René Joyeuse,

M.D. A Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated MD, from the Latin ) is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the ''MD'' denotes a professional degree of physician. This ge ...

, MS, FACS (17 January 192012 June 2012) was a Swiss, French and American soldier, physician and researcher. He distinguished himself as an agent of Allied intelligence in

German-occupied France The Military Administration in France (; ) was an interim occupation authority established by Nazi Germany during World War II to administer the occupied zone in areas of northern and western France. This so-called ' was established in June 19 ...

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 ...

Early life

René Joyeuse was born as René Veuve on 17 January 1920 in

Zürich Zurich (; ) is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich. , the municipality had 448,664 inhabitants. The ...

to poor parents, a French carpenter and an Italian housemaid employed in

Alsace Alsace (, ; ) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in the Grand Est administrative region of northeastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine, next to Germany and Switzerland. In January 2021, it had a population of 1,9 ...

. Raised and educated in France and Switzerland, Veuve studied philosophy at the universities of

Besançon Besançon (, ; , ; archaic ; ) is the capital of the Departments of France, department of Doubs in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. The city is located in Eastern France, close to the Jura Mountains and the border with Switzerland. Capi ...

and

Montpellier Montpellier (; ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of France, department of ...

, graduating ''

magna cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sout ...

'' in 1940.

Military service

Following the German invasion of France in 1940, Veuve 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 ...

, in which he reached the grade of captain. He worked for the U.S.

Office of Strategic Services The Office of Strategic Services (OSS) was the first intelligence agency of the United States, formed during World War II. The OSS was formed as an agency of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) to coordinate espionage activities behind enemy lines ...

(OSS) and with the '' Résistance'' in northern France, and as a parachutists' instructor in the United Kingdom. The OSS assigned him the codename ''Joyeuse'' ("joyful"), after Charlemagne's sword. In April 1944, with 120 other agents as part of Operation Sussex, he was tasked with gathering intelligence about enemy military installations, supply depots and troop movements in northern France, in preparation for the upcoming Allied invasion. Deployed by parachute near

Chartres Chartres () is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Eure-et-Loir Departments of France, department in the Centre-Val de Loire Regions of France, region in France. It is located about southwest of Paris. At the 2019 census, there were 1 ...

, disguised as a postal worker, Veuve acquired and transmitted information about crucial enemy infrastructure, such as

Le Bourget Le Bourget () is a commune in the northeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. The commune features Le Bourget Airport, which in turn hosts the Musée de l'Air et de l'Espace (Air and Space Museum). A very ...

airport, an oil refinery and an underground rocket factory. Over sixty messages were transmitted, which covered enemy movements at airfields, troop identifications, V-I manufacturing plants, underground factories and important gasoline depots. Although no provision had been made for the transmission of intelligence by courier, he showed great initiative in getting through to London two pouches of very valuable information on a naval powder factory and an oil refinery, both of which were subsequently heavily bombarded by allied aircraft. To avoid

radiolocation Radiolocation, also known as radiolocating or radiopositioning, is the process of finding the location of something through the use of radio waves. It generally refers to passive, particularly radar—as well as detecting buried cables, wate ...

of his signal, he emplaced himself close to a German military unit's transmitter. After the Allied invasion, Joyeuse shifted his operations further inland, on one occasion narrowly escaping an SS raid with a bullet wound in his foot, while his two bodyguards (Louis Barrault and Pierre Gastaud) were captured and executed on 18 August 1944 in Aulnay Sous Bois. With the advancing Allied forces he eventually reached Germany, being one of the first Allied officers to reach the

Bergen-Belsen concentration camp Bergen-Belsen (), or Belsen, was a Nazi concentration camp in what is today Lower Saxony in Northern Germany, northern Germany, southwest of the town of Bergen, Lower Saxony, Bergen near Celle. Originally established as a prisoner of war camp, ...

. After the end of World War II, René Veuve adopted his codename "Joyeuse" as his surname. He served for five years as a French intelligence officer in 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 ...

, where he often assisted field surgeons in treating the wounded. The appalling death rate – he estimated that only one in 12 wounded survived – inspired him to help find better treatments for trauma victims, and in 1950 he gained admission to the medical school at the

University of Paris The University of Paris (), known Metonymy, metonymically as the Sorbonne (), was the leading university in Paris, France, from 1150 to 1970, except for 1793–1806 during the French Revolution. Emerging around 1150 as a corporation associated wit ...

