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François-Henry Laperrine (born Marie Joseph François Henry Laperrine d'Hautpoul, September 29, 1860 - March 5, 1920) was a French
Laperrine died after a plane crash (a Breguet) in the Sahara in 1920. His companions, Lieutenant Bernard and mechanic Marcel Vasselin survived and recorded Le Peerrine's last words, "People think they know the desert...People think I know it. Nobody really knows it. I have crossed the Sahara ten times and I will stay here." Bernard and Vasselin buried Laperrine near the plane, but when a rescue party arrived he was disinterred and buried in
general
A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry.
In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...
who served during World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
.
Biography
Laperrine entered theÉcole Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr
The École spéciale militaire de Saint-Cyr (ESM, literally the "Special Military School of Saint-Cyr") is a French military academy, and is often referred to as Saint-Cyr (). It is located in Coëtquidan in Guer, Morbihan, Brittany. Its motto is ...
in October 1878 and became a captain in the 2nd Dragoons in November 1891. Laperrine organized the Compagnie Méharistes Sahariennes in 1897. He was a friend of Charles de Foucauld
Charles Eugène de Foucauld de Pontbriand, Viscount of Foucauld (15 September 1858 – 1 December 1916) was a French soldier, explorer, geographer, ethnographer, Catholic priest and hermit who lived among the Tuareg people in the Sahara in Al ...
who was killed in 1916 in Tamanrasset
Tamanrasset (; ar, تامنراست), also known as Tamanghasset or Tamenghest, is an oasis city and capital of Tamanrasset Province in southern Algeria, in the Ahaggar Mountains. It is the chief city of the Algerian Tuareg. It is located an alt ...
.Foucauld, Charles de, and Marie Joseph François Henri Laperrine. ''Lettres inédites au général Laperrine, pacificateur du Sahara''. Paris: La Colombe, 1954. The two were honored on a stamp of Algeria in 1950.
Laperrine died after a plane crash (a Breguet) in the Sahara in 1920. His companions, Lieutenant Bernard and mechanic Marcel Vasselin survived and recorded Le Peerrine's last words, "People think they know the desert...People think I know it. Nobody really knows it. I have crossed the Sahara ten times and I will stay here." Bernard and Vasselin buried Laperrine near the plane, but when a rescue party arrived he was disinterred and buried in Tamanrasset
Tamanrasset (; ar, تامنراست), also known as Tamanghasset or Tamenghest, is an oasis city and capital of Tamanrasset Province in southern Algeria, in the Ahaggar Mountains. It is the chief city of the Algerian Tuareg. It is located an alt ...
next to Foucauld. The fort was named for Laperrine.
Honors
*Grand officier de la Légion d'honneur
Grand may refer to:
People with the name
* Grand (surname)
* Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor
* Grand Mixer DXT, American turntablist
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Places
* Grand, Oklahoma
* Grand, Vosges, village and co ...
*Croix de guerre 1914-1918
Croix (French for "cross") may refer to:
Belgium
* Croix-lez-Rouveroy, a village in municipality of Estinnes in the province of Hainaut
France
* Croix, Nord, in the Nord department
* Croix, Territoire de Belfort, in the Territoire de Belfort d ...
* Médaille coloniale avec agrafes Algérie, Soudan, Sénégal, Sahara, AOF
* Croix de guerre belge 1914-1918 avec palme
References
Further reading
* * *Lehuraux, Léon. ''Laperrine, le saharien''. Paris: Éditions de l'Encyclopédie de l'Empire français, 1947. * *External links
* 1860 births 1920 deaths École Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr alumni French generals French military personnel of World War I Grand Officiers of the Légion d'honneur People from Castelnaudary Recipients of the Croix de guerre (Belgium) Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1914–1918 (France) Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in Africa Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1920 {{France-mil-bio-stub