Paul Grossin

Paul Grossin , born on January 1st, 1901 with Oran, deceased on January 24th, 1990 in Paris, was an officer of the French Army, general. He directed the Service of documentation external and against-espionage (SDECE) of 1957 to 1962.

Childhood and beginnings in the Army

Paul Grossin is born in Oran on January 1st, 1901. To the liking of the assignments of his father, officer of infantry, it initially passes his youth to Oran, then - after short a 2 years stay in metropolis in Auxerre - in Casablanca then. After the war, it goes up to Paris to continue its schooling with the Lycée Chaptal, where it passes a science vat. It then integrates the military academy of the Genius, in Versailles. Engaged in the Army, it will pass about fifteen years to Algeria and in Morocco, as officer of the Genious, “builder of roads” in these borders of empire. Lieutenant in 1932, captain in 1935, it is named major in June 1939, right before the beginning of the war.

Second world war

During the funny one of war, of September 1939 in May 1940, the commander Grossin is affected in Ve Armée which sits in Alsace, in Wangenbourg. The Head of State major is the general of Lattre, that Grossin appreciates, and the commander of the tanks certain colonel de Gaulle… The two men make knowledge, because Grossin provides to de Gaulle the fuel which this last needs for the drives for its tanks. In May 1940, the German beachcomber is fulgurating, but Ve Armée is illustrated by some feats of arms, in particular in the combat carried out by the 4 {{E}} division armoured of reserve, ordered by de Gaulle, as that of Montcornet where during a few days the panzers of Guderian will be held in failure.

Grossin is made prisoner in June 1940. In November of the same year, he manages to escape from Germany, and joined Algiers where he integrates the 19th regiment of Genius, of the Army of Africa, with Hussein-Dey. January 14th, 1941, he marries Helene Rieffel, civil servant with the ministry for agriculture. As of its return, it takes part with his wife in creation in Algeria of the resistance movement Combat, with the professor Rene Capitant, future Minister of Justice of De Gaulle. This activism is worth to him to be striped executives of the army by the Vichy government in December 1941. Within resistance, it then prepares the unloading combined in Algeria. November 8th, 1942, the allies are in Algiers and neutralize - with the support of resistant French, of which members of the network Combat - the Vichyist armed forces ordered by the admiral Darlan and the general June, who end besides up joining. Grossin integrates the free French Forces then (FFL) in North Africa, and is named there lieutenant-colonel. With Lattre, which joined Algiers in 1943, the FFL will prepare the unloading of Provence in August 1944, and the countryside of France until the victory.

Circles of the capacity

Meanwhile, Grossin was appointed colonel and returned in the cabinet of the Minister for the War in the Provisional government of the French Republic (GPRF) of the de Gaulle general. In October 1945, it is named with the general staff of the armies and in March 1946, it is promoted brigadier general. It is as at this time as it is registered with socialist party (SFIO), that of which it does not make mystery, not more than of its membership of freemasonry (it is adherent with the Great East of France). These networks undoubtedly did not play little when in June 1947, the president Vincent Auriol, coldly elected, calls it as military general secretary of the Elysium, where it will remain throughout all septennate. This position of trust, Grossin is with the first cabins for all that touches with the military questions: it will have in particular to manage the question of French rearmament after the war, and especially the Guerre of Indo-China (1946-1954). After the departure of Auriol, it spends some time as assistant general inspector of the Genious, before being named ordering in February 1956 of IXe military region in Marseilles and taking row as general. It represents France with the marriage of prince Rainier of Monaco and Grace Kelly, on April 19th, 1956… in company of François Mitterrand, minister of state and Minister of Justice. But it is bored at this station, also is it in parallel operations manager attached to the government of Guy Mollet, then president of the Council, for subjects relating to the military topicality, like the Guerre of Algeria, started since November 1954, or the Crise of Suez Canal in October 1956, which durably discredits France and the United Kingdom obliged to yield to the American pressure.

Owner of the secret services

It is in September 1957 that the president of the Council, Maurice Bourges-Maunoury, appoints it managing director of the Service of external documentation and against-espionage (SDECE), in other words the French secret services. This station, the Grossin general will be unanimously recognized like a big boss, and respected by all, his/her collaborators and its pars (Allen Dulles, director of the CIA, appreciated it in particular much). Servant of the State above all, his political skill large, is been used by his experiment with the Elysium and his knowledge of the networks as influence, Socialists and freemasons. Energetic and of an always equal mood, it is a readily truculent character and rabelaisien, which marks all those which approach it. Its first work will consist in reorganizing the services to center them under the dependence of the only presidency of the Council… difficult task in this turbid period of the end of IVe République. In May 1958, the insurrection in Algiers causes the return to the capacity of the de Gaulle general, initially as president of the Council, then like first president of Ve République. The SDECE keeps its neutrality and adapts to alternation, can be facilitated by the fact that de Gaulle and Grossin know themselves since 1939. De Gaulle besides very quickly will be interested in the secret services and will wish to see them more powerful for better using them in her foreign policy, but so interior. Michel Debré, Prime Minister as from January 1959, will use its adviser in load of the questions of security, Constantin Melnik, to provide the interface with Grossin and its services. During 3 years, the subjects of work will be numerous. One can particularly retain the following.

