Marcel Dassault (French pronunciation:[maʁsɛldaso]; born Marcel Ferdinand Bloch;[1] 23 January 1892 – 17 April 1986) was a French engineer and industrialist who spent his career in aircraft manufacturing. He was also involved in politics, serving intermittently more than three decades in both houses of the French Parliament from 1951 until his death in 1986.
Early life and education
Born on 23 January 1892 in Paris, as the youngest of the four children of Adolphe Bloch, a doctor, and his wife Noémie Allatini.[2][3] His parents were Jewish.
During the occupation of France by Nazi Germany during World War II, France's aviation industry was virtually disbanded,[6] other than the compulsory manufacturing, assembly, and servicing of German designs. In October 1940, Bloch refused to collaborate with the German occupiers at Bordeaux-Aéronautique and was imprisoned by the Vichy government.
In 1944, the Nazis deported Bloch to the Buchenwald concentration camp,[2] as punishment for refusing to co-operate with their regime. He was tortured, beaten, and held in solitary confinement. In the meantime, his wife was interned near Paris. Bloch was detained at Buchenwald until it was liberated on 11 April 1945. By the time of his return to Paris, he was disabled to such an extent that he could barely walk. He was advised by his doctors to settle his affairs, as they did not expect him to recover his health.[2]
After the war, he changed his name from Bloch to Bloch-Dassault and in 1949 to Dassault. This name derived from 'Chardasso', the nom de guerre used by his brother, General Darius Paul Bloch, when he served in the French Resistance.[2] The pseudonym was a play on char d'assaut, French for "assault tank".[note 1] In 1971, Dassault acquired Breguet, forming Avions Marcel Dassault–Breguet Aviation (AMD–BA).
In 1919, Bloch married Madeleine Minckès, the daughter of a wealthy Jewish family of furniture dealers.[7] They had two sons, Claude and Serge. After changing his name to Dassault, he converted to the Roman Catholic Church in 1950.[5][8][2]
In July 1952, Dassault acquired the Paris landmark buildings now known as Hôtel Marcel Dassault, dating from 1844,[9]
at nos. 7 and 9 rond-point des Champs-Élysées (at the corner of the avenue des Champs-Élysées and avenue Montaigne), from the Sabatier d'Espeyran family.[10] The building at no. 7 has been used since 2002 by the auction house Artcurial, which had further alterations made under the direction of architect Jean-Michel Wilmotte.[9] While no. 7 has been sold, no. 9 is still used by the Groupe Industriel Marcel Dassault.
^Char d'assault colloquially means "battle tank" in French, but a word-for-word translation would be "assault wagon". D'assault simply means "for assault" or "for attack".
References
Aloni, Shlomo (2010). Mirage III vs MiG-21: Six Day War 1967 (Duel). ISBN9781846039478.
^The structure at no. 7, built in 1844, was altered over the years, including work by Dassault's friend, architect Georges Hennequin (1893—1969). The neo-Louis XV style domicile at no. 7, known previously as the Hôtel d'Espeyran, was built by architect Henri Parent for Félicie Durand 1819-1899, the widow of Frédéric Sabatier d'Espeyran 1813-1864.
^Sprekelmeyer, Linda, editor. These We Honor: The International Aerospace Hall of Fame. Donning Co. Publishers, 2006. ISBN978-1-57864-397-4.
^Tintin: Hergé and His Creation. John Murray (Publishers) An Hachette UK Company. 2011. ISBN978-1-84854-673-8.
