November 17, 2012 Napoleon Bonaparte’s famous quote captures the
essence of military campaign. In 1795, while Bonaparte was
emerging as a military leader, French armies were fighting
across Europe to protect the young Republic, which had been
established in 1792 with the deposing of King Louis XVI on Sept.
21, from the established European powers. It was a significant
challenge to equip and feed its soldiers and sailors, with
starvation and sickness often more effective enemies than the
Austrian, Dutch, English and Spanish armies they faced. To
foster the development of a safe way to preserve food that could
be easily transported, the French military offered a
12,000-franc (the new currency introduced that year to replace
the livre, a franc was the equivalent of 4.5 grams of silver)
prize. Nicolas Appert, who was born in Châlons-en-Champagne,
Marne, France, on Nov. 17, 1749, responded to the challenge.
Appert grew up on his family’s farm and worked in their inn,
where he learned about food and food preparatio