author

André Godefroy Lionel Hanguillart

A French Army captain writing from the front during World War I, he turned battlefield experience into a compact, practical guide for company commanders. His surviving work offers a direct glimpse into the routines, discipline, and tactical thinking of trench warfare.

1 Audiobook

About the author

Little biographical information about this author is readily available, but the published record identifies him as Captain Hanguillart of the French Army. He is known for Petit guide pratique de guerre pour ma compagnie, issued in 1916 and described as having been written "at the front," which gives the book its immediacy and practical tone.

An English version, Handy War Guide for My Company, was translated and edited by Louis J. A. Mercier and later circulated through public-domain archives. Contemporary descriptions present the book as a concise manual for company commanders, focused on trench routine, leadership, organization, and infantry action during the First World War.

Because so little personal history could be confirmed from reliable online sources, he is best introduced through the work itself: a clear, experience-based wartime handbook by a French officer writing for others facing the same harsh conditions.