Site en Français

Staff-Sergeant Joseph ARNOLD

Biography

Source : Mrs Luce ARNOLD, daughter of Staff-sergeant Joseph ARNOLD

Joseph ARNOLD was born on 2 March 1915 in Husseren-Wesserling (68 � Haut-Rhin). He died on 1 February 1980 in Voiron (38 � Is�re)

1 - His military career:

Joseph ARNOLD volunteered for a three-year term on 10 October 1935. He joined the Istres School for Non-Commissioned Officers of Flight Crew in May 1936 before being admitted to the Istres Air Force Academy in October 1936. He obtained his pilot’s licence in July 1937. Joseph ARNOLD joined GAO 507 on 12 December 1938, where he flew, amongst other aircraft, the Potez 63-11 No. 212, nicknamed ‘La Virgule’.
After the Armistice, Joseph ARNOLD was posted to the 2nd Company of the Salon Air Battalion. On 24 June 1941, he set sail from Marseille for Algeria and was granted Armistice leave on 21 July 1941. He became a primary school teacher in the town of Duvivier (Algeria).
Following the Allied landings in North Africa on 8 November 1942, Joseph ARNOLD joined the F.A.F.L. on 1 April 1943 and was posted to Blida. He flew to England in May 1944 to attend pilot training schools there. He then adopted the pseudonym Jacques ROLLAND-TAPIE. He returned to mainland France in March 1945.
In May 1945, he was posted as an instructor at the Ch�teauroux flight training centre.

After various postings, Joseph ARNOLD left for Indochina and arrived in Saigon on 18 May 1954. He returned to mainland France in May 1955 and continued his career until his retirement on 1 January 1969 with the rank of Commandant.

For further details, see Joseph ARNOLD’s service records in the documents below.

2 - The French Campaign: Day by Day:

Mrs Luce ARNOLD, daughter of Joseph ARNOLD, discovered three notebooks written by her father following her mother�s death. These contained a detailed and illustrated account of Joseph ARNOLD�s service during the Second World War, as well as the correspondence he exchanged with his wife, Yvonne. Using these documents, Mrs ARNOLD is compiling a collection of family memoirs, intended for her grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Mrs Arnold was kind enough to share this wonderful document with me, and here I present Joseph Arnold�s daily account of the French Campaign. This account sheds light on the attitudes of the time, reflecting Joseph Arnold�s values, which were shaped by a solid Catholic upbringing, and a sensibility characteristic of the people of Alsace.
Sergeant Joseph ARNOLD was nicknamed �Seppi� whilst serving with GAO 507

Notebook No. 1
" Campaign notes: August 39 to September 39 "

