French and German Life in occupied Paris

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Gott
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French and German Life in occupied Paris

#1

Post by Gott » 26 Aug 2002, 23:40

So how was it like? I know there were curfews, and that's about it. but was life basically same as before? There are still those famous Bistros and Cafes for both French and German soldiers alike, right? Tell me as much as you could, thanks.

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Zachary
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#2

Post by Zachary » 27 Aug 2002, 01:50

When the Germans came in I read a quote that said that the French thought that the Germans were "alarmingly polite."
I'm sure there were cafes, the owners would only care for business and money most of the times.
I saw a picture of a lady selling miniture Eiffel Towers to German soldiers. The lady was smiling and looked happy.
Regards,
Zachary


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#3

Post by Panzermahn » 27 Aug 2002, 06:54

Another information, German troops will be shot for incivility to Frenchwomen and for looting and plundering....

Please read the War Between the General by David irving...

U think that those propaganda newsreels really show that the french people really welcomed the American liberators?

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Gott
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#4

Post by Gott » 27 Aug 2002, 10:23

but i think there are gas and food rations. i think i'll go to the library some time to find that time-life book with that german occupation.

i think it was the free french who entered paris first. they were the liberators, not the americans.

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#5

Post by Zachary » 27 Aug 2002, 14:24

I saw a book somewhere- somethign along the lines of "France Darkest days 1940-1944". I'm not sure if that's the title.
Zachary

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re

#6

Post by tonyh » 27 Aug 2002, 18:43

Life in occupied France was rather good, in the early days anyhow. Hitler offered France very agreeable terms for the armistice and only occupied the land he needed to watch Britain's moves. Although the Vichy government had a close German eye on her activities. The German's viewed France as a soft job and had no compuction to rock a comfortable boat and for the most part neither did the French. Although, if one was to believe what they saw in the movies, one would think that every second person in France was in the Maqui. Not the case.

I too have seen the photo of the French woman shop owner smiling gleefully at all the German "tourists" and German soldiers stationed in France were paid in Franc's and Reichmarks, both were legal tender. In fact many small business's were delighted with the paying customers and both nations believed that the occupation would be short lived. In other words it would end when Britain "came to her senses".

One French woman I talked to, who was from Caen, said that her mother was delighted with the conduct of the average German soldier and was worried that she found the Allied troops behaviour to be much worse!

Tony

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#7

Post by Siegfried Wilhelm » 27 Aug 2002, 22:11

The French merchants did not fare well. There was a strict price and currency fix which allowed Germans to buy most anything at grossly deflated prices--this was a way to get the goods out of France and into Germany. Not looting, but just about. The idea was to get France's goods plain and simple. The German landser was told to be on his good behavior, but they loved their leave time in Paris...they could purchase goods in quantity unheard of at home. Much was shipped to Germany in this way. The French were devestated because they saw the goods drying up and could not raise prices or save anything back. Soon Paris was in wartime shortages just like everywhere in Nazi land.

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Gott
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#8

Post by Gott » 27 Aug 2002, 22:21

how about life for local civilians and german soldiers in other major european cities??

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#9

Post by Caldric » 27 Aug 2002, 22:49

Just do a search on it, there are a hell of a lot of people that were not happy about the occupation, and considered allied liberation just that. They did not steal because they just made prices so low so there was no need to.

Just because some propaganda photo shows a smiling girl selling trinkets does not imply the people of Paris were happy being second rate citizens in the Third Reich. They were damn happy when liberation came, of course not all were, some who had been traitors were denounced as such to the French forces, this of course started a whole new era of terror.

At any rate arrogant German Nazi's controlling your life could not be wonderful, unless you are mindless and care nothing for personal freedoms.

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#10

Post by Romulus » 28 Aug 2002, 00:05

gott wrote:but i think there are gas and food rations. i think i'll go to the library some time to find that time-life book with that german occupation.

i think it was the free french who entered paris first. they were the liberators, not the americans.
I believe the Allied Expeditionary Force was the liberator of France.

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#11

Post by Caldric » 28 Aug 2002, 00:14

France yes but Paris was liberated by the French 2nd Armor Division.

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#12

Post by Geli » 28 Aug 2002, 01:44

How long was Hitler in France and what was his schedule like? I've seen photos of him with the Eiffel Tower in the background; anyone know if he went to the top?

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#13

Post by Caldric » 28 Aug 2002, 01:54

He spent one morning in Paris and never returned. Was a very very early morning tour and he was gone.

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#14

Post by walterkaschner » 28 Aug 2002, 02:31

The best book I know on the subject is one by Philippe Burin, which was originally published in French and entitled "La France à l'heure Allemande: 1940-44" ( Editions du Seuil, 1993) and then in English as "France Under the Germans" (The New Press, 1996). Also good, but more from a political than a social viewpoint, is Robert Aron's "Histoire de Vichy" as far as I know only available in French, (Illustrated edition Les Productions de Paris, undated).

But if you are really interested in this topic you must see "Le Chagrin et la Pitie", a four hour film produced by Marcel Orphuls in 1971 for French television but never presented there because it was thought too controversial. It appeared on DVD last year with English subtitles as "The Sorrow and the Pity", and to my mind is one of the greatest - if not THE greatest - documentaries ever produced. It focuses on the experiences of the inhabitants of a relatively small city - Clermont-Ferrand - in central France during the occupation years, and contains interviews of numerous of the inhabitants as well as of their German occupiers, together with interviews of some well known political figures, such as Pierre Mendes-France and Anthony Eden. I found it an incredibly - almost heartbreakingly - moving presentation of the reactions of individual human beings, both French and German, to the necessities of continuing a day to day life under the circumstances of the occupation. A must see!!

As a footnote,

Caldric wrote
France yes but Paris was liberated by the French 2nd Armor Division.
Yes, that is certainly technically correct, but the result of a political decision made by the Americans and with the assistance of the US 4th Infantry Division (which is not intended to deny General Plilippe le Clerc and the Free French 2d Armored any of the glory of that day).

Regards, Kaschner

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#15

Post by Zachary » 28 Aug 2002, 02:32

I saw a picture of him with his troops at the airport. He is smiling with many of his teeth showing (I know some of you wanted to see a picture of him like that) In the background is another photographer taking a picture. It looks like someone just told a joke; everyone is laughing.
Regards,
Zachary

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