The French marshal Joseph Jacques Césaire Joffre (1852-1931) was supreme commander of French armies in World War I until the end of 1916.

Born on Jan. 12, 1852, at Rivesaltes in the eastern Pyrenees, Joseph Joffre graduated from the college of Perpignan with high honors in mathematics and then entered the École Polytechnique in Paris. In the Franco-Prussian War he served in the army during the defense of Paris; afterward he resumed his education and in 1872 entered the engineering corps of the army. He worked on the fortifications of Paris and at the age of 24 was promoted to captain.

The death of his first wife led Joffre to request transfer to Indochina. He took part in the occupation of Formosa in 1885 and served for 3 years as chief of engineers at Hanoi. In 1892 he was sent to Senegal to build a railway, and in 1894 he led the successful attack...