Joseph André Horace Jean Berthiaume, OBE, CD (November 27, 1915 – January 26, 2003) was a

Canadian Army The Canadian Army (french: Armée canadienne) is the command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also respo ...

officer who served with the Régiment de St-Hyacinthe, the

Royal Canadian Infantry Corps The Royal Canadian Infantry Corps (french: Corps d'infanterie royal canadien) is the infantry corps of the Canadian Army and includes regular and reserve force regiments. Originally formed as the Canadian Infantry Corps on 2 September 1942 to en ...

and the Royal 22^e Régiment.

Early education

Jean André Berthiaume was born on November 27, 1915, in St-Hyacinthe, Quebec. He studied at the Séminaire de St-Hyacinthe, where he earned a degree in letters and arts. He then pursued another degree at the

Université de Montréal The Université de Montréal (UdeM; ; translates to University of Montreal) is a French-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university's main campus is located in the Côte-des-Neiges neighborhood of Côte-de ...

, where he got a degree in chemistry.

Before the War

At the same time his father was serving at the Regiment, Jean Berthiaume enlisted with the 84th Régiment de St-Hyacinthe in 1936. There completed his basic training as a private and rose to the rank of sergeant. Later he received his officer commission and was promoted to lieutenant. He married Mme Denise Lapierre on April 14, 1940, at the St-Hyacinthe Cathedral.

World War II

As the war broke out, then Lieutenant Berthiaume continued training his troops in St-Hyacinthe. He was transferred to the 4th Canadian Armoured Brigade at camp Debert in

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

for preparatory training as GSO with the 7th Canadian Infantry Brigade. He then went to the

Canadian Army Command and Staff College The Canadian Army Command and Staff College (CACSC), formerly the Canadian Land Force Command and Staff College, is a school for officers of the Canadian Forces, specializing in staff and army operations courses. It is located at Fort Frontenac, ...

in Kingston and after shipped to

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. Most of the Canadians in reinforcement stayed in England for almost two years (1942–1944) until

D-Day The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as D ...

. When arriving in France, as GSO 3 Operations, then captain Berthiaume aided in the orientation of some operations towards the ultimate victory. By the end of the conflict, he was transferred to the 1st Canadian Infantry Division.

After the war

On April 26, 1946, then captain Berthiaume was posted to

NDHQ National Defence Headquarters (NDHQ) (French: ''Quartiers généraux de la Défense nationale'' (''QGDN'')) was created through the integration of Canadian Armed Forces Headquarters (CAF HQ) with the civilian Department of National Defence (DND) ...

as GSO 2 and the next day was promoted to the rank of Temporary major (T/maj). On November 22, 1947, he was promoted to the rank of major. After three years in Ottawa, then major Berthiaume went to the Canadian Army Training School in St-Jean, Quebec, in 1949. He managed the Canadian Army Training School in St-Jean before it was transferred to

Valcartier Canadian Forces Base Valcartier (CFB Valcartier), now re-designated 2 Canadian Division Support Base Valcartier (2 CDSB Valcartier), is a Canadian Forces base located in the municipality of Saint-Gabriel-de-Valcartier, north northwest of Quebec ...

in 1952. He stayed and contributed to the building of the

Collège militaire royal de Saint-Jean The Royal Military College Saint-Jean (french: link=no, Collège militaire royal de 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 ...

as Director of Administration. An uncommon event occurred a few days after Christmas in 1952. A child of one of the CMR's staff fell into the icy waters of the Richelieu river. Upon hearing the child's cry for help, the CMR commandant, colonel Lahaie went onto the ice to rescue the boy, assisted by Captain Gosselin and Major Berthiaume. Others came along as the alarm was sounded. They were all pulled to safety; the child was saved. Major Berthiaume left St-Jean for Valcartier in 1953 and went to the 2nd Battalion Royal 22^e Régiment as deputy commander. He packed the battalion and headed for

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

as Canada's

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

infantry contribution. After setting up over with the 4th Canadian Infantry Brigade, he still was very involved within the military community like in the celebrations of the 10th anniversary of Normandy where he commanded the Canadian group during the weekend long celebrations. In July 1954, he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant-colonel and was chosen as the Canadian representative at the

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Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

for a year. Back in Canada, Lcol Berthiaume in 1957, took command of the 1st battalion Royal 22^e Régiment until 1960. He was a true gentleman in sharing the warm French-Canadian culture as host of many social functions at the Citadelle. Leaving Quebec in early summer of 1960, LCol Berthiaume was flown to work with the

UNTSO The United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) is an organization founded on 29 May 1948 for peacekeeping in the Middle East. Established amidst the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, its primary task was initially to provide the military com ...

in Palestine. Soon after, in July 1960, he headed to Congo as a

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

chief of staff of the

ONUC The United Nations Operation in the Congo (french: Opération des Nations Unies au Congo, abbreviated to ONUC) was a United Nations peacekeeping force deployed in the Republic of the Congo in 1960 in response to the Congo Crisis. ONUC was the ...

contingent. Berthiaume Congo 1960

Back in Canada, he went to serve as

adjutant general An adjutant general is a military chief administrative officer. France In Revolutionary France, the was a senior staff officer, effectively an assistant to a general officer. It was a special position for lieutenant-colonels and colonels in staf ...

at the Quebec Command HQ. Promoted to the rank of

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military 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 colonel was typically in charge of ...

