Victor Bourret (22 September 1877 – 5 August 1949) was a French general and military administrator. Born on 22 September 1877 in

Bastia Bastia ( , , , ; ) is a communes of France, commune in the Departments of France, department of Haute-Corse, Corsica, France. It is located in the northeast of the island of Corsica at the base of Cap Corse. It also has the second-highest popu ...

Corsica Corsica ( , , ; ; ) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the Regions of France, 18 regions of France. It is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of the Metro ...

, he was the son of a

gendarme A gendarmerie () is a paramilitary or military force with law enforcement duties among the civilian population. The term ''gendarme'' () is derived from the medieval French expression ', which translates to "men-at-arms" (). In France and som ...

. He joined up in 1895 and attended the '' École Nationale des Sous-Officiers d’Active'' in

Saint-Maixent-l'École Saint-Maixent-l'École () is a commune in the department of Deux-Sèvres, region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine (before 2015: Poitou-Charentes), western France. Geography Saint-Maixent-l'École is located in the Haut Val de Sèvre area of western Franc ...

in 1900 and the ''

École Militaire École or Ecole 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 * Éco ...

'' in 1913. He served 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 ...

working on various staffs. Between the wars he held various posts at the head of infantry units or in the Ministry of War, where he was chief of

Édouard Daladier Édouard Daladier (; 18 June 1884 – 10 October 1970) was a French Radical Party (France), Radical-Socialist (centre-left) politician, who was the Prime Minister of France in 1933, 1934 and again from 1938 to 1940. he signed the Munich Agreeme ...

's military cabinet three times between February 1932 and July 1937. Assessed by the British as a "political general ... of little of no worth," he was alleged to have formed a screen which restricted contact between the minister and the military officers under his command. During this period he was promoted Brigadier-General in 1932, Major-General in 1935, Lieutenant-General in 1936 and General in 1939. On the outbreak of

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 ...

, Bourret was given command of the Fifth Army, stationed in Alsace. Subordinates who had been critics of Bourret during his time at the ministry grew to admire him as a commander. Amongst the officers under his command was Colonel

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 ...

, who was in command of the army's five scattered battalions of tanks. During the

battle of France The Battle of France (; 10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign (), the French Campaign (, ) and the Fall of France, during the Second World War was the Nazi Germany, German invasion of the Low Countries (Belgium, Luxembour ...

, on 17 June 1940, he was replaced as commander of 5th Army by Charles-Marie Condé and placed in command of the reserves. As the army retreated, he went to Fort de Girancourt, part of the outdated Séré de Rivières fortifications He was taken prisoner on 25 June 1940 at

Gérardmer Gérardmer (; or archaic ''Geroldsee'', and ''Giraumoué'' in local Lorrain language, Vosgian) is a communes of France, commune in the Vosges (department), Vosges Department, Grand Est (before 2016: Lorraine (region), Lorraine), France. It is nic ...

and spent five years in captivity in the

Königstein Fortress Königstein Fortress (), the "Saxony, Saxon Bastille", is a hilltop fortress near Dresden, in Saxon Switzerland, Germany, above the town of Königstein, Saxony, Königstein on the left bank of the River Elbe. It is one of the largest hilltop for ...

Saxony Saxony, officially the Free State of Saxony, is a landlocked state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria, as well as the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic. Its capital is Dresden, and ...

. He was released on 9 May 1945 and was back in France 3 days later. After the war he wrote a monograph about the fall of France entitled "The Tragedy of the French Army". He died on 5 August 1949 in

Cérans-Foulletourte Cérans-Foulletourte is a Communes of France, commune in the Sarthe Departments of France, department in the Regions of France, region of Pays de la Loire in north-western France. The township has been twinned with Chapel St Leonards in Lincolns ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bourret, Victor 1877 births 1949 deaths French military personnel of World War I French Army generals of World War II 19th-century French military personnel