Henri Clément

"They weren't looking forward to visitors, were they?"

This article contains spoilers for Amnesia: The Bunker. Proceed with caution.

Henri Clément
Biographical information
Full name	Soldat Henri Clément
Born	c. 1886-1896
Died	July 21st, 1916 (possibility)
Cause of death	Killed by German soldiers (possibility)
Age	20-30
Active	c. 1916
Physical description
Species	Human
Nationality	French
Gender	Male
Eye colour	Blue
Hair colour	Dark
Career and family information
Affiliation(s)	French Army
Occupation	Soldier
Spouse(s) or partner(s)	Unnamed Wife (possible)
Non-familial relationships	Sdt. Augustin Lambert (former best friend, former compatriot) Comdt. M. Fournier (commanding officer) Sgt. Stéphane Joubert (unit commander) Sdt. Toussaint Beaufoy (former compatriot, potential victim) Sdt. Boisrond (compatriot)
Behind the scenes
Voice actor (English)	George Blagden
Appearances
The Bunker	Full (active) Audio (narration, flashback) Visual (photograph) Mentioned (notes)

“

It was nothing! A joke. I thought it was just a joke. I never thought... I never thought... And therein lies my sin.

”

Clément's Journal – Routine Patrol – 9th of July, 1916

Soldat Henri Clément (French: /ɑ̃.ʁi kle.mɑ̃/) is the main character and protagonist of Amnesia: The Bunker. He was a French Army soldier stationed on the western front during the First World War. He is voiced by British actor George Blagden.

History

Early life

Henri Clément was born somewhere in France during the late 19th Century, most likely the early 1890s. At some point Henri got married to an unmentioned woman. Due to the requirement to complete a period of military service upon adulthood at age 20, Henri would have been conscripted into the army for a few years before becoming a reservist till he reached middle age; however, it is possible Henri was still completing his mandatory service when the war broke out, due to his youthfulness.

Regardless of whether or not Henri was selected during mobilization or already serving, at the beginning of the war he was sent to the front to help repel the advance of the German army. Henri held the rank of "Soldat," which is equivalent to a private, serving in Sgt. Stéphane Joubert's unit and under the overall command of Commandant Fournier. During the war he became very good friends with a fellow soldier in his unit, Augustin Lambert.

The two spent a lot of time together, often pranking one another, with Augustin going so far as to urinate inside of Henri's flask, placing lice in his bunk bed, and being involved in an unspecified incident with a barmaid. At some point during the first half of the conflict, their unit was possibly transferred to, or originally stationed at, a secure frontline bunker.

Events preceding Amnesia: The Bunker

On July 8th, 1916, Sgt. Joubert informed Henri and Augustin that he needed one of them to go on a relatively safe and routine nighttime patrol to the communication wires. Joubert suspected one of them was part of the tunnel sabotage, and so wished to test them; however, he allowed the two friends to choose who would go between themselves.

Augustin and Henri decided to play a game of dice to decide who would go on the patrol, but Henri – wanting to get out of a boring patrol and get revenge on Augustin for previous pranks – used a sleight of hand trick to cheat and win. Augustin gracefully accepted his loss and left on his patrol, while Henri got a goodnight's sleep, albeit during a period of intense shelling.

However, just before dawn on the next day, after the back and forth shelling stopped, Henri awoke and discovered that Augustin was not in his bunk. He looked to see if he was smoking outside the entrance, fooling around in the mess hall, or being seen by Dr. Josinski, but didn't find him anywhere. He ran into another soldier, Dax, who informed him that Augustin had not returned from his patrol. Henri was left worried, but decided to try and get another few hours of sleep.

Some time later, Henri woke up again and found out that Augustin was still missing. He agonized over his own childish stupidity, remarking that he never thought about the potential consequences of his prank through; however, Henri decided to wait and see if Augustin would return by dusk before seeking help. Henri spent the entire day in this state of perturbation, being too repulsed to eat or hang out with his compatriots. When dusk arrived, he asked Sgt. Joubert about Augustin's potential trouble, but the sergeant was blasé about the matter, leaving Henri in a state of acute distress; furthermore, he was angered by his other compatriots drinking and arguing as if they didn't have a care in the world.

When night fell, Henri ultimately decided that he wouldn't be able to live with himself if he didn't try and save Augustin, and he snuck out of the bunker to find him. Henri then ventured out into no man's land, searching for his friend despite only carrying a revolver. By a stroke of luck, he came across a large crater-like formation where a distress flare was burning, he looked inside and saw Augustin, injured, starved, and parched, but alive. Henri lowered himself into the crater and hydrated Augustin with strange water from a nearby spring to help him regain his strength, after which he managed to get him out. He carried him on his back on the return to the bunker. However, they were spotted by the Germans, who fired at them, and despite Henri’s best efforts, the duo were nearly struck by an artillery shell, with Henri being subjected to a traumatic head injury, giving him amnesia and putting him in a comatose state.