End of August
German-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact. At first glance, there is nothing incompatible with a Franco-Anglo-Russian mutual assistance treaty.
Reservists have been called up. For us, this means the mobilisation of Echelon A. People are beginning to worry. Downstairs, Mr Tuaillon and Mr Conseret no longer have the heart to work.
Sunday 27
Wake-up at 5 am. Alert! Echelon A has departed. We�re staying put for now. In the evening, the fighter squadron from Dijon arrives. Cars and convoys file past non-stop. Something more serious than� �usual� is brewing. This situation will certainly lead to mobilisation. Will Hitler take the plunge? I doubt it, as his position is rather weak. It is certain that England and France would turn on Italy first. And the German border will not allow German aid to get through. Nor will the French attack: in any case, Italy will be the first target.
Monday–Tuesday–Wednesday
We are hoping for a settlement. Diplomatic consultations are taking place everywhere. Belgium, the Netherlands and the Pope are pleading for peace. Germany continues to evade the issue. Wednesday (30 August 1939): departure for C., where we arrive at 1 am
Thursday � Friday
Our hope for peace is growing in tandem with the efforts of France and Britain, the neutral nations and the Vatican. This morning�s newspapers carry the headline �The Reich�s peaceful offer to Poland�. This therefore spells trouble ahead, as Poland wishes to safeguard its economic rights in Danzig. Germany will never agree to this. As for the extraterritoriality (sic) of the transport route? ...!
Alas! The truth is quite different: at midday, the radio tells us that Poland is under attack. We cannot believe it. By two o�clock, the mobilisation has already been announced.
Our hope for peace remains, however, because we still believe in Hitler�s reason. If not in his word.
Saturday 2 September
Efforts to secure peace continue: there is a threat of a declaration of war should hostilities with Poland not cease. A deeply moving speech by Daladier, emphasising our duty to defend civilisation and the rule of law against brute force.
Sunday 3 september
Hope for peace is fading. Barely an hour!
At 11.00, Britain declared war. At 17.00, it was France�s turn. The responsibilities are clear. No one doubts Hitler�s latest crime. He wanted war: he shall have it! We are overcome by a certain �despair� in the face of this bloodbath unleashed by the ambition of a single man.
But we shall prevail. At this hour, there is not a single soul � not even the ever-so-strong French spirit � who is not thinking of sacrificing themselves entirely to this great cause which our honour and our freedom demand of us.
Monday 4 september
In the squadron, everyone is getting organised. Some are studying how to fire through the lower hatch, whilst others are listening to Senn explaining how he interprets the observations.
There are plenty of rumours doing the rounds. The official statements confirm nothing:
Press release No. 1:
Operations have begun involving all land, sea and air forces.
In Poland, the all-out and barbaric war continues: Red Cross facilities are being bombed, peasants are being machine-gunned, and churches are being desecrated.
The torpedoing of the Ath�nia. 1,400 refugees. Already?
Italy seems intent on remaining neutral. So much the better: the Mediterranean will be free.
Press release No. 2:
Contacts are gradually being established on the front line. French naval forces have taken up their assigned positions. The air force is carrying out the necessary reconnaissance missions
Tuesday 5 September
British aeroplanes are dropping leaflets over the Rhineland. The Germans are still unaware that hostilities have begun against us: a country of lies, a country that worships lies!
A great deal of hope is being pinned on the Germans� discontent. But will this herd-like people be able to rise up?
Press release No. 3:
Operations are proceeding as normal for all land, sea and air forces.
Press release No. 4:
Our units are deployed all along the stretch of our border between the Rhine and the Moselle. It is worth noting that along the Rhine, permanent fortifications line the banks on both sides.
Wednesday 6 September
No doubt somewhere between the Rhine and the Moselle, the guns are thundering ever more loudly. The infantry will always be the queen of the battlefield. The heroic queen.
Thursday 7 September
We�ve settled right into civilian life: like draft dodgers. War makes some people more posh: take Louis, for example, who�s shaking hands with everyone.
Friday 8 September
All hands on deck in the middle of the night. Woke up at 4 am: off to where? Nobody had a clue. We set off, well concealed in the fog. By 11 am we were in D. Then we stopped, ravenous, in N. We went in search of eggs and, at the village�s only inn, made an omelette� In the evening we arrive in L., in the austere courtyard of the large barracks. It already feels more like war: all the soldiers moving about, all the civilians wearing masks, and so on. A good night�s sleep on straw.
Saturday 9 September
We set off again at 8 am. A short 20-kilometre stage. A charming little town where we have lunch, dinner and spend the night. I stay with a solicitor, who gives me a very warm welcome. A Cointreau before bed. The solicitor is at the S. powder houses.
Sunday 10 September
Morning Mass. I can receive Holy Communion. To think that it takes willpower for me to fulfil my simplest duty towards Christ, when fervour and gratitude alone should be enough to drive me to do so.
God protects the integrity of our home. I promised Our Lady of Lourdes that I would walk from W. to L. if all four of us were safe and sound once peace returned.
We�re gathering soon. We�re setting off in an hour� We�re peeling potatoes. Uncle and I are making chips. A lovely lunch, then we set off. We drive on until nightfall. Every now and then we come across a car in the ditches. More and more soldiers. At T� we watch a mock battle between Curtiss aircraft. A Potez 63 has come to the end of its service near the road and its crew have already seen out the war�
We carry on driving through the night. Soon we�re heading north-east. At 1 am we finally go to bed in a barn, me right at the very top of the loft.
Monday 11 September
We�re at L en S. A very large airfield. Our Mureaux are already there. So are those from 520. The latter already has two crews who�ve landed. One in our lines, having returned after a successful attack by Messerschmitts at the tangent of the spiral. Gliding down towards our lines, skidding when the Messerschmitts closed in too closely. The other crew was Tacquard (Sergeant Jean TACQUARD of GAO I/520), who was shot down in flames and crashed behind our lines as well. Poor old chap!
Tuesday 12 September
We�re still� staying put. Ledauphin and Louis are heading south, where they�re due to carry out missions. Nothing new. On the front, we�ve captured Warduk. We�re advancing towards Saarbr�cken.
Wednesday 13 September
We�re heading south, no doubt. By midday we�re there, having a peaceful lunch. Look at all those troops filing past in lorries!
We organise a meal and I act as interpreter! A nice old chap lets us use his �Stuba� (the main room, in Alsatian)� The terrain is really odd, all hilly. We start camouflaging everything.
Thursday–Friday
