Paul Gardy (18 August 1901 – 26 October 1975) was Général de brigade of the

French Army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (, , ), is the principal Army, land warfare force of France, and the largest component of the French Armed Forces; it is responsible to the Government of France, alongside the French Navy, Fren ...

and

Commandant Commandant ( or ; ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ...

of the Foreign Legion in 1951 and 1958.

Military career

Saint-Cyrien of the 108th promotion ("du Souvenir" - "of Memory" promotion), sous-lieutenant Gardy, graduated Saint-Cyr in 1923, passed a year of application at Saumur, then joined the 8th Hussards Regiment (). Promoted to

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

, he was designated for the

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in September 1925 and was assigned at his request, to the 4th squadron of the 1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment 1^er REC, with whom he took part to the columns of Hermon (). He distinguished himself notably during mounting the defensive of the citadel of Rashaya. Wounded twice, he was cited at the orders of the armed forces and evacuated. Assigned temporarily at the 12th Cuirassiers Regiment (), he returned in 1926 to the 1st squadron of the

1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment The 1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment () is the only cavalry regiment of the Foreign Legion in the French Army. It is one of two armoured cavalry regiments of the 6th Light Armoured Brigade. The regiment has been stationed at Camp Carpiagne near ...

1^e REC, in the region of Euphrate. With his unit, he was sent to Bou Denib in Morocco in 1927, then to Sousse in Tunisia in August 1928. In June 1929, lieutenant Gardy passed to the 3rd squadron with whom he redeployed to Morocco, Rich circle (). He was later detached to the 37th Aviation Regiment (), at the squadron of Ouarzazate, with whom he operated in Central Atlas, Sagho and Draa. he obtained two citations and was made a

chevalier Chevalier may refer to: Honours Belgium * a rank in the Belgian Order of the Crown * a rank in the Belgian Order of Leopold * a rank in the Belgian Order of Leopold II * a title in the Belgian nobility France * a rank in the French Legion d'h ...

of the Légion d'honneur. In 1931, he was assigned to the 1st African Chasseur Regiment (), then to the 3rd Hussards. In 1932–1933, he pursued the course of an instructor lieutenant at Saumur, then joined the 1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment 1^er REC at Sousse in October 1933, where he assumed the command of the 1st squadron.

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

in October 1934, he left the 1st Foreign Cavalry Regiment 1^er REC in 1938 to join the war school () after a short passage at the 2nd Mounted Dragoon Battalion (). He took part in the campaign of 1939–1940 at the general staff headquarters of the 20th Infantry Division (), where he received a citation in June 1940. He joined quickly North Africa where he was assigned to the 4th Tunisian Saphis Regiment ().

Chef d'escadron In some branches of the French Army and in the French National Gendarmerie ''Chef d'escadron'' ("squadron leader") is the officer rank above captain and below lieutenant colonel. It is the first Senior officer (''Officier supérieur'') rank and ...

in June 1941, he commanded the second squadron group of this regiment and took part to the campaign in Tunisia where he was cited at the orders of the armed forces. He was then designated as chief of the bureau of the 1^re DB as of July 1943. Designated second in command of the 2nd African Chasseur Regiment () in April 1944, he participated with this regiment to the campaign of France where he distinguished capability in the offensive of Hautes Alsace. Wounded twice, he was cited at the orders of the armed forces and promoted to officier of the Légion d'honneur. Lieutenant-colonel in January 1945, he was designated as an instructor at the general staff headquarter school (), then attached to the military cabinet of general Kœnig at Baden-Baden. As of March 1946, he commanded the 1st Cuirassiers Regiment at Neustadt.

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), 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 colon ...

on 1 October 1947, he assumed in June 1948 the functions of chief of the general staff headquarters of the 1^re DB, which he conserved until February 1951. He was designated accordingly as commandant of the subdivision of Tours. He received the

commandeur Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries, t ...

degree of the Légion d'honneur. Designated as second

commandant Commandant ( or ; ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ...

command Command may refer to: Computing * Command (computing), a statement in a computer language * command (Unix), a Unix command * COMMAND.COM, the default operating system shell and command-line interpreter for DOS * Command key, a modifier key on A ...

of the Autonomous Group Tenure of the Foreign Legion () at Sidi-Bel-Abbes on 15 September 1951, he assumed tenure commandment on 1 October 1951, succeeding

général is the French word for general. There are two main categories of generals: the general officers (), which are the highest-ranking commanding officers in the armed forces, and the specialist officers with flag rank (), which are high-level offic ...

Jean Olié. In 1955, he joined Germany as deputy to the général commandant of the 1^re DB. Promoted to Général de brigade in 1957, he was designated as Inspector of the Foreign Legion on 31 July 1958. He participated the preparation and realization of the 1961 general's putsch and joined général

Raoul Salan Raoul Albin Louis Salan (; 10 June 1899 – 3 July 1984) was a French Army general and the founder of the Organisation armée secrète, a clandestine terrorist organisation that sought to maintain French Algeria by preventing Algerian indepen ...

at the corps of the Organisation armée sécrete (OAS) and took charge of the region of Alger then Oran where he remained until the end of June 1962. Général Paul Gardy was condemned in absentia on 11 July 1961. He fled to Spain, then Argentina. Grand Officier 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 ...

, Général Paul Gardy died in a car accident in

Oliveros, Santa Fe Oliveros is a town in the . The municipality has 4,750 inhabitants and is classed as a ''comuna''. It is located in the Iriondo Department, 126 km south from Santa Fe, Argentina, the capital of the province. Oliveros is home to a large public ...

in 1975. His car swerved and then collided with a train.

Recognitions and honors

Grand Officier of the

Légion d'Honneur 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 ...

Commandeur Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries, t ...

of the Légion d'Honneur * Legion Honneur Officier ribbon

Officier of the Légion d'Honneur * Legion Honneur Chevalier ribbon

Chevalier Chevalier may refer to: Honours Belgium * a rank in the Belgian Order of the Crown * a rank in the Belgian Order of Leopold * a rank in the Belgian Order of Leopold II * a title in the Belgian nobility France * a rank in the French Legion d'h ...

of the Légion d'Honneur

References

Sources

*Répertoire des chefs de corps *Centre de documentation de la Légion étrangère *Répertoire des citations (BCAAM) {{DEFAULTSORT:Gardy, Paul 1901 births 1975 deaths French expatriates in Argentina French Army personnel of World War II French military personnel of the Algerian War OAS members convicted in absentia OAS members who fled to Spain People convicted of treason against France People sentenced to death in absentia by France Railway accident deaths in Argentina

Military career

Recognitions and honors

See also

References

Sources