General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

Gérard Charles Édouard Thériault, CMM, CD (June 5, 1932 in

Gaspé, Quebec Gaspé () is a city at the tip of the Gaspé Peninsula in the Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine region of eastern Quebec in Canada. Gaspé is about northeast of Quebec City and east of Rimouski. Gaspé has a total population of 15,063, as of th ...

, Canada – October 13, 1998 in

Victoria, British Columbia Victoria is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of British Columbia, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast. The city has a population of 91,867, and the Gre ...

, Canada) was Chief of the Defence Staff between 1983 and 1986.

Military service

Thériault graduated from

Sir George Williams University Sir George Williams University was a university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It merged with Loyola College to create Concordia University on August 24, 1974. History In 1851, the first YMCA in North America was established on Sainte-Hélène St ...

(now

Concordia University Concordia University () is a Public university, public English-language research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1974 following the merger of Loyola College (Montreal), Loyola College and Sir George Williams Universit ...

) in

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

.The Canadian Encyclopedia
/ref> He joined the

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; ) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environmental commands within the unified Can ...

in 1951. His first solo flight, where he earned his wings, took place on June 5, 1952, in a

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...

aircraft. He was a proponent of the unification of the military of Canada. In 1967 he was promoted to

wing commander Wing commander (Wg Cdr or W/C) is a senior officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many countries that have historical British influence. Wing commander is immediately se ...

and moved to the Collège Militaire Royal (CMR), St-Jean, Qué, now

Royal Military College Saint-Jean The Royal Military College Saint-Jean (), commonly referred to as RMC Saint-Jean and CMR, is a Canadian Military academy, military college and university. It is located on the historical site of Fort Saint-Jean (Quebec), Fort Saint-Jean, in Sai ...

where he served as vice-commandant until 1970. Promoted to

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

, he became commandant of the CMR in 1970. In 1971, he was assigned command of

Canadian Forces Base Bagotville Canadian Forces Base Bagotville , commonly referred to as CFB Bagotville, and also known as Bagotville Airport or Saguenay-Bagotville Airport, is a Canadian Forces base west of Bagotville in the city of Saguenay. Located in the centre of Quebe ...

in Northern Québec. In 1973, he was promoted to brigadier general and took over command of 1 CAG (First Canadian Air Group) in Germany. In 1975, he was promoted to major general and assumed command of Air Command in Winnipeg, Manitoba. In 1977, he was transferred to Ottawa as the CADO (Chief, Air Doctrine Operations). In 1979, he was installed as the Deputy Chief of Defence Staff (DCDS). In 1980, he became Vice Chief of the Defence Staff and Chief of the Defence Staff in 1983 before retiring in 1986. He was President of

AEG The initials AEG are used for or may refer to: Common meanings * AEG (German company) ; AEG) was a German producer of electrical equipment. It was established in 1883 by Emil Rathenau as the ''Deutsche Edison-Gesellschaft für angewandte El ...

Canada Inc. until 1995.

References

, - 1932 births 1998 deaths Chiefs of the Defence Staff (Canada) Royal Canadian Air Force officers Canadian Forces Air Command generals Sir George Williams University alumni People from Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine Academic staff of the Royal Military College Saint-Jean Vice chiefs of the Defence Staff (Canada) Commanders of the Order of Military Merit (Canada) Canadian military personnel from Quebec {{Canada-mil-bio-stub