Georges Thierry d'Argenlieu (), in religion Father Louis of the Trinity, OCD (7 August 1889 – 7 September 1964), was a

Discalced Carmelite The Discalced Carmelites, known officially as the Order of the Discalced Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel () or the Order of Discalced Carmelites (; abbrev.: OCD; sometimes called in earlier times, ), is a Catholic mendicant ...

friar A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders in the Catholic Church. There are also friars outside of the Catholic Church, such as within the Anglican Communion. The term, first used in the 12th or 13th century, distinguishes the mendi ...

and priest, who was also a diplomat and

French Navy The French Navy (, , ), informally (, ), is the Navy, maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the four military service branches of History of France, France. It is among the largest and most powerful List of navies, naval forces i ...

officer and admiral; he became a major personality of the '' Forces navales françaises libres''. He was the chancellor of the ''

Ordre de la Libération The Order of Liberation (, ) is a French Order which was awarded to heroes of the Liberation of France during World War II. It is a worn by recipients only before the ''Légion d’Honneur'' (Legion of Honour). In the official portrait of G ...

''.

Early career

He was born in Brest on 7 August 1889, in a family of Navy officers. He joined the ''École navale'' (Naval Academy) at 17. D'Argenlieu served on the ''Du Chayla'' as a midshipman, taking part in the campaign in

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 ...

, which led to the Treaty of Fez, in 1912. During the campaign, he was awarded 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 ...

, and befriended

Hubert Lyautey Louis Hubert Gonzalve Lyautey (17 November 1854 – 27 July 1934) was a French Army general and colonial administrator. After serving in Indochina and Madagascar, he became the first French Resident-General in Morocco from 1912 to 1925. In earl ...

, something that d'Argenlieu later recalled as one of the happy memories in his life.

First World War

During the First World War, d'Argenlieu served in the Mediterranean; in 1915, while on leave in Malta, he became a member of the Secular Order of Discalced Carmelites. He was promoted to '' lieutenant de vaisseau'' in 1917. The next year, as commanding officer of a patrol boat, the ''Tourterelle'', he distinguished himself in the rescue of a troop transport.

Religious career

Upon the conclusion of the war, d'Argenlieu undertook theological studies at the Pontifical Angelicum College, the future Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas, ''Angelicum'' in Rome, which he completed in 1920. That year, he entered the

novitiate The novitiate, also called the noviciate, is the period of training and preparation that a Christian ''novice'' (or ''prospective'') monastic, apostolic, or member of a religious order undergoes prior to taking vows in order to discern whether ...

of the Discalced Carmelite friars in

Avon, Seine-et-Marne Avon () is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. Geography Avon and Fontainebleau, together with three other smaller communes, form an urban area of 36,713 inhabitants. The two towns sh ...

. He was given the

religious habit A religious habit is a distinctive set of clothing worn by members of a religious order. Traditionally, some plain garb recognizable as a religious habit has also been worn by those leading the religious Hermit, eremitic and Anchorite, anchorit ...

and the

religious name A religious name is a type of given name bestowed for religious purposes, and which is generally used in such contexts. Christianity Catholic Church Baptismal name In baptism, Catholic Church, Catholics are given a Christian name, which should n ...

''Louis de la Trinité'' (Louis of the

Trinity The Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the Christian doctrine concerning the nature of God, which defines one God existing in three, , consubstantial divine persons: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ) and God the Holy Spirit, thr ...

) and he made his first vows on 15 September 1921. Fr. Louis then studied theology for four years at the Catholic University of Lille. He finished his studies there and was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

a priest there in 1925. The Discalced Carmelite friars re-established the

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

of Paris in 1932, and Fr. Louis was elected Prior Provincial in 1935.

Second World War

In September 1939, d'Argenlieu was mobilised as a reserve Navy officer, rising to the rank of '' capitaine de corvette'' in 1940. During the

Battle of France The Battle of France (; 10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign (), the French Campaign (, ) and the Fall of France, during the Second World War was the Nazi Germany, German invasion of the Low Countries (Belgium, Luxembour ...

, d'Argenlieu was captured as he was defending the arsenal of

Cherbourg Cherbourg is a former Communes of France, commune and Subprefectures in France, subprefecture located at the northern end of the Cotentin peninsula in the northwestern French departments of France, department of Manche. It was merged into the com ...

. After three days, he escaped from the prisoner train to Germany and joined

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 ...

on 30 June. D'Argenlieu joined the

Free French Forces __NOTOC__ The French Liberation Army ( ; AFL) was the reunified French Army that arose from the merging of the Armée d'Afrique with the prior Free French Forces (; FFL) during World War II. The military force of Free France, it participated ...

, intending to serve as chaplain, but eventually took on the duties of a fighting naval officer, with a special authorisation of his religious superiors because of the small number of Navy officers in the Free French Naval Forces. He was made chief of staff in July. He attempted to convince the Vichy French governor of

Dakar Dakar ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Senegal, largest city of Senegal. The Departments of Senegal, department of Dakar has a population of 1,278,469, and the population of the Dakar metropolitan area was at 4.0 mill ...

to join De Gaulle and was severely wounded when he was fired upon in his small and unarmed craft on 23 September, during the

Battle of Dakar The Battle of Dakar, also known as Operation Menace, was an unsuccessful attempt in September 1940 by the Allies of World War II, Allies to capture the strategic port of Dakar in French West Africa (modern-day Senegal). It was hoped that the succ ...

