WesWorld

October 10
Barcelona, Iberia

Salvatore Bruscantini walked free down the streets of Barcelona. The French, although they were none too pleased with their captured SIM agent (Bruscantini didn't care what the Frogs thought), had released him the previous morning. Apparently SIM had gone to bat for him. Which was a good thing, since Bruscantini had to rendezvous with Guiseppe Bottazi and the other escaped members of the Italian Red Brigade - the secret core group which had formed at the heart of the Avanguardias. Once Bruscantini re-established contact with Brigate Rosse, SIM could wrap up Bottazi and the rest of the group...

Letting himself into the house where the rendezvous would take place, Bruscantini resisted the urge to look around for the Iberian policemen who had been sent to observe. If all was well, then they would be well-hidden and would not tip off Bottazi and the others.

Settling in to wait, Bruscantini lit a cigarette and pulled out a trashy novel he'd found on the train from Marseilles. He read it three times, and still no members from Brigate Rosse arrived at the rendezvous. Finally losing patience when it became clear none of the other members of the inside circle were coming, he headed out and phoned his superiors for instructions.

"Wait another two days, and then return to Rome," the colonel said.

"If they're not here," Bruscantini said, "then that must mean they arranged another rendezvous and intentionally left me out. They must know who I work for!"

"Perhaps. But you have your orders."



October 10
Fresnes Prison

Nazzari had been moved to a more comfortable cell in Fresnes prison, but Captain Ardant kept bringing him back to the same interrogation chamber. "I take it you've been following up on my information and confirming its authenticity," Nazzari asked.

Ardant nodded. "So far, we've been able to confirm much of what you've told us. We're still looking into a few other things." He opened his notebook again. "My superiors would like to know more about why your group selected Monaco for your operation. You are a military man - we've looked into your record enough to know that you are not a stupid officer - so why did you agree to such a ridiculous scheme as attacking Monaco?"

"In hindsight..." Nazzari said, shaking his head slowly. "Bottazi proposed the plan. He must have intended all along to betray us, or perhaps just me, and my men along with me. He assured us that he'd arranged political support in France and Italy both. I checked into it, too - he made contact with government officials in Paris, at least one of them high-ranking. He was supposed to influence Theisman into recognizing our movement and our change of government."

"A high-ranking French politician?" Ardant said, leaning forward. "Do you have a name?"

"Maybe," Nazzari said coyly. "What's it worth to you?"

Quoted

Originally posted by Brockpaine

"A high-ranking French politician?" Ardant said, leaning forward. "Do you have a name?"

"Maybe," Nazzari said coyly. "What's it worth to you?"

Now this is an interesting development...

October 10
Headquarters of the Deuxième Bureau

Colonel K½nig sat back in his chair as Captain Ardant related the result's of the day's interrogations to him. "You weren't able to get him to give up any clues about the identity of this mystery politician?" K½nig asked.

"Very little, sir," Ardant replied. "All he would say is that Bottazi's contact was high up in the French government, and his identity and willingness to collaborate with the Avanguardias convinced Nazzari the Monaco scheme would be successful."

K½nig looked thoughtful. "Nazzari said he could influence Theisman... the President keeps very few advisers, even within the cabinet. Ministers Lemaréchal, Monnerville, Murail, Michelet... his chief-of-staff Grumbach..." He paused, then dialed a number on his phone. "Section Thirty-Nine, please - Captain Pierre Resnais. Thank you, I'll hold. Yes, Resnais, this is Colonel K½nig in Section Five. I need some information, confidential... yes, you understand. Yes, come on over, please."

Captain Resnais appeared three minutes later, a gaunt and emaciated-looking officer. K½nig motioned him to sit. "Captain Gustav Resnais, this is Captain Pierre Ardant - he's in charge of wrapping up loose ends with our Avanguardias. Ardant, this is Captain Resnais, counterintelligence. Resnais, one of our little pigs has squealed, and said the Avanguardias had contacted someone influential with President Theisman. Someone who was supposed to influence him into leaving the Avanguardias alone in Monaco."

