GENERAL PAU — HE COULD HAVE BEEN COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF, HE CHOSE TO BE EXEMPLARY

Alsatian by blood shed

At the age of 22, Second Lieutenant Gérald Pau was severely wounded in the right hand during the terrible Battle of Froeschwiller in 1870. Faced with amputation, he asked to be operated on without anaesthesia, so that the small amount of product available could be reserved for the more gravely wounded soldiers.

This gesture, which remained in the collective memory, embodies the moral qualities that would guide his entire life: courage, consideration for others, humility. For more than half a century, Gérald Pau served France without respite. From the War of 1870 to the eve of Verdun, he rose through the ranks, eventually taking command of the Army of Alsace in 1914.

But he was no ordinary commander. Modest, demanding, loyal to his men, he refused easy honours. He did not manoeuvre to become commander-in-chief: he saw his duty elsewhere — in hard work, exemplary conduct, and loyalty.

In 1918, he laid down arms to serve in a different way: he would go on to preside over the French Red Cross for fourteen years, with the same rectitude. Drawing on previously unpublished private archives, this biography brings back to life a discreet yet luminous figure, who has remained in the shadows for too long.

"Far from hagiography, Remy Porte restores a character — modest, demanding, of absolute integrity — and examines the French relationship with command. A fine lesson in military virtue, at a time when the value of exemplary conduct is being rediscovered."