Denis Peschanski, historian, specialist in the memory of the Second World War answers questions from franceinfo this Friday while Emmanuel Macron said he was “extremely favorable” to the pantheonization of the resistance fighter of Armenian origin Missak Manouchian, shot by the Germans under the Occupation.
“It is the recognition of this important component of the French Resistance” ; foreign resistance fighters, said Friday on franceinfo Denis Peschanski, historian, specialist in the memory of the Second World War, while Emmanuel Macron said to himself “extremely favorable” to the pantheonization of the resistance fighter of Armenian origin Missak Manouchian, shot by the Germans during the Occupation. The president is due to make his decision on Sunday.
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Missak Manouchian’s network is “one of the components of the French Resistance which signs the role of foreign resistance fighters in the French Resistance”, recalls Denis Peschanski. If Emmanuel Macron confirms the pantheonization of the resistance fighter of Armenian origin, “it’s all the foreigners who fought in France” who will be honored.
Franceinfo: What is the importance of Missak Manouchian in the French Resistance and what is the history of his network?
Denis Peschanski: It is one of the components of the French Resistance which signs the role of foreign resistance fighters in the French Resistance. He first participated in clandestine political work. And then he joined the mavericks and supporters of immigrant labor. The immigrant workforce was a structure set up by the Communist Party to supervise foreign workers who came to France. At that time, a structure was created, the FTP-MOI, the franc-tireurs and partisans, who would lead the urban guerrilla warfare. He will be, from the beginning of August until November 1943, the military leader of these FTP-MOI in the Paris region.
What are the main actions they carried out during the Occupation? How did his network have a very special resonance?
It had a special resonance because in 1943 there were very few groups leading the armed struggle in Paris. Quite simply because the police were particularly efficient. It was the French police which, in a certain way, worked in the service of the Occupation with its famous special brigades of General Intelligence.
Precisely, because there were very few left, the foreign resistance fighters had a very singular importance with very spectacular actions. There is Manouchian, who is the military leader. But before that, there was a Romanian Jew called Valbonne, who was his predecessor and who will be his successor. There were groups of different nationalities. There was a very strong Italian group, there was also a very strong group of Polish Jews. And the various actions were carried out, for example, by the detachment of the derailers of Boczov, a Hungarian. The latter led with a number of his comrades actions to derail German trains near Paris.
There were also very spectacular actions, such as the executions of German personalities which had an extremely important impact, in particular the impact on public opinion in France. For example, on September 28, 1943, they executed Julius Ritter, who was the representative of the boss of the Compulsory Labor Service [STO], service which was imposed on the young people of all the occupied countries. French society was really traumatized by this forced departure of young people aged 20, 21, 22 working in Germany. Executing the person responsible for this STO in France certainly had a strong impact on public opinion. Of course, they carried out armed actions as well. But the main impact that we will remember from these armed actions is a political role on the evolution of opinion, on the evolution of society vis-à-vis the Germans, vis-à-vis the resistance safe, and vis-à-vis Vichy.
You are part of this Missak Manouchian committee at the Pantheon. Could this probable entry of Missak Manouchian into the Pantheon be a form of recognition for the little-known actions of foreigners in the French Resistance?
This is a fundamental step. It is the recognition of this important component of the French Resistance.
To give just one example: at Mont-Valérien, throughout the war, there were 1,006 resistance fighters and hostages who were shot. Of these 1,006, there were 185 foreigners. This gives you an idea of the proportion of those who engaged in this type of urban guerrilla warfare.
Denis Peschanski, historian, specialist in the memory of the Second World Warfranceinfo
Bringing Manouchian into the Pantheon is first and foremost to pay tribute to his own personality, his history, his very strong attachment to France. He will come to France in 1924 and he has a very strong link with the French Revolution, the Enlightenment. He is part of this universalist thought and he will engage in the communist movement from the Popular Front. This is going to be one of the leaders in the armed resistance in Paris. Through him, it is the group that he leads, where there are Italians, Spaniards, Jews from Central and Eastern Europe and therefore Armenians. It’s all that that somehow goes to the Pantheon, if it’s announced on Sunday according to the will of the president. And at the same time, it’s all the foreigners who fought in France.