Maurice Larrouy

Maurice Larrouy (9 June 1882 – 18 July 1939, in Meung-sur-Loire) was a French marine officer and writer, also known by his pseudonym "René Milan". The son of a commissioner general of the Navy, Larrouy was received major at the École Navale in 1901, became a naval officer in 1903, patented interpreter of English in 1911, ship lieutenant in 1913, and patented pilot of airship. After he resigned in 1919 to devote himself to literature, he was promoted to the rank of reserve captain of corvette (1926) then captain of frigate. An officier of the Légion d’honneur and holder of the Croix de guerre 1914–1918, he married in the 2nd arrondissement of Paris Denise Decori on 20 December 1916, the daughter of Félix Decori (1860–1915), a lawyer, secretary general of the Presidency of the Republic (1914), in the presence of president Raymond Poincaré, Louis Barthou, Alfred Capus of the Académie française, witnesses of the bride, and Pierre Mille, his best man.

At the beginning of the 20th century he published maritime and exotic novels, some of which were somewhat successful such as L'Odyssée d'un transport torpillé (Prix Femina 1917) or Coup de roulis. These books were written in the spirit of other naval officers, like Pierre Loti, Claude Farrère or Paul Chack. He presented himself at the Académie française on 24 May 1934 and obtained 2 votes against 9 to Edmond Jaloux and 24 to Maurice de Broglie, who was elected. He was vice-president of the Société des gens de lettres.

The first edition of some novels indicates the pseudonym René Milan or the letter "Y". Bibliophiles know that he signed a large number of copies of the print run of the original edition of his books.