René Léon Quentier (20 June 1903 – 18 November 1976) was a French

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who played as a

midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

for CA Paris in the late 1920s.

Early life and education

René Quentier was born on 20 June 1903 in

Chambly, Oise Chambly () is a Communes of France, commune in the Oise Departments of France, department in northern France. Chambly station has rail connections to Beauvais and Paris. History The medieval lordship of Chambly () was held by members of the Hous ...

, as the son of the notary Simon Clodomir Quentier and Berthe Félicie Carillon. He studied at the Chambly municipal school, the Pontoise middle school, and Lycée Félix Faure in

Beauvais Beauvais ( , ; ) is a town and Communes of France, commune in northern France, and prefecture of the Oise Departments of France, département, in the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, north of Paris. The Communes of France, commune o ...

, before graduating in law in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. From January 1923 until July 1924, Quentier carried out his mandatory military service with the 3rd Fighter Aviation Regiment in

Châteauroux Châteauroux ( ; ; ) is the capital city of the French department of Indre, central France and the second-largest town in the province of Berry, after Bourges. Its residents are called ''Castelroussins'' () in French. Climate Châteauroux te ...

Playing career

Quentier began his football career at Beauvais (VCB), from which he joined CA Paris, where he served as the team's

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 ...

for 7 years in the 1920s. Together with Jean Gautheroux,

Marcel Langiller Marcel Langiller (2 June 1908 – 25 December 1980) was a French footballer and is an Olympian. He played in a striker role, and was nicknamed "La Caille". He was part of France’s squad for the 1930 FIFA World Cup Club career Langiller was ...

, and the Laurent brothers (

Jean Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * Jean (surname) Fictional characters * Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character * Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations * J ...

and

Lucien Lucien is a male given name. It is the French form of Luciano (disambiguation), Luciano or Latin ''Lucianus'', patronymic of Lucius. People Given name *Lucien, 3rd Prince Murat (1803–1878), French politician and Prince of Pontecorvo *Lucien ...

), Quentier was a member of the CA Paris team that reached the 1928 Coupe de France final, which ended in a 3–1 loss to

Red Star A red star, five-pointed and filled, is a symbol that has often historically been associated with communist ideology, particularly in combination with the hammer and sickle, but is also used as a purely socialist symbol in the 21st century. ...

. Also in 1928, Quentier was selected three times for the French national team, but he never had the chance to come off the bench.

Political career

Having taken over his father's office in Chambly, Quentier worked there for three decades, from 1930 until 1960. During the

Second World War 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 ...

, Quentier was a member of the French Combatant Forces (FFC). He became engaged in the Free France movement in February 1941, where his main assignment was internal resistance, reaching a rank as high as P1. He was also a brilliant aviator, being awarded the Croix de Guerre, and 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 ...

. In 1947, Quentier became a municipal councillor in Chambly, and in 1959, he became its mayor, a position that he held for 17 years, until he died in

6th arrondissement of Paris The 6th arrondissement of Paris (''VIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 Arrondissements of Paris, arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, it is referred to as ''le sixième''. The arrondissement, called Luxembourg in ...

on 18 November 1976, at the age of 73.

Honours

;CA Paris *

Coupe de France The Coupe de France (), also known in English language, English as the French Cup or less commonly as the France Cup, is the premier Single-elimination tournament, knockout cup competition in French football organised by the French Football Fed ...

: **Champions (1):

1928 Events January * January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly demonstrating that DNA is the genetic material. * January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris B ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Quentier, René 1903 births 1976 deaths French men's footballers Men's association football midfielders Footballers from Oise 20th-century French sportsmen 20th-century French politicians French Resistance members French aviators Recipients of the Legion of Honour