Histoire du service de sante militaire francais pendant la guerre 1914-1918

History of the french military medical service in the 1914-1918 war

• Auteur / Autrice : JEAN PIERRE FOURNIER
• Direction : JULES MAURIN
• Type : Thèse de doctorat
• Discipline(s) : Histoire
• Date : Soutenance en 1996
• Etablissement(s) : Montpellier 3

Résumé

Le sujet que j'ai choisi de developper dans la presente these, traite de l'evolution du service de sante militaire francais, lors des differentes phases qui marquerent la premiere guerre mondiale. Comme chacun sait, en 1914, le service de sante de l'armee, n'etait pas prepare a assumer une tache qu'il ne pouvait que sous-estimer; - la france etait en paix depuis 1870 - et, fort d'une lointaine experience, il lui etait difficile de prevoir ce que serait dans le prochain conflit le role des services sanitaires. Cependant, infeodee a l'etat-major qui l'avait impregne de sa doctrine, la 7e direction s'accrocha a des dogmes surannes. Je me suis donc attache a demontrer tout au long de cet essai, les prodigieux efforts d'adaptation qu'eut a fournir la sante militaire pour accomplir sa mission salvatrice durant plus de quatre annees, au cours desquelles les services sanitaires n'eurent de cesse a rendre supportable la condition du blesse. Cette evolution ne put s'accomplir qu'apres une rigoureuse reorganisation - operee par a-coups - et sous la pression d'evenements douloureux; il faut avoir en memoire le souvenir du terrible ''pele-mele de 1914'', dont les journaux de l'epoque se firent l'echo. De fait, il fallut pres d'un lustre et quelques aberrations (notamment la desastreuse offensive du chemin des dames) pour aboutir a l'emancipation du service de sante et qu'il cesse surtout d'etre tenu a l'ecart de tous les projets offensifs elabores dans le secret des officines d'etat-major.

The subject which i have chosen to discuss in this thesis is the development of the french military medical service throughout the various stages of the first world war. Everyone is aware that, in 1914, the army medical service was not prepared for assuming a responsibility that it could not fail to under-estimate. France had been at peace since 1870 and the experience was so distant that it was difficult to forecast the role of the medical services in the coming conflict. Nonetheless, the 7th division, in subservience to the doctrine of the corps, clung to its out-dated notions. The purpose of this essay, therefore, is to show what tremendous efforts the medical corps had to make in order to accomphish its four-year mission of alleviation, during which time their sole aim was to make life tolerable for the wounded. Changes could only come about after severe reorganisation - which occured in fits and starts - and under the pressure of painful events, such as the memorable and terrible ''1914 pell-mell'' widely reported in the press at the time. In fact, it took not far from five years and some aberrant instances (particularly the disastrous offensive of the chemin des dames) for the medical corps finally to obtain its independence and, above all, no longer to be left in ignorance of the plans of attack drawn up in the secret of military headquarters.