Henri de Pimodan

French naval officer (1930-1945

Henri de Pimodan

Born| 22 October 1911
Maine-et-Loire
Died| 18 April 1945 (1945-04-19) (aged 33)
Ludwigslust
Allegiance| France
Service / branch| French Navy
Years of service| 1930–1945
Rank| Corvette captain
Battles / wars| World War II
Awards| See Awards

Henri de Rarécourt de La Vallée de Pimodan (22 October 1911 – 18 April 1945) was a French naval officer.

## Career

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Henri de Pimodan entered the Naval School in 1930. He graduated 6th and chose to serve in the marines.[1]

He sailed in the Atlantic aboard the Ville d'Ys then the Jules-Verne, and then in the Mediterranean aboard the Duquesne. In 1937, he was instructor at the École des fusiliers.[2]

At the start of World War II, appointed lieutenant in 1940, he sailed on the cruiser Georges Leygues aboard which he distinguished himself at the Battle of Dakar. He embarked on the cruiser Jean de Vienne based in Toulon.[2]

Embarked on the Jean de Vienne, he witnessed the scuttling of his ship in Toulon on 27 November 1942 with the French fleet. He was then appointed to a staff reclassification service, then to the State Secretariat for Industrial Production. He joined the Resistance, within the Army Resistance Organization.[2][1]

He was arrested on 5 February 1944 by the Gestapo. Tortured in the annex of the Rue Mallet-Stevens of the French Gestapo, but he refused to speak. He was then deported to the Ludwigslust camp in Nazi Germany. During his captivity, he was promoted to lieutenant-commander on 1 March 1945. He died in the camp on 18 April 1945.[2][1]

## Awards

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See also: Orders, decorations, and medals of France

Croix de Guerre 1939–1945

Médaille de la Résistance

## Legacy

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* A French aviso launched in 1942, has been named after him.[3]
* A French D'Estienne d'Orves-class aviso launched in 1978, has been named after him.[3]

## See also

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* French military ranks

## References

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1. ^ a b c "Henri de Pimodan". archive.wikiwix.com. Retrieved 2021-10-07.
2. ^ a b c d Pimodan (Henri-Charles de Lavallée de Rarécourt de), Dictionary of French sailors, 573 p. Paris: Étienne Taillemite. 2002. p. 422\. ISBN 2-84734-008-4.
3. ^ a b "Commandant de Pimodan". archive.wikiwix.com. Retrieved 2021-10-07.