The weather is getting worse and worse. Champavier sets off for a fly-by, whilst D. Schwander comes under fire from the French at S: people think he�s firing his machine-guns, when in fact it�s his engine backfiring in the engine compartment!
A Potez 39 crashes on landing, though the pilot, who had flown it in from O, escapes unharmed.
Saturday 16 September
A heated discussion at the Squadron. A row between Louis and Bertrand: both have a point.
As for the photographic mission, it does not seem at all the same as in peacetime. It seems to me that one factor, one key principle, must take precedence: saving time. A second: the study of the enemy�s air defences.
In practical terms, this involves flying perpendicular to the enemy�s anti-aircraft batteries (for 1 minute or 1 minute 30 seconds) to increase their azimuth correction. Perhaps, from the anti-aircraft batteries� perspective, it is the altitude of the explosions that would be more difficult to pinpoint.
This leaves the fighter aircraft, which must be monitored by the observer as the pilot is occupied with flying in a straight line. The pilot therefore needs to perform a rapid manoeuvre to set a heading (Ledauphin seems to have an excellent method: approach at 90� to the direction of the tracer rounds, almost directly overhead of the target. Make a sharp turn towards it. Stabilise the compass bearing for the following 10 seconds, then fly on that heading.)
Sunday 17 September
We don�t know what a Sunday is any more! But many remember it � though perhaps they didn�t remember it with peace of mind. So was this ordeal necessary to make us think?
The boss is a bit mad sometimes! Doesn�t he take it into his head to reply to Uncle: �It�s no time to go to Mass when there�s work to be done: I�d really like to have the Church shut down!��
We know that our first duty is our work, and that Mass is not a right. But there are ways of replying that are less offensive.
It seems Russia is attacking Poland. Poor Poland! It�s true that it will now be our turn. But will Europe stand by impassively and fearfully whilst this division takes place?
Beguin and Senn set off to take photos. Senn returns shortly due to a low ceiling. What�s more, his machine gun has jammed! Beguin-Bertrand bring back a few photos. � Look, some British fighters flying past.
In the evening at the mess hall, a grand dress rehearsal of the squadron�s songs, washed down with sparkling wine!
Monday 18 September
It�s still raining. We�re starting to get bogged down in the bourgeois lifestyle of the draft dodger, just as the taxis get bogged down in the clay of the ground. It�s been raining all day.
And tonight, the cannon is thundering even louder than usual.
My landlady is lovely and offers me two slices of plum tart. Despite my sweet tooth, I must manage to offer one to Gaby.
It�s strange how a small act can sometimes cost us dearly, given our habit of selfishness or our quest for comfort and pleasure.
Tuesday 19 September
Would I be able today to be more aware of the spiritual life? By constantly living at the mercy of the flesh and the pleasurable impulses of the moment, reflection and meditation become so extraordinary and so difficult.
War is a hideous thing, but not the total sacrifice it imposes on us all; it is a school of strength. The deprivation of our freedom, our comforts and our loved ones becomes a natural act, even if our very being feels its harshness. But the will must go beyond this forced acceptance, this necessary indifference. Our will must make the most of this situation to practise voluntary sacrifice once more and truly give itself the impetus from which a more vibrant and stronger peace will emerge. For war does not last forever. Even if it did, our will would need this stimulus of devotion and voluntary sacrifice to secure the strength to triumph against all odds.
Wednesday 20 September
The weather’s fine this morning: so it’s going to be a rough day. Three photo missions are setting off: it’s tense on the ground, where the taxis are getting bogged down.
At midday we start to get worried: Senn hasn’t turned up for lunch. We’ve seen dogfights between fighters. There have also been clashes between fighters and bombers, with one of the bombers shot down. Two French ‘sausages’ have been shot down.
Clément and Lapanne are attacked by a Messerschmitt. Clément thinks he’s hit it on the starboard side.
In the afternoon, an ambulance pulls up: it’s Senn. Shot down by fighters near Sarralbe (20 km). With two bullets in his thigh, he lands, coming under machine-gun fire from the Germans from as high as 300 metres. Bonnal has a bullet in his thigh and another in his cheek.
We are greatly relieved that the ‘damage’ is limited to that.
Thursday 21 September
Senn’s taxi is riddled with bullets: nearly 200, according to Viard. One bullet destroyed the machine gun and severed the cable for the lower one, wrecked the camera, and severed and sheared off quite a few instrument controls: it’s a miracle they made it out alive. Even Gaby says, “What on earth would have happened if we’d been in any taxi other than the Glandouille?” The squadron’s only lucky taxi.
Bonnal is weak because he’s lost quite a lot of blood; his temporal artery was severed by a fragment from an armour-piercing bullet.
Louis and Bychovitz are leaving. A splendid rendezvous with the fighters at the appointed time above S.
Charlot drops in for a quick visit. He’s being feted in the mess hall, where the bottles are flowing and the songs are flying. Charlot is delighted with our concert and decides to strike up ‘Les Montagnards’.
Friday 22 September
The Russians and the Germans do not seem to be getting on very well in Poland. It is true that we often mistake our hopes for reality. But between two parties such as Stalin and Hitler, can there be anything more than a scrap of paper? Especially as Stalin now has a unique opportunity to bring about a revolution in Europe via Czechoslovakia and Germany, now that France is so united for the common good.
The Poles are true heroes in their fierce and, for themselves, futile resistance in Warsaw. And we, who care so much about our own lives, who want to enjoy the peace! No doubt we are right in our desire, for we know that we shall at last live freely in a Europe that may be more stable.
A crew from the 505th (Potez 390 No. 50 of GAO 505) was shot down by German fighters whilst carrying out artillery calibration near the Maginot Line. One captain was seriously wounded (Captain André LEONARD, who would later die from his injuries). The pilot was slightly less seriously injured (Staff Sergeant Claude ACHAINTRE).
Saturday 23 September
This morning, the funeral of Captain Léonard, who died yesterday whilst on flying duty. Killed by a bullet to the head. The aircraft riddled with bullets, the pilot unharmed.
A service and a Mass at the church that were so moving in their simplicity and military camaraderie. What a deeper, more imploring meaning the words of the Holy Church take on for us who are still alive. And they were so fitting, like the whole liturgy, to the mood of our hearts. The *Dies irae* has a tremendous human significance.
A brief address by the three colonels. The first and second spoke of God, of the supreme reward that awaits the dead in eternal life. It was the first time I had heard God spoken of in the presence of a soldier who had died in service.
Sunday 24 September
