlouis, which was a French town at that time – it was only was given to Prussia in 1815.
Because he was really Michael Rudolph or so the story goes… He was a member of Lee’s Legion in the American Revolution. Look it up!
In remember reading they allowed him to pick his firing squad, which was made up from his former soldiers and he himself commanded the execution. If that is true it would explain how he could have faked his death.
Plus, no coup de grace was administered, a very unusual omission.
Mary Chestnut in her civil war diaries mentions Ney on 3 occasions. She was an obvious admirer of him and Napoleon. She was also well connected to everyone in the Carolinas, and was privy to all gossip, and loved to relay it in her writings. I think that she had probably heard the stories about Ney, but she says he was shot. period. Mr. Ney of Carolina was 20 years dead when she wrote of Marshal Ney. I don’t think she placed any credence in the rumor?
It saddens me deeply to believe this great man ended his life at the hands of a fireing squad!as an English born bonapartist I’ve always had great admiration for the characters that were involved in and around the emperor himself!what an amazing time in history.who can answer my question why was New picked out for execution and not others who rallied to Napoleons cause?surely this could have been out of fear that Nye would again Join with his emperor to the point of success!maybe,just maybe that’s why Nye wanted to disappear with the hope of a possible victorious Waterloo?!!.Simon Dawson-Sheffield England
I’m yet to find out the details but my grandmother on my Mothers side was a Ney but from Scotland. We were told the name Ney came from France and we were related to Mashall Ney of France.
Re: the discussion that none of PS Ney’s children immigrated to America, I’ve read/heard several times that one of his sons came to Philadelphia, studied medicine, then moved to Indiana where he practiced. Also heard somewhere that PS Ney likely visited his son there, but returned to North Carolina. He eventually died in home I own near Cleveland NC.
It has been a family story for all my life that my great great grandfather was a tailor and bodyguard to Napoleon and escaped France with Marshal Ney after the faked execution. They came through Charleston. My great+ grandfather was in PA, then Tennessee.
Could you please tell me your ancestor’s name? I have done some research on this. Thank you.
I am related to him through my fathers maternal side, I know this for a fact.
I spoke to a gentleman Named Toby Giese. He supposedly gained some access to the Masonic library in Philadelphia. There are records of help from Wellington, who was also a Mason, backing up the theory. Has anyone else ever sought this route?
My great great grandfather was named Napoleon Bonaparte McCanless. He was a Rowan County entrepreneur. The granite Napoleon Bonaparte MCCanless House still stands on Main Street in Salisbury. I have alwayd wondered if his grandfather knew Ney and somehow he was named for the Marshal’s favorite secret memory.
I believe there are a number of well-researched reasons to conclude that Peter Stuart Ney was also Marshal Michel Ney, or at the very least that Michel Ney’s execution was bogus. Yet what led me to begin suspecting this was pure hunch: in my career I have studied a number of films which recorded firing-squad executions in the 20th century, and if, as I understand, Jean-Leon Gerome’s painting, “The Execution of Michel Ney,” is accurate (and eyewitness accounts seem not to dispute it), Ney assisted in the deception. No one who faces his executioners winds up falling forward and lying in a prone position; films made of such executions in the Red versus White Russian War and Fidel Castro’s elimination of political enemies make that point quite obvious. Again, this was simply a hunch, but it led me to explore the case more closely, and as a history geek who spent 31 years as a teacher, and who managed to survive a doctoral program, I have looked into the matter rather enthusiastically.
Anyone know of any DNA research with the direct descendants? My great grandmother was Antoinette Ney, also supposedly related to Marshall Michel Ney. There were several Ney children. Her immigration records read Alsace-Lorraine , back and forth under French and German rule. I’m sure most of you are familiar with the sculptress Elsabet Ney whose work in the 19th century is the focus of a museum in Austin Texas. She was the daughter of a first cousin of the Marshal. There is a striking family resemblance within Ney descendants that interests me. I can document six generations with green-hazel eyes and the familiar ginger hair.