Louis Charles Émile Gibon-Guilhem (1862–1945) was a French Infantry Brigadier General born in Rueil-Malmaison (Hauts-de Seine), France. Serving on the German front during World War I he was instrumental in the victory of allied forces in 1918.
Louis Charles Gibon was born on 23 January 1862 in a French family with long military tradition who took its origin in Brittany, France. He was the son of Brigadier General Émile Armand Gibon (1813–1870) who died when Louis Charles was only 8 years old. His grand father Jean Gibon (1775–1842) was a highly decorated Colonel, Commander of the Légion d'Honneur and Knight of the Empire. After his father's death his Scottish mother Elen Ord returned to Great Britain, her country of origin; her children never saw her again. Louis Charles was left with his siblings under the care of General Charles Nicolas Lacretelle (A friend of his father) and his wife Valérie Marie Guilhem. Later, at the age of 46, and by judgment dated 12 November 1908 of the Civil Court of Angers he was officially adopted by the recently widowed Valérie Marie. As recorded on his birth certificate,[1] his name was then amended to Louis Charles Emile Gibon-Guilhem.
Louis Charles Emile had a son François born on 31 January 1898 who joined the Army, and who later became aviator. Franois Gibon Guilhem became Chief of Staff of the North African-based French Air Force in 1942.[2] From his marriage, François had a son Charles Albert born in Algers in 1944.
General Gibon-Guilhem died in Paris on 10 June 1945.
Campaigns and military positionsedit
Louis Charles joined the army on 25 October 1882 and entered as Cadet the famous Ecole Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr ("Pavillons Noirs" Promotion) from which he graduated in 1884 (with the rank 97 out of 406).
1885 - On 12 February Lieutenant Gibon joined the 1st Zouave Regiment in Salon and was sent to Algeria 2 days later.
1888 – On 29 February he joined the 4th Tirailleur Algérien Regiment in Sousse. On 11 September, Gibon is sent the 3rd Tirailleur Algérien based in Tunisia.
After 9 years in North Africa Gibon returned to metropolitan France on 31 Mai 1894.
1894-1896 Gibon joined the 65th Infantry Regiment
1896-1897 On 9 December, Gibon became the Attaché of General Lannes commanding the 21st Infantry Division (France) of the 11th Army Corps
1898-1900 Instructor at the Ecole Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr he will later be evicted from the academy for insubordination before joining the 62nd I.R.
1901-1902 Gibon trains at the 28th Artillery Regiment learning artillery tactics.
1907 – On 24 December Gibon became Bataillon Commander at the 115th Infantry Regiment in Mamers.
1911 – On 26 October Bataillon Commander Gibon-Guilhem takes command of the prestigious 8th "Chasseur-à-Pied" Bataillon in Amiens.
1913 Lieutenant Colonel Gibon-Guilhem is sent to the 39th Infantry Regiment in Rouen
1914-1918 On 3 August 1914 War is declared between France and Germany. Colonel Gibon-Guilhem takes command of the 39th Infantry Regiment.[3] This will be is longest command until the end of the War.
1916-1917 Colonel Gibon-Guilhem commands the 39th I.R. in Verdun and is gazed during combat.
1920-1921 Commander of 1st Subdivision Group of the 11th Army Corps.
1921-1922 Reserve
On 23 January 1922 General Gibon-Guilhem will retire from military duties to live in Paris until 1945. Distinguished but simple, he was known to be a man respected by his enemies for his qualities, loved by his soldiers for his humanity, appreciated by his colleagues for his friendliness and competency and highly considered by his superiors for his courage and zealous military capacities in combat.
Promotions and decorationsedit
29 February 1888 Promoted to the rank of Lieutenant
The 39th Infantry Regiment under Gibon-Guilhem's commandedit
"The Regiment endurance was established in Verdun from the very beginning of the campaign in August and September 1914, then again in Artois in June, September and October 1915. During June 1916 under the command of Colonel Gibon-Guilhem in front of Verdun and under an extremely violent bombardment followed by gas emissions and despite severe losses, the regiment maintained its position on the Fleury plateau and contained enemy attacks for 3 days without losing a single inch of ground". General Denis Auguste Duchêne
"Elite regiment with superior fighting capacity. Between the 5th and the 18th August 1918 under the command of the Colonel Gibon-Guilhem and during 6 consecutive attacks (of which 2 were carried out by the entire regiment under the Colonel's command), the 39th has several times shown its fighting and resilient qualities and strongly contributed to the success of the operations. During this period the regiment made an 18 kilometre progression (12 of which through very hard fighting), took several high enemy positions, 3 villages, inflicted very high losses to the enemy, took over 350 PoW and captured a very significant amount of materials (of which 94 machine guns, 5 canons (one 210) and several minenwerfer".[3]General Debeney
Memoirsedit
On 1 August 1921, Louis Charles Gibon-Guilhem was sent to the Army Reserve. From that time he started to write the History of the 39th Infantry Regiment (Historique du 39e Régiment d'Infanterie[6]) which has just recently been published based on his memoirs.
