War and Liberation in France: Living with the Liberators
Also by Hilary Footitt WOMEN, EUROPE AND THE NEW LANGUAGES OF POLITICS FRANCE, 1943 45: The Politics of Liberation (with John Simmonds)
War and Liberation in France Living with the Liberators Hilary Footitt
Hilary Footitt 2004 Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2004 978-1-4039-0284-9 All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made without written permission. No paragraph of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted save with written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, or under the terms of any licence permitting limited copying issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London W1T 4LP. Any person who does any unauthorized act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages. The author has asserted her right to be identified as the author of this work in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. First published 2004 by PALGRAVE MACMILLAN Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS and 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010 Companies and representatives throughout the world PALGRAVE MACMILLAN is the global academic imprint of the Palgrave Macmillan division of St. Martin s Press, LLC and of Palgrave Macmillan Ltd. Macmillan is a registered trademark in the United States, United Kingdom and other countries. Palgrave is a registered trademark in the European Union and other countries. ISBN 978-1-349-50833-4 ISBN 978-0-230-50997-9 (ebook) DOI 10.1057/9780230509979 This book is printed on paper suitable for recycling and made from fully managed and sustained forest sources. A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Footitt, Hilary. War and liberation in France : living with the liberators / Hilary Footitt. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. 1. World War, 1939 1945 France. 2. World War, 1939 1945 Social aspects France. 3. France Social conditions 20th century. 4. France History German occupation, 1940 1945. 5. France History 1945 1958. I. Title. D761.F66 2004 940.53 44 dc22 2003062672 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 13 12 11 10 09 08 07 06 05 04
Contents List of Maps List of Figures Acknowledgements List of Abbreviations vi vii ix x Introduction 1 1 Welcoming the Liberators 10 2 Liberation on the Move: Normandy 37 3 Meeting Private Ryan: Cherbourg 66 4 The politics of disappointment: Liberation in the South 95 5 Removing Inflammable Material: The Pyrénées-Orientales 122 6 The Long Goodbye: Reims 147 7 Liberated and Liberators 175 Notes 193 Bibliography 213 Index 217 v
List of Maps* 1 Map of case study areas 7 2 Map of the D Day Landings 38 3 Map of North Normandy 41 4 Map of La Manche 67 5 Map of the Landing area in the South 96 6 Map of the Pyrénées-Orientales 123 7 Map of the Reims area 149 *Maps by Tim Absalom vi
List of Figures 2.1 Normandy: Caen cathedral shelters homeless London: B8086 (SF19F) 47 2.2 French refugees fed by Civil Affairs London: B5305 (SF11) 56 3.1 French rebuild homes in Cherbourg. French civilians clear out the rubble to start rebuilding a home in Cherbourg after the Germans surrendered the city to American forces, 27 June 1944 London: EA 28019 (SF35C) 69 3.2 First edition of Cherbourg paper. David Yon, editor of La Presse Cherbourgeoise, and members of his staff proudly inspect a copy of the first newspaper published in Cherbourg after its Liberation. At left is Captain Fernand Auberjondois of the PW Division of the AEF in France, who started the press running. Holding the paper, at right, is Captain Patrick Dolan of New York City, Cherbourg head of the PW Division, which assisted the Frenchmen in publishing the paper London: OWIL 29711 (SF35a) 79 3.3 Allied supplies in Cherbourg. US soldiers transfer supplies and material to trucks which will carry them to a depot for shipment to the AEF. Loaded from ships lying in Cherbourg harbour, the cargo comes ashore by rolling up a ramp to the docks London: PNA OWIL 4605A (SF 35F) 83 4.1 Marseille in victory parade. Marseille residents burn German propaganda in victory parade London: NYP 39433 (SFA8) 99 4.2 French patriots decorated by US Commander in Southern France. Lt-General Patch, Commander vii
viii List of Figures of the Allied 7th Army in southern France, decorates members of the FFI for their courage in the battle for St Tropez London: NYF 38946 (SFA7) 109 6.1 Reims cathedral in Liberation. Reims residents throng in front of the city s famous cathedral, as they welcome US troops who liberated the town, 31 August 1944. Children and adults may be seen swarming over an American jeep in the foreground London: EA 36202 (SF11 A) 148 6.2 American soldier in Reims. An American soldier rests in a street of Reims, while people and children laugh and chat with him London: Keystone 482851 (SF11) 151
Acknowledgements This book would not have been written without the help of numerous archivists and librarians in Cambridge, London, Washington, Paris, Caen, Cherbourg, Marseille, Perpignan and Reims. The Harold Hyam Wingate Foundation kindly gave me a scholarship to support travel costs associated with the project, and I am grateful to them. I acknowledge, with thanks, permission from the Imperial War Museum, London, to quote from their archives. A great deal of what I have learnt about being a historian has come from working on earlier projects with Don Simmonds. I owe a particular debt of gratitude to Douglas Johnson, Roderick Kedward, Siân Reynolds and Bill Kidd, all of whom have shown consistent interest in this project over several years. Lena and Martin Powell have kept me going, and encouraged me warmly throughout. This book has been an obsession for over three years. Richard Footitt shared the travelling and the obsession, and I am profoundly grateful to him. Cambridge HILARY FOOTITT ix
List of Abbreviations AFHQ AMGOT CA CBS CGT CFLN COSSAC ETO FFI FTPF GPRF GTE MRP MUR OSS PWE SHAEF SIS SOE UNE Allied Forces Headquarters Allied Military Government of Occupied Territory Civil Affairs Continental Base Section Confédération Générale du Travail Comité Français de la Libération Nationale Chief of Staff, Supreme Allied Commander European Theater of Operations Forces Françaises de l Intérieur Francs-Tireurs et Partisans Français Gouvernement Provisoire de la République Française Groupes de Travail Etranger Mouvement Républicain Populaire Mouvements Unis de la Résistance Office of Strategic Studies Political Warfare Executive Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force Secret Intelligence Service Special Operations Executive Unión Nacional Española x