World War II
Abrial worked in cooperation with the British troops during the evacuation of Dunkirk in 1940, even though he had not been informed of it prior to the operation. The operation began on May 26 with the requisitioning of several private boats in attempts to organize assistance from the French Navy. On May 29 the evacuation began; Abrial was one of the last to be evacuated. After evacuation, Abrial was based in Cherbourg — where, as senior officer, he was forced to surrender the port to the Germans on June 19. From July 1940 to July 1941, he served Philippe Pétain's Vichy regime as the governor general of Algeria. Vichy regime President Pierre Laval appointed him as Naval Minister and commander of naval forces, a position he held from 29 November 1942 until 25 March 1943.
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