Colonel Joseph Dérigoin was a French army officer. He served as a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

with the

French Foreign Legion The French Foreign Legion (french: Légion étrangère) is a corps of the French Army which comprises several specialties: infantry, Armoured Cavalry Arm, cavalry, Military engineering, engineers, Airborne forces, airborne troops. It was created ...

in the occupation of

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

, distinguishing himself in an attack on a Malagasy fortification. He later rose to command a French column during the

Zaian War Zayanes ( ber, Azayi (singular), (plural); ) are a Berber population inhabiting the Khenifra region, located in the central Middle Atlas mountains of Morocco. Zayanes tribes are known for their attachment to ancestral land and for their tenac ...

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria t ...

and served as a

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge o ...

in the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Madagascar

Dérigoin served with the

and as a

was present at the Battle of

Nosibe Nosibe is a town and commune ( mg, kaominina) in northern Madagascar. It belongs to the district of Vohemar, which is a part of Sava Region. The population of the commune was estimated to be approximately 9,000 in 2001 commune census. Only primar ...

on 6 February 1897 during the French occupation of that country. Alongside Captain Flayelle and Adjutant Géré he led the storming of the Malagasy fortification by climbing over a gate by use of a ladder. The Malagasy were defeated within a few hours and the French took 3,000 prisoners during the following two days. During his time in Madagascar Dérigoin had command of 60 men in one platoon of legion. On another occasion, working again with Flayelle, on the road between

Ambohidratrimo Ambohidratrimo is a town in Analamanga Region, in the Central Highlands of Madagascar, located at 15 km from the capital of Antananarivo. There are found the Twelve sacred hills of Imerina The twelve sacred hills of Imerina are hills of histo ...

and Beparasy Dérigoin and his men took 50 prisoners and captured several rifles whilst raiding a village in a forest as Flayelle destroyed the camp of a rebel chief.

Morocco and later service

During the

in Morocco Dérigoin, by then a

lieutenant-colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colo ...

, commanded a groupe mobile (mobile column of mixed arms troops), formed at

Ito Ito may refer to: Places * Ito Island, an island of Milne Bay Province, Papua New Guinea * Ito Airport, an airport in the Democratic Republic of the Congo * Ito District, Wakayama, a district located in Wakayama Prefecture, Japan * Itō, Shizuo ...

in the aftermath of the heavy French defeat at the

Battle of El Herri The Battle of El Herri (also known as Elhri) was fought between France and the Berber Zaian Confederation on 13 November 1914. It took place at the small settlement of El Herri, near Khénifra in the French protectorate in Morocco. The batt ...

, that left the strategically important town of Khénifra almost unguarded. Dérigoin's group was largely based around the 6th battalion of the 2nd Foreign Infantry Regiment of the French Foreign Legion. On 18 November, just five days after the battle, Dérigoin's groupe mobile reached Khénifra, along with General

Paul Prosper Henrys Paul Prosper Henrys (or Paul-Prosper) (13 March 1862 – 6 November 1943) was a French general. In his early career, Henrys was stationed in French Algeria. In 1912, he participated in the French conquest of Morocco under general Hubert Lyautey ...

, after a march across country. Dérigoin's legionnaires marched to the battlefield of El Herri on 19 November to bury the bodies of the 623 French dead. Later promoted to

Dérigoin served in the

, fighting in battle alongside French

zouaves The Zouaves were a class of light infantry regiments of the French Army serving between 1830 and 1962 and linked to French North Africa; as well as some units of other countries modelled upon them. The zouaves were among the most decorated unit ...

against the German Guards Corps.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Derigoin, Joseph French Army officers French military personnel of World War I