Augustin Trébuchon
Encyclopedia
Augustin-Joseph Victorin Trébuchon (30 May 1878 – 11 November 1918) was the last French soldier killed during World War I
. He was shot 15 minutes before the Armistice
came into effect, at 10.45am on 11 November 1918. The French Army, embarrassed to have sent men into battle after the armistice with the Germans had been signed, recorded the date of his death as earlier by one day.
in the Lozère
) on 30 May 1878, with four younger brothers and sisters. His mother died when he was young and his father nine years later. He had been in the army since the war began in 1914. He was a communal shepherd
and played accordion
at village marriages before volunteering for the army on 4 August 1914. He joined the 415th Infantry Regiment as a messenger. He had already served in the second battle of the Marne
and at Verdun
, Artois
and the Somme
before arriving in the Ardennes
at the end of the war. He had twice been wounded, including badly in his left arm by an exploding shell. Upon his promotion to the rank of Soldat de Première Classe (Private First Class
) in September 1918 it was said that he was "a good soldier having always achieved his duty, of remarkable calm, setting the best example to his young comrades."
Trébuchon, as a messenger, knew an agreement had been signed before the rest of his unit. At Vrigne-sur-Meuse, in the Ardennes, the 163rd Infantry Division was ordered to attack an élite German unit, the Hannetons. General Henri Gouraud told his men to cross the Meuse
and to attack "as fast as possible, by whatever means and regardless of cost". It has been speculated that the attack was to end any possible hesitations by German negotiators at Compiègne, that Maréchal Foch
believed the Germans were reluctant to sign and so ordered Général Philippe Pétain
to press on across the Meuse.
Trébuchon was halfway between Sedan
and Charleville
. Rain was falling and the Meuse was flooding. Its width was put at 70m. The temperature was well below freezing. Warfare had destroyed bridges across the river and sapper
s worked by night and in fog to build a plank footbridge across a lock. There had been no reconnaissance of the other bank because bad weather had kept the spotter plane on the ground. Around 700 men crossed the river a little after 8am, taking a telephone wire with them. Some fell in the river and the first deaths were by drowning.
The fog cleared at 10.30am and the French could see the Germans installed a little higher than them, a few hundred metres away. The French were spread over three kilometres between the Meuse and a railway line. The Germans opened fire with machine guns. The French sent up a spotter plane now that the fog had lifted and the artillery on the other bank could open fire without fear of killing their own side. Darkness fell again at 6pm and the battle continued until news of the armistice arrived.
The last of the 91 French soldiers to die was Trébuchon, "with a red hole in his right side", probably a figure of speech as this expression comes from Arthur Rimbaud
's very famous poem "Le Dormeur du Val" (The Sleeper in the Valley). He was 40. He fell near the railway line with his message still in his hand. It read "Rassemblement à 11h 30 pour le ravitaillement - "Muster at 11.30 for food." The armistice followed and the French withdrew without honouring their dead.
Trébuchon remained unrecognised until a retired breeder, René Fuselier, began inquiring in 1998 into the identity of the last poilu to die. He said: "With the computer facilities that we have today, it was easy to find out about him and others of the past."
The date on his memorial at Malzieu-Forain and in the village records is 10 November 1918. The Germans had asked for an armistice on 9 November and it came into effect on 11 November. Nobody knows who ordered the death date to be changed but it is said to be so for all French soldiers who died on 11 November. Speculation that the army was ashamed of sending men into battle knowing the armistice had already been agreed grew when the 115th Infantry Regiment was not invited to the victory parade through Paris
on 14 July 1919.
Trébuchon is named on the village memorial as Victorin—his second given name—rather than Augustin.
A street at Vrigne-Meuse
, where he died and where he is buried with 17 colleagues in the cemetery, has been named after him.
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. He was shot 15 minutes before the Armistice
Armistice
An armistice is a situation in a war where the warring parties agree to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, but may be just a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace...
came into effect, at 10.45am on 11 November 1918. The French Army, embarrassed to have sent men into battle after the armistice with the Germans had been signed, recorded the date of his death as earlier by one day.
Background
Augustin Trébuchon was born at Montchabrier (near Le Malzieu-VilleLe Malzieu-Ville
Le Malzieu-Ville is a commune in the Lozère department in southern France.-References:*...
in the Lozère
Lozère
Lozère , is a department in southeast France near the Massif Central, named after Mont Lozère.- History :Lozère is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790...
) on 30 May 1878, with four younger brothers and sisters. His mother died when he was young and his father nine years later. He had been in the army since the war began in 1914. He was a communal shepherd
Shepherd
A shepherd is a person who tends, feeds or guards flocks of sheep.- Origins :Shepherding is one of the oldest occupations, beginning some 6,000 years ago in Asia Minor. Sheep were kept for their milk, meat and especially their wool...
and played accordion
Accordion
The accordion is a box-shaped musical instrument of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox. A person who plays the accordion is called an accordionist....
at village marriages before volunteering for the army on 4 August 1914. He joined the 415th Infantry Regiment as a messenger. He had already served in the second battle of the Marne
Marne
Marne is a department in north-eastern France named after the river Marne which flows through the department. The prefecture of Marne is Châlons-en-Champagne...
and at Verdun
Verdun
Verdun is a city in the Meuse department in Lorraine in north-eastern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department.Verdun is the biggest city in Meuse, although the capital of the department is the slightly smaller city of Bar-le-Duc.- History :...
