23. The Man Who Carried Out the Assassination of Darlan
The assassination of Admiral Darlan was carried out by Fernand Bonnier de La Chapelle. La Chappelle was born in 1922 to a journalist father who dreamt of restoring the French monarchy, and combined that with ardent anti-fascism. After France’s defeat in 1940, the younger La Chappelle came to hate the Vichy regime, which collaborated with the fascists. Soon as the Allies landed in North Africa, La Chappelle joined a resistance group.
The resistance group loathed Darlan as a symbol of everything Vichy, and resented his continued hold on power. So they began planning his assassination. Lots were drawn to determine who would do the deed, and La Chapelle “won”. So he secured a pistol, received absolution from a priest, and went looking for Darlan on December 24th, 1942. He waited in the hallways of the Summer Palace in Algiers, and when Darlan showed up, La Chapelle shot him twice. He was tried by a French military court the following day and was convicted and sentenced to death.