Maurice Amiot (19 March 1932 – 2 April 1961) was a French soldier who fought in the

First Indochina War The First Indochina War (generally known as the Indochina War in France, and as the Anti-French Resistance War in Vietnam) began in French Indochina from 19 December 1946 to 20 July 1954 between France and Việt Minh (Democratic Republic of Vi ...

and the

Algerian War The Algerian War, also known as the Algerian Revolution or the Algerian War of Independence,( ar, الثورة الجزائرية '; '' ber, Tagrawla Tadzayrit''; french: Guerre d'Algérie or ') and sometimes in Algeria as the War of 1 November ...

. He was killed in action leading his platoon in the

Aurès Mountains The Aures Mountains ( ar, جبال الأوراس) are an eastern prolongation of the Atlas Mountain System that lies to the east of the Saharan Atlas in northeastern Algeria and northwestern Tunisia, North Africa. The mountain range gives its nam ...

during the Algerian War.

Biography

Maurice Amiot was born on 19 March 1932 in Vaire-le-Grand,

Doubs Doubs (, ; ; frp, Dubs) is a department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in Eastern France. Named after the river Doubs, it had a population of 543,974 in 2019.French Army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (french: Armée de Terre, ), is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces. It is responsible to the Government of France, along with the other components of the Armed For ...

at 17 and was posted with the 1st Choc Parachute Battalion at 18. He attracted the notice of his superiors and was sent to a training platoon, attaining the rank of corporal. In July 1951, he volunteered for service in Indochina. Amicale des Anciens et Anciens Combattants du Grand 14 website. Retrieved on 29 January 2010. In Indochina, Amiot spent six months instructing units of the

Vietnamese National Army The Vietnamese National Army or Vietnam National Army ( vi, Quân đội Quốc gia Việt Nam, lit=Army of the State of Vietnam, french: Armée Nationale Vietnamienne, lit=Vietnamese National Army) was the State of Vietnam's military force create ...

, before being posted to the 8th Colonial Parachute Battalion in February 1952. Eight months later, his leadership qualities had earned him promotion to caporal-chef. He also received his first citation as a group leader at the Battle of Uong-Phu. In October 1953, Amiot returned to France and was assigned to the 35th Algerian ''

Tirailleur A tirailleur (), in the Napoleonic era, was a type of light infantry trained to skirmish ahead of the main columns. Later, the term "''tirailleur''" was used by the French Army as a designation for indigenous infantry recruited in the French c ...

'' Battalion at

Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Par ...

, one of two Algerian ''Tirailleur'' battalions who formed the 14th Choc Parachute Infantry Regiment. In July 1954, Amiot volunteered for the Blizzard Battalion destined for

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

and on 1 November he was promoted to sergeant. Returning to France, he became a parachute instructor in 1956. The

had now begun in earnest; during his first tour Amiot was promoted to sergent-chef and received several citations. On 2 July 1959, he received the ''

Médaille militaire The ''Médaille militaire'' ( en, Military Medal) is a military decoration of the French Republic for other ranks for meritorious service and acts of bravery in action against an enemy force. It is the third highest award of the French Republic, ...

'' for outstanding service and on 1 August, he became a career

non-commissioned officer A non-commissioned officer (NCO) is a military officer who has not pursued a commission. Non-commissioned officers usually earn their position of authority by promotion through the enlisted ranks. (Non-officers, which includes most or all enli ...

. During his second tourm he received three citations, including one at army level. On 2 April 1961, he took part in an operation in the

at the head of his section of the 2nd Company, 14e Parachute ''Chasseur'' Regiment (14e RCP) and was killed in action. Posthumously he was made Knight of 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 B ...

'' and became the patron of the 95th class of non-commissioned officers of the

Saint Maixent Saint-Maixent () is a commune in the Sarthe department in the region of Pays de la Loire in north-western France. See also *Communes of the Sarthe department The following is a list of the 354 communes of the Sarthe department of France. T ...

School. (now the

National Active Non-Commissioned Officers School (France) National Active Non-Commissioned Officers School (french: École Nationale des Sous-Officiers d’Active, ENSOA) is a general military school created by the French Army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (french: Armée de Ter ...

or École Nationale des Sous-Officiers d’Actives (ENSOA))

Decorations

*Knight of ''

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 ...

'' (posthumous) *''

'' *''

Croix de guerre des théâtres d'opérations extérieures The ''Croix de guerre des théâtres d'opérations extérieurs'' (War Cross for foreign operational theatres), also called the ''Croix de Guerre TOE'' for short, is a French military award denoting citations earned in combat in foreign countri ...

'' with a bronze star *''

Croix de la Valeur Militaire The Cross for Military Valour (french: Croix de la Valeur Militaire) is a military decoration of France. It recognises an individual bestowed a Mention in Dispatches earned for showing valour in presence of an enemy, in theatres of operations wh ...

'' (six citations) *

Colonial Medal The Colonial Medal (french: "Médaille Coloniale") was a French decoration created by the "loi de finances" of 26 July 1893 (article 75) to reward "military services in the colonies, resulting from participation in military operations, in a colon ...

*''Médaille commémorative des opérations en Algérie''

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Amiot, Maurice 1932 births 1961 deaths People from Doubs French military personnel of the First Indochina War French military personnel of the Algerian War French military personnel killed in the Algerian War Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur Recipients of the Cross for Military Valour Recipients of the Croix de guerre des théâtres d'opérations extérieures