Georges Thierry d'Argenlieu, in religion Father Louis of the Trinity,

O.C.D. The Discalced Carmelites, known officially as the Order of the Discalced Carmelites of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel ( la, Ordo Fratrum Carmelitarum Discalceatorum Beatae Mariae Virginis de Monte Carmelo) or the Order of Discalced Carme ...

(7 August 1889 – 7 September 1964), was a

Discalced Carmelite The Discalced Carmelites, known officially as the Order of the Discalced Carmelites of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel ( la, Ordo Fratrum Carmelitarum Discalceatorum Beatae Mariae Virginis de Monte Carmelo) or the Order of Discalced Carme ...

friar and priest, who was also a diplomat and French Navy officer and admiral; he became one of the major personalities of the ''

Forces navales françaises libres The Free French Naval Forces (french: Forces Navales Françaises Libres, or FNFL) were the naval arm of the Free French Forces during the Second World War. They were commanded by Admiral Émile Muselier. History In the wake of the Armistice a ...

''. He was the chancellor of the ''

Ordre de la Libération The Order of Liberation (french: Ordre de la Libération) is a French Order which was awarded to heroes of the Liberation of France during World War II. It is a very high honour, second only after the ''Légion d’Honneur'' (Legion of Honour ...

''.

Early career

He was born in Brest on 7 August 1889, in a family of Navy officers. He joined the ''École navale'' (Naval Academy) at 17. D'Argenlieu served on the ''Du Chayla'' as a midshipman, taking part in the campaign in Morocco, which led to the Treaty of Fez, in 1912. During the campaign, he was awarded the Legion of Honour, and befriended Hubert Lyautey, something that d'Argenlieu later recalled as one of the happy memories in his life.

First World War

During the First World War, d'Argenlieu served in the Mediterranean; in 1915, while on leave in Malta, he became a member of the Secular Order of Discalced Carmelites. He was promoted to '' lieutenant de vaisseau'' in 1917. The next year, as commanding officer of a patrol boat, the ''Tourterelle'', he distinguished himself in the rescue of a troop transport.

Religious career

Upon the conclusion of the war, d'Argenlieu undertook theological studies at the Pontifical Angelicum College, the future Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas, ''Angelicum'' in Rome, which he completed in 1920. That year, he entered the

novitiate The novitiate, also called the noviciate, is the period of training and preparation that a Christian ''novice'' (or ''prospective'') monastic, apostolic, or member of a religious order undergoes prior to taking vows in order to discern whether ...

of the Discalced Carmelite friars in Avon, Seine-et-Marne. He professed his initial

religious vows Religious vows are the public vows made by the members of religious communities pertaining to their conduct, practices, and views. In the Buddhism tradition, in particular within the Mahayana and Vajrayana tradition, many different kinds of re ...

as a member of the Order on 15 September 1921 and was given the

religious habit A religious habit is a distinctive set of religious clothing worn by members of a religious order. Traditionally some plain garb recognizable as a religious habit has also been worn by those leading the religious eremitic and anchoritic life, ...

and the

religious name A religious name is a type of given name bestowed for a religious purposes, and which is generally used in such contexts. Christianity Catholic Church Baptismal name In baptism, Catholic Church, Catholics are given a Christian name, which should ...

of Louis de la Trinité (Louis of the Trinity). D'Argenlieu then studied theology for four years at the

Catholic University of Lille The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a p ...

. He finished his studies there and was ordained a priest there in 1925. The Discalced Carmelite friars re-established a Province of Paris in 1932, and he was elected

Prior Provincial Prior (or prioress) is an ecclesiastical title for a superior in some religious orders. The word is derived from the Latin for "earlier" or "first". Its earlier generic usage referred to any monastic superior. In abbeys, a prior would be l ...

in 1935.

Second World War

In September 1939, d'Argenlieu was mobilised as a reserve Navy officer, rising to the rank of ''

capitaine de corvette Corvette captain is a rank in many navies which theoretically corresponds to command of a corvette (small warship). The equivalent rank in the United Kingdom, Commonwealth, and United States is lieutenant commander. The Royal Canadian Navy use ...

'' in 1940. During the

Battle of France The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the Nazi Germany, German invasion of French Third Rep ...

, d'Argenlieu was captured as he was defending the arsenal of

Cherbourg Cherbourg (; , , ), nrf, Chèrbourg, ) is a former commune and subprefecture located at the northern end of the Cotentin peninsula in the northwestern French department of Manche. It was merged into the commune of Cherbourg-Octeville on 28 Feb ...

