I came across the name of this gentleman quite by accicent. I'm not a great fan of the French in any way and up till now not been a fan of their armour but hearing of this gentleman I was very impressed by his actions and thought I'd bring him to veryone here's attention
Billotte is known for his extraordinary actions on 16 May 1940 during the battle at the French village of Stonne. Billotte served in the 1st Compagnie of the 41st Tank Battalion, equipped with the Char B1 heavy tank.
Then-Captain Billotte, commanding a Char B1 Bis tank nicknamed "Eure",
was instrumental in capturing the village of Stonne, defended by
elements of the German 8th Panzer Regiment. The village had already been
the scene of fierce fighting before Billotte's action, having changed
hands for numerous times and lying on a strategic location on the road
to Sedan.
On 16 May, while under heavy fire from German tanks, Billotte and his
B1 Bis managed to break through the German defences and to destroy two
German PzKpfw IV tanks, eleven PzKpfw III
tanks and two enemy guns. Billotte's Char B1-Bis tank received 140 hits
from enemy tanks and guns, but none were able to penetrate the tank's
heavy armour.
I hope you all agree that there are many people out there who do heroic things that dont get the attention they deserve. If anyone else has any "unknown" heroes please let us all know the story I'm sure we would all appreciate the increase in our knowledge
Phil