Bernard de Lattre de Tassigny
Encyclopedia
Bernard de Lattre de Tassigny (11 February 1928 – 30 May 1951) was a French Army
officer, who fought during World War II
and the First Indochina War
. Bernard de Lattre received several medals during his military career, including the Médaille militaire
. He was killed in action at the age of 23, fighting near Ninh Binh
. At the time of his death, his father, General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny
, was the overall commander of French forces in Indochina. Bernard's death received widespread newspaper coverage, with headlines drawing attention to the death of the son of a general. His mother worked to preserve the memory of her son, as well as that of her more famous husband who died in 1952. Their legacy includes an open-air memorial chapel and centre in Wildenstein
, Alsace, France. The death of Bernard de Lattre is mentioned in histories of the First Indochina War, and it has been compared to the deaths of other sons of generals and military leaders.
, and his wife Simonne de Lamazière, both French aristocrats.
Bernard was 12 when France was conquered by Nazi Germany in July 1940 during World War II
. His father fought in the army during the invasion, later commanding forces in the "free zone
" in Montpellier and Tunisia, but he was arrested for resisting the German military occupation
of Vichy France
in November 1942, and sentenced to 10 years in prison. Bernard de Lattre, then aged 15, aided his father's escape from Riom prison on 3 September 1943. His father went to Algiers via London, while Bernard and his mother went into hiding. Bernard eventually escaped France through the Pyrenees, and crossed Spain to reach North Africa. There, like his father, he joined the forces of the Free French.
Still only 16, Bernard received special dispensation from General Charles de Gaulle
to join the army being assembled to invade France, and subsequently fought in the liberation of southern France and also in Germany. He was seriously wounded on 8 September 1944, at Autun
, returning later to fight again in Germany. It was for his actions in these campaigns that he received the Médaille militaire
, the youngest to receive that medal, and his first Croix de guerre
.
Following the war, Bernard de Lattre studied at the French military school (the EMIA) from August 1945, training in the armoured cavalry section. He was promoted to Lieutenant on 26 November 1948.
, embarking at Marseille on 1 July 1949. He became a platoon and then squadron leader, and took part in the Battle of Dien Mai. He received his second Croix de guerre during this campaign, being awarded the medal by his father on 11 May 1951. He was killed in action 19 days later, near Ninh Binh
, during the Battle of the Day River
. The citation for his actions concluded:
Following his son's death, his father arranged for a Catholic mass to be held in the cathedral in Hanoi. Two days after the battle, Bernard de Lattre's body was flown home to France, accompanied by his father, and the young soldier was buried with military honours. The graves of all three de Lattres are now located side-by-side in the cemetery in Mouilleron-en-Pareds
, the birthplace of Jean de Lattre.
Bernard de Lattre's death received widespread press coverage at the time, including articles in Le Figaro
, Le Monde
, The New York Times
and TIME
magazine. His funeral was featured in LIFE
magazine as 'Picture of the Week'.
In 1952, a 308-page book titled Un destin héroïque: Bernard de Lattre (A heroic destiny: Bernard de Lattre), was published. The book is a collection of stories of Bernard's life, along with letters that he wrote. The book was written and edited by the French professor of philosophy Robert Garric. A further written response to Bernard de Lattre's death was provided by his mother in her two-volume work on her husband: Jean de Lattre: mon mari (Paris, 1972). In this work, Madame de Lattre writes about her husband's response to the death of their son, but also writes about her own feelings, and the idealism of a generation of French soldiers dying as her son had.
One of the lasting memorials to Bernard de Lattre is a small open-air chapel in the commune of Wildenstein
, in the Haut-Rhin
département in Alsace
in north-eastern France. Now known as the Chapelle Saint-Bernard, this structure was inaugurated in 1955. It consists of an altar and a small shelter beside a hiking trail. Construction at the site began in 1954, using plans approved by Madame de Lattre. The building material used was pink sandstone from nearby Rouffach
. The site is dedicated to the memory of Bernard de Lattre, his father Jean de Lattre, and the French forces that fought in the area in 1944 to liberate Alsace from the Germans in World War II. The chapel later fell into disrepair, but was renovated and reinaugurated during a service on 20 August 2004, the day dedicated to Saint Bernard of Clairvaux
. There is an annual service held here in honour of Bernard de Lattre de Tassigny, attended by veteran associations, local dignitaries and relatives of the de Lattres.
