Tag Archives: 1944

Saint-Lô after the raids of June 1944

Saint-Lô after the raids of June 1944 Collection BDIC-MHC (Photo Le Noan). Tous droits réservés.

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Bomb damage on picture postcards

It was common for photographs of destruction by bombs to be sent as postcards. This shows the destruction of rail installations at Vire, in Normandy, by a raid on 6 June 1944. Collection BDIC-MHC. Tous droits réservés.

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Rouen, spring 1944

Rouen, spring 1944. The space in front of the cathedral was levelled after fires broke out during the campaign of 1940. Allied raids in spring 1944, aimed at bridges and rail installations, set light to the cathedral itself, though the … Continue reading

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First and terrible bombardment of Caen

From 6 June 1944, the first and terrible bombardment of Caen took place, the town was burned. Our house was badly hit, the walls, the windows, the ceilings, everything blew apart. It was on 8 June that we left our … Continue reading

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Public ceremony

Public ceremony: Marshal Pétain in St-Étienne, 5-6 June 1944. Pétain cut short his visit on hearing of the Normandy landings. This was his last appearance in public before his trial. Courtesy Archives Départementales de la Loire, 7/W/26. Tous droits réservés.

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Funerals

Funerals (2): Cardinal Gerlier, Archbishop of Lyon and Primate of France, gives absolution to some of the 885 victims of the raid on Saint-Étienne of 27 May 1944. Courtesy Archives Départementales de la Loire, 7/W/26. Tous droits réservés.

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Civil defence deaths

Civil defence deaths. This plaque in Marseille commemorates the staff of the civil defence headquarters in Marseille, killed at their posts in the raid of 27 May 1944. Photo Andrew Knapp

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Information-gathering

Information-gathering: the Bulletin d’Information de la Défense Passive for July 1944 sets out statistics for raids in the second quarter of the year. Courtesy Mémorial de Caen, FQ/72.

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Le Havre, Winter 1944-45

Le Havre, Winter 1944-45. A report by H. Holbek, a Swedish Quaker visitor to Le Havre, described popular feelings there in November 1944. ‘One notices a sense of bitterness towards the British, a profound chagrin and disappointment, in Le Havre. … Continue reading

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Le Havre after the raids of September 1944

Three postcards of the port of Le Havre after the raids of September 1944 Courtesy of Archives Municipales du Havre (Collection Fernez). Tous droits réservés.

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