. In November, he directed successful operations in

Gabon Gabon ( ; ), officially the Gabonese Republic (), is a country on the Atlantic coast of Central Africa, on the equator, bordered by Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north, the Republic of the Congo to the east and south, and ...

. D'Argenlieu was made a ''

capitaine de vaisseau Captain is the name most often given in English-speaking navy, navies to the rank corresponding to command of the largest ships. The rank is equal to the army rank of colonel and air force rank of group captain. Equivalent ranks worldwide in ...

'', and chancellor of the newly created ''

''. In 1941, he rose to counter admiral; he undertook several missions to administer French colonies loyal to

Free France Free France () was a resistance government claiming to be the legitimate government of France following the dissolution of the Third French Republic, Third Republic during World War II. Led by General , Free France was established as a gover ...

. In 1943, he was made commanding officer for the naval forces in Great Britain On 14 June 1944, he ferried de Gaulle to France aboard the destroyer , and entered Paris with him on 25 August.

First Indochina War

After the defeat of Japan, d'Argenlieu arrived in

French Indochina French Indochina (previously spelled as French Indo-China), officially known as the Indochinese Union and after 1941 as the Indochinese Federation, was a group of French dependent territories in Southeast Asia from 1887 to 1954. It was initial ...

on 31 October 1945. As High Commissioner of the French Far East Expeditionary Corps, his task was to restore the French colonial administration. In 1946, he was promoted to '' vice-amiral d'escadre'', and soon later to

admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

. As High Commissioner in Indochina, he installed a puppet Autonomous Republic of Cochinchina in violation of the March 6 Ho–Sainteny agreement whilst the

Viet Minh The Việt Minh (, ) is the common and abbreviated name of the League for Independence of Vietnam ( or , ; ), which was a Communist Party of Vietnam, communist-led national independence coalition formed at Pác Bó by Hồ Chí Minh on 19 May 1 ...

leadership was in negotiations in France, effectively beginning 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, and alternatively internationally as the French-Indochina War) was fought between French Fourth Republic, France and Việ ...

.Frederick Logevall '' Embers of War'' Random House 2012 p.137 Starting the war, he ordered the French forces in

Haiphong Haiphong or Hai Phong (, ) is the third-largest city in Vietnam and is the principal port city of the Red River Delta. The municipality has an area of , consisting of 8 urban districts, 6 rural districts and 1 municipal city (sub-city). Two o ...

on November 23, 1946, to "Use all the means at your disposal to make yourself complete master of Haiphong", resulting in the Haiphong Massacre, in which about 6,000 Vietnamese civilians were killed. During the war, his actions grew more and more controversial, and in March 1947, he was replaced by Émile Bollaert. Back in France, he was made inspector general of the Naval Forces before retiring to a monastery.

Later life

In 1958, sick, d'Argenlieu resigned his position of chancellor of the ''

'' and withdrew to monastery life again. He died on 7 September 1964 in Brest and was buried in Avrechy.

Honours

* Grand Cross of the ''

Légion d'Honneur 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 ...

'' * '' Compagnon de la Libération'' * ''

Médaille Militaire The ''Médaille militaire'' (, "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, ...

'' * ''

Croix de Guerre The (, ''Cross of War'') is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was first awarded during World ...

'' 39–45 with 3 palms * '' Croix de Guerre des Théâtres d'Opérations Extérieures (TOE)'' with palm * '' Médaille de la Résistance avec rosette '' * '' Insigne des blessés militaires'' * ''Médaille du Sauvetage '' * ''Médaille du Maroc '' * Belgian ''

'' with palm * Commander of the

Order of Léopold The Order of Leopold (, , ) is one of the three current Belgian national honorary orders of knighthood. It is the oldest and highest order of Belgium and is named in honour of its founder, King Leopold I. It consists of a military, a mari ...

(Belgium) * Companion of the

Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by King George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. Recipients of the Order are usually senior British Armed Forces, military officers or senior Civil Service ...

(UK) * ''Médaille du Sauvetage '' * ''Médaille du Maroc ''

Works

* ''La Croix de la Libération'', Paris 1951 * ''Chroniques d'Indochine 1945-1947'', Paris 1985 * ''Souvenirs de Guerre : juin 1940-janvier 1941'', Paris 1973

References

External links

worldatwar.net
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thierry D'argenlieu, Georges 1889 births 1964 deaths 20th-century French Roman Catholic priests Breton Roman Catholic priests Burials in Hauts-de-France Clergy from Brest, France Companions of the Liberation Discalced Carmelites Free French Naval Forces officers French escapees French military personnel of the First Indochina War French military personnel of World War I French Navy admirals French Navy officers from Brest, France French Navy personnel of World War II French prisoners of war in World War II Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour Honorary companions of the Order of the Bath Recipients of the Croix de guerre (Belgium) Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1939–1945 (France) Recipients of the Croix de guerre des théâtres d'opérations extérieures Recipients of the Resistance Medal World War II prisoners of war held by Germany