. After three days, he escaped from the prisoner train to Germany and joined

Charles de Gaulle Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (; ; (commonly abbreviated as CDG) 22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French army officer and statesman who led Free France against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Government ...

on 30 June. D'Argenlieu joined the Free French Forces, intending to serve as chaplain, but eventually took on the duties of a fighting naval officer, with a special authorisation of his religious superiors because of the small number of Navy officers in the Free French Naval Forces. He was made chief of staff in July. He attempted to convince the

Vichy French Vichy France (french: Régime de Vichy; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was the fascist French state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II. Officially independent, but with half of its terr ...

governor of Dakar to join De Gaulle and was severely wounded when he was fired upon in his small and unarmed craft on 23 September, during the Battle of Dakar. In November, he directed successful operations in Gabon. D'Argenlieu was made a ''

capitaine de vaisseau Captain is the name most often given in English-speaking navies to the rank corresponding to command of the largest ships. The rank is equal to the army rank of colonel and air force rank of group captain. Equivalent ranks worldwide includ ...

'', and chancellor of the newly created ''

''. In 1941, he rose to counter admiral; he undertook several missions to administer French colonies loyal to Free France. In 1943, he was made commanding officer for the naval forces in Great Britain On 14 June 1944, he ferried de Gaulle to France aboard the destroyer , and entered Paris with him on 25 August.

First Indochina War

After the defeat of Japan, d'Argenlieu arrived in French Indochina on 31 October 1945. As High Commissioner of the French Far East Expeditionary Corps, his task was to restore the French colonial administration. In 1946, he was promoted to ''

vice-amiral d'escadre Squadron vice-admiral (french: Vice-amiral d'escadre) is a naval rank found in navies of the world which follow the French tradition of naval ranks. The squadron vice-admiral leads a squadron and is typically senior to a vice-admiral and junior ...

'', and soon later to

admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

. As High Commissioner in Indochina, he installed a puppet

Autonomous Republic of Cochinchina French Cochinchina (sometimes spelled ''Cochin-China''; french: Cochinchine française; vi, Xứ thuộc địa Nam Kỳ, Hán tự: ) was a colony of French Indochina, encompassing the whole region of Lower Cochinchina or Southern Vietnam fr ...

in violation of the March 6 Ho–Sainteny agreement whilst the Viet Minh leadership was in negotiations in France, effectively beginning the First Indochina War.Frederick Logevall ''

Embers of War ''Embers of War: The Fall of an Empire and the Making of America's Vietnam'' is a 2012 book by the Cornell University historian Fredrik Logevall, which won the 2013 Pulitzer Prize for History. It also won the inaugural American Library in Paris ...

'' Random House 2012 p.137 During the war, his actions grew more and more controversial, and in March 1947, he was replaced by Émile Bollaert. Back in France, he was made inspector general of the Naval Forces before retiring to a monastery.

Later life

In 1958, sick, d'Argenlieu resigned his position of chancellor of the ''

'' and withdrew to monastery life again. He died on 7 September 1964 in Brest and was buried in

Avrechy Avrechy () is a Communes of France, commune in the Oise Departments of France, department in northern France. Population See also * Communes of the Oise department References

Communes of Oise {{Oise-geo-stub ...

Honours

* Grand Cross of the '' Légion d'Honneur'' * '' Compagnon de la Libération'' * '' Médaille Militaire'' * ''

Croix de Guerre The ''Croix de Guerre'' (, ''Cross of War'') 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 first awa ...

'' 39–45 with 3 palms * '' Croix de Guerre des Théâtres d'Opérations Extérieures (TOE) with palm * '' Médaille de la Résistance avec rosette '' * ''

Insigne des blessés militaires The Medal for the War Wounded (french: Médaille des blessés de guerre) was originally a mere insignia in the form of an ribbon awarded for wounds received in the line of duty while facing an enemy. The insignia was established by the law of 11 De ...

'' * ''Médaille du Sauvetage '' * ''Médaille du Maroc '' * Belgian ''

'' with palm * Commander of the Order of Léopold (Belgium) * Companion of the Order of the Bath (UK) * ''Médaille du Sauvetage '' * ''Médaille du Maroc ''

Works

* ''La Croix de la Libération'', Paris 1951 * ''Chroniques d'Indochine 1945-1947'', Paris 1985 * ''Souvenirs de Guerre : juin 1940-janvier 1941'', Paris 1973

References

External links

worldatwar.net
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thierry D'argenlieu, Georges 1889 births 1964 deaths Clergy from Brest, France French military personnel of World War I Discalced Carmelites Breton Roman Catholic priests 20th-century French Roman Catholic priests Free French Naval Forces officers French Navy personnel of World War II French military personnel of the First Indochina War Companions of the Liberation Honorary Companions of the Order of the Bath Grand Croix of the Légion d'honneur Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1939–1945 (France) Recipients of the Croix de guerre des théâtres d'opérations extérieures Recipients of the Resistance Medal Recipients of the Croix de guerre (Belgium) French Navy admirals Burials in Hauts-de-France French prisoners of war in World War II World War II prisoners of war held by Germany French escapees French Navy officers from Brest, France