This afternoon I’m visiting Lyon’s Center for the History of the Resistance and Deportation. Lyon, then inside Vichy France, was at the center of activity of the French Underground activity during World War II, so this should be interesting.
I made my way to the museum by taking the Metro and then the municipal tram line. It had been a nice morning, but it had clouded up and turned into a dreary, gloomy afternoon. A light rain started to fall. The weather set the tone for the museum, because things were probably going to be pretty gloomy inside, too.
I bought my ticket and went in. The first thing I did was watch a short film that put things in perspective. Let’s go back to September, 1939. Nazi Germany had just invaded Poland. At this point it was pretty clear that things in Europe were getting wildly out of control.
As soon as Poland had been invaded, France and England declared war on Germany. This is referred to now as the Phoney War, because even though France and England declared war, they didn’t do anything but huff and puff.
Eight short months later, they didn’t have a choice, because Germany invaded France. That was on May 10th, 1940. Six weeks later, France surrendered. Just like that.
Vichy France
France and Germany signed a treaty whereby France was split into two zones – an occupied zone in the north and west, including Paris and Bordeaux, and a so-called “free zone” in the south. The occupied zone was called “occupied” because it was occupied by Nazis. The free zone was under Nazi rule as implemented by the French themselves. Lyon was the biggest city in the free zone.
When the Germans invaded France, some members of the French government abandoned Paris. They went from town to town until they settled in a small town by the name of Vichy. (Pronounced “vee-shee”). Vichy became the capital of the free zone, so the name of the free zone became “Vichy France.”
Not all government officials high-tailed it to the south, though. Charles de Gaulle and others made their way to England, where they encouraged the remaining French to not give in to the Nazi’s no matter what. (You have to like that attitude, but admittedly, it would be an easier attitude to have when you’re across the Channel in England).
Even though Lyon was not occupied by the Germans, life there was no picnic. The Vichy government wasn’t much more than an extension of the Nazi occupiers. Vichy government officials did whatever their Nazi handlers told them to do. It often appeared that they went beyond whatever miserable task they were told to get done.
Not only that, but as part of the treaty, Vichy France had to make regular payments of huge sums of money – like rent – for the privilege of not being occupied. It was like looting the place without having to do any of the leg work. Well, what can you say? When you’re the loser, sometimes you don’t have a lot of options at negotiation time.
The Vichy government certainly couldn’t offer much help to its citizens, even if it wanted to, (which many would probably question anyway). There was little in the way of food, gas, or all of the normal things that everyone used to take for granted. Nazi rules controlled dissemination of just about everything.
Rationing
Few able males remained to do farm work, (they were either away fighting or in German prison camps), so crops rotted in the fields and food supplies ran low. Imports and exports stopped, so it wasn’t long before there was almost no gas or fuel for transportation, except for local trains, which ran on locally produced coal.
Most of the food that was produced was, by the treaty, provided to the Germans. The Vichy government’s solution was to ration just about everything. Depending on various circumstances detailed on your rationing card, you could go on the specified days – say, Mondays and Wednesdays — to purchase bread, or meat, vegetables. Maybe you need some cooking oil. Oops. Sorry, your turn to purchase cooking oil isn’t until Saturday.
People figured out ways to deal with life as it was. They’d rig up generators that could run on wood or charcoal. They made soap from animal fat and caustic soda. And instead of drinking coffee, which was nonexistent, they made a coffee substitute out of toasted barley and chicory. And, of course, the black market for just about everything thrived.
Then in November, 1942, Allied forces attacked the Nazis in North Africa. Unfortunately, the free zone was right in between occupied France and the new action to the south. The Nazis decided they’d better get closer to the action, so they moved right on in. Hey, what about that treaty?
That was the end of the free zone. Things in Lyon were about to get even uglier. MUCH uglier.
To be continued…
The Featured Image at the top of this post may be found on the website for the Centre de l’Histoire de la Résistance et de la Déportation.