, Artois
Artois
Artois is a former province of northern France. Its territory has an area of around 4000 km² and a population of about one million. Its principal cities are Arras , Saint-Omer, Lens and Béthune.-Location:...
and the Somme
Somme
Somme is a department of France, located in the north of the country and named after the Somme river. It is part of the Picardy region of France....
before arriving in the Ardennes
Ardennes
The Ardennes is a region of extensive forests, rolling hills and ridges formed within the Givetian Ardennes mountain range, primarily in Belgium and Luxembourg, but stretching into France , and geologically into the Eifel...
at the end of the war. He had twice been wounded, including badly in his left arm by an exploding shell. Upon his promotion to the rank of Soldat de Première Classe (Private First Class
Private First Class
Private First Class is a military rank held by junior enlisted persons.- Singapore :The rank of Private First Class in the Singapore Armed Forces lies between the ranks of Private and Lance-Corporal . It is usually held by conscript soldiers midway through their national service term...
) in September 1918 it was said that he was "a good soldier having always achieved his duty, of remarkable calm, setting the best example to his young comrades."
Trébuchon, as a messenger, knew an agreement had been signed before the rest of his unit. At Vrigne-sur-Meuse, in the Ardennes, the 163rd Infantry Division was ordered to attack an élite German unit, the Hannetons. General Henri Gouraud told his men to cross the Meuse
Meuse
Meuse is a department in northeast France, named after the River Meuse.-History:Meuse is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790...
and to attack "as fast as possible, by whatever means and regardless of cost". It has been speculated that the attack was to end any possible hesitations by German negotiators at Compiègne, that Maréchal Foch
Foch
-People with the surname Foch:*Ferdinand Foch , Marshal of France and Allied Supreme Commander in World War I*Nina Foch , Dutch actress-Other uses:...
believed the Germans were reluctant to sign and so ordered Général Philippe Pétain
Philippe Pétain
Henri Philippe Benoni Omer Joseph Pétain , generally known as Philippe Pétain or Marshal Pétain , was a French general who reached the distinction of Marshal of France, and was later Chief of State of Vichy France , from 1940 to 1944...
to press on across the Meuse.
Trébuchon was halfway between Sedan
Sedan, France
Sedan is a commune in France, a sub-prefecture of the Ardennes department in northern France.-Geography:The historic centre is built on a peninsula formed by an arc of the Meuse River. It is around from the Belgian border.-History:...
and Charleville
Charleville
Charleville can refer to:* Charleville, County Cork, a town in Ireland**Charleville railway station**Charleville GAA**Charleville * Charleville, Queensland, a town in Australia...
. Rain was falling and the Meuse was flooding. Its width was put at 70m. The temperature was well below freezing. Warfare had destroyed bridges across the river and sapper
Sapper
A sapper, pioneer or combat engineer is a combatant soldier who performs a wide variety of combat engineering duties, typically including, but not limited to, bridge-building, laying or clearing minefields, demolitions, field defences, general construction and building, as well as road and airfield...
s worked by night and in fog to build a plank footbridge across a lock. There had been no reconnaissance of the other bank because bad weather had kept the spotter plane on the ground. Around 700 men crossed the river a little after 8am, taking a telephone wire with them. Some fell in the river and the first deaths were by drowning.
The fog cleared at 10.30am and the French could see the Germans installed a little higher than them, a few hundred metres away. The French were spread over three kilometres between the Meuse and a railway line. The Germans opened fire with machine guns. The French sent up a spotter plane now that the fog had lifted and the artillery on the other bank could open fire without fear of killing their own side. Darkness fell again at 6pm and the battle continued until news of the armistice arrived.
The last of the 91 French soldiers to die was Trébuchon, "with a red hole in his right side", probably a figure of speech as this expression comes from Arthur Rimbaud
Arthur Rimbaud
Jean Nicolas Arthur Rimbaud was a French poet. Born in Charleville, Ardennes, he produced his best known works while still in his late teens—Victor Hugo described him at the time as "an infant Shakespeare"—and he gave up creative writing altogether before the age of 21. As part of the decadent...
's very famous poem "Le Dormeur du Val" (The Sleeper in the Valley). He was 40. He fell near the railway line with his message still in his hand. It read "Rassemblement à 11h 30 pour le ravitaillement - "Muster at 11.30 for food." The armistice followed and the French withdrew without honouring their dead.
Memorial and burial
Trébuchon is buried in grave 13 at the cemetery at Vrigne-Meuse.Trébuchon remained unrecognised until a retired breeder, René Fuselier, began inquiring in 1998 into the identity of the last poilu to die. He said: "With the computer facilities that we have today, it was easy to find out about him and others of the past."
The date on his memorial at Malzieu-Forain and in the village records is 10 November 1918. The Germans had asked for an armistice on 9 November and it came into effect on 11 November. Nobody knows who ordered the death date to be changed but it is said to be so for all French soldiers who died on 11 November. Speculation that the army was ashamed of sending men into battle knowing the armistice had already been agreed grew when the 115th Infantry Regiment was not invited to the victory parade through Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
on 14 July 1919.
Trébuchon is named on the village memorial as Victorin—his second given name—rather than Augustin.
A street at Vrigne-Meuse
Vrigne-Meuse
Vrigne-Meuse is a commune in the Ardennes department in northern France.-Population:-References:*...
, where he died and where he is buried with 17 colleagues in the cemetery, has been named after him.
See also
- George Lawrence PriceGeorge Lawrence PricePrivate George Lawrence Price was a Canadian soldier. He is traditionally recognized as the last soldier of the British Empire to be killed during the First World War....
, last soldier killed in World War I, 10:58 a.m. 11 November.