Resnais raised an eyebrow. "I find that hard to believe. Theisman makes up his mind quickly, and he doesn't like Communists. It'd take someone unusually close and influential to overcome that. Could your 'little pig' be squealing what you want to hear just to tickle your ears?"

"There is that possibility," Ardant said. "But he's given us a lot of information so far, and it's all being verified. He was the military commander of the Avanguardias. If anyone knows..."

"I presume he's offering the name as part of a bargain? What does he want?" Resnais asked.

"Twenty thousand francs and a passport to Hungary."

"Pshaw." Resnais chewed on his thumbnail. "Well, let me talk you through all the people who we know influence the President's decisions. Lucine [1], of course, but mainly in the fields of her expertise - medicine and education. Monnerville and Murail in international and domestic politics; and Michelet to a lesser extent. Lemaréchal and Grumbach influence him a lot in military matters, Grumbach more obscurely. Grumbach is half-Austrian - he left the South Tyrol when the Italians annexed it. Maybe a hook?"

K½nig frowned. "If he left the South Tyrol in 1919..."

"Grumbach and Theisman were in the Foreign Legion together," Resnais said. "Grumbach's father was Austrian, his mother French; they spent summers in the Tyrol and winters in Nice. When the Italians annexed the South Tyrol at the end of the War, his family sold their home in Bolzano and lived in Nice year round. His father didn't like the Italians."

"That doesn't sound like someone who'd help the Avanguardias," Ardant said.

"I agree. And Grumbach's not a Communist - he was Croix-de-Feu [2] until 1934. He's moved away from that background, but he's still anti-socialist."

"What others do you have?"

"People who influence Theisman? Well, there's Marcel Lechambre and a few other senior leaders in the Alliance Républicaine. The President visits often with Chancellor Adenauer; but that doesn't meet your criteria. And... hm." Resnais puckered up his face in thought. "I just thought of this, but Jules Bernard."

"The National Education Minister?" Ardant asked.

"Yes. Minister Bernard's wife, Thérèse, was a co-worker of Lucine Theisman ten years ago. They've been very friendly ever since - they exchange dinner invitations every month or so. But Bernard is a member - albeit a conservative one - of the French Socialist Party. Theisman nominated him to the cabinet both as a trustworthy friend and an olive branch to the socialists." Resnais hesitated. "Bernard had a scheduled meeting with the President at the Élysée Palace at ten o'clock on October 6th. Instead, Theisman got into discussions with Monnerville, Murail, and Lemaréchal about the Monaco Incident, and cancelled the meeting. Bernard apparently waited for two hours at the Élysée Palace."

"You don't think Minister Bernard might be the Avanguardia's contact?" Ardant asked.

"We're paid to be suspicious," Colonel K½nig said. "Captain Resnais, I'm going to request permission to bring you into this investigation. I want you to start working with Captain Ardant to discover if there are any links between the Avanguardias and Minister Bernard. Captain Ardant, I'll pass on this request Nazzari has made; in the meantime, stall him and see if you can't find links of our own. Perhaps Nazzari has given us enough clues after all, now that we know to look..."



Notes:
Note [1]: Lucine Anassian Theisman, the first lady.
Note [2]: Croix-de-Feu was a French nationalist league composed of veterans of the Great War. They're not quite the French version of the Fascists. Croix-de-Feu dissolved in the 1930s, its members going into some of the French far-right parties.

Twenty-thousand francs and a passport sounds cheap, if the information was proven to be true. Of course, if Resnais' suspicions are correct, it might not be necessary to resort to a paid foreigner's information.

Grumbach, on the other hand, strikes me as an interesting piece of the equation. A very nice touch in keeping people guessing.

Well done.

October 12
Headquarters of the Deuxième Bureau

Captain Ardant and Captain Resnais sat down again at the table. "So what do you have today?" Resnais asked.

"I've been going through the transcriptions of Nazzari's interviews, as well as all the other transcripts of the interrogations," Ardant said. "I think we've found something very interesting." He pulled out a typed sheet and slid it across the table to Resnais.

"Let's have a look at this," Resnais muttered, quickly skimming the paper.