All hands on deck at the Squadron: the Colonel and Bitsch are going to fly. A group flypast mission with 10 escort aircraft. Everything was organised to perfection. Unfortunately, there was a 10-minute delay in the execution: the rendezvous with the fighters fell through, and for an hour the three Mureaux aircraft circled idly in the sky! In my anger, I would have fled the gunfire.
Monday 25 September
This morning, De La Chapelle (Sergeant Antoine DE LA CHAPELLE of GC II/4) arrived with his parachute in his hands: he had been shot down yesterday by the Messerschmitts. Whilst returning from Germany (often 40 km inland), the six of them encountered a squadron of 15 Messerschmitts. The flight leader dived at the first Messerschmitt. A second one dives at him. De La Chapelle dives at the second one whilst a third, in turn, dives at the Curtiss, strafing in single file. De La Chapelle’s aircraft begins to catch fire but he continues to strafe until the Messerschmitt, in turn, dives, with jets of petrol spurting from all over. At that moment, de la Chapelle realises that his steering controls have failed. He dives towards the ground to break free and perhaps feign being hit; he pulls up, skims the treetops, flips onto his back to eject, and finds himself on the ground without a scratch or a burn. In total for yesterday, three Messerschmitts in the sector, one Heinkel (crew taken prisoner) and one Morane.
Fortunately for the three from Les Mureaux, they returned to base yesterday; otherwise…
One must never rail against Providence when our carefully planned course of action is nevertheless thwarted by events: often, if not always, it is for our own good.
Tuesday 26 September
We’re about to set off. We’re packing our bags. We’re heading up to the plot to pack everything up. The letters are taking their time to arrive. The last one was dated the 11th. From the 11th to the 26th. Fifteen days. That’s a long time for a letter to take. And with us leaving, it’s going to take even longer.
Wednesday 27 September
Still ready to go. We play belote and pinacle. Walks in the wind, looking for fallen apples and walnuts.
Warsaw, on its own, is still holding out: the Germans will wear themselves out trying to take it before they succeed.
Thursday 28 September
We’re still in T… (Thal-Drulingen). I’ve been assigned to fly out with Auterives: sending a crew like that so close to the front lines! Especially as the observers will be leaving in a rolling echelon.
It feels rather strange to be flying again after more than a month’s break. The ground seems hostile and the atmosphere full of pitfalls! Little by little, though, I’m getting back into the swing of things, and I’m beginning to admire the colours, the shadows and all the life on the ground, whilst glancing frequently at my map. But here I am already at the airfield at M… (Morhange)
We’re sleeping on straw. Very good. But still without blankets and with vermin!
Friday 29 September
A rough night. My lower back is aching. Oh well! I’ll just have to get used to it. Brr! An icy breeze. It sends me scurrying off to wash: I’m feeling a bit under the weather; in fact, I must have a slight fever, because I’m not feeling well!
I set up my Picot tent and weave a straw mat. Perhaps that’ll keep me warmer. I wash up and, yes: I feel better. A quick trip to the camp where I’ll have a nap.
I bump into Tarichon, still as skinny and red-faced as ever. I tell him about Tacquard’s death, which he hadn’t heard about yet.
The night is cold despite my straw mat. Ledauphin is groaning in his flight gear. And perhaps tomorrow, having had a poor night’s sleep, he’ll be sent on a mission, even though the officers have found a brilliant quarters with 50 non-commissioned officers’ beds. Only the Captain doesn’t want to, apparently…
Saturday 30 September
Everyone’s complaining about the cold and backache! Good grief! What a bunch of softies we are, us pilots!
Ledauphin has turned down a mission because of his backache.
Photographic mission over S…… 600 m from the French lines, with fighter escort. Beguin, Gautherot, Lafont. The rendezvous with the fighters went very well – at last! Safe return. Unfortunately, our taxis flushed out 15 or 20 Fridolins, which fell onto our coats at 3… as soon as we’d landed.
I’m making myself a straw mattress and duvet. It’ll provide a bit more warmth for tonight. Sunday 1st Oct.
Mass at H… celebrated by a priest who is also a pilot. Bad weather – rain and wind. That doesn’t stop us from fishing: a miraculous catch.
I’m adding a pillow to my straw mattress. The captain has brought back some blankets from M…. He boasts of having got them through ‘back channels’. Hmm!
Monday 2 October
It’s still raining. We’re almost completely camouflaged, so we’re off to D… (Delme). We test the machine guns by the pond. Mine jams after two or three rounds. The modified ones work. Phew! That’s a relief. I’m a bit slow on the uptake: I’m fumbling for the levers to reset it after it’s jammed.
On arrival in V…, we’re told that some of our rooms have been taken by the train. Blimey!
Tuesday 3 October
I slept with Bergelin, but I’d rather have my Picot bed with a straw mattress than sleep with someone else.
During the day I tidied up my quarters, and in the evening I was told that a lieutenant from the transport unit had taken our room. Blimey! I’m back to sharing a bed with Bergelin.
Wednesday 4 October
St Thérèse of the Child Jesus. Birthday of one of our …
Today, my first mission. I was told about it at midday, in the mess hall: a slight chill down my spine and a great deal of anxiety.
As I made my way to the airfield, I entrusted myself to my guardian angels. In the aeroplane, I felt absolutely nothing. Not even fear! My task was to provide cover for Béguin-Ploucard during a photographic mission behind our lines. The fighter escort: five Moranes were right on the dot at the rendezvous. And everything went smoothly. In fact, the roll of film was ‘technically perfect’.
Thursday 5 October
We’re starting to get bored. A quick trip to the airfield; back to the squadron hall. Reading the papers. A letter, then dinner, an aperitif, skittles, billiards, belotte, lunch, coffee, a digestif, and so on…
Friday 6 October
I head up to the site, determined to do a bit of work. I’m going to help camouflage my tin shed, the …. I pick up the axe: being a woodcutter is the job that interests me most, reminding me of the forests and the mountains; it also reminds me of my holidays in …!
By evening, I’m absolutely knackered. I’ve got two blisters on my hands, but I’m very happy all the same. What a night I’m going to have in my Picot!
Saturday 7 October
Let’s carry on with the cover-up. Send two taxis over to the antlers. I’ll try to get rid of it by lifting the tail and notice that it’s – naturally – easier!
At midday, Wolff and Gaby return with some Mureaux from Ch…… Apparently there’s some amazing kit over there: Potez 63s, Bloch 152s, Curtiss. Some … 45s are starting to fly too.
In the afternoon, a game of Pinnacle, reading the papers! What a life. Anyway, it may well be that we won’t be on leave for much longer: if Hitler wants all-out war.
Sunday 8 October
Morning Mass: the parish priest of V… is back. He says Mass in a hurry, with slightly exaggerated gestures. As for the girls reciting the rosary, they’re starting to get on my nerves: they’re nothing but prayer-mills and a bunch of silly girls giggling over nothing. The one reading the prayer to St James reads until she’s out of breath, even if it means stopping mid-sentence!
