France
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I want to begin by clarifying that the photographs featured in this blog do not depict the actual victims. However, this is precisely why the crime has been largely forgotten—it was concealed in secrecy, both by the perpetrators and the victims. While exact figures are unavailable, it is estimated that 15% of all Jewish children…
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Eugene Bullard was an extraordinary figure in history whose courage, resilience, and determination helped him overcome significant racial and social barriers. He was not only the first African American military pilot but also a soldier, entertainer, and spy who played a significant role in both World Wars. Despite his achievements, Bullard’s story remained largely unrecognized…
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A subject rarely discussed in the context of World War II is the manner in which daily life gradually returned to a semblance of normality in France following D-Day, particularly in Normandy. By 25 July, with most German armored units drawn westward by the British Goodwood Offensive, American forces encountered a front largely stripped of…
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The Maquis were among the most emblematic forces of the French Resistance during the Second World War. Emerging in the countryside after France’s defeat in 1940 and the subsequent German occupation, these clandestine guerrilla groups played a decisive role in undermining Nazi control and preparing the ground for the liberation of France in 1944. Their…
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Although its official name is Gurs Internment Camp, let’s call it what it really was, a concentration camp. It is also probably one, if not the only time, the Nazis sent Jews westward. At first, it served as a camp for Spanish Republicans and German refugees who fled from Nazism. The Gurs Camp was among…
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WARNING: THIS ARTICLE CONTAINS GRAPHIC IMAGES The 2nd SS Panzer Division Das Reich surrounded the tiny hamlet of Oradour-sur-Glane in the Limousin region of South Central France on 10 June 1944. The division then massacred 642 French civilians in the village. Some believe that the troops were seeking retribution for the kidnap of a German…
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He was born Marcel Mangel in Strasbourg, France to a Jewish family. His parents were Ann Werzberg and Charles Mangel, a kosher butcher. When Marcel was four years old, the family moved to Lille, but they later returned to Strasbourg. When France entered World War II, Marcel, 16, fled with his family to Limoges. In 1944…
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The above photograph is a rail track I pass over nearly every day. Yesterday, when I passed it, I had to think of all those who went on train journeys and never returned. The trains that travel over this rail track are comfortable, They have soft seats you can sit on, and some even have…
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Viewing images of the death and destruction wrought by the Holocaust can be deeply gut-wrenching. While it’s often said that a photograph speaks a thousand words, it’s equally valid that it can never tell the whole story. A photo captures only a single moment in time. This is one of the reasons I rarely share…
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I know what you are thinking—another forgotten atrocity committed by the Nazi regime though you would be wrong. This massacre was carried out by the ‘good’ guys. It is an often-neglected fact that the majority of General De Gaulle’s Free French Forces were not white Frenchmen but were predominantly troops from its colonies in Africa…
History of Sorts 