Born in Angles-sur-l'Anglin on 6 August 1772,[REF] Lhéritier joined the army on 26 September 1792, aged 20[REF] and he would spend his first years of service fighting in the French Revolutionary Wars, with action taking place mainly on the Rhine.
On 14 June 1800, Captain Lhéritier fought at the decisive Battle of Marengo, where he collected a severe thigh wound.