Subject

Soldier and writer. Born in Tarbes, Hautes-Pyrénées, France. He enlisted in the French army in 1870 during the Franco-Prussian war. During the First World War he distinguished himself at the battle of the Marne, Ypres. Became Allied Commander-in-Chief in 1918. He wrote 'Principles of War' in 1919. At his death, he was interred in Les Invalides, Paris, next to Napoleon Bonaparte.