The reorganization of the SDECE continues, that it is by the special attention related to recruitment and the formation (Grossin will fail nevertheless in its wish of creation of a school of information), in the remilitarization of the services which comprise too many civilians (on approximately 1700 agents, the proportion of civilians will be reversed, passing from 60% to 40%), or in the co-operation with civil executives or senior officials, or finally with the clarification of the various entities of the services, and their roles: intelligence service (SR), against-espionage (CE) and Service action (SA) with the 11th Battalion of parachutists of shock (the famous 11th Shock!).

The cold war beats full sound and the confrontation between the two blocks hardens. The fight anticommunist also passes by supports Church of silence in the Eastern European countries (Poland in particular) to which the SDECE will be mixed. To this occasion and n the other hand, France will use the networks of influence of the Vatican, particularly with UNO, to help it in its policy of progressive decolonization or in its bringing together with Germany, which will triumph in the solemn reconciliation between de Gaulle and Adenauer. The SDECE uses the services of Jean Violet, international lawyer very introduced in the Vatican, as well as Dubois father, Dominican. The Grossin general is member of a confidential association, Sint unum, to which its German counterpart adheres, the general Reinhard Gehlen. Besides all these rendered services will be worth in Grossin to be decorated by the pope Jean-Paul II in person at the beginning with its pontificate.

War of Algeria

But the main subject of concern will be the Guerre of Algeria. Carried to the capacity by the Algerian crisis, de Gaulle little by little will implement her policy of independence, not without evil and drama. It is initially necessary to continue the fight against the Algerian FLN, in Algeria as in metropolis. The traffic of weapons which feeds the FLN is particularly aimed, and the carriers of bag are tracked… and sometimes eliminated physically! To cover these operations “homos” (i.e. homicides), a fictitious terrorist organization is created by the SDECE, the “red Hand”, which asserts the perpetrated attacks, including abroad (Germany, Switzerland and Belgium in particular). The Grossin general will be however always opposed to kill out of the French citizens: thus he would have refused to eliminate the lawyer Jacques Vergès… activist pro FLN whom the capacity would have liked to see disappearing. The intentions of De Gaulle specifying itself, the OAS makes its appearance as from 1961. It is also the year of the putsch of the generals in Algeria: Grossin and the SDECE provides to the government information showing that the rebellion is insufficiently prepared and who put forward the weakness of the means available to the putschists (of which the communications are intercepted and retranscribed). The fight against the OAS on the other hand will be much mollement constant by Grossin, which counts many knowledge among the officers having rocked in the illegality. Although the facts are discussed and difficult to encircle, it seems that a semi-official and discrete help was brought to certain lost soldiers of the OAS, as for example the colonel Antoine Argoud that the SDECE would have helped to leave Algeria after the putsch of April. Contrary, the SDECE would have fought against the secret agents of De Gaulle, Pierre Lemarchand and Roger Frey (Minister of Interior Department): whereas a searching was led to the seat of the secret services - a first in their history! - by the PJ to seek certain documents which could have compromised the SDECE in its role, the Grossin general assisted to with it in large uniform to show his reprobation vis-a-vis this contrary act with any tradition.

Reprocess

In February 1962, the Grossin general, reached by the age limit of its row, is unloaded of its station, against the opinion of Debré and Melnik, which are found a little isolated vis-a-vis the Algerian problem (the government of Debré will be prolonged besides only few months, until April). De Gaulle needed sour men to finish what it had begun (the agreements of Evian will be signed in March, and proclaimed Algerian independence in July): the direction of the SDECE is entrusted to the general Paul Jacquier, near to Foccart, the 3eminence grise of the Elysium.

Senior civil servant of the State, the Grossin general sees himself entrusting mandates of president or administrator of various public companies, mainly in the sector of public works, undoubtedly because of his initial training of officer of the Genius. Among these mandates, it is necessary to raise the presidency of the Esterel highway - Riviera (1963-1974), and the posts of administrator of Scétauroute (research department of civil engineering) and of the funds of Sequana investment. Withdrawn in Neuilly/the Seine, the Grossin general dies on January 24th, 1990, 89 years old, whereas he was hospitalized with the Hospital of Paris. Its funerals will be celebrated in large pump with the Invalids, during a religious ceremony in which will take part the minister, the large chancellor of the Legion of honor, the military governor of Paris and many other general officers. The Grossin general was Grand Cross of the Legion of honor and officer of Resistance.

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Sources

the swimming pool. French secret services, 1944-1984 . Roger FALIGOT, Pascal KROP. Threshold, Paris, 1985.
a spy in the century. The diagonal of the double . Constantin MELNIK. Plon, Paris, 1994.
Le Monde. Obituary heading of January 27th, 1990.

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