Etienne LARGEAU(1867-1916, Military explorer, he played a de - Lot 310

Etienne LARGEAU(1867-1916, Military explorer, he played a decisive role in the colonization and creation of Chad, he died in action in the Meuse in 1916, he had taken part in the famous Marchand Mission to Fachoda, promoted to colonel in 1910, he was called to Chad for the first time in 1911 and particularly distinguished himself there / Important autograph letter signed, 4 p in-8, Paris, June 7, 1913, toOctave MEYNIER(another military explorer): reacts to Meynier's article in the "Revue militaire", on the subject of theCombat de Doroté (Pays Massalit, Chad), November 9, 1910, a disastrous episode in the conquest of Chad which saw the massacre ofColonel Henri Moll, which had a great impact in France, with political interpellations, and was the trigger for Largeau's dispatch to Chad to replace Moll - This shows how important the subject was to Largeau [Historical reminder: Moll wanted to avenge Captain Fiegenschuh, who had been decimated with his soldiers by Doudmourah, one of the sultans of Massalit territory, and his men - two columns of French forces set out for Massalit, one in the front line led by Colonel Moll and the other by Captain Arnaud]. - Largeau deems Meynier's article "just", "you were perceptive there", etc. - Moll, at Massalit, didn't think he was in an operation, he didn't believe in resistance, far from believing in an attack! Arnaud, in the North, had to pick up Doudmourah, whom all intelligence reports showed to be on the run" - "Can we reproach Jaurès and his colleagues today for committing military errors when they want to leave us unarmed in front of Germany? No doubt not. I have studied the Doroté battle closely and have given a more or less definitive account of it, resulting in my conviction that the presence of the Arnaud Company on November 9 would have changed nothing in the events (on the other hand, believing in the danger, Moll was perfectly capable of beating the enemy with 350 men and the 2 pieces)". - If theDuc d'Aumale had been repulsed with his chasseurs d'Afrique, he could just as easily have been criticized for leaving his Zouaves behind" - "In short, I consider it almost impossible for any military operation, whether successful or not, not to offend some principle. And that's why, in integrating how principles have been violated, it should also always be made clear that events depend on the adjustment to poorly known psychological and material facts, of material and psychological factors driven by a will whose calculations are coordinated by intuition. This conclusion may strike you, my dear Meynier, as smacking a little too much of "renannism" [nb: a humanism stemming from the thought of Ernest Renan], but it does have the advantage of preparing minds for the anguish and risks of command, and unfortunately the Germans are closer to this preparation than we are. What we call their obscurity is quite simply the truth reflected on the thousand facets of reality" - He ends by announcing his departure for Chad 2 weeks later [A few months later, on November 27, 1913, he would be the great victor over the Senoussis at the battle of Aïn Galaka and capture Faya, a town which took the name ofFaya-Largeau] / Joint: "La situation du Territoire militaire du Tchad au début de 1912" by Colonel Largeau, publication of the Comité de l'Afrique Française, published in 1913, 116 p in-8 (first cover page missing and unstuck), some black and white photos, with an autograph letter to Commandant Meynier dated April 10, 1913- Interesting photograph of Chad at that time, very detailed.