Also located in Wildenstein is the Centre Bernard de Lattre, which includes a memorial to Jean de Lattre. This memorial was originally located in Algeria, but was moved to Wildenstein in 1962 after Algeria gained independence from France. Additional commemoration of Bernard de Lattre's name came when the 1984-1985 class of the Ecole Militaire Interarmes, the military school at which he had studied, was named 'Promotion Lieutenant Bernard de Lattre de Tassigny' in his honour. An annual service also takes place at the graves of the de Lattres in Mouilleron-en-Pareds.
Historians and other authors writing about the First Indochina War have commented on the symbolism of Bernard de Lattre's death. In Soldats perdus: de l'Indochine à l'Algérie, dans la tourmente des guerres (2007), French journalist and author Hélène Erlingsen says that Bernard de Lattre's death was symbolic "of the modern world devastated by war" and that his life was "representative of our time". Bernard de Lattre's death has been placed in context in relation to other deaths in this war, with Brian Moynahan, in the 2007 work The French century: an illustrated history of modern France, noting that "in all 21 sons of French marshals and generals died in Indochina".
French Army
The French Army, officially the Armée de Terre , is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces.As of 2010, the army employs 123,100 regulars, 18,350 part-time reservists and 7,700 Legionnaires. All soldiers are professionals, following the suspension of conscription, voted in...
officer, who fought during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and the First Indochina War
First Indochina War
The First Indochina War was fought in French Indochina from December 19, 1946, until August 1, 1954, between the French Union's French Far East...
. Bernard de Lattre received several medals during his military career, including the Médaille militaire
Médaille militaire
The Médaille militaire is a decoration of the French Republic which was first instituted in 1852.-History:The creator of the médaille was the emperor Napoléon III, who may have taken his inspiration in a medal issued by his father, Louis Bonaparte, King of Holland...
. He was killed in action at the age of 23, fighting near Ninh Binh
Ninh Bình
Ninh Bình is a city in the Red River Delta of northern Vietnam. It is the capital of Ninh Binh province.-Geography:Ninh Binh city located in the southernmost plains north Vietnam...
. At the time of his death, his father, General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny
Jean de Lattre de Tassigny
Jean Joseph Marie Gabriel de Lattre de Tassigny, GCB, MC was a French military hero of World War II and commander in the First Indochina War.-Early life:...
, was the overall commander of French forces in Indochina. Bernard's death received widespread newspaper coverage, with headlines drawing attention to the death of the son of a general. His mother worked to preserve the memory of her son, as well as that of her more famous husband who died in 1952. Their legacy includes an open-air memorial chapel and centre in Wildenstein
Wildenstein
Wildenstein is a commune in the Haut-Rhin department in Alsace in north-eastern France.-References:*...
, Alsace, France. The death of Bernard de Lattre is mentioned in histories of the First Indochina War, and it has been compared to the deaths of other sons of generals and military leaders.
Early life and World War II
Bernard de Lattre de Tassigny was born on 11 February 1928 in Paris, France. He was the only child of the French soldier and future war hero and general Jean de Lattre de TassignyJean de Lattre de Tassigny
Jean Joseph Marie Gabriel de Lattre de Tassigny, GCB, MC was a French military hero of World War II and commander in the First Indochina War.-Early life:...
, and his wife Simonne de Lamazière, both French aristocrats.
Bernard was 12 when France was conquered by Nazi Germany in July 1940 during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. His father fought in the army during the invasion, later commanding forces in the "free zone
Zone libre
The zone libre was a partition of the French metropolitan territory during the Second World War, established at the Second Armistice at Compiègne on June 22, 1940. It lay to the south of the demarcation line and was administered by the French government of Marshal Philippe Pétain based in Vichy,...
" in Montpellier and Tunisia, but he was arrested for resisting the German military occupation
Case Anton
Operation Anton was the codename for the military occupation of Vichy France carried out by Germany and Italy in November 1942.- Background :...
of Vichy France
Vichy France
Vichy France, Vichy Regime, or Vichy Government, are common terms used to describe the government of France that collaborated with the Axis powers from July 1940 to August 1944. This government succeeded the Third Republic and preceded the Provisional Government of the French Republic...
in November 1942, and sentenced to 10 years in prison. Bernard de Lattre, then aged 15, aided his father's escape from Riom prison on 3 September 1943. His father went to Algiers via London, while Bernard and his mother went into hiding. Bernard eventually escaped France through the Pyrenees, and crossed Spain to reach North Africa. There, like his father, he joined the forces of the Free French.
