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Jean Moulin

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Jean Moulin

Jean Pierre Moulin (French: [ʒɑ̃ mulɛ̃]; 20 June 1899 – 8 July 1943) was a French civil servant and hero of the French Resistance who succeeded in unifying the main networks of the Resistance in World War II. He served as the first President of the National Council of the Resistance from 27 May 1943 until his death less than two months later.

A prefect in the Aveyron (1937–1939) and Eure-et-Loir (1939–1940) departments, he is remembered today as one of the main heroes of the French Resistance and for his efforts to unify it under Charles de Gaulle. He was tortured by German officer Klaus Barbie while in Gestapo custody. His death was registered at Metz railway station.

Jean Moulin was born at 6 Rue d'Alsace in Béziers, Hérault, son of Antoine-Émile Moulin and Blanche Élisabeth Pègue. He was the grandson of an insurgent opposing the coup d'état of 2 December 1851. His father was a lay teacher at the Université Populaire and a Freemason at the lodge Action Sociale.

Moulin was baptised on 6 August 1899 in the church of Saint-Vincentin in Saint-Andiol (Bouches-du-Rhône), the village his parents came from. He spent an uneventful childhood in the company of his brother, Joseph, and his sister, Laure. Joseph died of acute peritonitis in 1907.:27 Throughout his early years, Moulin was an average student, including at the Lycée Henri IV in Béziers. One of his report cards states that "he would be an excellent student, if he were ever to start working.":33

In 1917, he enrolled at the Faculty of Law of Montpellier, where he was not a brilliant student though he did finish his legal studies with a diploma.:33 However, thanks to the influence of his father, he was appointed as attaché to the cabinet of the prefect of Hérault under the presidency of Raymond Poincaré.

Moulin was mobilised on 17 April 1918 as part of the age class of 1919, the last class to be mobilised in France. He was assigned to the 2nd Engineer Regiment of Montpellier. At the beginning of September, after an accelerated training, he headed with his regiment to the front in the Vosges, where he was posted in the village of Socourt.:43

His regiment was preparing to go to the front lines as part of the attack planned by Foch for 13 November, but the Armistice was signed on 11 November.:43

Although Moulin did not fight directly on the front lines, he was nevertheless in a position to observe the horrors of war. He saw its aftermath on the battle fields and the devastation of villages. He helped to bury the war dead in the region around Metz.:47 He wrote home expressing his shock at seeing the starved state of British prisoners of war who had just been freed. Nevertheless, nothing in the documented history of Jean Moulin's experience during World War I hinted at what his role would be during World War II.:34–35

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