"That's the interview of Luigi Martelli, one of Nazzari's three lieutenants - the only one who survived. Apparently, Bottazi, Nazzari, and the three lieutenants all made trips to France over the past year. The first time, Bottazi went alone to Grenoble. Then Bottazi and Nazzari went to Marseilles. Then all five of the senior Avanguardias went to Cannes. I'm wondering if the dates match up with the itineraries of any of your suspects."

"I'm still collecting that information for some of them, but we'll see," Resnais said. He pulled out his files and paged through them, comparing information. "And... it does match up with one of them," he said, looking dismayed. "May 12 - Cannes Film Festival. Minister Bernard was there at the time. Then earlier, April 27th, he was at Marseilles, speaking at the École Supérieure de Commerce de Marseille Provence. Then Grenoble on February 19th, at a conference held by the the Socialist Party of the Rhône-Alpes Region. Well, well..."

"We got that information out of Martelli with scopalamine," Ardant said. "So it's inadmissible in court."

"Unfortunate. In any case, it's leading, but hardly conclusive," Resnais agreed. "But I think you'll like what I've found." He took out his own notes and presented them. "When the Avanguardias took over Monaco, they broke into the Credit Foncier de Monaco and attempted to open the main vault. They didn't succeed, but they did get into sets of lockboxes. Again, they were stymied by most of them - the bank's been cataloging potential losses - but a few were opened and the contents removed."

"I remember that. Apparently that part of the operation was overseen by de Rossi, who was killed during the liberation of the SS Atmah."

"Was anything recovered from the yacht? Money, precious metals, jewelry?"

"Nothing that seemed out of the ordinary. But... let me think. The Avanguardias set the yacht on fire accidentally - de Rossi ordered two of the men to burn some papers aboard the ship. I didn't think much of it at the time. The two men emptied it out on the chart table and started them on fire - and it got out of control and consumed the entire pilothouse. There wasn't much we could find after that."

"Have a look at the second page," Resnais said. "It lists the identification attached to the owners of each box."

Ardant turned the page and looked at the names, picking out one that was circled three times with pen. "Who is Ferdinand Touvier?" he asked.

"A Swiss investigator. He investigated international money-laundering schemes. Now he's dead."

"Dead?"

"Ask how, when, where, and why."

"Very well," Ardant said. "Let's start with when."

"Two weeks ago today."

"I'm intrigued. Where?"

"Capri."

"Oh, now that's even more interesting. de Rossi was in Capri two weeks ago. How did Touvier die?"

"His powerboat caught fire and exploded."

"Sure it did," Ardant said. "Now do you know 'Why?'"

"The Swiss police are investigating him for multiple counts of blackmail. It seems our Swiss investigator didn't always turn in all of the discoveries he made."

"So Touvier was killed on Capri when one of the senior Avanguardias was there. And he owned a safe-deposit box in a Monaco bank, a box which was definitely opened and the contents possibly removed and destroyed by the Avanguardias."

"Right."

"Does it link to Minister Bernard?"

"I thought you'd never ask. One of Touvier's official investigations was focusing on the French Socialist Party, and accusations that foreign socialist elements are donating and laundering money to help improve the Socialist standing in elections - particularly parliamentary and presidential races. Did you know that Jules Bernard has already indicated his interest in campaigning as the French socialist party candidate in the 1946 presidential elections?"

Ardant frowned. "You think Bernard accepted foreign funds, then got blackmailed by Touvier, and turned to the Avanguardias to be his glorified hit squad? By attacking Monaco?"

"It's possible. It does stretch the bounds of believability. But there is more going on here than meets the eye."

Quoted

"It's possible. It does stretch the bounds of believability. But there is more going on here than meets the eye."

That is an understatement if I ever heard one.

It gets even more interesting.

October 16
Élysée Palace

President Paul Theisman sat at his desk in silence, staring at the crystal chandelier of the Salon doré - the 'Golden Room' where French presidents had established their offices since 1873. Idly, Theisman wondered what secrets the walls had heard; and he frowned as he anticipated adding more to their repertoire of knowledge.

Gustave Grumbach knocked and entered the room. "He's here, Mr. President."

"Thank you, Gustave," Theisman said, casting one last look at the file on his desk.

"Do you want me to stay?"

