François Lecointre

François Gérard Marie Lecointre (born 6 February 1962) is a French army general serving as Chief of the Defence Staff since 20 July 2017.[1] As a captain, with Lieutenant Bruno Heluin (platoon leader), as the company commanding officer, one of the two heroes of the Battle of Vrbanja Bridge in 1995, the last Fixed Bayonet Charge combat of the French Armed Forces.

François Lecointre
General Lecointre in 2020
Chief of the Defence Staff
Assumed office
20 July 2017
Preceded byPierre de Villiers
Head of the Prime Minister's military cabinet
In office
1 September 2016 – 20 July 2017
Prime MinisterManuel Valls
Bernard Cazeneuve
Édouard Philippe
Preceded byOlivier Taprest
Succeeded byBenoit Durieux
Personal details
Born (1962-02-06) 6 February 1962
Cherbourg, France
NationalityFrench
Children4
MotherFrançoise de Roffignac
FatherYves Lecointre
Alma mater
Military service
Allegiance French Republic
Branch/serviceFrench Army
Years of service1984 – present
RankArmy general
Unit
Commands
Battles/wars

Biography

François Lecointre was born on 6 February 1962 in Cherbourg,[2][3] into a family of military traditions. His father, Yves Urbain Marie Lecointre (5 April 1932 - 1985), was a French Naval Officer and Submariner, Commandant of SNLE Le Redoutable.[4][5] One of his uncles, Hélie de Roffignac, was a cavalry officer who died in Algeria, at the age of 23.[6]

Military career
François Lecointre at the École Polytechnique

Lecointre attended the preparatory classes at the Prytanée National Militaire in La Flèche. He subsequently studied at the École spéciale militaire de Saint-Cyr (Promotion Général Monclar)[3] from 1984 to 1987, and then at the Infantry School from 1987 to 1988.[7]

Lecointre joined the 3rd Marine Infantry Regiment where he served from 1988 to 1991.[8] Lieutenant Lecointre was appointed to the rank of Captain in the marine infantry on 1 July 1991.[9]

From 1993 to 1996, he was a combat company commander of the 3rd Marine Infantry Regiment in Vannes. As a captain, Lecointre was involved in the Opération Turquoise in 1994 in Rwanda: he commanded the 1st company of the 3rd Marine Infantry Regiment (3e RIMa), part of the Groupement Nord Turquoise.[10] Captain François Lecointre was engaged with the French forces under the command of the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR) during the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Under the orders of General Hervé Gobilliard (French: Hervé Gobilliard) and Colonel Erik Sandahl, Captain Lecointre together with Lieutenant Bruno Heluin (French: Bruno Heluin), part of the French peacekeeping forces, led a « Fix Bayonet Charge » (French: « baïonnette au canon »), which reversed the tides, in the Battle of Vrbanja Bridge on 27 May 1995, while diplomacy was seeking another exclusive diplomatic turning solution.[11] According to Jean Guisnel (French: Jean Guisnel), this episode allowed to reverse the sense of war, and led in fine to the victory in the Balkans.[12]

From 1996 to 1999, he was an instructor at the École spéciale militaire de Saint-Cyr in Coëtquidan, Morbihan where he trained student officers in military tactics. In 1999 - 2001, he was a trainee officer at the Joint Defense College (now École Militaire) and then served in the office of the Chief of Staff of the French Army in Paris at the crops bureau of system conception forces.[13]

From 2005 to 2007, Colonel Lecointre was the commanding officer of the 3rd Marine Infantry Regiment in Vannes.

From 2007 to 2008, he followed the courses of the Center of High Military Studies (CHEM),[14] and was an auditor at the Institut des hautes études de défense nationale (IHEDN) in Paris.[15]

Joe Dunford and François Lecointre during his first official visit in Washington, D.C. in 2018

He was promoted to brigade general on 1 August 2011, and occupied until 2013 the commandment post of the 9th Marine Infantry Brigade in Poitiers.[16] He later was appointed as commander of the European Union Training Mission in Mali from January to July 2013.[17]

He rejoined the general staff headquarters of the French Army as a chargé de mission, becoming subsequently deputy-chief of the defence staff for « performance-synthèse » from 2014 to 2016. He was promoted to division general on 1 January 2015.

Head of the Prime Minister's military cabinet since August 2016,[18] he was elevated by a decree of President François Hollande in the first section of general officers to the rank and title of corps general on 1 March 2017.