Still bad weather.
Monday 9 October
It’s still raining. What a state of the weather! If the weather has any bearing on operations, Adolf must be thoroughly annoyed by this rain, which must be hampering all movement. Moreover, the reports indicate that German reconnaissance missions are failing everywhere. So much the better: the French army is certainly superior to the German one, which has only been in existence for seven years.
Hitler is asking for ‘his peace’. Or rather, he is offering it, but we know full well that he is being hunted down from all sides. Too bad for him: didn’t he bring it on himself?
Tuesday 10 October
The weather’s still bad.
At midday, C. …… returned from a reconnaissance mission ashore at the bow.
Looting! It’s sad – and disgusting – to see this: what would each of them say if, whilst they were away, their belongings were taken – perhaps some very precious mementos?
‘They’ did the same to us in ’14. No doubt we’re merely repaying them – albeit on a much smaller scale – for their atrocities. But that doesn’t excuse us in the slightest.
Wednesday 11 October
Repost! I’m ashamed of it. But when I pointed this out, I was told: ‘If we leave it, it’ll just be destroyed by shells or by the soldiers anyway.’ As for the distinction between an identical material outcome and moral fault: it means nothing!
A short flight to B… station. A photo of the terrain. Landing, getting bogged down. What a mess in Lorraine!
Thursday 12 October
From today, I’m going to assign a number to each letter. ‘1’ for today’s, and I’m asking Yvonne to do the same.
In the evening, we return from looting once again. It is increasingly sad to see how our own people, without even realising they are doing any harm, are looting these abandoned houses in the Saarland and, no doubt, soon in France too: so many personal mementoes are disappearing in this way – from small clocks, books, clothes, dolls, crockery, trousseaus, shawls, radio sets and so on… And yet they still try to convince us that this isn’t despicable, that war must be total, as if we were no longer bound to respect other people’s property. It is not the shells that will commit theft and looting on the day they destroy all these objects, but we cannot invoke this destruction as an excuse for ourselves. Nor can we invoke the Talmud’s ‘an eye for an eye’. In 1914, ‘they’ did this to us: that gives us no right to do the same. If we abandon this moral barrier of law, soon the vanquished will have no rights whatsoever before the victor, who will no longer have any concept of honour.
Wolff tries to speak out against this behaviour, but all the looters turn on him. And, as if that weren’t enough, they argue furiously. One of these days they’ll end up beating each other up. Even tonight, Tonton is barely holding himself back from slapping ‘Goering’ in the face – he’s the one complaining about his doll going missing!
Let’s take the animals and the food supplies: it’s even our duty in case we have to retreat. But the rest!
Friday 13 October
More bad weather! Reading this morning: time drags on like this. This afternoon, Beguin and I are going to D… on foot, across the fields. Tired but very pleased to have had a bit of a walk.
Saturday 14 October
All morning: games of Pinnacle! In the afternoon, a briefing by Louis: the reorganisation of the various departments; naturally, there’s been a shake-up – those who were used to working in one department have been moved to another. Well, anyway. It’s up to us to follow orders and work hard in our respective areas: it’s up to each of us to do our bit.
Sunday 15 October
Another rainy day! Nothing out of the ordinary. Apart from that, the boss had a bit of a ‘tantrum’. It’s odd to call it a tantrum. No doubt because these little outbursts come from him and not from any of us. It’s true that sometimes his jokes are tasteless, over the top or silly, and his outbursts of anger are utterly childish and ridiculous.
Besides, there’s no point in criticising him like this: the best thing is to accept your bosses’ moods – when they’re moody – as they come, without even noticing them.
Sunday 22 October
It’s been 8 days since I last opened this notebook!
Yesterday, Josselin (Lieutenant René JOSSELIN of GR I/14) had his shoulder blown to bits by German anti-aircraft fire whilst flying a Potez 63. It’s true that since the start of the week, they’ve been carrying out the mission every day at a set time.
I’m reading *La Maîtresse noire* by L. Ch. Royer. It’s no wonder he has so many … admirers amongst the public. His book is very realistic, vivid and passionate, but also sensual; and for us Christians, it’s truly instructive in its sequence—one might almost say, its inevitable progression—from carnal pleasure to the disappearance of all love other than desire. Indeed, in his book, L.C.R. seems to recognise no other feeling in the male character than desire, heightened within him by some lecherous or poetic detail.
In the afternoon we reach …. I’ve had a strange stomach ache since this morning. A light diet and some milk will sort me out.
I’m missing the chance to go to Luxeuil or perhaps Rupt. I willingly offer this involuntary sacrifice voluntarily to the Father. I hope I’ll be able to join the trip next time.
Thursday 24 October
Today there was a big chase through the fields: Gaby, Bergelin and a third poacher were being chased by the police. As we didn’t recognise them, and thinking they were enemy paratroopers, we ran after them. They got away, but the police picked up two blokes.
In the evening, another big party at the mess hall, where we managed to… get Charlot drunk – he’s a caricature of the highest order of comedy.
Friday 25 October
I must be feeling the effects of the alcohol I’ve been drinking of late, my sedentary lifestyle and my late nights, because tonight, upon receiving Yvonne’s letter after four days of waiting, I’m using the excuse that it’s only two postcards to get myself into a foul mood! So I really must keep a close eye on myself, as this is no time to lose my moral and nervous balance.
Saturday 28 October
It is snowing. Winter has come very early this year: the weather is becoming increasingly unfavourable for a major offensive; the long wait is beginning for the combatants. Anxious for the Germans, reassuring and a time of preparation for us.
The Pope publishes his encyclical ‘Humani Pontifici’, explaining in more general terms the causes of our modern troubles and of this war. But whilst the explanation is sound and more general in scope, it makes it all the more certain that Germany, following our victory, will have to be divided—I would almost say oppressed. For despite France’s outward atheism, we remain nonetheless the defenders of the Law and of an international morality which has its very foundation in Christianity, which has shaped it over the centuries. “Vae victis”, for the Germans, faithful to the doctrines of Nietzsche and his “imitators”, will have to bear the consequences of their delusions of supremacy and megalomania.
Germany must be destroyed. When a nation, in the space of 70 years, manages to wage three wars against the same country through blatant violations of the law, that nation has no choice but to perish. That is Germany’s fate; or, if we refuse to be logical and resolute to the very end, it will soon be our own fate. “We must put an end to this.”
________________________________

