About

The French army is often forgotten on the Western front by English speaking observers, due to the heavy focus on the British sectors. That does not mean that we should ignore or forget the sacrifices French soldiers made on their home soil.

So what did the average French soldier experience during the war? 

To help me I have a primary source in my Great Grandfather, otherwise known as Sgt Jules Andre Destrigneville. Jules endured over 1171 days of war starting in August 1915 until November 1918, via Auberive, Tourbe, Massiges, Verdun, Baccarat, Soissons, Sambre Canal, but he also experienced the nuances of the French Army way of life: the terrible pay, insufficient equipment, little edible food, absence of real empathy from senior officers,  unjust leave system and above all horrendous living conditions that often lead to low morale, exhaustion and ultimately at times death.

Jules Andre Destrigneville

(1889-1977)

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Born on the 23^rd June 1889 at Fouchecourt in the Vosges. Jules early years, like all able-bodied men of the period was influenced by his military service, which was compulsory in France until 2001. Jules started his military service with the 79e regiment in Nancy in 1909, where he would spend his next 4 years, slowly rising through the lower ranks to “Caporal” in November 1911. After his military service in 1912, he naturally transitioned to become a “Gardien de la Paix” (policeman). Little did he know that this choice of career would most probably save his life, when general mobilization was announced in August 1914, policemen were (generally) exempt. Therefore, it was another 12 months before Jules was called up and arrived at Mamers (Sarthe department of France) on the 28^th August 1915, the home of the 115e regiment (315e regiment being a reserve regiment of the 115e).

Click here for a brief overview of Jules War

Below a brief timeline of Sgt Jules Andre Destrigneville campaign

1915 – 1918

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