Still only 16, Bernard received special dispensation from General Charles de Gaulle
Charles de Gaulle
Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle was a French general and statesman who led the Free French Forces during World War II. He later founded the French Fifth Republic in 1958 and served as its first President from 1959 to 1969....
to join the army being assembled to invade France, and subsequently fought in the liberation of southern France and also in Germany. He was seriously wounded on 8 September 1944, at Autun
Autun
Autun is a commune in the Saône-et-Loire department in Burgundy in eastern France. It was founded during the early Roman Empire as Augustodunum. Autun marks the easternmost extent of the Umayyad campaign in Europe.-Early history:...
, returning later to fight again in Germany. It was for his actions in these campaigns that he received the Médaille militaire
Médaille militaire
The Médaille militaire is a decoration of the French Republic which was first instituted in 1852.-History:The creator of the médaille was the emperor Napoléon III, who may have taken his inspiration in a medal issued by his father, Louis Bonaparte, King of Holland...
, the youngest to receive that medal, and his first Croix de guerre
Croix de guerre
The Croix de guerre is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was awarded during World War I, again in World War II, and in other conflicts...
.
Following the war, Bernard de Lattre studied at the French military school (the EMIA) from August 1945, training in the armoured cavalry section. He was promoted to Lieutenant on 26 November 1948.
First Indochina War and death
Bernard de Lattre served in the French army during the First Indochina WarFirst Indochina War
The First Indochina War was fought in French Indochina from December 19, 1946, until August 1, 1954, between the French Union's French Far East...
, embarking at Marseille on 1 July 1949. He became a platoon and then squadron leader, and took part in the Battle of Dien Mai. He received his second Croix de guerre during this campaign, being awarded the medal by his father on 11 May 1951. He was killed in action 19 days later, near Ninh Binh
Ninh Bình
Ninh Bình is a city in the Red River Delta of northern Vietnam. It is the capital of Ninh Binh province.-Geography:Ninh Binh city located in the southernmost plains north Vietnam...
, during the Battle of the Day River
Battle of the Day River
The Battle of the Day River took place between late May and early June 1951, around the Day River Delta in the Gulf of Tonkin...
. The citation for his actions concluded:
Following his son's death, his father arranged for a Catholic mass to be held in the cathedral in Hanoi. Two days after the battle, Bernard de Lattre's body was flown home to France, accompanied by his father, and the young soldier was buried with military honours. The graves of all three de Lattres are now located side-by-side in the cemetery in Mouilleron-en-Pareds
Mouilleron-en-Pareds
Mouilleron-en-Pareds is a commune in the Vendée department in the Pays de la Loire region in western France. It is in the Fontenay-le-Comte arrondissement....
, the birthplace of Jean de Lattre.
Bernard de Lattre's death received widespread press coverage at the time, including articles in Le Figaro
Le Figaro
Le Figaro is a French daily newspaper founded in 1826 and published in Paris. It is one of three French newspapers of record, with Le Monde and Libération, and is the oldest newspaper in France. It is also the second-largest national newspaper in France after Le Parisien and before Le Monde, but...
, Le Monde
Le Monde
Le Monde is a French daily evening newspaper owned by La Vie-Le Monde Group and edited in Paris. It is one of two French newspapers of record, and has generally been well respected since its first edition under founder Hubert Beuve-Méry on 19 December 1944...
, The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
and TIME
Time
Time is a part of the measuring system used to sequence events, to compare the durations of events and the intervals between them, and to quantify rates of change such as the motions of objects....
magazine. His funeral was featured in LIFE
Life
Life is a characteristic that distinguishes objects that have signaling and self-sustaining processes from those that do not, either because such functions have ceased , or else because they lack such functions and are classified as inanimate...
magazine as 'Picture of the Week'.
Decorations
- 1944 - Médaille militaireMédaille militaireThe Médaille militaire is a decoration of the French Republic which was first instituted in 1852.-History:The creator of the médaille was the emperor Napoléon III, who may have taken his inspiration in a medal issued by his father, Louis Bonaparte, King of Holland...
- 1944 - Croix de guerre 1939-1945Croix de guerre 1939-1945 (France)The Croix de guerre 1939–1945 is a French military decoration created on September 26, 1939, to honour people who fought with the Allies against the Axis force at any time during World War II.-Recipients:...
