Henri d'Astier de La Vigerie (11 September 1897 – 10 October 1952) was a French soldier, Résistance member, and conservative politician.
Although his political views could be deemed close to fascism, he was also determined to see France stand as a strong nation, and, therefore, he vehemently opposed the German invasion.
The allies invaded North Africa in 1942, and, as the invasion troops were approaching the shore, approximately four hundred members of the French Resistance, under the command of d'Astier and José Aboulker, staged a coup in the city of Algiers.
However, afterwards, Vichy troops lost time retaking the positions seized by the Resistance during the coup, and this allowed the Allied forces to encircle Algiers with little opposition.
Although La Chapelle is believed to have acted alone, Darlan's successor, Henri Giraud, accused the Resistance of organising the assassination, and he launched a crackdown.