Maurice Challe (5 September 1905 - 18 January 1979) was a French general during the Algerian War, one of four generals who took part in the Algiers putsch.

A native of Le Pontet, Vaucluse, Challe was a French Air Force general whose greatest military success was in the realm of counter-insurgency operations during the Algerian War. His offensive, begun in March 1959 and also known as the Challe Plan, succeeded in substantially weakening the ALN. Through the use of speed and concentration of force, Challe kept the ALN insurgents in constant retreat and disorder. His innovative tactics would be studied and emulated by others seeking to keep insurgency at bay and off-balance. The Challe Plan was only partially completed before he was reassigned to France.

A militarised line, the Challe Line, was named after him. It doubled another defence work, the Morice Line, which fortified the border and separated Algeria, from Morocco and Tunisia ^[1].

He was Commander-in-Chief Allied Forces Central Europe (CINCENT) from May, 1960 to his deliberate resignation, February, 1961.

Challe was one of the heads of the Algiers putsch of 1961, along with Raoul Salan, Edmond Jouhaud and André Zeller. After the putsch failed, he and Zeller surrendered to the French army (while Salan and Jouhaud created the OAS) and was sentenced to 15 years of imprisonment. He was freed in December 1966 and received amnesty from President de Gaulle in 1968.

Challe died on 18 January 1979.

[edit] References

• Horne, Alistair (1977). A Savage War of Peace: Algeria 1954-1962. New York: New York Review of Books. 
• 1960-1966, Algeria: The Generals' Plot Against de Gaulle, by William Blum, Press for Conversion!, Issue # 51, May 2003: article claiming that the CIA encouraged Challe to start the Algiers putsch

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