Eugène Mittelhauser (7 August 1873 – 19 December 1949) was a French general, leader of the French Military Mission to Czechoslovakia and second

chief of staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supportin ...

of the

Czechoslovak Army The Czechoslovak Army (Czech and Slovak: ''Československá armáda'') was the name of the armed forces of Czechoslovakia. It was established in 1918 following Czechoslovakia's declaration of independence from Austria-Hungary. History In t ...

from 1921 to 1925.

Biography

Mittelhauser graduated from the

Saint-Cyr Military Academy Saint-Cyr refers to the popular child-saint Cyricus, whose following was strong in France because relics were brought back from Antioch by the 4th-century Bishop Saint Amator of Auxerre. Saint-Cyr may refer to: Places France * École spécia ...

in 1894 and joined the French Army. He served in the 2nd

Rifle Regiment A rifle regiment is a military unit consisting of a regiment of infantry troops armed with rifles and known as Rifleman, riflemen. While all infantry units in modern armies are typically armed with rifled weapons the term is still used to denote r ...

Tunisia Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...

. From 1899 to 1901 he attended the

École supérieure de guerre École or Ecole 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 * Éco ...

in Paris. Through the 1900s he served in

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

and

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

. In 1913 Mittelhauser commanded the 7th Battalion, 3rd Rifle Regiment. In 1915 he took command of the 60th Infantry Regiment. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

Mittelhauser was seriously wounded twice. In June 1918 he served as commander of the 36th Division. In February 1919 he was assigned to the French Military Mission to Czechoslovakia. From January 1921 to 30 December 1925 Mittelhauser was the chief of staff of Czechoslovak Army. In June 1940 he was appointed to command the French forces in

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

and

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

. Initially he joined British, but later he obeyed the orders of French government and joined the

Vichy regime Vichy France (; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was a French rump state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II, established as a result of the French capitulation after the defeat against ...

References

Generals of World War II
French generals French people of German descent Chiefs of the General Staff (Czechoslovakia) École Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr alumni French Army generals of World War I French Army generals of World War II Recipients of the Order of the White Lion 1873 births 1949 deaths People from Tourcoing 19th-century French military personnel {{France-mil-bio-stub