French Army mutinies topic of Great War lecture

Dr. Ethan Rafuse, a professor of history at CGSC, presented “The French Mutinies” in the Arnold Conference Room of the Lewis and Clark Center on Fort Leavenworth, May 3, at 6 p.m.

Dr. Rafuse’s lecture was the 11th of “The General of the Armies John J. Pershing Great War Centennial Series” intended to educate the public about World War I during its 100-year commemoration.

Foundation CEO Doug Tystad opened the evening with welcoming remarks and the Director of the CGSC Department of Military History, Dr. Tom Hanson, introduced Rafuse.

In his presentation Dr. Rafuse discussed how in late May 1917, open mutiny swept through much of the French Army. For weeks General Henri Petain had to deal with a flood of reports of disciplinary breakdowns accompanied by open protests by the soldiers regarding their plight. In a remarkable feat of personal leadership, Petain was able restore discipline to the French Army. Rafuse spoke about the causes of the great mutinies, their course, how Petain was able to bring them to an end, how they reflected deeper divisions in French society that existed in 1917, and how they had an enduring effect on France’s history for decades to come.

Ethan S. Rafuse received his Ph.D. at the University of Missouri-Kansas City and since 2004 has been a member of the faculty at the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, where he is a professor of military history.

Rafuse has published more than 300 articles, essays and reviews in a variety of both academic and popular history journals, and is the author, editor, or co-editor of eleven books, including McClellan’s War: The Failure of Moderation in the Struggle for the Union, Robert E. Lee and the Fall of the Confederacy, 1863-1865, and Corps Commanders in Blue: Union Major Generals in the Civil War.

Dr. Rafuse will deliver this lecture again on June 20 at the National World War I Museum in downtown Kansas City. – Visit the event page on the museum website for details.

Visit the CGSC Foundation Flickr site for more photos from the lecture.