- 1951 - Croix de guerre des Théatres d'Opérations ExterieuresCroix de guerre des Théatres d'Opérations ExterieuresThe Croix de guerre des théâtres d’opérations extérieures is a French medal rewarded for military service in foreign countries. It is granted to individuals who have received citations for their actions while engaged in military service overseas.-History:...
Legacy
Bernard de Lattre's death greatly impacted his father and mother. His father in particular was said to have been deeply affected, and he died of cancer less than eight months later. His mother, now entitled to call herself Madame la Maréchale following the posthumous promotion of her husband, is described in an obituary published in 2003, as having "devoted herself to the memory of her son and to the history of her husband and the armies that he had commanded".In 1952, a 308-page book titled Un destin héroïque: Bernard de Lattre (A heroic destiny: Bernard de Lattre), was published. The book is a collection of stories of Bernard's life, along with letters that he wrote. The book was written and edited by the French professor of philosophy Robert Garric. A further written response to Bernard de Lattre's death was provided by his mother in her two-volume work on her husband: Jean de Lattre: mon mari (Paris, 1972). In this work, Madame de Lattre writes about her husband's response to the death of their son, but also writes about her own feelings, and the idealism of a generation of French soldiers dying as her son had.
One of the lasting memorials to Bernard de Lattre is a small open-air chapel in the commune of Wildenstein
Wildenstein
Wildenstein is a commune in the Haut-Rhin department in Alsace in north-eastern France.-References:*...
, in the Haut-Rhin
Haut-Rhin
Haut-Rhin is a département of the Alsace region of France, named after the Rhine river. Its name means Upper Rhine. Haut-Rhin is the smaller and less populated of the two departements of Alsace, although is still densely populated compared to the rest of France.-Subdivisions:The department...
département in Alsace
Alsace
Alsace is the fifth-smallest of the 27 regions of France in land area , and the smallest in metropolitan France. It is also the seventh-most densely populated region in France and third most densely populated region in metropolitan France, with ca. 220 inhabitants per km²...
in north-eastern France. Now known as the Chapelle Saint-Bernard, this structure was inaugurated in 1955. It consists of an altar and a small shelter beside a hiking trail. Construction at the site began in 1954, using plans approved by Madame de Lattre. The building material used was pink sandstone from nearby Rouffach
Rouffach
Rouffach is a commune in the Haut-Rhin department in Alsace in north-eastern France.Rouffach lies along the Alsatian wine route ....
. The site is dedicated to the memory of Bernard de Lattre, his father Jean de Lattre, and the French forces that fought in the area in 1944 to liberate Alsace from the Germans in World War II. The chapel later fell into disrepair, but was renovated and reinaugurated during a service on 20 August 2004, the day dedicated to Saint Bernard of Clairvaux
Bernard of Clairvaux
Bernard of Clairvaux, O.Cist was a French abbot and the primary builder of the reforming Cistercian order.After the death of his mother, Bernard sought admission into the Cistercian order. Three years later, he was sent to found a new abbey at an isolated clearing in a glen known as the Val...
. There is an annual service held here in honour of Bernard de Lattre de Tassigny, attended by veteran associations, local dignitaries and relatives of the de Lattres.
Also located in Wildenstein is the Centre Bernard de Lattre, which includes a memorial to Jean de Lattre. This memorial was originally located in Algeria, but was moved to Wildenstein in 1962 after Algeria gained independence from France. Additional commemoration of Bernard de Lattre's name came when the 1984-1985 class of the Ecole Militaire Interarmes, the military school at which he had studied, was named 'Promotion Lieutenant Bernard de Lattre de Tassigny' in his honour. An annual service also takes place at the graves of the de Lattres in Mouilleron-en-Pareds.
Historians and other authors writing about the First Indochina War have commented on the symbolism of Bernard de Lattre's death. In Soldats perdus: de l'Indochine à l'Algérie, dans la tourmente des guerres (2007), French journalist and author Hélène Erlingsen says that Bernard de Lattre's death was symbolic "of the modern world devastated by war" and that his life was "representative of our time". Bernard de Lattre's death has been placed in context in relation to other deaths in this war, with Brian Moynahan, in the 2007 work The French century: an illustrated history of modern France, noting that "in all 21 sons of French marshals and generals died in Indochina".
External links
- Promotion Lieutenant Bernard de Lattre de Tassigny (emia.delattre.free.fr)
- Biography of Bernard de Lattre de Tassigny (Soldats de France.fr)