Notebook No. 1 (1940)

10 May
Woken at 4.30 am by the passage of 2 63s, to which I send my best wishes and a little prayer. Soon after, the sky begins to rumble from all sides, with contrails from high-altitude aircraft everywhere.
Around 8.00 am, rumours spread that the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg have been invaded. Alert at HQ! We prepare the maps and then set off for Challerange.
At 11.00 am, Lapanne takes off on the first reconnaissance mission, but soon returns with a fault in his left engine. At 11.30 am, the ‘Virgule’ takes off with Soulez and Gaudry.
At Sedan, I see numerous vehicles heading towards Bouillon; convoys everywhere as far as Saint-Hubert and Neufchâteau. There, lost, we make our way towards Habay-la-Neuve where, near a blown-up bridge, a house is smouldering. At the church, in the middle of nowhere, we see about fifteen open parachutes on the ground near a dozen burnt-out aircraft. Not far away, three AMs near a barricade. Having returned north two or three times, we set off again, having finally found our way, towards Bastogne. On the road to the west, small convoys of evacuees. Return towards Bouillon. It was heartening to see the clear advance of our troops.
That evening, Gautherot reconnoitred the routes beyond Houffalize (Belgium), from where he returned with two bullets lodged in the aircraft, fired by ground-based machine-guns.
That evening, fifty German bombers flew over Challerange: shortly afterwards, we saw them circling one after another over Suippes, which was soon billowing with smoke. Four or five of the Germans crashed in the immediate vicinity, engulfed in flames. A little later, two Do 17s strafed us at low altitude, to no avail.
On returning to Attigny, we learnt that the airfield had taken around forty bombs, some of them time bombs (with a delay of up to 24 hours), without any damage to property or people.
First night air-raid alert at 11 pm. (One hour in the cellar.) Second alert from 1 am to 4 am.
11 May
At 6.00 am, the bombing of the area resumed. At midday, there was another round of bombing. In the evening, around half past six, I was paying a visit to the SS when I heard the crackle of German machine-gun fire; through the stained-glass window I could see a wing: I took cover between two pillars, moving from one to the other depending on where the crackling was coming from. Soon a string of bombs rained down. At the same time, my heart was pounding and a little prayer rose up within me. During a lull, I made my way back to my shelter; then, once calm had returned, I saw the house next to the mess hall ablaze, all its windows shattered. In the courtyard, a five-metre-wide crater: the German shells had missed the bridge and the station by nearly 150 metres! As with any loss, a missed opportunity due to rushing things…
Lapanne brings me back the ‘Virgule’ with its oil tank punctured by a bullet.
12 May
I decide to sleep peacefully, ignoring the air-raid warnings. In the morning, during communion, a few bombs explode. At the end of Mass, there’s another bombardment: I’m still too agitated to stay inside the church and not go out to see what’s happening.
Crochefer comes under attack from three M109s: his ammunition rack catches fire; the Krauts perhaps think they’ve hit him and abandon the pursuit, flying low over the ground.
Our army is forced to retreat because the right flank is not holding its ground and keeps getting outflanked. The Krauts are already on the Semoy.
13 May
Challerange station came under a dive-bombing attack by two DO 17s, as did the nearby anti-aircraft post, though the latter’s defences proved ineffective. The exodus of evacuees continues; the news is hardly encouraging. After the cars, piled high with mattresses, after the horse-drawn and ox-drawn carts, after the cyclists, come the poor pedestrians pushing handcarts or small carts, carrying poor babies—several of whom I heard crying in the morning chill. Poor people whose misfortune is compounded by the terror of the strafing and bombing by these barbarians. All day long, the Krauts have been circling overhead. At around 3.00 pm, five JU87s attacked the area in a dive. Lapanne fired nearly 100 rounds and one of them, hit, crashed 2 km away. Indiscriminate bombing. Only Gautherot’s taxi was hit because it was strafed.
During the morning, from 4.00 am onwards, we had been getting ‘La Virgule’ back into working order. A piece of wood stuffed with rags in the fuel tank, a full tank of petrol poured in using a jug: everyone pitched in. At 11.00, the 212 (Potez 63-11 No. 212 – registered as C-711 “La Virgule”) was ready.
Guillaume, who’d been hit by a bullet in the oil cooler during the pursuit of the DO, landed without further harm. When I saw that Morane, I thought to myself, ‘Well, what if it were Guillaume?’ It was him.
14 and 15 May
The bombing raids continue, with the same lack of accuracy as ever. In the evening, we set off for Suippes.
16 May
Commander Murtin’s group (GC I/5) has already scored 44 aerial victories in three days. Preux was shot down on the first day and suffered minor burns to his face.
Here, things are calmer; a few bombers continue to circle the airfield but give it a wide berth, as it cost them 11 aircraft on the first day.
I fly my second mission in the Le Chesne–Poix-Terron area. We spot two stationary Panzer divisions there. Continuous fire from ground-based machine guns and a light battery, whose tracer rounds we can see and which we soon locate on a ridge. Attack by a Messerschmitt 19. Two passes.
17 May
Absolute calm. 280 aircraft officially shot down on the first day across all fronts? We’re living like campers, forced to scavenge for food in the houses at Suippes. Looting? But the quartermaster’s department has abandoned us!
18 May
Ledauphin returns after being attacked by eight Me 109s. S… has sprayed a spurt of Mac… into the tail of his aircraft: out of action. That same evening, Champavier hits me with the ‘Virgule’ on my belly at the Remennecourt airfield.
