Jules Gaucher (13 September 1905 – 13 March 1954) was a French Army officer noted for his command of Foreign Legion troops in

Indochina Mainland Southeast Asia (historically known as Indochina and the Indochinese Peninsula) is the continental portion of Southeast Asia. It lies east of the Indian subcontinent and south of Mainland China and is bordered by the Indian Ocean to th ...

. He was killed at the

Battle of Dien Bien Phu The Battle of Điện Biên Phủ was a climactic confrontation of the First Indochina War that took place between 13 March and 7 May 1954. It was fought between the forces of the French Union and Viet Minh. The French began an operation to in ...

in 1954.

Early life

Gaucher graduated from the French military academy at Saint-Cyr in 1929 and was commissioned as a Sous-lieutenant (2nd Lieutenant). He was posted to

French Algeria French Algeria ( until 1839, then afterwards; unofficially ; ), also known as Colonial Algeria, was the period of History of Algeria, Algerian history when the country was a colony and later an integral part of France. French rule lasted until ...

and served as an officer with the Régiment de Tirailleurs Algériens from 1929 to 1931. He transferred to the Foreign Legion in 1931 and served in North Africa with the 1st Foreign Legion Regiment (1e REI) and the 3rd Foreign Legion Regiment (3e REI). In 1938 he was promoted to Capitaine (Captain) and transferred to 5th Foreign Infantry Regiment (5° REI) in

Tonkin Tonkin, also spelled Tongkin, Tonquin or Tongking, is an exonym referring to the northern region of Vietnam. During the 17th and 18th centuries, this term referred to the domain '' Đàng Ngoài'' under Trịnh lords' control, including both the ...

. When open conflict erupted between the occupying Japanese and French forces in March 1945, Gaucher led his battalion out of

Hanoi Hanoi ( ; ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Vietnam, second-most populous city of Vietnam. The name "Hanoi" translates to "inside the river" (Hanoi is bordered by the Red River (Asia), Red and Black River (Asia), Black Riv ...

and marched to

Dien Bien Phu Diethylenetriamine (abbreviated and also known as 2,2’-Iminodi(ethylamine)) is an organic compound with the formula HN(CH2CH2NH2)2. This colourless hygroscopic liquid is soluble in water and polar organic solvents, but not simple hydrocarbons. ...

, where he received an encouraging radio message from General

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 ...

. Pursued by the Japanese, he then led his soldiers into China. He was promoted to

Chef de bataillon () is the seniormost non-commissioned officer rank in France and other Francophone countries. Unlike most other countries which use the old European rank system, France uses as its lowest ranking senior officer. While the rank functions of '' ...

(Major) that same year and returned to the Foreign Legion depot at

Sidi Bel Abbes ''Sidi'' or ''Sayidi'', also Sayyidi and Sayeedi, ( (dialectal) "milord") is an Arabic masculine title of respect. ''Sidi'' is used often to mean "saint" or "my master" in Maghrebi Arabic and Egyptian Arabic. Without the first person possessiv ...

where he joined 13e Démi-Brigade de la Légion Étrangère (13e DBLE).

Indochina 1950–54

Gaucher was appointed to command of 3rd battalion of 13th demi-brigade (III/13e DBLE) in 1949 and returned to Indochina at the head of his battalion in 1950 as part of the

French Far East Expeditionary Corps The French Far East Expeditionary Corps (, CEFEO) was a colonial expeditionary force of the French Union Army that was initially formed in French Indochina in 1945 during the Pacific War. The CEFEO later fought and lost in the First Indochina Wa ...

to participate 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 ...

. Under his command, III/13e DBLE served throughout Indochina – notably in the Delta (1951) and at the

Battle of Hòa Bình The Battle of Hòa Bình was fought during the First Indochina War. It occurred from 10 November 1951 to 25 February 1952, when French Union forces attempted to lure the Việt Minh out into the open and to force it to fight on French terms. Pre ...

(1951–52). In 1951 he was promoted to lieutenant-colonel and asked to remain in Indochina with 13e DBLE instead of accepting command elsewhere. He served as

second-in-command Second-in-command (2i/c or 2IC) is a title denoting that the holder of the title is the second-highest authority within a certain organisation. Usage In the British Army or Royal Marines, the second-in-command is the deputy commander of a unit, f ...

(executive officer) of 13e DBLE from 1951 to 1953, until in 1953 he was appointed as commander of 13e DBLE. He had the reputation of a tough and hard-drinking soldier.

Dien Bien Phu 1953–54

Gaucher was appointed to command of Groupe Mobile 9 during the

. The group (equivalent to a

regimental combat team A regimental combat team (RCT) is a provisional major infantry unit which has seen use by branches of the United States Armed Forces. It is formed by augmenting a regular infantry regiment with smaller combat, combat support and combat servic ...

) comprised three infantry battalions, the I/13e DBLE (''Demi-brigade de Légion étrangère'', Foreign Legion half-brigade), III/13e DBLE, and III/3e RTA (''Régiment de

tirailleurs 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 ...

algériens'', Algerian sharpshooters regiment), and one artillery battery (the III/10e RAC). Stationed at the collection of strong points known as ''Béatrice'' to the northeast of the main base, Gaucher showed visitors that his men had cleared brambles and thickets to establish clear fields of fire and he expressed confidence in the formidable French defenses. By the beginning of March, Gaucher's men at ''Béatrice'' were taking casualties while on patrol, losing six officers in addition to the enlisted men. On March 13, 1954, Gaucher made rounds among his men, pointing out weaknesses in defensive works and ordering final preparations for the attack he was confident would come that night. He told his men that ''Béatrice'', overlooking the road and exposed on the northeastern edge of the French base, was "the little goat that the tiger eats for breakfast." During the attack that indeed came that night, Gaucher's command post was hit by artillery fire. Suffering from serious wounds – the loss of both arms, severe injuries to both legs, and an open chest wound – he died at the hospital. His command of the base's central sub-sector was passed on to Lieutenant-colonel Pierre Langlais.

Awards and honors

Commander of the

Legion of Honor 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. Currently consisting of five classes, it was ...

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 ...

'' with seven citations *

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 ...

with Maroc and Indochine campaign clasps * 1939–1945 Commemorative war medal * Indochina Campaign Commemorative Medal * Officer of the

Royal Order of Cambodia The Royal Order of Cambodia (, ; ) was a colonial order of chivalry of French Cambodia, and is still in use as an order of chivalry in the present-day Kingdom of Cambodia. History Colonialism On 8 February 1864, the king founded the Royal Orde ...

* Commander of the

Order of Ouissam Alaouite The Order of Ouissam Alaouite () or the Sharifian Order of Al-Alaoui is a military decoration of Morocco which is bestowed by the King of Morocco upon those civilians and military officers who have displayed heroism in combat or have contribute ...

* Officer of the

Imperial Order of the Dragon of Annam The Imperial Order of the Dragon of Annam (, , ; 12 ngày của Ðức Bảo-Ðại tại Bắc-Kỳ. page 82. ) was created in 1886 in the city of Huế, by Emperor Đồng Khánh of the Imperial House of Annam, upon the "recommendation" of the ...

Notes

References

* Fall, Bernard B. 1966 (2002). ''Hell in a Very Small Place: The Siege of Dien Bien Phu''. Da Capo Press. * *

External links

Biography (in Italian)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gaucher, Jules 1905 births 1954 deaths People from Bourges Officers of the French Foreign Legion French military personnel killed in the First Indochina War Recipients of the Croix de Guerre (France) Recipients of the Order of the Dragon of Annam French Army personnel of World War II