On 20 July 2017, he was appointed Chief of the Defence Staff by President Emmanuel Macron, following the resignation of General Pierre de Villiers.[19] He took office the day after his appointment and was promoted to the rank and title of Général d'armée.[1]

General Lecointre made his first official visit to the United States in February 2018. He met with his American counterpart Joseph Dunford to discuss the ongoing War on ISIL and the progress of the G5 Sahel.[20]

Military ranks
Cadet[lower-alpha 1] Aspirant[lower-alpha 2] Second lieutenant[lower-alpha 3] Lieutenant[lower-alpha 4] Captain Battalion chief
1984 1985 1 August 1986[21] 1 August 1987[21] 1 August 1991[22] 1 December 1996[23]
Lieutenant colonel Colonel Brigade general Division general Corps general Army general
1 December 2000[24] 1 December 2003[25] 1 August 2011[26] 1 January 2015[27] 1 March 2017[28] 20 July 2017[1]

Honours and decorations
Honours and decorations
National honours
Ribbon bar Name Date Source
Grand Officer of the National Order of the Legion of Honour 2 July 2018 [29]
Commander of the National Order of the Legion of Honour 28 August 2014 [30]
Officer of the National Order of the Legion of Honour 14 July 2006 [31]
Knight of the National Order of the Legion of Honour 23 June 1995 [32]
Commander of the National Order of Merit 5 May 2011 [33]
Officer of the National Order of Merit 10 December 2002 [34]
Military decorations
Ribbon bar Name Source
War Cross for foreign operational theatres - Silver-gilt star (corps level citation) -
Cross for Military Valour - Bronze palm and two bronze stars (army level citation, brigade level citation and regiment level citation) -
Combatant's Cross -
Overseas Medal - Four clasps -
National Defence Medal - Silver grade with two clasps -
Medal of the Nation's Gratitude - One clasp -
French commemorative medal - One clasp -
United Nations Medal - UNOSOM II -
United Nations Medal - UNPROFOR, SARAJEVO clasp -
CSDP EUTM Mali Operations Medal - EUTM Mali clasp -
CSDP EUTM Mali Staff Medal - EUTM Mali clasp -
Foreign honours
Ribbon bar Name Country Source
Kuwait Liberation Medal Saudi Arabia -
Kuwait Liberation Medal Kuwait -
Medal of Gratitude of the Armed Forces Gabon [35]
Commander of the National Order of Mali Mali [35]
Commander of the National Order of the Lion Senegal [35]
Commander of the National Order of Chad Chad [35]
Polish Medal of the 100th Anniversary of the establishment of the General Staff of the Polish Armed Forces Poland [35]
Commander of the Legion of Merit United States -
Grand Officer of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic Italy -
Badges
Insignia Name
French Parachutist Badge
Chief of the Defence Staff Badge

Publications
  • François Lecointre (dir.), Le soldat : XXe – XXIe siècle, Gallimard, coll. « Folio Histoire », 2018. With a foreword by French historian Jean-Pierre Rioux. This book is a collection of articles published in the French review of military studies : Inflexions - Civils et militaires : pouvoir dire, of which general Lecointre was a publishing director in 2015-2017.[36]

