Victor Louis Émilien Cordonnier (23 March 1858, Surgy, France – 1936) served France during World War I as a general and was called "''one of France's finest generals''" by Geoffrey Blainey.Geoffrey Blainey, ''The Causes of War'', (Simon and Schuster, 1988), 38.

Biography

Earlier career

After finishing in the military academy of St. Cyr in 1879, he was assigned as a sub-lieutenant in the infantry. He graduated from the

École de Guerre École may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * École, Sav ...

eight years later. He alternated between staff and regimental service, serving in Algeria and the Alps. In 1905, he was chosen to be an instructor at École de Guerre, after serving as director of studies and commander of the cadet battalion at St. Cyr. During this time he wrote ''Les Japonais des Mandchourie'' (''The Japanese in Manchuria''), which soon became known as an important critical work on the

Russo-Japanese war The Russo-Japanese War ( ja, 日露戦争, Nichiro sensō, Japanese-Russian War; russian: Ру́сско-япóнская войнá, Rússko-yapónskaya voyná) was fought between the Empire of Japan and the Russian Empire during 1904 and 1 ...

and was translated into several languages (English translation: Part I, 1912; Part II, 1914). In 1910, he was promoted to colonel and was given the command of an infantry regiment.

World War I

In 1913, he was given command of the new 87th Brigade and made general of brigade. His brigade distinguished itself at the battle of the Mangiennes, 10 August 1914 and the

battle of the Ardennes The Battle of the Ardennes took place during the First World War fought on the frontiers of France, Germany, Belgium and Luxembourg from 21 to 23 August 1914. The German armies defeated the French and forced their retreat. The battle was part of ...

. He directed the 3rd Division at the battle of the Marne, the advance to

Sainte-Menehould Sainte-Menehould (; german: Sankt Mathilde) is a commune in the Marne department in north-eastern France. The 18th-century French playwright Charles-Georges Fenouillot de Falbaire de Quingey (1727–1800) died in Sainte-Ménéhould. It was the ...

and the Argonne, being wounded on 15 September 1914. By December 1914, after being made an officer of the

Legion of Honour 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, ...

, he led his division in bitter trench warfare in the Argonne, later being in command of a group of divisions at Alsace in January 1914. He was made a commander in the

and in July 1916 was given command of the French troops of the

Salonika Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...

armies under

Maurice Sarrail Maurice Paul Emmanuel Sarrail (6 April 1856 – 23 March 1929) was a French general of the First World War. Sarrail's openly socialist political connections made him a rarity amongst the Catholics, conservatives and monarchists who dominated th ...

, later referred to as ''Armée française d'Orient''. Commanding the left wing of the Entente's autumn offensive, he saw action at Ostrovo, Florina, Armenohor and Kenali. However, his and Sarrail's differences led him to be reassigned.

Post war

After arriving back in France, Cordonnier, being terribly ill, was taken to hospital and underwent surgery for

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

. He was unable to return to active duty due to his health and instead went into retirement. In 1921, he published ''Une Brigade au feu; Potins de Guerre'', a tribute to the 87th brigade which he commanded.

His works

*''Les Japonais des Mandchourie'' (''The Japanese in Manchuria''; vol. 1, 1904
at Google Books
*''Une Brigade au feu; Potins de Guerre'
at Google Books

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cordonnier, Victor French military personnel of World War I Commanders of the Legion of Honour 1858 births 1935 deaths