Georges Roger Pierre Bergé (3 January 1909 – 15 September 1997) was a

French Army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (, , ), is the principal Army, land warfare force of France, and the largest component of the French Armed Forces; it is responsible to the Government of France, alongside the French Navy, Fren ...

general who served during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He enlisted in the Free French Forces, where he took command of the ''1re compagnie de chasseurs parachutistes'' (1st Parachute Chaser Company). He is mentioned by David Stirling as one of the co-founders of the

Special Air Service The Special Air Service (SAS) is a special forces unit of the British Army. It was founded as a regiment in 1941 by David Stirling, and in 1950 it was reconstituted as a corps. The unit specialises in a number of roles including counter-terr ...

(SAS). In Britain and Egypt, he organised the training for Allied agents sent to France and led the first airborne mission in occupied France, named Operation Savannah. He fought 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

Crete Crete ( ; , Modern Greek, Modern: , Ancient Greek, Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the List of islands by area, 88th largest island in the world and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fifth la ...

. After his capture by the

Germans Germans (, ) are the natives or inhabitants of Germany, or sometimes more broadly any people who are of German descent or native speakers of the German language. The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany, constitution of Germany, imple ...

, he was imprisoned in Colditz Castle.

Biography

Youth

Georges Bergé was born in January 1909 in Belmont, in the Gers département, France. He was drafted in 1929, and incorporated in the 24th infantry regiment in Mont-de-Marsan, where he trained as a reserve officer. In April 1930, he demobilised as a second lieutenant. In 1933, he eventually chose a military career and integrated ''l'école de l'Infanterie et des Chars'' (Infantry and tanks school) in Saint-Maixent. He became a lieutenant in 1934.

Second World War

1940

*May. He fought on the frontline. On 18th, while leading a successful counter-attack near Bousies in the North, he was wounded twice and transported to

Arras Arras ( , ; ; historical ) is the prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department, which forms part of the region of Hauts-de-France; before the reorganization of 2014 it was in Nord-Pas-de-Calais. The historic centre of the Artois region, with a ...

. After hospitalisation in

Caen Caen (; ; ) is a Communes of France, commune inland from the northwestern coast of France. It is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Calvados (department), Calvados. The city proper has 105,512 inha ...

, he was evacuated further south. *June. :17 - While visiting his parents in Mimizan, Landes, he heard marshal Pétain's radio-broadcast speech. :21 - Refusing the armistice, Georges Bergé embarked on a Polish boat in Saint-Jean-de-Luz and sailed for England. :24 - Joining the Free French forces in London, he met general

Charles de Gaulle Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French general and statesman who led the Free France, Free French Forces against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Government of the French Re ...

at Saint Stephen's House and suggested that he form an airborne battalion. *He integrated the air force staff of the Free French forces. *September. The ''1re Compagnie d'Infanterie de l'Air'' or 1re CIA (1st Airborne Infantry regiment) was formed with Bergé as its commanding officer. *He trained in the Ringway school (

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

). *December. Bergé and his men were now paratroopers.

1941

*March. :15 - He parachuted in France as leader of the first Free French mission in occupied France, Operation Savannah, planned by the SOE. :22- He joined Mimizan and contacted friends to form a resistance network. *April. On the 5th, he came back to England by submarine. Mission Savannah was over. *Under the supervision of the Deuxième Bureau (then the Bureau Central de Renseignements et d'Action, the Free French external

military intelligence Military intelligence is a military discipline that uses information collection and analysis List of intelligence gathering disciplines, approaches to provide guidance and direction to assist Commanding officer, commanders in decision making pr ...

agency) and the SOE, he established a special agents school – 36th station of the SOE, Inchmery House, New Forest – where most of the agents sent in France in 1941 and 1942 were trained. *July. On the 25th, with the 1re CIA, he was allocated in

Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

(Meze airfield)

1942

*January. Allocated in Kabret in the Combined Training Center, west bank of the

Suez Canal The Suez Canal (; , ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, Indo-Mediterranean, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia (and by extension, the Sinai Peninsula from the rest ...

, he formed the French SAS squadron. As the SAS expanded, the French squadron would be the first of a range of units to be 'acquired' by David Stirling. *June. His unit was tasked to attack enemy airfields in the Mediterranean zone. Bergé chose the

Heraklion Heraklion or Herakleion ( ; , , ), sometimes Iraklion, is the largest city and the administrative capital city, capital of the island of Crete and capital of Heraklion (regional unit), Heraklion regional unit. It is the fourth largest city in G ...

airfield, in

( Operation Albumen). With a group of four men, he managed to destroy 20 enemy planes. 19 - He was captured at the conclusion of his mission. He was imprisoned in XC Oflag in

Lübeck Lübeck (; or ; Latin: ), officially the Hanseatic League, Hanseatic City of Lübeck (), is a city in Northern Germany. With around 220,000 inhabitants, it is the second-largest city on the German Baltic Sea, Baltic coast and the second-larg ...

, from which he tried in vain to escape.

1943

*January. Transferred in Colditz Castle (Oflag IV-C), he found there Major Stirling, captured in a 1943 raid in Tunisia, and Captain Augustin Jordan.

1945

*April. On 16, he was set free by Patton's army.

Post war

Lieutenant-colonel Bergé was successively allocated to the Parachute inspection administration, to the military cabinet of the Provisional Government of the French Republic, to the National Defense' staff. He was then the military attaché for the French embassy in Rome. *August 1951 – July 1953. He commanded the 14th Régiment d'infanterie parachutiste de Choc (RIPC) in

Toulouse Toulouse (, ; ; ) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department and of the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region. The city is on the banks of the Garonne, River Garonne, from ...

. *1953–1957. Colonel Bergé was the assistant of General Pierre Barjot, commander of the French airborne forces during the

Suez Crisis The Suez Crisis, also known as the Second Arab–Israeli War, the Tripartite Aggression in the Arab world and the Sinai War in Israel, was a British–French–Israeli invasion of Egypt in 1956. Israel invaded on 29 October, having done so w ...

Honours and awards

;France * Commander of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

* Companion of the Liberation (17 November 1945) * Grand Officer of the

Order of Merit The Order of Merit () is an order of merit for the Commonwealth realms, recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 by Edward VII, admission into the order r ...

* Croix de Guerre 1939-1945, 4 citations * Cross of Military Valour, with palm * Aeronautics Medal ;Foreign * Officer of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level until 1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) Other ranks (UK), other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth of ...

(United Kingdom) * Cruz Militar (Spain) * Commander of the

Order of George I The Royal Order of George I () is a Greek Order (distinction), order instituted by King Constantine I of Greece, Constantine I in 1915. Since the monarchy's abolition in 1973, it has been considered a dynastic order of the former Greek royal fami ...

(Greece) * Commander of the Order of Ouissam Alaouite (Morocco)

Sources

*
Georges Bergé on the Order of the Liberation's website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Berge, Georges 1909 births 1997 deaths People from Gers French generals French military personnel of the Suez Crisis French military personnel of the Algerian War Special Air Service officers Free French military personnel of World War II Commanders of the Legion of Honour Companions of the Liberation Grand Officers of the Ordre national du Mérite Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1939–1945 (France) Recipients of the Cross for Military Valour Recipients of the Aeronautical Medal Honorary officers of the Order of the British Empire Recipients of the Military Cross Commanders of the Order of George I