See also

References
  1. Government of the French Republic (19 July 2017). "Décret du 19 juillet 2017 portant affectation et élévation d'un officier général". Retrieved 18 July 2019.
  2. « Des militaires originaires du Cotentin au Mali », sur La Manche libre, 28 January 2013.
  3. d'Orcival, François (19 July 2017). "Le général Lecointre, des opérations extérieures au théâtre intérieur…". Valeurs actuelles. Retrieved 21 July 2017.
  4. The first French nuclear ballistic boat, launched by Général de Gaulle on 29 March 1967 and which was disarmed in 1991
  5. Biography of Yves Urbain Marie Lecointre (5 April 1932 - 1985), on the site of École navale.
  6. Hélie de Roffignac (1936-1959), Saint-Cyr (class Franchet d'Esperey, 1955-1957), lieutenant at the 18e régiment de chasseurs à cheval, dead from burns in a forest fire in the Djebel Chélia, returning from operations, on 1 August 1959. Chevalier de la Légion d'honneur, Croix de la Valeur militaire. See : Musée du Souvenir - La Saint-Cyrienne. Lieutenant de Roffignac was the brother of general Lecointre's mother, Francoise de Roffignac. The Roffignac family, of ancient French nobility, gave many officers. One of them, Louis Philippe de Roffignac (1773-1846), an artillery officer, emigrated in Spain and settled in Louisiana (1800). He became a Mayor of New Orleans (1820-1828).
  7. Official biography of general Lecointre on the French Ministry of Armies' website
  8. "Biographie du colonel François Lecointre, nouveau chef de corps du 3e de marine" (PDF). bulletin d'information du 3e RIMa, no. 33. Retrieved 19 July 2017..
  9. J.O. No. 155 du 5 juillet 1991, NOR : DEFM9101576D.
  10. Jacques Morel, La France au cœur du génocide des Tutsi, Izuba édition - L'Esprit frappeur, 2010 - page 1325. On the Opération Turquoise and its political and judiciary developments, see Association France Turquoise (in French)
  11. Roger Cohen, Conflict in the Balkans : U.N. forces; Bosnia battle shows U.N.'s pride and limits, The New York Times, 6 June 1995. See also (in French): Interview général Gobilliard et colonel Lecointre, émission Infrarouge « Que sont nos soldats devenus ? », France 3.
  12. Quoted by : Jade Toussay, Le général François Lecointre s'est fait un nom dans l'armée après cette bataille de Sarajevo, The Huffington Post, 19 July 2017
  13. CV of général Lecointre, JDD, 19 July 2017]
  14. Nathalie Guibert (20 July 2017). "Le général François Lecointre, chef de guerre et " penseur " de l'armée". Le Monde. Retrieved 21 July 2017.
  15. "Arrêté du 13 juillet 2007 portant désignation des auditeurs de la 60e session nationale de l'Institut des hautes études de défense nationale (cycle 2007-2008)". Légifrance. 13 July 2007. Retrieved 21 July 2017.
  16. Thomas Liabot (19 July 2017). "François Lecointre, "un héros" nouveau chef d'état-major des armées". Le Journal du dimanche. Retrieved 21 July 2017.
  17. Margaux Thuriot (11 March 2013). "Interview du général de brigade François Lecointre, commandant de l'EUTM Mali". Ministère de la Défense. Retrieved 21 July 2017.
  18. Government of the French Republic (25 August 2016). "Arrêté du 25 août 2016 relatif à la composition du cabinet du Premier ministre". Retrieved 18 July 2019.
  19. "Armées. François Lecointre va remplacer Pierre de Villiers". Le Telegramme. 19 July 2017. Retrieved 19 July 2017.
  20. Ministry of the Armies (15 February 2018). "Le CEMA en visite officielle chez son partenaire outre atlantique". Retrieved 21 July 2019.
  21. Ministry of the Armies. "BIOGRAPHIE du Général d'armée François Lecointre" (PDF) (in French). Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  22. Government of the French Republic (3 July 1991). "Décret du 3 juillet 1991 portant nomination et promotion dans l'armée active" (in French). Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  23. Government of the French Republic (12 December 1996). "Décret du 12 décembre 1996 portant nomination et promotion dans l'armée active" (in French). Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  24. Government of the French Republic (31 October 2000). "Décret du 31 octobre 2000 portant nomination et promotion dans l'armée active". Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  25. Government of the French Republic (11 December 2003). "Décret du 11 décembre 2003 portant nomination et promotion dans l'armée active" (in French). Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  26. Government of the French Republic (16 May 2011). "Décret du 16 mai 2011 portant nomination et promotion dans l'armée active" (in French). Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  27. Government of the French Republic (19 December 2014). "Décret du 19 décembre 2014 portant nomination et promotion dans l'armée active" (in French). Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  28. Government of the French Republic (19 January 2017). "Décret du 19 janvier 2017 portant nomination et promotion dans l'armée active" (in French). Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  29. Government of the French Republic (2 July 2018). "Décret du 2 juillet 2018 portant élévation" (in French). Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  30. Government of the French Republic (4 July 2014). "Décret du 4 juillet 2014 portant promotion" (in French). Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  31. Government of the French Republic (1 July 2006). "Décret du 1er juillet 2006 portant promotion" (in French). Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  32. Government of the French Republic (14 June 1995). "Décret du 14 juin 1995 portant nomination" (in French). Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  33. Government of the French Republic (5 May 2011). "Décret du 5 mai 2011 portant promotion et nomination" (in French). Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  34. Government of the French Republic (6 November 2002). "Décret du 6 novembre 2002 portant promotion et nomination" (in French). Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  35. https://www.voanews.com/africa/french-military-frees-foreign-hostages-burkina-faso?amp
  36. Inflexions - Civils et militaires : pouvoir dire.

Notes
  1. First year of ESM Saint-Cyr.
  2. Second year of ESM Saint-Cyr.
  3. Third year of ESM Saint-Cyr.
  4. Upon leaving ESM Saint-Cyr.
Military offices
Preceded by
Pierre de Villiers		 Chief of the Defence Staff
20 July 2017 – Present		 Succeeded by
Incumbent
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