Events of Amnesia: The Bunker

Henri eventually woke up in infirmary at the bunker. Moving through the bunker, he meets with Sdt. Boisrond, seemingly the only other survivor around. Boisrond gives Henri his revolver, pleading with the latter to take his life so as to spare him a grisly death at the hands of the creature that had, over the past several days, systematically hunted down many of the other soldiers in the bunker.

Before Henri could do anything about Boisrond's request, Boisrond was dragged screaming into a tunnel to his death. Henri realized something sinister had been happening in his torpor, with a monster crawling through the underground, hunting him as well. He now begins his quest to escape the facility, all the while uncovering details of what had transpired.

Once the Emergency Lockdown in the Central Bunker had been lifted, Henri travelled through the areas of the Bunker, acquiring a wrench from Mission Storage using Foreman Stafford's code and a pair of cutters from the Prison. Using a code he acquired through Communications sent over by Sgt. Stéphane Joubert, he gains access to the Arsenal and retrieves a bundle of dynamite.

Henri also travels through the haunted Roman Tunnels, being forced to confront a crazed Toussaint Beaufoy, who has armed himself with a shotgun and is constantly singing to himself. He either sneaks past the lunatic or kills him in self-defense, upon which he acquires the detonator handle needed to trigger the dynamite.

As Henri explores the Bunker, he discovers through letters and journal entries that the Beast is actually Augustin who, by the effect of the water from the crater, transformed slowly and inexplicably. Augustin initially fought the monstrous urges but soon gave in, leading to him attacking and killing his fellow soldiers.

Finally, Henri detonates the dynamite at the Bunker entrance, though instead of opening the exit, it blows open a pit that leads deeper underground. Going down into this hole and running through an old mine shaft as he's tailed by The Beast, Clément emerges into a massive ritualistic Arena created by the Mithraic Cult over a foggy chasm.

Confronting his former friend one last time, he is faced with two choices. Either choice ultimately sees him making his escape, climbing a large structure at the opposite end of the Arena and running through a passageway. After clearing the exit of lodged debris, he loses his footing and rolls down the side of a cliff into a water-logged ditch filled with bodies. Henri then hears a German patrol closing in on his position.

Fate

Main article: Amnesia: The Bunker/Endings

• Escape
• Confront
• The Shadow

If Henri evades the Beast and manages to push two boxes over to a large wall blocking access to the exit stairs without letting the Beast catch him or break the boxes, he will flee the Arena and subsequently the bunker, falling down a ditch full of dead corpses of fellow infantrymen. Henri looks up and through the exit he made his escape from he can see The Beast leave the caves, roaring and running outside through the cliffs. This alerts the Germans outside, who can be seen approaching their position. The fate of the Beast, of the Germans, and of Henri are ultimately left unknown.

If Henri in the final battle decides to stay and confront the Beast, he will instead utilize the environment around him, luring his mutated friend onto a fragile wooden bridge. At this point, the Beast can be stunned by the Revolver or the Shotgun, be trapped by grenades or gas grenades, or by being distracted with the Rabbit Toy. Henri then destroys the bridge undearneath him with an explosive or by shooting it with the Shotgun, which takes the creature down with it plummeting to it's apparent death.

Henri will flee the Arena and subsequently the bunker, falling down a ditch full of dead corpses of fellow infantrymen. Henri looks up at the passageway he used to escape, but his attention is quickly drawn to the German forces outside, who can be seen approaching the area his position.

The game then ends with Henri's ultimate fate left unknown.

If Henri jumps or falls into the endless pit below the Arena, he will land in an endless expanse of darkness akin to a void. A distant screeching howl can be heard coming from afar as a red light expands and seems to engulf Henri, killing him. Although this is an outcome and special event that is accessed through this last area, it is not to be considered an ending, as it will simply reload the game.

Description

Personality

Henri appears to be a strong-willed and cognizant person, demonstrably caring about Augustin as well as his comrades. He expressed deep remorse for putting Augustin's life in danger, as the latter was on a patrol duty instead of him; ready to risk his own life in order to find and rescue his brother-in-arms.

