Jean-Marie Bastien-Thiry French military engineer Date of Birth: 19.10.1927 Country: France

1. French Military Engineer
2. Early Life and Education
3. Military Career
4. Political Views and Opposition to De Gaulle
5. Assassination Attempt
6. The Petit-Clamart Attack
7. Trial and Execution

French Military Engineer

Jean-Marie Bastien-Thiry was a French military engineer and an expert in aircraft weaponry. He held the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the French Air Force. On August 22, 1962, he led an assassination attempt against French President Charles de Gaulle. He was convicted and executed for his involvement.

Early Life and Education

Bastien-Thiry was born in Lunéville, France, into a Catholic family with a military lineage. He was the eldest of seven children. His father, an artillery lieutenant colonel, was a staunch supporter of De Gaulle and a member of De Gaulle's political party, the RPF. Bastien-Thiry studied in Nancy before attending the private Sainte-Geneviève high school in Versailles. In 1947, he entered the École Polytechnique, a prestigious engineering school. He later graduated from the École Nationale Supérieure de l'Aéronautique et de l'Espace (SUPAERO) in Toulouse and joined the French Air Force.

Military Career

In the Air Force, Bastien-Thiry specialized in the development of air-to-air missiles. By 1957, he had risen to the rank of Chief Engineer for Aircraft Armament. He was married to Geneviève Lamiran, the daughter of Georges Lamiran, a former Vichy regime official. However, the Lamiran family supported the Free French movement during World War II.

Political Views and Opposition to De Gaulle

Initially a supporter of De Gaulle, Bastien-Thiry became disillusioned after De Gaulle's policy shift on Algeria. He opposed De Gaulle's intention to grant independence to Algeria, which he viewed as a betrayal of French sovereignty. Bastien-Thiry saw De Gaulle as a dictator and believed that his actions would lead to the communization of Algeria and eventually the rest of Africa.

Assassination Attempt

Bastien-Thiry became involved in a secret organization, the "Vieil État-Major," which was believed to have connections to high-ranking officials, politicians, and business leaders. He organized a failed assassination attempt on De Gaulle in Pont-sur-Seine in 1961. He launched multiple subsequent attempts, all of which were thwarted by security services.

The Petit-Clamart Attack

In his most notorious attempt, Bastien-Thiry led an ambush on De Gaulle's car in the Paris suburb of Petit-Clamart. Machine gun fire targeted De Gaulle's vehicle and nearby shops. Miraculously, De Gaulle and his entourage survived the attack, despite the car sustaining 14 bullet holes.

Trial and Execution

Bastien-Thiry was arrested and tried for the assassination attempt. He was found guilty and sentenced to death. His execution by firing squad took place on March 11, 1963.