Jules Joseph Pire (1878-1953) was a Belgian career soldier and a leading figure in the

Belgian Resistance The Belgian Resistance (, ) collectively refers to the resistance movements opposed to the German occupation of Belgium during World War II, German occupation of Belgium during World War II. Within Belgium, resistance was fragmented between many ...

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 ...

. In this capacity, he led the Secret Army, the largest faction of the resistance, from January 1944.

Career

Pire was born in Hannut,

Liège Province Liège ( ; ; ; ; ) is the easternmost province of the Wallonia region of Belgium. Liège Province is the only Belgian province that has borders with three countries. It borders (clockwise from the north) the Dutch province of Limburg, the ...

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

on 29 March 1878. He enlisted in the

Belgian Army The Land Component (, ), historically and commonly still referred to as the Belgian Army (, ), is the Land warfare, land branch of the Belgian Armed Forces. The King of the Belgians is the commander in chief. The current chief of staff of the Land ...

in 1897, initially as a

non-commissioned officer A non-commissioned officer (NCO) is an enlisted rank, enlisted leader, petty officer, or in some cases warrant officer, who does not hold a Commission (document), commission. Non-commissioned officers usually earn their position of authority b ...

and subsequently as an

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...

. He was admitted to the Ecole de Guerre and served in the staff of the 3rd Brigade during the German invasion of Belgium in

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. Transferring to the infantry, Pire rose rapidly through the ranks during the war and in its aftermath. The culmination of his career was as commander of the newly created Corps of Chasseurs Ardennais from 1936 to 1939. He retired in April 1939 as a

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

, before being recalled in September when the

outbreak of World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated, with many nations mobilisin ...

led to the mobilisation of the Belgian Army, despite its neutral status. During the 18 Days' Campaign, Pire commanded the 10th Division of Chasseurs Ardennais. With Belgium under German Occupation, Pire became involved in the resistance. In 1941, he was involved in the creation of the

Belgian Legion Several military units have been known as the Belgian Legion. The term "Belgian Legion" can refer to Belgian volunteers who served in the French Revolutionary Wars, Napoleonic Wars, Revolutions of 1848 and, more commonly, the Mexico Expedition ...

, a group in the

with right-wing political sympathies. He became the group's commander in

Wallonia Wallonia ( ; ; or ), officially the Walloon Region ( ; ), is one of the three communities, regions and language areas of Belgium, regions of Belgium—along with Flemish Region, Flanders and Brussels. Covering the southern portion of the c ...

. The Belgian Legion subsequently merged with other groups, eventually becoming the Secret Army in 1944. Following the arrest of Jules Bastin and his successor's escape to the United Kingdom, Pire became head of the Secret Army in January 1944. In this role, he led the group's mobilisation after the

Normandy Landings The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on 6 June 1944 of the Allies of World War II, Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during the Second World War. Codenamed Operation Neptune and ...

and during the

Liberation of Belgium The Liberation of Belgium from German occupation began on 2 September 1944 when Allied forces entered the province of Hainaut and was completed on 4 February 1945 with the liberation of the village of Krewinkel. The liberation came after fou ...

from June to September 1944. He subsequently supervised the group's demobilisation before retiring. He died on 29 January 1953.

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pire, Jules 1878 births 1953 deaths Belgian anti-communists Belgian Army personnel of World War I Belgian Army generals of World War II Belgian resistance members Belgian soldiers People from Liège Province People from Hannut Royal Military Academy (Belgium) alumni 19th-century Belgian military personnel