Armand du Paty de Clam
| Armand du Paty de Clam | |
|---|---|
Armand du Paty de Clam
|
|
| Born | 21 February 1853 |
| Died | 3 September 1916 (aged 63) Versailles |
| Allegiance |
 France
|
| Service/branch | Army of France |
| Years of service |
|
| Rank | Lieutenant-Colonel |
| Battles/wars | |
| Awards | Legion d'Honneur |
Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Armand Auguste Ferdinand Mercier du Paty de Clam (21 February 1853, Paris – 3 September 1916, Versailles) was a French army officer, an amateur graphologist, and a key figure in the Dreyfus affair.
Armand du Paty de Clam's father and grandfather were both lawyers, the latter having been President of the Court of Bordeaux. Du Paty himself turned to a military career graduating from the military academy of Saint-Cyr in 1870. He served as an infantry officer, being promoted to lieutenant in 1874 and captain in 1877. He was assigned to the 1st Bureau of the General Staff in 1879 and then to the 3rd Bureau in 1887. In 1890 he became chef de bataillon (major), a promotion which would normally have meant returning to regimental duties. Du Paty de Clam however remained with the General Staff.
In late September 1894, French military intelligence became aware of a spy within the army through a handwritten note (the bordereau) obtained by their agent within German embassy in Paris. Du Paty de Clam, then a major attached to the General Staff, was heavily involved in the investigation to find the spy, due principally to his expertise in graphology (handwriting analysis). A brief investigation (about 3 weeks) identified approximately half a dozen suspects; du Paty de Clam and his superior officers decided upon Captain Alfred Dreyfus, the only Jew on the General Staff, as the prime suspect. Du Paty de Clam was ordered to obtain a sample of Dreyfus's handwriting which could be used as irrefutable proof of his guilt. In mid-October 1894 an unsuspecting Dreyfus was summoned to a meeting with Major du Paty de Clam, two (civilian) police detectives and a man from French military intelligence. Feigning an injury to his writing hand, du Paty de Clam asked Dreyfus to take dictation; Paty de Clam proceeded to read out the exact words of the bordereau. Satisfied Dreyfus's writing matched that of the suspect, du Paty de Clam arrested Dreyfus immediately, transferring custody to the deputy head of French military intelligence Major Joseph Henry, who'd been waiting in the next room.
...
Wikipedia