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| The Flag of the Republic of France (June 28, 1914-June 28, 2014) |
The Great War
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| Sculpture by Maxime Réal del Sarte (1924) |
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| The top of the monument (from left to right) Serge Réal del Sarte, General Henri Gouraud, and Quentin Roosevelt |
June 28, 2014 marks the 100th anniversary of the outbreak of World War I known also the "war to end all wars". During the conflict, the Réal del Sarte brothers: Maxime, André, Serge, and Yves served their country as soldiers. Some of them died for France and others were prisoners of war.
This blog entry honors the patriotism and sacrifice of the Réal del Sarte brothers.
Maxime-Louis-Camille Réal del Sarte, Officer (Aspirant) 1886-1954:
On January 29, 1916, Maxime Réal del Sarte was wounded in Eparges, near the war front of Verdum. His left arm was amputated. He began training on March 18, 1915 as "student-officer" at the military academy of Saint-Maixent (Glandy:71).
Below we can see a photograph of Maxime after his amputation in full military uniform. During the war he served in the 366th infantry regiment. For his service to the nation, he was awarded the following medals:
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| Maxime Réal del Sarte (Source 1) |
2) Croix de Guerre au Palme, Second highest medal after the Médaille Militaire (February 3, 1916)
Serge-Louis-Henry Réal del Sarte, Cavalier (1892-1916)
Serge-Louis-Henry formed part of the Régiment de Cuirassiers (RC). He was wounded on April 30, 1917 in Souissons and died on May 1, 1917.In honor of his memory, the Réal del Sarte family ordered the construction of a monument. The citation from the Régiment de Cuirassiers stated the following about Serge-Louis-Henry:
"Serge Réal del Sarte, cavalier plein d'enthousiasme et d'une grande bravoure, s'est toujours fait remarques para son mépris absolu du danger et par sa crânerie. A trouvé une mort glorieuse au cours d'un violent bombardement dans le secteur de Lafaux..." (André Glandy, 126).
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| Serge-Louis-Henry Réal del Sarte |
André Réal del Sarte
Yves Réal del Sarte
Yves Réal del Sarte was a prisoner of war during World War I. Thanks to the intersession of the Royal House of Bourbon (Spain), Yves was liberated from a German prisoner camp and traveled to to travel to Switzerland.
Private Secretary of
His Majesty, THE KING
Number 5601
Royal Palace, Madrid May 30, 1917
My dear friend:
I have the honor to inform you that His Majesty, The King, my August Master has asked me to write on his behalf to His Ambassador in Berlin to do everything possible to obtain the internment in Switzerland of Mr. Yves Real del Sarte for whom His Royal Highness the Infate Don Carlos has expressed a great interest.
[......]
Signed
Emilio María de Torres y González-Arnáu [Secretario Particular de S.M. EL REY, y Marques de Torres de Mendoza]
Copied to :
Mr. J. Santos, Secretary of his Royal Highness, the Infante Don Carlos
While Yves Réal del Sarte was in the trenches, he had a particular experience that was later published in several journal of the time:
A BAPTISM IN THE TRENCHES (April 3, 1915)
"A moving incident is related by one of the French papers. It appears that Yves Real del Sarte, whose brother Maxime is well known as the President of the Camelots, made the acquaintance in the trenches of a young soldier from Paris who knew nothing of religion. Yves undertook to instruct him, and after this had been going on for some days a fresh assault was ordered. Yves asked his catechumen if he would like to be baptized, a question to which a grateful affirmative was the response. The newly-baptized was killed in the action that followed, and Yves was made prisoner" (Source "The Tablet")
"Dessins de guerre"
In 1920, the Réal del Sarte brothers published "Dessins de guerre" which was a collection of images and a song by Yves Réal del Sarte about World War I.The book contained the forward of the Diputé Léon DAUDET (1867-1942). DAUDET was also a journalist and active monarchist.
