At the initiative of one if the association member, “Les Amis de La Martinerie” became interested in the sinking of the submarine “La Minerve”, which disappeared at sea on January 27, 1968.

Of the fifty-two submariners, three were natives of the Indre department: quartermaster Gérard Lambert from La Vernelle, second-master Daniel Nass from Neuvy Pailloux and quartermaster Michel Vaugelade from Châteauroux.

If, in 2021, Gérard Lambert was honored by the inhabitants of his hometown, it was not the same for the other two submariners.

Jean-Pierre Dauger, neighbor of the Vaugelade family, was moved by this story; quickly joined by Martial Chamblanc and Jackie Lamoureux, classmates of Michel Vaugelade at the “Les Marins” school in Châteauroux.

Bruno Duteil quickly joined the trio so as not to forget Daniel Naas.

This is how the “Les Amis de La Martinerie” board of directors decided to organize two commemorations on Friday January 27, the anniversary of the sinking of the submarine “La Minerve”.

Quickly informed of this decision, the prefect, the President of the Departmental Council and the mayors of Châteauroux and Neuvy-Pailloux authorized the organization of these two commemorations. The Departmental Military Delegate and the National Office for Veterans were mobilized to organize these ceremonies.

Thus, in the presence of the prefect, the prefecture general secretary, different civil and military authorities, the Commanding Officer, a delegation from the Rosnay “Centre de Transmission Marine”, the Commanding Officer, a delegation of the 12th BSMAT, Hervé Fauve, the son of the submarine commander (who, by his tenacity and with the support of the families, was able to obtain the declassification of the files and the resumption of the investigation), a large delegation of submariners from the “Centre Val de Loire” region, representatives of several patriotic and memorial associations, two commemorative plaques, placed in front of the war memorials of Neuvy-Pailloux and Châteauroux, were unveiled this Friday, January 27, 2023.

It should be noted that only a third of the municipalities commemorated these disappearances.

These two commemorations confirm “Les Amis de La Martinerie”’s role in remembrance and transmission.

"La NR" newspaper article

The "France Bleu" report

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Photos credit: Philippe Dubois

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