Theisman took a deep breath. "No. I can take care of this."

Grumbach nodded and stepped out, returning a moment later with Jules Bernard. "Mr. President," Bernard said, greeting Theisman. He looks a bit pale and jittery, Theisman thought to himself.

"Have a seat, Jules," Theisman said. He sat down in a chair across from the minister. "We need to talk off the record. There have been some allegations raised by... let's leave it at certain well-informed individuals. Very serious allegations."

Bernard blinked twice, his only physical reaction. "What allegations would these be?"

"In brief - the allegations are that you were in contact with the Avanguardias, on multiple occasions, and accepted laundered campaign funds to influence the French government, me in particular, to approve their little misadventure."

Bernard tensed, then took a deep breath and relaxed. "Are these certain well-informed individuals preparing formal charges?"

"Not yet. Investigations are still underway. I wanted to give you the chance to rebut them to me, face to face. If they have substance, then I must ask you to step down as Minister of National Education."

For a few long moments, Bernard did not react or respond, then he looked down. "They have some substance, Mr. President. May I have a few moments to explain?"

"Of course."

Bernard took off his glasses, his hand shaky. "They called me on the morning of the sixth, from Monaco. They told me to come to the palace and use my influence to support their attack. I refused, and they told me that if I did not, they'd release data about certain international monies which they say were donated to my presidential campaign fund for 1945." Bernard paused several moments before continuing. "You know my politics, Mr. President. I support their cause but not their actions - I'm a pacifist. I came here to resign and urge you to have leniency on the Avanguardias - but you were in meetings all morning. When I finally left, I asked my financial manager to see if what I was told was true - about the money. I honestly don't know the answer to that yet." He put his glasses back on, shakily, and looked Theisman in the eye. "I did not have prior knowledge of the Avanguardias' attack, and I don't believe I met or spoke to them prior to last week. I believe my only mistake was not immediately divulging my contact from them last week... I knew that if it came to light, even if my campaign didn't accept illegal donations, then my career would be finished. I thought I could stay quiet, and I was wrong. I'm sorry, Mr. President."

Theisman nodded slowly. "So am I, Jules. You know what I have to ask now?"

"The resignation letter," Bernard said quietly. "Yes. But please permit me to present my own - it's already signed." He pulled a creased envelope out of his suit jacket.

Theisman opened it and skimmed the contents. "It's dated the sixth. But... I think this will do."

"I'm sorry, Mr. President."

"Does Thérèse know?" Theisman asked.

"My wife knows," Bernard said sadly. "She helped talk me out of resigning last week. I knew better." Bernard stood. "Will that be all, Mr. President?"

"Who do you want as your replacement?"

"Deputy Minister Saval would be a good choice," Bernard said. "He deserves it after all these years."

"I'll take that into consideration," Theisman said. "Have a good evening, Jules."

October 16
Minister of National Education Jules Bernard has resigned, announcing that he had decided to excuse himself from public service. The move comes as quite a surprise to political observers, since Bernard was expected to hold the post until his candidacy for president, as a member of the French Socialist Party, would be announced in mid-1944. The minister's apparent intent to retire from public life raises doubts about the intentions of one of the prospective future leaders of the French Union.

October 17 - Le Figaro
President Theisman announced that the vacant post of the Minister of National Education would be offered to Deputy-Minister Jean-Jacques Saval. Unlike his predecessor, Saval is a member of Theisman's tripartisme Alliance républicaine, but is not a close friend or coworker of the President.

October 18
Minister of National Defense Lemaréchal presented to the French Parliament a plan to extend current mechanization developments through the French Army through the course of 1944 and 1945. The confidential report is rumored to focus on the upgrade of existing 'foot' infantry divisions rather than the creation of new forces. The known exception will be the 202nd Brigade de Chars being formed in Indochina using a mix of local and French Colonial personnel and equipment.

It is probably a good thing for France that Bernard has decided to retire from public life. His capitulation at Theisman's gentle questions suggest someone who really does not have the spine to lead a great power.

I'd say that's probably true. Nor does he have much in the way of governing experience: he's minister of national education because he's been an educator most of his life. And pacifists don't tend to thrive at the command of great powers.

