| Marquis Édouard Marie René Bardon de Segonzac | |
|---|---|
| Born | 7 September 1867 |
| Died | 1962 (aged 94–95) |
| Allegiance | France |
| Service/branch | French Army |
| Battles/wars |
|
| Awards | |
Marquis Édouard Marie René Bardon de Segonzac (7 September 1867 – 1962) was a French army officer and explorer. He studied at the Ecole Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr before being commissioned and serving in the Ivory Coast where he was accused and acquitted of the murder of a fellow officer. He became renowned as an explorer and adventurer in Morocco and was also posted to Tunisia. In the First World War he became a pilot and received the Legion of Honour and the Croix de Guerre.
Early life[]
Édouard Marie René Bardon de Segonzac was born in the Chateau des Essarts in Cuy, Oise on 7 September 1867.[1][2] His parents were Edouard and Mathilde des Rioul de Segonzac.[2] He entered military service in 1886, studying at the Ecole Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr and being in the first class to graduate from the Châlons-en-Champagne campus in 1889.[2][3] Upon receiving his commission he joined the cavalry and served in the occupation of San Pédro on the Ivory Coast in 1892.[3] In October 1893 he was tried for the murder of Lieutenant Quiquerez but was acquitted of all charges against him.[4] Sometime thereafter de Segonzac returned to France before leaving from Marseille in November 1904 to serve in the winter campaign in Morocco.[5]
First World War[]
During the First World War de Segonzac served as a captain in the French military aviation corps.[2] During the war he listed his address as Rue Dumont D'urville in Paris and in 1915 was posted to Chartres for a while.[2] He was married and his wife, the Comtesse de Segonzac, resided in Compiegne.[2] He remained a member of the Vieilles Tiges pilots association after the war.[6] De Segonzac received the Legion of Honour and the Croix de Guerre during his military career and held several foreign decorations.[2] He also held campaign medals for Tunisia and Morocco.[2]
Later life[]
De Segonzac became renowned as an explorer and adventurer and may have served as the inspiration for Lieutenant André de Saint-Avit in Pierre Benoit's Atlantida, in which one French officer murders another.[7] He was also a writer publishing several books such as Voyages au Maroc (1899-1901) (Voyages in Morocco) in 1903 and La Légende de Florinda la Byzantine (The legend of Florinda the Byzantine) in 1928, the latter illustrated by H. Zworykine and with a preface written by Marshal Hubert Lyautey.[8][9]
References[]
- ↑ Noblesse Française (1873) (in French). État présent de la noblesse française, contenant le dictionnaire de la noblesse contemporaine. Bachelin-Deflorenne. p. 115. http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=yycAAAAAQAAJ.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 "Record Card of René de Segonzac" (in French). Mémoire des hommes. French Ministry of Defence. http://www.memoiredeshommes.sga.defense.gouv.fr/lib_memh/php/fiche_popup.php?_Base=SHAA&_Lg=fr&_Fiche=BCAuV2pRFgO0cKoEDGs=&_C=3977070393. Retrieved 22 December 2012.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Puaux, M. Frank (1892) (in French). Revue Chrétienne. Recueil Mensuel. Paris: Bureau de la Revue Chrétienne. pp. 284. http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k54039141.
- ↑ "L'affaire Quiquerez - de Segonzac" (in French). 9 October 1893. pp. 3. http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k466599z/f3.pleinepage.
- ↑ Zimmerman, Maurice (1905). "Mission du comité du Maroc. Explorations de MM. de Segonzac, Gentil, de Flotte de Roquevaire" (in French). http://www.persee.fr/web/revues/home/prescript/article/geo_0003-4010_1905_num_14_75_6457.
- ↑ Association Amicale des Pilotes Aviateurs d'Avant-Guerre (1924) (in French). Les Vieilles Tiges Annuaire 1924. Paris. http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k5544305.
- ↑ Mayet (Secrétaire Général), Charles (1891) (in French). Le Magasin Pittoresque. Paris: Jouvet and Company. pp. 11. http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k31474g.
- ↑ "Voyages au Maroc (1899-1901) (1903)" (in French). Archive.org. http://archive.org/details/voyagesaumaroc00segogoog. Retrieved 22 December 2012.
- ↑ (in French) La Légende de Florinda la Byzantine. Google Books. http://books.google.co.uk/books/about/La_Légende_de_Florinda_la_Byzantine.html?id=vbABtwAACAAJ. Retrieved 22 December 2012.
The original article can be found at René de Segonzac and the edit history here.