, he commanded the Quebec Western District until his retirement in 1969. During those years, he commanded the Royal Army Cadet Camp of Farnham that closed in 1967.

Civilian life

Upon leaving the service in 1969,

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military 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 colonel was typically in charge of ...

(Ret.) Berthiaume went to work for the Wabasso company in

Trois-Rivières Trois-Rivières (, – 'Three Rivers') is a city in the Mauricie administrative region of Quebec, Canada, at the confluence of the Saint-Maurice River, Saint-Maurice and Saint Lawrence River, Saint Lawrence rivers, on the north shore of the Sain ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

as Director of Operations Services until his retirement in 1980. During those years, he became involved with the Canadian Manufacturers Association as president of the St. Maurice chapter.

(Ret.) Berthiaume was a member of the

Royal Canadian Legion The Royal Canadian Legion is a non-profit Canadian ex-service organization (veterans' organization) founded in 1925. Membership includes people who have served as military, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, provincial and municipal police, Royal ...

, Branch #2 of St-Hyacinthe with which he was devoted in many aspects. Colonel Berthiaume continued his involvement and contribution to the

throughout the years. He always proved a good golf player at the annual benefit golf tournament and other activities. In St-Hyacinthe, he was a devoted contributor to the Honoré-Mercier hospital's foundation. Berthiaume - cadet CC1

Army cadets

During the final years of his active career, Colonel Berthiaume commanded the Royal Army Cadet Camp of Farnham that closed in 1967. He was particularly close to the Army Corps de Cadets No. 1 from his hometown. In the mid-1990s, he donated several musical instruments to found a band created for children to play in. Organizers agreed to call it "La musique J. A. Berthiaume."

Honours

After

World War 2 World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, Jean Berthiaume received the MID for his outstanding services. For his devotion in the creation of the CMR St-Jean, Colonel Berthiaume was given an honorary college number: H12878.

J. A. Berthiaume was invested into the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

in 1962 for his impressive organizational skills, initiative, linguistic ability, unmatched negotiating skills and his bravery during the

mission in Congo. He was the first Canadian officer to be given that recognition since the Second World War. In 1969 he was nominated in the

Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St John of Jerusalem The Order of St John, short for Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem (french: l'ordre très vénérable de l'Hôpital de Saint-Jean de Jérusalem) and also known as St John International, is a British royal order of ...

as Officier. In 1977, he was promoted to Knight of the Order. Médailles J

The city of St-Hyacinthe consecrated one of its streets' name in his memory in 2006.

Last post

In 2003 after his last short battle with a secretly kept illness, Colonel (Ret.) Jean André Berthiaume was laid to rest in St-Hyacinthe, with full military honours. His wife Denise died in 2010.

Books

Books in which

Berthiaume has either contributed to or is mentioned in include: * ''Canada, the Congo Crisis, and UN Peacekeeping, 1960–64'' * Pearson's Peacekeepers: Canada and the United Nations Emergency Force, 1956-67 * ''Le Canada dans les guerres en Afrique centrale: génocides et pillages des ressources minières du Congo par le Rwanda interposé'' * Le Collège militaire Royal de Saint-Jean, Une université à caractère différent * Canadian Defence Quarterly, Volume 22 * In the eye of the storm: a history of Canadian peacekeeping * Biographies canadiennes-françaises * Uncertain mandate; politics of the U.N. Congo operation * De Rivière-de-la-Paix au maintien de la paix: les batailles d'un Franco Albertain * Chronique de politique étrangère, Volume 14 * Evolution de la crise congolaise de septembre 1960 à avril 1961 * Revue générale pour l'humaniste des temps nouveaux * United Nations Peacekeeping, 1946-1967 * Soldiering for Peace * Canadian House of Commons Debates, Official Report, Volume 7 , - , - , -

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Berthiaume, Jean 1915 births 2003 deaths Canadian Officers of the Order of the British Empire Royal 22nd Regiment officers Royal Military College Saint-Jean alumni United Nations military personnel French Quebecers Canadian Army personnel of World War II Canadian Militia officers People from Saint-Hyacinthe Knights of the Order of St John Canadian officials of the United Nations