Warrior

From Monk To

Remarkable Career of New French Pacific Commissioner

From Our Own Correspondent

Noumea, Sept. 8.

XTRAORDINARY romance and ad venture have been packed into the ~A 11 Captain Georges Thierry d Argenlieu, who has just arrived in Noumea to organise, for Free France, the French colonies of the South Pacific (New Caledonia, New Hebrides, Tahiti, and French Oceania, etc.).

Two years ago he was a monk. One year ago, he was risking his life before Dakar, To-day, he is High Commissioner for General de Gaulle in the Pacific.

Captain d’Argenlieu comes of an old and noble family of Picardy and Breton descent. He is the third of seven children, five of whom were boys. He entered Navai School at 16, and in 1911 he was aide de-camp to Admiral de Marolles at the coronation of George V. As an ensign, he took part in Lyautey’s campaign in Morocco, from 1912 to 1914, receiving the Legion of Honour and a lifesaving medal.

In 1914-18, he served on patrol ships and destroyers, mainly on anti-submarine work, finishing the war as lieutenant in command of the patrol-ship “Tourterelle”.

After the war he became a monk (Father Louis of the Trinity), entering the Order of Carmel, and undergoing for 10 years the discipline of silence and effacement. In 1932, he was chosen to restore the old Carmelite province of Paris, which he governed as provincial until August, 1939.

When mobilised in 1939, he served at the great base of Cherbourg, until the capitulation made him and 500 other officers prisoners of the Germans. fTIHREE days of such captivity was JL enough for d’Argenlieu, and on June 22, 1940, he escaped from the convoy which was taking him to Germany and reached the coast. Dressed as a Norman peasant, he was smuggled across the Atlantic. Learning with indignation of the armistice, he joined General de Gaulle.

His arrival coincided with the arrival by ’plane from Gibraltar of Admiral Muselier, and the creation on July 1 of the Free French Navy. For a time, d’Agenlieu became aumonier (chaplain), visiting the sailors wherever they were camped, and instilling confidence and the will to continue the fight.

On August 23 he resumed active ser vice, to leave England on a particularly dangerous mission.

We next hear of him as leader of the de Gaulle delegation which was sent to negotiate with the Vichy French Governor of Dakar. The failure of that mission is now history. On Sept. 23, Governor de Boisson, at Dakar, repeatedly refused to receive them, and threatened their arrest.

So d’Argenlieu re-embarked his dele gation in their two launches, bearing the Tricolour and a flag of truce; but, en route, they were fired on, and d’Argenlieu was wounded by machine-gun fire.

After six weeks in hospital at Douala (French Equatorial African port), he em barked on the sloop “Savorgnan de Brazza”, and directed the naval opera tions at Gabon, which led to the occupation by Free French troops of Libreville and Port Gentil. He subse quently organised the naval bases of Equatorial Africa, and re-armed the Free French ships immobilised there.

In January, 1941, General de Gaulle appointed him a member of the Conseil de Defense de I’Empire, recalling him to London. In recent months, he has been engaged on special work in Canada.