Referencesedit
^. Registre d'Etat civil. NAISSANCES - 1861-1863 (in French). Archived from the original on 20 October 2013. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
^Bruno, Nion (September 2020). "François Gibon Guilhem: De l'artillerie de campagne à l'escadrille des requins". Uniformes (in French). No. 272. pp. 40–47.
^ ab"Historique Sommaire du 39e Regiment d'Infanterie" (PDF). Impremerie Commerciale du Journal de Rouen (in French). Retrieved 19 October 2013.
^"Annuaires Militares". Free Web Genealogies. Retrieved 10 February 2012.
^"Notice no. 19800035/730/82957". Base Léonore (in French).
^Gibon-Guilhem, Louis Charles (1901). Historique sommaire du 39e régiment d'infanterie (in French).
April 12, 2024
louis, charles, Émile, gibon, guilhem, 1862, 1945, french, infantry, brigadier, general, born, rueil, malmaison, hauts, seine, france, serving, german, front, during, world, instrumental, victory, allied, forces, 1918, birth, namelouis, charles, gibonborn, 186. Louis Charles Emile Gibon Guilhem 1862 1945 was a French Infantry Brigadier General born in Rueil Malmaison Hauts de Seine France Serving on the German front during World War I he was instrumental in the victory of allied forces in 1918 Louis Charles Emile Gibon GuilhemBirth nameLouis Charles GibonBorn 1862 01 23 23 January 1862Died10 June 1945 1945 06 10 aged 83 Paris FranceAllegianceFranceService wbr branchArmyYears of service1882 1922RankBrigadier GeneralAwardsCroix de GuerreRelationsEmile Armand Gibon Contents 1 Private life 2 Campaigns and military positions 3 Promotions and decorations 4 The 39th Infantry Regiment under Gibon Guilhem s command 5 Memoirs 6 ReferencesPrivate life editLouis Charles Gibon was born on 23 January 1862 in a French family with long military tradition who took its origin in Brittany France He was the son of Brigadier General Emile Armand Gibon 1813 1870 who died when Louis Charles was only 8 years old His grand father Jean Gibon 1775 1842 was a highly decorated Colonel Commander of the Legion d Honneur and Knight of the Empire After his father s death his Scottish mother Elen Ord returned to Great Britain her country of origin her children never saw her again Louis Charles was left with his siblings under the care of General Charles Nicolas Lacretelle A friend of his father and his wife Valerie Marie Guilhem Later at the age of 46 and by judgment dated 12 November 1908 of the Civil Court of Angers he was officially adopted by the recently widowed Valerie Marie As recorded on his birth certificate 1 his name was then amended to Louis Charles Emile Gibon Guilhem Louis Charles Emile had a son Francois born on 31 January 1898 who joined the Army and who later became aviator Franois Gibon Guilhem became Chief of Staff of the North African based French Air Force in 1942 2 From his marriage Francois had a son Charles Albert born in Algers in 1944 General Gibon Guilhem died in Paris on 10 June 1945 Campaigns and military positions editLouis Charles joined the army on 25 October 1882 and entered as Cadet the famous Ecole Speciale Militaire de Saint Cyr Pavillons Noirs Promotion from which he graduated in 1884 with the rank 97 out of 406 1885 On 12 February Lieutenant Gibon joined the 1st Zouave Regiment in Salon and was sent to Algeria 2 days later 1888 On 29 February he joined the 4th Tirailleur Algerien Regiment in Sousse On 11 September Gibon is sent the 3rd Tirailleur Algerien based in Tunisia After 9 years in North Africa Gibon returned to metropolitan France on 31 Mai 1894 1894 1896 Gibon joined the 65th Infantry Regiment 1896 1897 On 9 December Gibon became the Attache of General Lannes commanding the 21st Infantry Division France of the 11th Army Corps 1898 1900 Instructor at the Ecole Speciale Militaire de Saint Cyr he will later be evicted from the academy for insubordination before joining the 62nd I R 1901 1902 Gibon trains at the 28th Artillery Regiment learning artillery tactics 1907 On 24 December Gibon became Bataillon Commander at the 115th Infantry Regiment in Mamers 1911 On 26 October Bataillon Commander Gibon Guilhem takes command of the prestigious 8th Chasseur a Pied Bataillon in Amiens 1913 Lieutenant Colonel Gibon Guilhem is sent to the 39th Infantry Regiment in Rouen 1914 1918 On 3 August 1914 War is