Jacques-François de Menou, baron de Boussay was a French general under Napoleon I of France. Born Jacques Menou in Boussay (Indre-et-Loire) on 3 September 1750, he died in Mestre in the Veneto on 13 August 1810. He married an Egyptian woman, Sitti Zoubeida, the daughter of a wealthy merchant in the city of Rasheed from Al-Baw'wab family (the name means house-door keeper, however, the family was a prominent family of the city).
Captain Pierre-François Bouchard reported to him the discovery of the Rosetta stone, a vital key in unlocking the lost language of hieroglyphics.[1]
On the assassination of Jean Baptiste Kléber on 14 June 1800, Menou, as senior officer, succeeded to the command of the Army of Egypt. After a dismal tenure, he surrendered Alexandria, the last French position in Egypt, on 30 August 1801. He converted to Islam during his tenure.
He was appointed to the Tribunate in 1802. Administrator of Piedmont, he was appointed Governor of Tuscany in 1805, and later Governor of Venice.
Recalled to France 23 July 1810, he died at Mestre in the Veneto 13 August 1810.