Despite this, he shares Augustin's trait of being a prankster. Given the latter's track record of pranking him, and Henri laughing with him even when the prank goes as far as urinating in his canteen. Henri didn't fully think through his decision to cheat in the game, dumbing it down to a silly prank him and Augustin would laugh at together later. It is only until Augustin went out unto the breach and didn't come back that Henri realized the full weight of his decision.

Unlike other characters in the series, Henri does not suffer from a sanity meter, and shows no signs of fear against the monster save for heart palpitations in its presence. This is likely due to his military experience, and having already been around and through the insanity of war outside the bunker. After waking up in the bunker, Henri is fully determined to retrieve the materials required to blow open the bunker's collapsed exit and escape, despite all the dangers that await him.

Appearance

Henri has blue eyes and dark-coloured hair; his exact age is presently unknown; due to his service in the wartime French Army, and his youthful appearance, he is likely between twenty and thirty years of age.

Apparel

On duty, Henri Clément wore the regular uniform of the French Army at the time, including the horizon blue greatcoat and Adrian helmet. Following treatment for his injuries sustained in No Man's Land, he was wrapped in bandages by Dr. Josinski and the medical personnel. During the events of Amnesia: The Bunker, Henri's arms sport bandaging, and he lacks his greatcoat, wearing only his jacket on his torso instead, with its sleeves partially rolled up his forearm—presumably to accomodate the bandaging. As can be seen by his shadow's outline in the bunker, Henri also lacks his helmet, presumably having lost it during his injuring in No Man's Land. Otherwise, he continues to wear his scuffy blue uniform and dark leather trench boots. He wears his horizon-blue jacket buttoned all the way up, tightened by a standard belt at his waist. The short collar of his jacket stands up against his neck and sports numbers on each lapel. On his legs, he wears horizon blue breeches covering his thighs and knees as well as leg-wraps covering his calves.

Quotes

Main article: Henri Clément/Dialogue

Section missing!

This section is needed but has not been written yet. You can help Amnesia Wiki out by writing it!

Trivia

• Henri Clément is the third French protagonist in the Amnesia series, after Justine Florbelle in Amnesia: Justine and Anastasie Trianon in Amnesia: Rebirth. He also is the first to handle offensive weapons and the first soldier protagonist.
• Henri and Justine Florbelle are the only protagonists in the Amnesia series not shown to die in any of their respective endings; though in the case of Henri, his ultimate fate is left entirely ambiguous.
• Henri seems to lack any nyctophobia (i.e. fear of the dark), unlike Daniel from Amnesia: The Dark Descent. He can stay in the dark locations for an extended period of time.
  • The only fear of which Henri shows outwards signs of is the Beast. He generally does not suffer any ill effects from this fear, due to the game's lack of a Sanity mechanic, in contrast to the previous games. However, he does display this fear in the form of an elevated heartrate and audible palpitations.
• Henri's weapon of choice is the Modèle 1892 revolver, developed by Manufacture d'armes de Saint-Étienne. This firearm was the standard-issue sidearm for French officers during World War I.
  • Given that Henri's rank is private, it is odd that his default weapon at the beginning of the game is a revolver, an officer's gun, instead of the standard-issue Lebel Model 1886/93 rifle.
  • It is possible that, in the chaos of the fighting, Henri acquired the revolver from a dying or dead officer (having lost his standard infantry rifle). It can be also be argued that in 1916, at the height of attritional trench warfare, equipment was standardized so privates like Henri could have carried sidearms in addition to their rifles. Later in the bunker, Henri is given a revolver by a dying Sdt. Boisrond, who may have acquired his in the same manner.
• Although Anastasie Trianon is the first protagonist in the series to be given a full-body model, Henri Clément is the first male protagonist to be given one as well. His body includes a head model, but it is not textured, since it is never directly seen during any part of the game.
• The surname Clément is equivalent to the English name "Clement" and was derived from the Latin word "clēmens," meaning "merciful" (whence comes the English words "clement" and "clemency"). The first name Henri is equivalent to the English "Henry," Dutch "Hendrik," and German "Heinrich," all three ultimately deriving from an ancestral Germanic name, close to "Haimrik" and roughly meaning "home-ruler".
• The interaction crosshair icon that appears when the player is able to push heavy objects will be that of two outward facing hands, with the left hand wearing a wedding ring. No such ring is seen on Henri's left hand. This is because the icon, like many others seen in the game, are reused assets from Amnesia: Rebirth.

Gallery

Photo of Henri in uniform.

Henri's entire body, as seen in the Model Viewer.

Henri inspecting his hand while injured

Henri's shadow, despite not having a textured or modeled head

Rats feeding on a corpse, with Henri in the background.

Henri falling in a ditch at the end of the game.

Henri's voice actor, George Blagden.