declared between France and Germany Colonel Gibon Guilhem takes command of the 39th Infantry Regiment 3 This will be is longest command until the end of the War 1916 1917 Colonel Gibon Guilhem commands the 39th I R in Verdun and is gazed during combat 1918 Colonel Gibon Guilhem takes the 39 IR to the Battle of the Somme Despite several citations awards medals and recommendations Gibon Guilhem will not be promoted General before the end of the conflict 1918 1919 Commander of the Infantry of the 21st Division 1919 1920 General Gibon Guilhem takes command of the 42nd Infantry Brigade 1920 Commander of the Fontenay le Comte and La Roche sur Yon Regions subdivisions 1920 1921 Commander of 1st Subdivision Group of the 11th Army Corps 1921 1922 ReserveOn 23 January 1922 General Gibon Guilhem will retire from military duties to live in Paris until 1945 Distinguished but simple he was known to be a man respected by his enemies for his qualities loved by his soldiers for his humanity appreciated by his colleagues for his friendliness and competency and highly considered by his superiors for his courage and zealous military capacities in combat Promotions and decorations edit29 February 1888 Promoted to the rank of Lieutenant 9 July 1889 Officer of the Nichan Iftikhar Tunisian Order 4 May 1894 Promoted to the rank of Captain 12 July 1897 Knighthood of the Legion d Honneur 21 October 1904 Promoted to the rank of major 23 July 1913 Promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel 27 October 1914 Promoted to the rank of colonel 13 July 1915 Officer of the Legion d Honneur 14 September 1916 St Anne Russian Order medal 27 September 1917 Commander of Order of the Crown Italy 23 December 1918 Promoted to the rank of Brigadier General 4 16 June 1920 Commander of the Legion d Honneur 5 1914 1918 Croix de Guerre War Cross 5 palms 2 Silver Stars 2 Bronze stars Medaille Interalliee 1914 1918 de la VictoireThe 39th Infantry Regiment under Gibon Guilhem s command edit The Regiment endurance was established in Verdun from the very beginning of the campaign in August and September 1914 then again in Artois in June September and October 1915 During June 1916 under the command of Colonel Gibon Guilhem in front of Verdun and under an extremely violent bombardment followed by gas emissions and despite severe losses the regiment maintained its position on the Fleury plateau and contained enemy attacks for 3 days without losing a single inch of ground General Denis Auguste Duchene Elite regiment with superior fighting capacity Between the 5th and the 18th August 1918 under the command of the Colonel Gibon Guilhem and during 6 consecutive attacks of which 2 were carried out by the entire regiment under the Colonel s command the 39th has several times shown its fighting and resilient qualities and strongly contributed to the success of the operations During this period the regiment made an 18 kilometre progression 12 of which through very hard fighting took several high enemy positions 3 villages inflicted very high losses to the enemy took over 350 PoW and captured a very significant amount of materials of which 94 machine guns 5 canons one 210 and several minenwerfer 3 General DebeneyMemoirs editOn 1 August 1921 Louis Charles Gibon Guilhem was sent to the Army Reserve From that time he started to write the History of the 39th Infantry Regiment Historique du 39e Regiment d Infanterie 6 which has just recently been published based on his memoirs References edit 1E 062 01 146 446 Registre d Etat civil NAISSANCES 1861 1863 in French Archived from the original on 20 October 2013 Retrieved 19 October 2013 Bruno Nion September 2020 Francois Gibon Guilhem De l artillerie de campagne a l escadrille des requins Uniformes in French No 272 pp 40 47 a b Historique Sommaire du 39e Regiment d Infanterie PDF Impremerie Commerciale du Journal de Rouen in French Retrieved 19 October 2013 Annuaires Militares Free Web Genealogies Retrieved 10 February 2012 Notice no 19800035 730 82957 Base Leonore in French Gibon Guilhem Louis Charles 1901 Historique sommaire du 39e regiment d infanterie in French Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Louis Charles Emile Gibon Guilhem amp oldid 1151331082, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
