François Lecointre

About the author

Born in Cherbourg in 1962, François Lecointre is a French army general whose career spans four decades of distinguished military service. The son of a naval officer, he joined the French Army in 1984 and rose to serve as Chief of the Defence Staff from 2017 to 2021. As a captain, he led the assault at the Battle of Vrbanja Bridge in 1995 — the most recent fixed bayonet charge in French Armed Forces history.

Since February 2023, he has served as Grand Chancellor of the Order of the Legion of Honour.