German-French Research Institute in Saint-Louis

After the end of World War II in the spring of 1945, the victorious powers showed increased interest in German scientists. France was particularly interested in German ballistics from the Institute of Ballistics of the Technical Academy of the Air Force Technische Akademie der Luftwaffe in Biberach (initially the Academy and the Institute were located in Berlin, were evacuated to Bieber at the end of the war) under the guidance of Professor Hubert Chardin . Shardin, as a student and doctoral candidate of the luminaries of ballistics Karl Kranz , gained extensive knowledge in the field of dynamics of pulsed processes, and together with a group of employees, thanks to an understanding of the physics of fast processes, based on the use of unique equipment: pulsed photo and film shooting, as well as working out cumulative charge , significantly ahead of other countries.

When the French troops entered Bieber in April 1945, only the confiscation of the Institute’s equipment, primarily the Funkenzeitlupenkamera high-frequency spark chambers (which were the most important instrument of German ballistics), was originally planned. Then Professor G. Shardin and seven leading staff members were invited to move to the United States on behalf of Colonel Leslie Simon, head of the BRL Ballistic Laboratory at the Aberdeen Proving Ground. Shardin rejected this offer because he did not want to allow the research team to be pulled away. In order to prevent the Americans from further enticing his employees, Chardin and his group considered France’s proposal on June 1, 1945, to work as part of the Direction des Études et Fabrications d'Armement (DEFA) organization in Versailles near Paris. Shardin, his ten employees and most support staff agreed.

However, the stay of German scientists in Paris, less than a year after the retreat of the German occupation forces from the French capital, was not easy. Therefore, after the discovery of an abandoned factory site in Alsatian Saint-Louis , the premises of the former Sankt Ludwig light alloy plant located in the border area of ​​three states - Germany, France and Switzerland - it was chosen as the place of residence for German specialists. On August 1, 1945, twelve weeks after the surrender of Germany, thirty-two German scientists began work in Saint-Louis as French civil servants. At the same time, in August 1945, the construction and equipment of the new Institute began - the "Central Arms Laboratory " Laboratoire Central de l'Armement or (LRSL). The Institute was headed by French General Robert Cassagnou . It clearly followed from the agreement that France was interested in using the “know-how” of German researchers acquired during the war years and in developing these developments in their own interests ^[3] .

As for scientific results, it is absolutely irrelevant where we work, if only we get the opportunity to work and the necessary funds. There is no special German physics, no special French ^[4]

- Hubert Chardin June 20, 1945

Shardin and other scientists lived together with their families in the nearby German city of Weil am Rhein . The trip to the Institute on French territory from the German side, lasting approximately 20 minutes, was carried out in a sealed bus. The reception given by the German scientist at first aroused skepticism in the German community in connection with settling in other people's homes, getting a double standard of nutrition and the ability to buy in French stores (with a wider choice of goods compared to the free market), which gave rise to a feeling of being in a closed society ^[5] .

Although the stay in Saint-Louis was initially considered temporary, over time there was an ever-increasing expansion of scientific activity, with the gradual establishment of the Institute, based on the quality of work and motivation of employees, which ultimately led to further funding.

When the Bundeswehr was formed in the mid-1950s, the armed forces of West Germany, it turned out that the best German scientists engaged in arms research work exclusively in the interests of the French Ministry of Defense. Young Federated Germany had to ensure its own security, and felt the need for such specialists. In this regard, plans arose for the return of German specialists from the ISL Institute back to Germany. But France was not ready to give up its influence at the Institute, especially since Chardin himself did not want to leave the Institute. After the Federal Republic of Germany joined the NATO bloc in 1954, the leaders of the Chardin and Cassagnou Institute had a plan to provide the German science with the acquired experience and research results in the future. It was proposed to transform the Institute into a binational organization ^[3] . To this end, in 1955, a German-French commission was formed at the German Ministry of Defense, far from the last, in order to accelerate the creation of a united Europe .

March 31, 1958 - after two years of negotiations between Germany and France - an agreement was signed, according to which, starting June 22, 1959, the Institute resumes its activity under the name "German-French Research Institute in Saint-Louis." The agreement was signed in Saint Louis by defense ministers Jacques Chaban-Delmas and Franz Josef Strauss . Hubert Chardin received the position of German director, along with the French director, General Cassagnou.

After the formation of ISL, which, ultimately, can be regarded as the cornerstone of German-French relations, the number of employees at the Institute over the past ten years has increased to 460 employees of both nationalities (50% Germans, 50% French). Of these, about 100 scientists, 85 employees - highly qualified engineering personnel. The research work focused on military equipment in the areas of recoilless guns, cumulative ammunition and anti-tank guided missiles. One of the successful developments was the creation in the early 1950s of a wire -guided anti-tank missile Entak fr. Engin Teleguidd Anti-Char.

In the 1940s and 1950s, the main interest in the field of armor-ballistics was associated with projectiles of kinetic action stabilized by rotation. Since the mid-1960s, the main attention has been paid to the experimental study of feathered projectiles of kinetic action ^[6] .

Nowadays, in the period of the 2000s, the Institute conducts research and development of the corrected small-caliber artillery shell GSP (Guided Supersonic Projectile).

After 1964, Shardin was appointed head of the Military Equipment branch of the German Ministry of Defense, a year later he died. The French director of Cassagnou, who had developed friendly relations with Chardin over the years of collaboration, resigned in the same year. After the death of Shardin, a well-known specialist in the field of ballistics ^[7] , professor, doctor-engineer Richard Kutterer Richard Emil Kutterer took the post of German director.

In the 1970s, scientific work was determined by fundamental and applied research. The use of laser pulsed technology was begun, and holography was further developed. In the 1980s, research continued on the development of armor protection against cumulative ammunition and feathered sub-caliber shells of tank guns, armor penetration processes ^[8] , and the electromagnetic gun was further developed. In 1992, a large wind tunnel was commissioned, allowing research at a continuous flow rate of 4.4 Mach .

Currently, the ISL Institute's classic research areas are: the interaction of laser radiation with matter, the development of lasers and their application in experimental ballistics, detonation, barrier penetration processes, means and methods of protection, ballistics, personnel protection, acoustics, high-power microwave radiation, aerodynamics and flight dynamics, optoelectronics, sensors ^[9] .

In recent years, the Institute has adopted a new strategy, the main task of which is to develop and create means of protection against terrorism. In addition, ISL carries out major contracts with French and American ground forces. The latter are interested in collaborative research on the electromagnetic gun.

In general, it is planned to open ISL for a wider European base of cooperation. At the same time, it is envisaged to expand bilateral activities - useful not only in the military but also in the civilian sphere, for the purpose of expanding the European research organization. The budget of the Institute in 2016 amounted to 49.213 million euros.

• Hubert Chardin
• German Air Force Technical Academy
• Institute for the Dynamics of Fast Flowing Processes of the Fraunhofer Society

• ISL Institute Website
• ISL story with illustrations
• Memorable dates of German-French relations

• Dr. Rudi Schall Vom Laboratoire zum Institut. Eine Chronik zur Entstehung des Instituts Saint-Louis , interne Veröffentlichung des Institut de Saint-Louis 1988
• Günter Weihrauch Von den Anfängen der ballistischen Forschung im ISL ,
• Ballistische Forschung im ISL 1945-1994. Festschrift zu Ehren von Prof. Dr.-Ing. Richard Emil Kutterer anlässlich seines 90. Geburtstages, Saint-Louis 1994, S. 23-27
• Städtisches Museum am Lindenplatz Weil am Rhein (Herausgeber), Die Wissenschaftler , Weil am Rhein, 1995