Although Cortès was a pacifist, when war came close to his native village he was compelled to enlist in a French Infantry Regiment at the age of 32. Sent to the front lines, Cortès was wounded by a bayonet, evacuated to a military hospital, and awarded the Croix de Guerre.
Cortès, though a proponent of peaceful coexistence, felt duty-bound to join a French infantry regiment when his village faced imminent threat at 32. He was subsequently deployed into combat, where he sustained a bayonet injury, received medical care at a military facility, and earned the Croix de Guerre honor.