19 May
At midday we roast pork chops over the fire. We arrive in R. in the afternoon to watch four DO bombers fly over, bombing the nearby railway junction. To no avail, incidentally.
20 May
Laundry… At midday, Louis Bychovitz and Liébert set off on a photographic mission. Due to a protection schedule not adhered to by the Command (?), they set off too late. According to intelligence from Pz 63, German fighter aircraft appear to have shot them down in the Besau woods.
22 May
Kopps arrives to join us after a 10-day journey. He was bombed and strafed at various points; made numerous journeys on foot, by car, by motorcar and by train; and visited the Ministry of Air and the General Headquarters!… Quite an epic journey, especially for just 20 hours’ leave!
26 May
‘Courage and strength,’ writes Yvonne. What (sic) joy to have such a wife, confident not only in the safety of the one she loves and who is in danger, but confident too in victory – not out of optimism, but out of reasoned certainty as well as faith in France’s destiny.
Thank you, Lord, for placing such a wife at the heart of my home.
28 May
King Leopold is negotiating with the enemy! The whole of Belgium is stunned by such a betrayal, and everyone weeps at the sight of such a son of such a father! The king betraying his own people. Fortunately for his honour, the government is invoking the constitution to declare the actions of the king—who is no doubt a prisoner by now—null and void. Has Leopold really betrayed us?
I still cannot bring myself to believe it. Never in history has anything like this been seen!
Yet no one doubts it. And if the Krauts think they are breaking our morale, they are achieving exactly the opposite effect: our determination to win and to put an end to Germany as soon as possible grows stronger by the minute.
1 June
Departure from R. (Remennecourt – Meuse). On the road to Orléans, two Curtiss aircraft pass us. Areas bombed with considerable inaccuracy at Barbery, Orléans and Châteaudun. A few aircraft have been burnt here. Passing through Le Mans. In the distance, we can see Lisieux, to whose patron saint I offer a fervent prayer, and I flap my wings in greeting. We arrive at C. (Caen) where, after a long taxi, we park our planes and rejoin the GAO. A good night’s sleep in the straw…
2 June
Set off for Crépon, a lovely spot near the sea. Kind and welcoming people. A truly restful stay! Earlier, in Carpiquet, I heard a magnificent gem of a sermon delivered by an elderly priest who was simple and straightforward.
4 June
This morning I served as an altar boy at the Servite convent. What a joy it was to recite at the altar, ‘Ad Deum qui laetificat juventutem meum…’ Joy even in the midst of trial, the joy of a child who entrusts himself to his God, whose goodness is greater than that of the kindest of mothers, than the love of the most loving of wives.
5 June
Dunkirk has been evacuated. 335,000 men have managed to break free from the enemy’s grip. The first legendary feat of our men: this is no retreat, it is our first victory amidst countless adversities: surprise, betrayal…
7 June
The Battle of the Somme begins. Our troops are magnificent. However, the enemy is breaking through along the Bresle and the Ailette. It appears (unconfirmed) that reserves have already been drawn from the Siegfried Line. Of the 2,000 tanks deployed yesterday, several hundred have already been destroyed.
We have news of Bychovitz (a prisoner) and Louis, who is wounded and a prisoner. We await news of Liébert with greater confidence.
Italy has declared war on us. All over the world there is an outcry against the hyena following in the footsteps of the predatory beast… In any case, hostilities on that front are beginning with Allied successes.
We are forced to withdraw our troops beyond Paris. But our defences have not yet been broken, and everywhere the struggle continues, fierce against this Germany which has channelled our ‘leisure’ into its war machine, and our affections into the creation of a fanatical youth, whilst at home our hearths lie barren. Fire rains down on our cities of pleasure as it once did on Sodom and Gomorrah!
Petty politics, barrenness, cowardice, fear of effort!…
13 June
Appeal by P. Reynaud to America and the world. Is it already too late?
15 June
Departure for Fontenay-le-Comte. On every road, endless convoys of refugees from Rouen and Paris (in cars and on bicycles), a few carts coming from …, …
14 June
We are losing more and more ground; the new German divisions, freed up by the Italians’ capture of the Siegfried Line, are sweeping aside all resistance on our front: Chaumont, Romilly, Troyes and Verdun.
June 17
The darkest day of the war. Pétain formed his cabinet and sent plenipotentiaries to negotiate the terms of a peace “between soldiers, with honor, after the battle” …
Schwander gathered the staff and thanked them for the work we had done, and asked if he could still count on us to do our duty. Long live France!
A wave of deep sadness washed over us, and for us, the people of Alsace and Lorraine, the sadness was even deeper and the anguish even greater for our homes and our families.
I hope my Vonne managed to escape, and I also hope she stayed in Wesserling—perhaps a better immediate outcome. In any case, my trust lies entirely in God and in Our Lady of Lourdes, to whom I have dedicated my beloved home since the beginning of this war.
A German plane flies overhead, strafing the area. We stop Enne (?) from responding to it, because everyone believes that hostilities have already ceased.
Finally, with the first reports coming in, hope begins to rise. England has not ceased the fight; America has lifted the embargo in favor of England; our struggle continues everywhere for the honor of the flag.
Can we count on Russia for anything? A country that is massing tanks on the German border? Can we count on a Ganelon?
But perhaps, in the plan of Providence, this people—which has suffered so much over the past twenty years—has managed to wrest its redemption from Him, from His mercy?
