Jean-Baptiste Biaggi

He sided with Charles de Gaulle during World War II, welcoming his return from retirement but rejected Gaullism when Algerian self-determination was granted.

He was thought to be dead and had already been listed for a posthumous award of officer of the Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur by his command.

He went to Algiers when communication with d'Astier became poor; Biaggi became the leader of Orion in his absence along with fellow lawyers, Robert Le Balle, Xavier Escartin and Michel Alliot as co-leaders.

The network suffered its second major blow when the Gestapo was provided with intelligence, including from its double-agent, Guy Glebe d’Eu [known as la Capitaine, Jacques, Marcheret and other names).

They were interrogated by collaborator Pierre Bonny's department, passed through the Gestapo offices at 11 Rue des Saussaies - during which time Biaggi was tortured - transferred to Fresnes Prison, then to the camp at Compiègne before transportation by train towards Mauthausen on 4 June 1944.

Biaggi and others were sheltered in the prefecture of Haute-Marne by its incumbent, Louis de Peretti della Rocca (a Vichyiste), of Corsican origin, and his militiaman son;[12][4] with false papers provided by the latter, he returned to Paris to continue serving Orion.

He joined de Gaulle's Rassemblement du peuple français party, failing to be elected as a député for the Assemblée Nationale in 1951 and 1956.

[14][1] He allied himself with deputies Georges Bidault (who had previously condemned Maurras and Action française[15]), Roger Duchet and fellow Corsican Orion member, commando and lawyer Pascal Arrighi to create the Rally for French Algeria (RAF) 8 on November 20, 1959.

The progression towards independence in Algeria made him a fervent opponent of General de Gaulle and he became associated with the Organisation armée secrète without becoming active in it.

[18][19] Although he retired from mainstream French politics, he was mayor of his former home village, Cagnano, from 1965 to 1983 and a Conseiller régional à l’Assemblée de Corse from 1987.