Kléber Dupuy

Kléber Dupuy (27 June 1892 – 16 October 1966) was a French army officer. The son of an oyster farmer, he was conscripted into the French Army in 1913. He served in the First World War as an enlisted soldier in the 9th Infantry Regiment but was accepted for a commission and in 1915 joined the 7th Infantry Regiment as a second lieutenant. Dupuy commanded a force of 60 men at Fort Souville during the 1916 Battle of Verdun and, on 12 July, repelled a German attack. He was honoured with the Croix de Guerre. Later in the war he was wounded in action and had part of his right leg amputated. After the war Dupuy worked for the government's veterans' office and, during the Second World War, joined the French Resistance. Dupuy was appointed a grand officier of the Legion of Honour.

Early life Dupuy was born in La Teste-de-Buch, Gironde, France, on 27 June 1892. He was a teacher in his hometown. Dupuy, who served with the regiment's 3rd Company, was posted to the fort to reinforce the 10th Company. Upon arriving at the fort on 11 July Dupuy reported to his commander "it's complete havoc here. The commander has been gassed; the garrison is hors de combat". Dupuy remained at the fort, despite orders to abandon it. French writer wrote that Dupuy's actions "saved Verdun and saved the war". The French commanding general Philippe Pétain had stated that if Fort Souville was lost then he could not defend the city of Verdun. His service was recognised with appointment as grand officier of the Legion of Honour on 20 April 1946. Despite Pétain having led the Vichy French regime that Dupuy fought against during the war, Dupuy retained respect for his former commander. He campaigned for the rehabilitation of Pétain during the 1960s and wrote that it was his "most ardent desire is to accompany the Marshal's ashes for reburial at [Fort] Douaumont," a key battle site near Verdun.

In 2014, on the 100th anniversary of the start of the First World War, a ceremony was held at Cahors, the home of the 7th Regiment, to honour Dupuy. In 2018 Dupuy was mentioned by French President Emmanuel Macron in a speech at the Arc de Triomphe marking the 100th anniversary of the end of the war. The class of officer cadets graduating from the French Army's École spéciale militaire de Saint-Cyr in 2020 chose Dupuy as the name of their class.