. For his wartime actions Joyeuse received multiple decorations. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross by

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...

. The French government awarded him the title of knight 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 ...

, the

Order of Liberation 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 ...

, the ''

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, ...

'', the ''Croix de guerre'' 1939–1945 with palm, the ''

Croix de guerre des théâtres d'opérations extérieures The (; "War Cross for Foreign Operational Theatres"), also called the for short, is a French military award denoting citations earned in combat in foreign countries. The Armistice of November 11, 1918 ended the war between France and Germa ...

'' with palm, the ''

Médaille de la Résistance The Resistance Medal (, ) was a decoration bestowed by the French Committee of National Liberation, based in the United Kingdom, during World War II. It was established by a decree of General Charles de Gaulle on 9 February 1943 "to recognize the ...

'' with rosette, the '' Croix du combattant volontaire 1939–1945'', the ''

Médaille des Évadés The Escapees' Medal () is a military award bestowed by the government of France to individuals who were prisoners of war and who successfully escaped internment or died as a result of their escape attempt. The "Escapees' Medal" was established by ...

'', the '' Médaille de l'Aéronautique'', the

Colonial Medal The Colonial Medal () was a French decoration created by the "loi de finances" of 26 July 1893 (article 75) to reward "military services in the colonies, resulting from participation in military operations, in a colony or a protectorate". A decr ...

and several commemorative medals. The

Kingdom of Laos The Kingdom of Laos was the form of government in Laos from 1947 to 1975. Located in Southeast Asia at the heart of the Indochinese Peninsula, it was bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, North Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the sou ...

awarded him the Order of the Million Elephants and the White Parasol. On March 21, 2018, the U.S. Congress awarded the

Congressional Gold Medal The Congressional Gold Medal is the oldest and highest civilian award in the United States, alongside the Presidential Medal of Freedom. It is bestowed by vote of the United States Congress, signed into law by the president. The Gold Medal exp ...

, the highest civilian award of the United States, to all the men and women of the OSS.

Post-war career

Joyeuse met his wife Suzanne, a nurse, at the

. After graduation, the couple emigrated to the United States, where Joyeuse worked as an emergency and trauma surgeon at the

Mayo Clinic Mayo Clinic () is a Nonprofit organization, private American Academic health science centre, academic Medical centers in the United States, medical center focused on integrated health care, healthcare, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science ...

while also pursuing a master's degree in surgery at the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota Twin Cities (historically known as University of Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint ...

, and later as a researcher at the

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

medical school. While at UCLA, Joyeuse helped develop the first biological

heart valve A heart valve is a biological one-way valve that allows blood to flow in one direction through the chambers of the heart. A mammalian heart usually has four valves. Together, the valves determine the direction of blood flow through the heart. Hea ...

replacement. As assistant professor of surgery at the College of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (

Rutgers Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College and was aff ...

/ CMDNJ) he was a practicing trauma surgeon, co-founder of the American Trauma Society and president of the New Jersey chapter, and was actively involved in training physicians and EMT personnel in trauma care. The family changed residence multiple times, eventually settling in

Saranac Lake, New York Saranac Lake is a village in the state of New York, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 4,887, making it the largest community by population in the Adirondack Park.U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Report, Saranac Lake village, New ...

, where Joyeuse served as the medical director of the prison system of the state of New York. René Joyeuse died on 12 June 2012 after having suffered from

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...

for the last ten years of his life. He was survived by his wife Suzanne (1929–2020) and his two sons. He is the first person born in Switzerland to be honored with a burial in

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia. ...

, in March 2013.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Joyeuse, Rene People of the Office of Strategic Services World War II spies for the United States French Army officers French spies Free French military personnel of World War II French Resistance members Swiss emigrants to France French emigrants to the United States category:French expatriates in Vietnam Congressional Gold Medal recipients Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United States) Knights of the Legion of Honour Recipients of the Resistance Medal Companions of the Liberation Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1939–1945 (France) Recipients of the Aeronautical Medal American traumatologists American medical researchers American surgeons American medical writers Physicians_of_the_Mayo_Clinic Mayo Clinic people University of Paris alumni University of Minnesota people University of Minnesota alumni University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey faculty Rutgers University faculty David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA faculty 1920 births 2012 deaths Burials at Arlington National Cemetery People from Saranac Lake, New York Scientists from New York (state)