[Fernand Louis Armand Marie de]. French general, born at Lorient on the 4th of July 1849, entered the St. Cyr military school in 1867 and left at the head of his class in 1869, being commissioned to the Chasseurs d’Afrique. In the war of 1870, having been selected for staff employment, he was orderly officer to Gen. Trochu, commander-in-chief of the Paris forces, and at the last sortie from Paris (Buzenval, Jan. 19, 1871) he was severely wounded, and decorated for bravery. In the years of peace his promotion was at first somewhat rapid, but later, owing to his political and religious opinions, it was slow; and though he had become chef de bataillon as early as 1885 it was not till 1900 that he was made a general of brigade, and not till twelve years later that he obtained the membership of the Superior War Council which carried with it the command of an army in war. When the World War broke out in 1914 he was appointed to the IV. Army, which underwent the vicissitudes and final disaster of the battle in the Ardennes; but, unlike Ruffey and Lanrezac, he was not relieved of his command. He continued at the head of this army—though its strength was greatly reduced for the benefit of Foch’s new IX. Army—in the Marne and Aisne operations and in the trench-warfare fighting of 1915, and in December 1915 was made commander-in-chief of the centre group of armies. In this capacity he became responsible, amongst other duties, for overseeing the defensive readiness of Verdun. Already grave uneasiness existed in the army and in Parliament as to the capacity of Verdun to resist attack. The assurances given by the military authorities only half satisfied public opinion, and when the storm broke over Verdun in February 1916 and the fears that had been expressed proved to be only too well founded, the command was radically reorganized, and Langle, who had already reached the age-limit for retirement, was replaced at the head of the centre group of armies by Pétain.
