Marcel Maurice Bigeard

French soldier (1916-2010) · France · On the map · Died at 94

Marcel Bigeard, personal radio call-sign "Bruno", was a French military officer and politician who fought in World War II, the First Indochina War and the Algerian War.

Marcel Maurice Bigeard is read about 528 times a day, in 14 languages.

A typical day, 30 days to 6 November 2026

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Photos 7

Larbi M'Hidi (seated), whom Bigeard arrested during the Algerian War

Bigeard in 1966

Bigeard at age 80, in his home standing in front of a photo of him some 40 years earlier.

Grave of General Marcel Bigeard at the Mémorial des guerres en Indochine at Fréjus

Bigeard's decorations plate

Awards

Honneur et Patrie Award2011

Prix Littéraire de La Saint-Cyrienne2007

Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour

Commander of the Order of Merit Civil Tai

Croix de guerre 1939-1945

Croix de guerre des théâtres d'opérations extérieures

Colonial Medal

Commander of the Legion of Merit

Distinguished Service Order

Resistance Medal

Commander of the Order of the Dragon of Annam

Order of the Million Elephants and the White Parasol

About this person

He was one of the commanders in the Battle of Dien Bien Phu and is thought by many to have been a dominating influence on French "unconventional" warfare thinking from that time onwards. He was one of the most decorated officers in France, and is particularly noteworthy because of his rise from being a regular soldier in 1936 to ultimately concluding his career in 1976 as a Lieutenant General and serving in the government of Valéry Giscard d'Estaing.

Country

France

Type

Other

Status

Deceased

Dates

Lived 1916 to 2010 · aged 94