[April 24, 2017] The thumbnail picture gives some hint to the identity of this man Georges Thenault. Americans won’t know the name but will recognize his story as Captain Thenault commander of the Lafayette Escadrille;1 a French organization made up mostly of American fighter pilots during World War I.
The few American pilots of the Lafayette Escadrille (Escadrille means “Squadron” in English) were considered reckless by the French higher command and it took Captain Thenault considerable leadership skill to prevent a major mishap. This would have ended the experiment to use foreign pilots in the Allied war defending against the Central Powers (primarily composed of Germany).
The Lafayette Escadrille was created before the United States gave up its neutrality and joined France and Britain in the war. Creating this air unit was a strategic one. Dr. Edmund L. Gros led the efforts to persuade the French government of the value of a volunteer American air unit fighting for France.
The aim was to have their efforts recognized by the American public and thus, it was hoped, the resulting publicity would rouse interest in abandoning neutrality and joining the fight.2 Under its original, short-lived name, the Escadrille Americaine it was deployed on April 20, 1916.3 The unit and its pilots became famous but its tangible tactical impact would be considered unspectacular.
Strategically it was genius. Captain Thenault never had trouble filling its ranks with flyers. And later when the United States entered the war a year later in April 1917, there were 265 American volunteers in the service of France who helped play a role in pushing America away from its neutral position.
“His appointment as attache to the United States in 1922 was intended as a compliment to America and especially as a mark of appreciation for the services rendered by American members of the escadrille.” – The New York Times
Thenault was appointed as France’s attache to the U.S. in 1922 and would play a major role in U.S.-French relations and go on to marry an American woman. As a Lieutenant Colonel, he was residing in France when World War II erupted. In 1948 he died from a heart attack while hunting and was buried with high honors in the crypt of the LaFayette Escadrille Memorial Monument in France.
He is considered a hero by both the French peoples and all Americans.
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- The squadron (Escadrille) was named after Marquis de Lafayette, hero of the American and French revolutions.
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lafayette_Escadrille
- German objections filed with the U.S. Government, over the actions of a supposed neutral nation, led to the name change to Lafayette Escadrille in December 1916.