October 20 - Le Canard enchaîné
What the Bird Has to Say: In this week's editorial section, members of the French leftist parties blame Minister of National Education Bernard's retirement on backlash from the Avanguardia attack on Monaco.

October 21
The submarine Thetis was completed today at the naval yards of La Rochelle.

October 22
The Salon de l'Automobile opened today in Paris. Three hundred manufacturers from around the world demonstrated their products, announced new automobile models, and made deals. Among the new cars being presented is Hispano-Suiza's newest car, the J14 Tornade, which features a three hundred c.v. engine, one of the most powerful production cars in the world. Renault also announced their intention to open a Balkan branch in Plovdiv Bulgaria, to be called Bulgarrenault and operated in conjunction with the local firm Metalhim.

October 23
Éditions Denoël released René Barjavel's science-fiction novel Le Voyageur imprudent, a story about a time-traveler who goes back in time to kill his grandfather. [1]

October 26
The government of Monaco announced that after due consideration, the Avanguardias would be tried in military courts as unlawful combatants. For reasons of practicality, the trials will likely be held on French soil.

October 27
The first two aviso-dragueurs of the Arabe class, named Arabe and Algérien, were launched today in the shipyards of Nouméa, Nouvelle-Calédonie. The two ships sponsors, distinguished Japanese ladies, were selected to help maintain a thread with the previous Arabe class, destroyers built in Japan for the Marine Nationale during the Great War. At the launch ceremony, Contre-amiral Alain Dacoury paid tribute to the French and Japanese sailors who contributed to Allied victory in the Mediterranean Sea between 1914 and 1917.



Notes:
Note [1]: This book was the first time the idea of 'grandfather paradox' was proposed.

Quoted

Originally posted by Brockpaine

October 26
The government of Monaco announced that after due consideration, the Avanguardias would be tried in military courts as unlawful combatants. For reasons of practicality, the trials will likely be held on French soil.

One could make the argument that some, if not all, of the Avanguardias could be considered pirates and state-less terrorists; in this regard the Government of Monaco seems to be merciful in according the accused the protection of the law, rather that the summary justice that they might deserve.

[SIZE=3]Special Article: Iron Hand Over Benevolent Heart[/SIZE]
Article from Le Spectateur militaire.

In shifts of fifty, the men of Infantry Regiment 36 'Tonkin' move into the exercise area, clad in light blue exercise uniforms with yellow belts. These young men, drawn from the ranks of Tonkin's lower and middle class, are future infantrymen in the Forces de sécurité territoriaux, a force being raised to take over the defense of Indochinese territory. Under a blazing sky, each of the fifty men greets his sparring partner with the salutation 'Iron Hand Over Benevolent Heart' before beginning their martial exercises.

Lieutenants César-Auguste Pépin and Nguyen Muoi stroll through the practice area, watching carefully and conferring with each other about the progress of their students. While Pépin wears the Lizard camouflage of the French Army, Muoi wears the uniform brown-green of the Forces de sécurité territoriaux. For the last year, Lieutenant Pépin has been detached to assist in training Indochinese infantry troops, partnering off with an Indochinese-born officer. By contrast, Nguyen Muoi is a native of Hanoi and a rising star in a new martial art called Viet Vo Dao, or 'Vovinam'.

As Indochinese cadets come into the Forces de sécurité territoriaux, they are initiated into this Indochinese martial art. Founded in 1938 by Indochinese martial artist Nguyen Loc, Viet Vo Dao focuses on providing its practitioners with basic self-defense skills, with weapons ranging from the hands and feet to bo staffs and swords. Although the art first became popular among Vietnamese nationalists, The Forces de sécurité territoriaux has adopted Viet Vo Dao into the training of their soldiers, and the popularity of the sport is growing by leaps and bounds.

