François GOETZ, married and father of two, was born on December 25, 1927, in STRASBOURG, where he started his secondary education before moving over to continue (from 1940 to 1944) in LIMOGES, where his family had taken refuge.

1944 to 1983 : Military Career

His battle experience began with the Liberation of France (1944/45), followed by the Indochina War (1947/54), and subsequently the Algerian War (1955/62).

François GOETZ was barely 16, in June 1944, when he joint the "Internal French Forces" of the Rhône Department (County). His group, in 1944, was placed under the supervision of French parachutists from England, until the liberation of LYON.
His unit, which had become the 4th company of the 3rd S.A.S., took part thereafter in the liberation of Doubs.

In January 1947, he took off for Indochina with the first reinforcements dispatched by the French government. While there, "at the front", he served as section leader and later on commando leader till 1954 (wounded 3 times).

At the hills of the Indochina War came that of Algeria. From 1955 to 1962, he was again a commando leader in Constantinois and, for 2 years, he commanded a Camel-rider squad near the Libyan borders.

In 1960, he was made second lieutenant after spending 10 months at the SAINT-MAIXENT school of cadet officers.

After the Algerian war ended, his career became mainly devoted to Africa, where for several years he served as adviser to the newly independent Francophone states: 3 years in Cameroon (1966/69), 3 years in Benin (1972/75), and several years of successive missions, between 1976 and 1983, to Ivory Coast, Senegal, Togo and Gabon amongst others.

François GOETZ is an honorary colonel, Commander of the Legion of honor, holder of the military medal, Commander of the O.N.M., Commander of the Senegalese and Togolese National Orders, Officer of the Gabonese National Order, and has received 11 commendations.

1983 to 1990
Having during his spare time undertaken further studies in Law (Bachelor, Master, Postgraduate) at the Faculty of Law of PARIS, from 1975 to 1980, François GOETZ became the legal adviser of the French Permanent Mission to the U.N. in GENEVA (Switzerland) from 1983 to 1986. He later on moved to the French Embassy in RABAT (Morocco), where he served from 1986 to 1989.

In 1990, he retired completely from the public service and concentrated on volunteer activities and writing.

He published "Méharistes et Touaregs" (The Camel Corps and Tuaregs ) in 1992 (presented at Ex-Libris), and "Mai 68, une imposture qui nous a coûté cher…" (May 68, a costly deception… ) in 1993. He is a member of the servicemen writers association.

François GOETZ was the Secretary General of F.N.C.V. in 1992, Acting President in 1997 and National President in 1999.