Hospice Moïse Jean Louis Victor Gilles Bebel (21 May 1898 – 10 June 1940) 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 ...

officer, born in

Guadeloupe Guadeloupe is an Overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of France in the Caribbean. It consists of six inhabited islands—Basse-Terre Island, Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Guadeloupe, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galant ...

, who served during the

Second World War 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 was executed along with his men in a massacre of

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 ...

s 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 ...

Life

Born in 1898 in

Trois-Rivières Trois-Rivières (, ; ) is a city in the Mauricie administrative region of Quebec, Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Saint-Maurice River, Saint-Maurice and Saint Lawrence River, Saint Lawrence rivers, on the north shore of the Sain ...

, Bebel aspired to be a soldier from a young age. He graduated from the Saint-Maxient non-commissioned officer school and quickly rose through the ranks, from second lieutenant to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

. By the time of the

, Bebel was an acting

commandant Commandant ( or ; ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ...

in the 24th regiment of Senegalese skirmishers. He fought in the

and was taken prisoner on 9 June 1940 while fighting near Erquinvillers. The following day, Bebel was executed by German soldiers along with fifty of his men, becoming one of the 150 tirailleurs massacred in Erquinvillers and its surrounding villages between 9 and 10 June. The murder of Bebel and his men has been compared to the death of fellow tirailleur

Charles N'Tchoréré Charles N'Tchoréré (16 November 1896 – 7 June 1940) was a Gabonese France, French military officer who was shot by Germany, Germans in World War II. Early life Charles N'Tchoréré was born on 16 November 1896 in Libreville, French Gabon. T ...

. Bebel's remains, as well as those of several other Guadeloupean soldiers, were repatriated to Guadeloupe in 1950, with large numbers of people arriving to honor them. In 2016, on the 76th anniversary of his death, Bebel was honored in a ceremony. The main square of Trois-Rivières is named after him.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bebel, Moïse 1898 births 1940 deaths Guadeloupean military personnel French Army officers French Army personnel killed in World War II French people executed by Nazi Germany People executed by Nazi Germany by firearm Guadeloupean murder victims People murdered in France Deaths by firearm in France