Géraud Réveilhac

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General Réveilhac presenting the Médaille militaire to soldier Derrien who saved the life of an officer
(published in Review Le pays de France^[1] N°27 - April 22, 1915

Géraud François Gustave Réveilhac (16 February 1851 in Aurillac (France) - 1937^[2] ) was a French career officer, raised to the rank of Général de brigade on December 21, 1909,^[2] commanding officer of the 42nd Infantry Brigade, he was then Commandeur of the Légion d'honneur.

1 World War I
2 Further reading
3 Filmography
4 References

[edit] World War I

At the beginning of World War I, he was commanding the 119th Infantry Brigade, part of the 60th Infantry Division, under General Joppé^[3] whom he replaced on September 25, 1914 as commanding officer of the division.

In February 1915, after three attempts to take a strong German position failed, showing sovereign contempt of the life of his men,^[4] he ordered artillery to shell a French trench, to force his troops to attack. Fortunately, the artillery commander refused to obey without a written order. On another occasion, he ordered his troops to relaunch an attack pretending the percentage of acceptable losses had not been reached for that day. The movie Paths of Glory is partly based on these events.

At the end of the war, General Réveilhac was made Grand Officier of the Légion d'honneur.^[5] He retired to his country estate, and died in bed in 1937.

[edit] Further reading

Les damnés de la guerre - Les crimes de la justice militaire (1914-1918); Roger Monclin (1903 Reims - 1985 Saint Laurent du Var); Paris ; Mignolet & Storz; 1934
Le Crapouillot ; 1915.

[edit] Filmography

Paths of Glory; Stanley Kubrick (1957)

[edit] References

^ (French)Le pays de France , a weekly publication issued from 1914 to 1919
^ ^a ^b (French)Military Directory of 1913 web.genealogie.free.fr
^ Général de division Maurice Joppé (November 29, 1852-January 4, 1927).
^ (French)Les damnés de la guerre - Les crimes de la justice militaire (1914-1918)
^ Paris Muckraker www.time.com, Time Magazine (December 2 1935)

Persondata
NAME	Réveilhac, Géraud
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Réveilhac, Géraud François Gustave
SHORT DESCRIPTION	French General of World War I
DATE OF BIRTH	16 February 1851
PLACE OF BIRTH	Aurillac (France)
DATE OF DEATH	1937
PLACE OF DEATH	?