Erwan Bergot (27 January 19301 May 1993) was a French Army officer and author; he served in the French Army during the First Indochina War and Algerian War.
Biography Born to a Breton family in Bordeaux, Erwan Bergot volunteered to serve in Indochina after completing his mandatory military service in 1951. He served in the 6th Colonial Parachute Battalion under Major Marcel Bigeard, after that he commanded the heavy mortar company of the 1st Foreign Parachute Battalion at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. He was taken prisoner and experienced the hell of the Viet Minh internment camps; he was among the few that survived. In 1955, Bergot was recalled to serve in Algeria in the 2nd Foreign Parachute Regiment and 11e Choc. He was seriously wounded in his right eye during a clash at Constantine in 1961, leaving the frontline to write and report.
He became the first editor of the magazine of the French Army in 1962, writing his first book in 1964, Deuxième classe à Dien-Bien-Phu, which achieved immediate success. He then dedicated himself completely to writing, which resulted in around fifty books and additional notoriety. He received numerous literary awards including the prize of the Académie française and the Claude Farrère prize. The French Army annually awards an Erwan Bergot prize.
Bibliography Deuxième classe à Dien-Bien-Phu, La table ronde, 1964 Mourir au Laos, France-empire, 1965 Les petits soleils, France-empire, 1967 Prenez-les vivants, Balland, 1972 La Légion, Balland, 1972; translated as The French Foreign Legion, Allan Wingate, 1975 L'Afrikakorps, Balland, 1972; translated as The Afrika Korps, Allan Wingate, 1976 Vandenberghe, le pirate du delta, Balland, 1973 Les héros oubliés, Grasset, 1975 La Légion au combat, Narvik, Bir-Hakeim, Dièn Bièn Phu, Presses de la cité, 1975 Le dossier rouge, services secrets contre FLN, Grasset, 1976 L'homme de Prague, Presses de la cité, 1975 Bataillon Bigeard, Indochine 1952-1954, Algérie 1955-1957, Presses de la cité, 1976 Les Cadets de la France Libre, Presses de la cité, 1978 Commandos de choc en Indochine, les héros oubliés, Grasset, 1979 Les 170 jours de Dien Bien Phu, Presses de la cité, 1979 La 2e D.B., Presses de la Cité, 1980 La guerre des appelés en Algérie 1956-1962, Presses de la cité, 1980 Les sentiers de la guerre (fiction) V.1 : Les sentiers de la guerre, Presses de la Cité, 1981 V.2 : Frères d'ames, Presses de la Cité, 1982 V.3 : Le flambeau, Presses de la Cité, 1983 La Coloniale du Rif au Tchad, 1925-1980, Presses de la Cité, 1982 Bataillon de Corée, les Volontaires Français, 1950-1953, Presses de la Cité, 1983 Le régiment de marche de la Légion, Presses de la Cité, 1984 L'héritage, Presses de la Cité, 1985 Gendarmes au combat, Indochine 1945-1955, Presses de la Cité, 1985 11e Choc, Presses de la cité, 1986 Convoi 42, la marche à la mort des prisonniers de Dien Bien Phu, Presses de la Cité, 1986 La bataille de Dong Khê, la tragédie de la R.C.4, Indochine, mai-octobre 1950, Presses de la cité, 1987 Bigeard, Perrin, 1988 Bir Hakeim : février-juin 1942, Presses de la Cité, Paris, 1989 Sud lointain (fiction) V.1 : Le courrier de Saïgon, Presses de la Cité, 1990 V.2 : La Rivière des Parfums, Presses de la Cité, 1990 V.3 : Le maître de Baotan, Presses de la Cité, 1991 Indochine 1951, l'Année de Lattre, une Année de Victoires Opération Daguet, Presses de la cité, 1991 (with Alain Gandy) Les Paras
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