Pierre Ruffey

He was promoted to colonel in 1901, rising to divisional commander four years later and appointed to the French Supreme War Council in 1913.

[1] Ruffey, like Lanrezac (and Gallieni before World War I) warned of the danger of a German thrust westward through Belgium.

On 23 August Ruffey warned his corps commanders not again to send infantry on bayonet charges without fire support from artillery or even small arms.

[5] Ruffey’s chief of operations, Colonel Tanant, said he was clever and full of a thousand ideas, one of which was magnificent, but the question was which one.

His army was forced to retreat to Verdun after heavy fighting; Joffre found Ruffey “very nervous” and “bitter” about the performance of his subordinates, and so dismissed him from command and replaced him by Maurice Sarrail.