Lieutenant-General Louis Bernheim (1 September 1861 – 13 February 1931) was a

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct languag ...

career soldier and general, best known for his service 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 ...

. He is also notable as one of Belgium's highest ranking soldiers of Jewish origin.

Biography

Louis Bernheim was born into a

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

family in

Saint-Josse-ten-Noode Saint-Josse-ten-Noode () or Sint-Joost-ten-Node (), often simply called Saint-Josse or Sint-Joost, is one of the 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. Located in the north-eastern part of the region, it is bordered by the C ...

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

on 1 September 1861. His parents had emigrated to Belgium from Nancy, France in 1858. Entering the École Militaire in 1878, he joined the Regiment of Grenadiers as a second lieutenant at the age of 19. He later taught at the Royal Military Academy in Brussels and rose through the ranks rapidly. By the time of the German invasion of Belgium in August 1914, Bernheim was serving as a

lieutenant-colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colo ...

in the 7th Regiment of the Line. Bernheim was promoted to command the 3rd Brigade during the Siege of Antwerp in September 1914 and commanded his unit during the fighting around the Nete. He was promoted to

major-general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

in November and, in 1915, was given command of the 1st Army Division in the Steenstrate section of the

Yser Front The Yser Front (french: Front de l'Yser, nl, Front aan de IJzer or ), sometimes termed the West Flemish Front in British writing, was a section of the Western Front during World War I held by Belgian troops from October 1914 until 1918. The front ...

. During an inspection of his troops at the front in September 1915, he was severely wounded by an enemy artillery shell but returned to service after just two months' convalescence. In March 1916, he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant-general. His command of the 1st Army Division coincided with the emergence of the Frontbeweging in 1917, a

Flemish Movement The Flemish Movement ( nl, Vlaamse Beweging) is an umbrella term which encompasses various political groups in the Belgium, Belgian region of Flanders and, less commonly, in French Flanders. Ideologically, it encompasses groups which have sought ...

group which began to agitate against perceived discrimination in the Belgian Army. Bernheim was criticized personally by ''

Flamingant The term ''flamingant'', in both Dutch and French, refers to an adherent of the Flemish Movement. Originating as a pejorative term use by Belgian nationalists, it may be equally used as an adjective or substantive and the term ''flamingantisme'' ...

'' soldiers for his attempts to suppress it. In September 1918, he was placed in command of a group of three army divisions on the Yser during the Belgian advance in the

Hundred Days' Offensive The Hundred Days Offensive (8 August to 11 November 1918) was a series of massive Allied offensives that ended the First World War. Beginning with the Battle of Amiens (8–12 August) on the Western Front, the Allies pushed the Central Powers ...

. Berheim's units were notably involved in the capture of the important forest at

Houthulst Houthulst (; vls, Oetulst, ) is a municipality located in the Belgian province of West Flanders. The municipality consists of the sub-municipalities Houthulst, Jonkershove, Klerken and Merkem. On January 1, 2006, Houthulst had a total populatio ...

. After the end of the war, he was promoted to Inspector General of the Infantry and he officially retired from the army in 1926. Among the awards received by Bernheim during his career was the

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

and the

Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved Bathing#Medieval ...

. Bernheim died in 1931 while visiting his daughter in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, 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), ma ...

, France. As a

freethinker Freethought (sometimes spelled free thought) is an epistemological viewpoint which holds that beliefs should not be formed on the basis of authority, tradition, revelation, or dogma, and that beliefs should instead be reached by other metho ...

, he had demanded to be

cremated Cremation is a method of final disposition of a dead body through burning. Cremation may serve as a funeral or post-funeral rite and as an alternative to burial. In some countries, including India and Nepal, cremation on an open-air pyre i ...

at his death and, because Belgian law did not permit it at the time, was cremated in France. His funeral was attended by King Albert I and the former prime minister,

Charles de Broqueville Charles Marie Pierre Albert, 1st Count de Broqueville (4 December 1860 – 5 September 1940) was the prime minister of Belgium, serving during World War I. Before 1914 Charles de Broqueville was born into an old noble family with its roots in ...

. Bernheim is memorialised by an avenue in

Etterbeek Etterbeek (French: ; Dutch: ) is one of the 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. Located in the eastern part of the region, it is bordered by the municipalities of Auderghem, the City of Brussels, Ixelles, Schaerbeek, Wolu ...

and by a public statue by Edmond de Valériola on the Square Marie-Louise, both in Brussels.

Autography

*''La question militaire'' (1928)

References

Bibliography

External links

Bernheim statue
at Brussels Remembers

at Iris Monument {{DEFAULTSORT:Bernheim, Louis 1861 births 1931 deaths Belgian Army generals of World War I People from Saint-Josse-ten-Noode Belgian Jews Jewish military personnel Honorary Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Commandeurs of the Légion d'honneur Belgian people of French descent

Biography

Autography

See also

References

Bibliography

External links