This martial art was created with the intention of promoting a sense of national unity for the Indochinese people. Nguyen Loc designed the art from his studies of ancient Vietnamese martial arts, Chinese kung fu, and a smattering of Korean and Japanese martial arts. Viet Vo Dao masters exhort their pupils to act generously and promote the welfare of others. These qualities appealed to the senior officers of the Forces de sécurité territoriaux, who observed Nguyen Loc and his pupils conducting a demonstration in 1941. FST officers and enlisted men are exhorted to live to high standards, and are forbidden from taking political stances in a region which is preparing for a plebiscite on independence in two years. If the Indochinese people vote for independence in October 1945, then the Forces de sécurité territoriaux will become the army of the new Republic of Indochina.

OOC notes to the above: historically, the French were quite concerned about the nationalistic ideology of Vovinam, and began repressing it in 1942. Here, the French take a different tack, co-opting it to serve as a basis for the FST.

Fascinating. Another excellent article that illuminates an often overlooked aspect of nation-building.

October 29
Construction of Paris's Boulevard Périphérique was completed today after two and a half years of nearly constant construction. The 35km long road, constructed by Société Anonyme pour la Construction et l'Entretien des Routes, encircles Paris, following the route of the old 1841 Thiers wall.

November 1 - La Provence
The Yugoslavian destroyer-leader Zagreb arrived in the port of Marseilles today, the first stop on an international cruise currently being undertaken by the Yugoslavian Royal Navy. This powerful ship, fresh from the Bar shipyards, is armed with eight twelve-centimeter guns and ten fifty-five centimeter torpedoes. Yugoslavian Foreign Minister Boris Furlan, as well as Prince Tomislav, arrived aboard the ship.

Zagreb was welcomed to Marseilles by Contre-amiral Virgile Lapeyre, who has recently been promoted to command the Forces Légères d'Attaque in Bizerte. Contre-amiral Lapeyre extended an invitation for the Yugoslavian First Striking Group to join in a naval exercise with the FLA in 1944.

November 3 - Le Canard enchaîné
What the Bird Has to Say: In this Wednesday's editorials, Le Canard enchaîné offers the opinion that in honor of the British admiral Sir Dudley Pound, the British Royal Navy "ought to rename the battleship HMS Beatty in his memory, as Admiral Pound is more deserving of such a memorial."

November 4
The Syrian government announced that it has secured a military development loan from France which will be used to acquire new aircraft for the Syrian Air Force. As part of the loan, the Syrian Army agreed to order a number of Panhard EBR armoured cars from France. Damascus intends to repay the four year loan with shipments of phosphates, cement, and agricultural products. Speculation about Syria's planned purchases abound, particularly in the light of the recent showing by the Yugoslavian Soko Aircraft Firm of their Orao fighter. At present, the Syrian Air Force still uses aging Dewoitine D.520 fighters. Of the twenty-two aircraft acquired during independence, only sixteen are still rumored to be in flyable condition. Close-support forces are in even more dire straits, depending on Breguet 19 light bombers and an octet of Loire-Nieuport dive-bombers.

November 6
The new fleet submarines Roland Morillot and Charles Drujon were launched today from the Marseilles shipyards.

November 8
Trials of the Avanguardias began today in a French military court. Three members of the group pleaded guilty to charges of illegal armed insurrection and filibustering and were sentenced to ten years of hard labor in North Africa.

November 9
The new comic series Voisin et Hennequin, published by Société Parisienne d'Édition, appeared on shelves today. Voisin et Hennequin follows the adventures of two aviators of the Armee de l'Aire, Lieutenant Wenceslas Voisin and Lieutenant Claude Nicolas Hennequin. Drawn by a veteran artist who helped produced the bestselling Reynard comic series, this first issue sees the quiet and stoic Voisin and flamboyant Hennequin sent to the fictional French colony of Côte Rocheuse, which is under threat from tribal rebels led by Abdul el-Hakim and his beautiful daughter Galila. Vousin and Hennequin face the additional threat of a mercenary fighter squadron led by the villainous Colonel Dirksen, which is aiding the rebels. To complicate matters, Voisin falls in love with army nurse Joséphine Lalanne, while Hennequin sets his lofty sights on the exotic Galila. According to Société Parisienne d'Édition, the new series will run for at least nine episodes, covering the planned "Côte Rocheuse Rebellion" arc.

November 10 - Le Canard enchaîné
What the Bird Has to Say: in this week's satire cartoons, Minister of Public Health Jean-Baptiste Méliès is mocked for his statement that smoking cigarettes is an unhealthy habit.

