BONNEVAL, bon'vit1'. CLAUDE ALEXANDRE, Count de (1675-1747). A French adventurer, also called Achmet Pasha. He was horn of a. noble family at Coussac, in Limousin. proved unmanageable at the Jesuit college, and was placed in the Royal Marine Corps in his thir teenth year. he was transferred to the Gualds, and served with great distinction in Italy and the Netherlands nailer Catinat, Villeroi, and Luxembourg; hut having Ixfhaved with great insolence to the Minister of War. he was con demned to death by a court-martial. lle fled to Germany, lvhere, upon the of Prince Eugene, he obtained employment in the Austrian service. He now bore arms against his native country, was present at the battle of Mal plaqnet, distinguished himself by many daring exploits. was raised to the rank of lieutenant field-marshal, and fought under Prince Eugene in the war between Turkey and Austria. at Peter wardein and Belgrade. At Vienna. after the peace of Passarowitz, he made himself very disa greeable to the Prince, and was therefore sent, in 1723, as master-general of ordnance, to the Neth erlands, where lie soon got into a quarrel with the Governor, was brought to trial, and con demned to death. The Emperor commuted the
sentence to one year's imprisonment and banish ment from German soil. Bonneval went to Con stantinople, where he was cordially welcomed. became a Mohammedan, taking the name of Achmet. and was made a pasha of three tails. He was employed in organizing the Turkish artil lery and achieved successes as general of a divi sion of 20.000 men in the war of the Porte with Russia. For his services the Sultan appointed him Governor of Chios; but his own imprudence and the envy of others caused his removal from this office. He died in Constantinople. He vain ly attempted to stir up the Sultan against Aus tria. His remarkable energy and great military talents were offset by a boorish and quarrelsome disposition. which always made him enemies on every side. Consult: Memoirs of the Basliau Count Bonner& (London. 1750) ; Vandal, Le Pasha Boancra/ (Paris, 1885).