Henri Guisan (; 21 October 1874 – 7 April 1960) was a Swiss military officer who held the office of General of the Swiss Armed Forces during the Second World War. He was the fourth and the most recent person to be appointed to the rarely used Swiss rank of general, and was possibly Switzerland's most famous soldier. He is best remembered for effectively mobilizing the Swiss military and population in order to prepare resistance against a possible invasion by Nazi Germany in 1940. Guisan was voted the fourth-greatest Swiss figure of all time in 2010.

Early life

Henri Guisan was born on 21 October 1874 in Mézières, in the canton of Vaud, a Protestant part of French-speaking Switzerland. He was the son of Louise-Jeanne (née Bérengier) and Charles Ernest Guisan, a doctor from Avenches.

Early military career

Upon entering the Swiss military in 1894, Guisan was assigned to the field artillery as a lieutenant. His appointment as corps commander was supported by Federal Councillor Rudolf Minger, head of the Federal Military Department. He was given the directive to safeguard the independence of the country and to maintain the integrity of Swiss territory. During the Interwar period, Guisan had belonged to the conservative, federalist and anti-socialist political tendency, Nevertheless, he maintained good relations with the Socialist Party for the entire duration of World War II. Guisan's command was dominated by conflict with the government. Whereas the government preferred an understated and politically riskless neutrality, Guisan, charged with actually preventing invasion, opted to call for determined resistance. In May 1940 he ordered an investigation against 124 army officers suspected of Nazi sympathies. The Swiss military would have been remiss in not pursuing contacts with the French based on their perception of a German threat.

However, Guisan's and Switzerland's main strategy was deterrence rather than fighting, and Germany never risked invasion. Its 1940 planned invasion of Switzerland, codenamed Operation Tannenbaum, was soon abandoned as the Battle of Britain and later Operation Barbarossa became priorities. On 20 August 1945, Guisan left his command, considering his mission to be fulfilled.

Later life

thumb|240px|Crowds at Lausanne's Place de la Riponne during Guisan's funeral procession, 12 April 1960

Having become a national hero by successfully avoiding war, Guisan died in Pully on 7 April 1960, aged 85. His grave is a work by Edouard-Marcel Sandoz.

Public image

In his life, Guisan heavily propagandized his public image, banning 5,600 images of himself from being printed from 1939 to 1945. Unlike General Ulrich Wille during the First World War, He has been criticized for admiring Benito Mussolini and Philippe Pétain as well as having a meeting with Walter Schellenberg in March 1943.

Memorials

Guisan's former home Verte Rive in Pully is now used as Centre Général Guisan. His office, living room and dining room are preserved as a museum.

thumb|240px|Memorial on Allmend, Zollikon

thumb|upright|Memorial in Schlossgarten, Interlaken

Memorials are at:

  • Lausanne-Ouchy: equestrian statue by Otto Bänninger, financed following a public fundraising in 1960, inaugurated on 27 May 1967 in the presence of 70,000 people
  • Avenches: a bust, inaugurated in 1969
  • On the main deck of the steamship Stadt Luzern: a memorial plaque with his relief by Franco Annoni commemorating his speech on Rütli in 1940, inaugurated by Georges-André Chevallaz in 1980, 40 years afterwards
  • Library am Guisanplatz, Bern: equestrian sculpture by Laurent Boillat, created in 1949 and installed in September 2008
  • Powązki Cemetery, Warsaw, Plaque: plaque inaugurated in 2010
  • Schlossgarten, Interlaken: monumental sculpture
  • Allmend, Zollikon: memorial with a relief
  • Lägern above Regensberg: memorial plaque
  • Dentenbergstrasse, Gümligen/Muri bei Bern: Memorial
  • Victoria-Jungfrau, Interlaken: plaque in the hotel
  • General-Guisan Quai, Lucerne: plaque on the lakeshore

Numerous cities and towns in Switzerland have streets named for him:

General Guisan-Strasse in Aarau, Arlesheim, Basel, Forch, Nussbaumen, Obersiggenthal, Reinach, Seltisberg, Winterthur, Zofingen, Zug;

General Guisanstrasse in Interlaken, Jegenstorf, Leuggern;

Guisanstrasse in Burgdorf, St. Gallen, Weinfelden;

avenue Général-Guisan in Avenches, Fribourg, Pully, Rolle, Sierre, Vevey, Yverdon-les-Bains;

rue du Général Guisan in Courroux, Mézières, Montana;

Promenade Général Guisan in Morges;

General Guisan-Promenade in Basel;

via Henri Guisan in Bellinzona;

via Generale Guisan in Balerna, Biasca, Riva San Vitale, Vacallo, Lugano;

via Generale Henri Guisan in Chiasso;

via Guisan in Massagno, Paradiso;

Via Enrico Guisan in Mendrisio.

Town squares and open spaces are named after him:

Guisanplatz in Arosa, Berne, Grenchen and Thun;

Guisanplatz/Place Guisan in Biel/Bienne;

place Général-Guisan in Payerne and Pleigne;

place du Général Henri-Guisan in Lausanne.

There is a

quai du Général-Guisan on Lake Geneva in Geneva,

General-Guisan-Quai on Lake Lucerne in Lucerne and Stansstad, on Lake Zurich in Zurich.

A military march titled "General-Guisan-Marsch" was composed in 1939 by Stephan Jaeggi.

Asteroid 1960 Guisan has been named in Guisan's honour.

The manga Alpen Rose by Michiyo Akaishi gives Guisan an important role in the story.

Bibliography

References

  • Centre Général Guisan—Biography and bibliography, in French and German.
  • Complete genealogy of the Général Guisan on the Geneva Genealogy Society website
  • Henri Guisan (1874 – 1960), Swiss Armed Forces website