November 11
President Theisman and senior members of the government and military celebrated Armistice Day paying their respects to French soldiers fallen in war. The President made two public appearances at Arras and Cambrai.

November 12
A Bloch MB.972 Transatlantique airliner crashed today two kilometers outside La Suze-sur-Sarthe, southwest of Le Mans. The MB.972 had previously suffered a mechanical failure in a trans-oceanic flight from New York City, landing at the Irish airport at Shannon. There it transferred its passengers to a second aircraft, and after inspection was flying back to France for maintenance and overhaul. It is believed that three Air France crewmen aboard the aircraft were all killed. Air Minister Jean-François Jannekeyn promised an investigation into the aircraft's loss.

November 15
The final four escortiers d'escadre of the Étendard-subclass destroyers were launched today in La Rochelle. These four ships, named Claymore, Carabine, Épée and Trident, are the final ships of the Jaguar-class. Although divided into three sub-classes, these warships are one of the most numerous classes of warship in the world, with forty-eight units in service or approaching completion.

November 17 - Le Canard enchaîné
What the Bird Has to Say: in this Wednesday's investigative article, Le Canard enchaîné examines leaked reports about the cost of the French Army's plans to mechanize three more divisions of infantry, in addition to creating several new armoured brigades.

November 19
The contre-torpilleur Vauquelin was launched today from the shipyards of La Rochelle.

November 20 - Le Figaro
Two Avangardias being tried for illegal armed insurrection were additionally convicted of piracy. Having exhausted their appeals, they were hung with all due dispatch.

November 22
The Armee de Terre's Aviation Légère de lArmée de Terre has circulated the requirement for a troop and cargo-carrying helicopter capable of carrying twelve to fourteen men or more at a speed of one hundred knots and a range of three hundred kilometers. France's sole helicopter manufacturer, Societe Francaise Du Gyroplane, has no known machines or paper designs capable of meeting this requirement. [1] The Aviation Légère de lArmée de Terre cited their experience in Morocco as well as the recent event in Monaco as important events in showing the need for a machine with more capacity than the existing SH.20 Cigale.

November 23
Gnome-Rhone reports the first successful bench test of an axial turbojet engine, believed to be designed with technical insight from Atlantean and German sources. The design is currently known under the designation 'Turboréacteur Axial, Curtana' or TRAC.



Notes:
Note [1]: This requirement will probably go unfilled until 1947 or so.

Quoted

Originally posted by Brockpaine
November 3 - Le Canard enchaîné
What the Bird Has to Say: In this Wednesday's editorials, Le Canard enchaîné offers the opinion that in honor of the British admiral Sir Dudley Pound, the British Royal Navy "ought to rename the battleship HMS Beatty in his memory, as Admiral Pound is more deserving of such a memorial."

This has crossed my mind already. Pound is likely to be less a household name but it would avoid other 'political' issues the Beatty name could raise. Since the Admiral Class is the brainchild of Pound's tenure it would be a fitting memorial too.

Well, if you renamed it, you could say that it's a one Pound battleship for things like treaty restrictions.

November 24 - Le Canard enchaîné
What the Bird Has to Say: In the investigative journalism section, Le Canard enchaîné leaks the information that the so-called "Great Colony Swap" (as dubbed by opponents) between Britain and France will take place on January 30th, 1944.

November 26
The French Army confirmed rumors that it has received permission and funding to convert three infantry divisions to mechanized divisions before 1945. In addition, the Army plans to create two new tank brigades in the Metropole region, rework the four Brigades de Reaction Rapide, create an armoured brigade with Légion étrangère manpower, and support Indochina's creation of their own armoured brigade. Although the changes will not result in an increase in manpower, an order for approximately fifteen hundred armoured carriers, three hundred tanks, and eighteen hundred trucks is expected before 1945.

November 29
The association football team Olympique Noisy-le-Sec is founded in Noisy-le-Sec, a suburb of Paris.

November 30
The French Army has established the Manufacture de Machines du Haut-Rhin to manufacture and experiment with small arms for the French Army.