René-Henri Olry CLH (28 June 1880 – 3 January 1944) was a French

general A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...

and commander of the Army of the Alps (french: l'Armée des Alpes) during the Battle of France of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

Biography

Early life

Olry was born on 28 June 1880 in

Lille Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France region, the prefecture of the N ...

in the

Nord-Pas-de-Calais Nord-Pas-de-Calais (); pcd, Nord-Pas-Calés); is a former administrative region of France. Since 1 January 2016, it has been part of the new region Hauts-de-France. It consisted of the departments of Nord and Pas-de-Calais. Nord-Pas-de-Calais ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

. The son of Albert Olry, himself a '' polytechnicien'', Olry was admitted to the

École Polytechnique École may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * École, Savoi ...

in 1900. Upon graduating, he joined the 21st Artillery Regiment and was appointed the rank of

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 ...

on 10 October 1904.

Military career

During 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 ...

, Olry served in the Second Army at the

Battle of Verdun The Battle of Verdun (french: Bataille de Verdun ; german: Schlacht um Verdun ) was fought from 21 February to 18 December 1916 on the Western Front in France. The battle was the longest of the First World War and took place on the hills north ...

under the command of then-general

Philippe Pétain Henri Philippe Benoni Omer Pétain (24 April 1856 – 23 July 1951), commonly known as Philippe Pétain (, ) or Marshal Pétain (french: Maréchal Pétain), was a French general who attained the position of Marshal of France at the end of Worl ...

. He left for

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

in 1917 as part of the French expeditionary force and participated in combat near the

Piave River The Piave ( la, Plavis, German: ''Ploden'') is a river in northern Italy. It begins in the Alps and flows southeast for into the Adriatic Sea near the city of Venice. One of its tributaries is the Boite. In 1809 it was the scene of a battle du ...

, and in 1918 assumed command of the 283rd Artillery Regiment. His conduct during the war earned him five

citations A citation is a reference to a source. More precisely, a citation is an abbreviated alphanumeric expression embedded in the body of an intellectual work that denotes an entry in the bibliographic references section of the work for the purpose of ...

. Olry became secretary of the Supreme Council of National Defense (french: Conseil supérieur de la défense nationale) in 1922 and served with the French military mission to Greece until 1928, when he was promoted to

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 ...

of the 309th Artillery Regiment. He was promoted again in 1932 to the rank of

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

and in 1935 to Divisional General (a rank equivalent to

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...

) with command of the 29th Infantry Division, which he led until 1937. He later became commander of the 15th Army Corps in the southern

Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Swi ...

. On 5 December 1939 Olry assumed command of the Army of the Alps. When Italy invaded France in June 1940, he commanded 190,000 men on the Alpine Line. Faced with an Italian force of 450,000, Olry's troops successfully stopped the Italian advance and then proved a tough opponent for the German troops which joined the battle. The performance of the French army in this theatre was far more successful than on the rest of the front and preserved some areas of France from occupation.

Final years and death

During the interim period following the French surrender Olry served as an inspector general. He was then appointed to command the 1st Divisional Group of the French Armistice Army: comprising four divisions in the non-occupied south. In June 1942 he reached retirement age and took up residence on his family estate in the Charente region of Mansle. Olry died on 3 January 1944 in Angoulême.

Decorations

Olry was awarded the

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

, the highest military decoration in France, at ''Officier'' rank (''see Légion d'honneur#Classes and insignia'') in 1920 and became a ''Commandeur'' of the Légion d'honneur in 1936.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Olry, Rene 1880 births 1944 deaths People from Lille French generals French military personnel of World War I French military personnel of World War II École Polytechnique alumni Commandeurs of the Légion d'honneur