Has France—the eldest daughter of the Church, champion of liberty and the Spirit against slavery and barbarism, martyr of Christian civilization against totalitarian materialism—come to an end after failing for so long to fulfill her destiny? Or have her heart and her wounded, bleeding land succeeded in appeasing God’s justice?
Hope burns in my heart more fiercely than ever. Lord, save France: in this extreme anguish, in this final abandonment into which we are plunged, we know that our hour may have come for our salvation. Sacred Heart of Jesus, save France.
June 18
Tarichon and Dumas return from Rennes, where the Germans had just withdrawn. We set out again immediately. On every road we encounter convoys, mostly from the air force. There are still refugees everywhere: at that moment, we realize what a burden this exodus is for the armies.
Our armies are still holding out; we are nothing compared to their heroism.
(June 16) We stop at La Guerche, where everything is well prepared to receive us. How many “Biffins”—even those wounded and exhausted by a month-long struggle—have even a moment to rest their heads?
We drive on until around midnight, when Berthinet hooks up to Schener’s truck. Personnel are distributed among the other vehicles… Tonight, for the first time, we sleep like little warriors: on the road to Saintes.
June 19
The convoys are growing larger and larger, as is the number of refugees. We arrive in C… (Cazaux), where we see many Czech, Polish, and Belgian pilots training. Then we set off for G…, where we arrive around 10 a.m. People everywhere are very welcoming but terrified—or rather, humiliated and bewildered by the defeat that our laziness and our pursuit of … for everyone’s sake have brought upon us.
During the trip, a foolish accident claims the life of Bidot, who is killed instantly, and leaves Bitsch with a fairly minor injury.
June 20
We split into two groups. The flight crew heads in a different direction from the rest of the convoy, which is to be loaded elsewhere.
We pass through T… (Toulouse) with its rushing river and the majestic tower of St. S…
We travel up the valley of the … (the Ariège). F… (Foix) and its mountains elicit cries of admiration from everyone, and bring tears to my heart at the thought that our enemies surely want to tear from us a land like this one—where the mountains are even dearer to me, where those I love are undoubtedly still there, unless they, too, have fled. Jesus, protect my Vonne and our children; protect all those we love.
Passing through the P. Gorges (Gorges de Péreille, near Roquefixade)
Arrival in P… (Puivert?) then in P… (Puilaurens?), where we spend the night under the open sky
June 21
Awaiting orders. Around 11 a.m., we set off again for P… (Perpignan?), where we wait once more for the planes. Finally, around 5 p.m., they arrive. S… does not want to let us escort two L… to A… (Algeria?) so as not to lose us as a unit. We obey. We return to P…, where some… welcome us at their…
June 23
We are forbidden to board the British ships. I myself had considered this decision. But from a domestic standpoint, I owe obedience to the Pétain government, which is the legitimate government.
Those among the French who do board are regarded as rebels, and strictly speaking, they are. However, aren’t they continuing the fight alongside the Allies against us, who are subjugated and defeated?
June 25
The armistice was signed yesterday evening. Our defeat is complete: all we have left is unity, discipline, and hard work to lead France to a moral victory over itself. The true France must find itself again in the face of adversity, and it is through suffering that our country’s renewed spirit is born.
We are leaving from P.…… (Perpignan). Before departing, we salute the flag, which is flying at half-mast and draped in black. We all have heavy hearts and tears in our eyes. Yet we still shout “Long live France!” even more vigorously, for we know that the life of our Fatherland depends on our energy, our will, and our work—more than ever before.
I am beginning to reflect, from an immediate and practical standpoint, on my future work. Moreover, I place my complete trust in Providence, which does not leave the bird of the sky without food nor the lily of the field without its finery: it is at this moment that the Christ-like virtue of not worrying about the future must sustain us more than ever.
What appeals to me most—though it is the hardest on my untrained body—is working in the fields, and in the midst of my work I also see that more constant unity of home life; and even if the work is harder, there is the joy of having my wife always by my side.
In the evening we are in Amélie-les-Bains. I visit the Gorges du Mondon for the first time. Then, after dinner, a second time. Nature is splendid in its sun-drenched, wild vigor as well as in the warm, fragrant calm of twilight.
June 26
We left A. by road, passing through Perpignan and all the towns along the coast. Everywhere, the people were calm; there was no despondency, but everyone’s shoulders bore the weight of defeat and their personal guilt.
Arrival in Salon. Will I end my military career where I began it? We meet the entire GAO stationed there. No one talks about the war anymore.

July 4
Mers-El-Kébir! Churchill attacks our battleships with all lights out. Baudoin speaks of England’s selfishness and of French foreign policy following in its wake. Diplomatic relations with our allies are severed. We’re starting to get our taxis back into working order.
Where are we headed? Yet so far, everyone has at least a secret hope for England’s victory.
News from my Vonne dated June 13.
I hope she held her ground against the panic until the 17th, the day the French plenipotentiaries left for Germany.
It is true that the Lord is the creator and preserver of our love, of our home: is it not, moreover, entrusted to Our Lady, in whom we both place our trust?