blog




  • Essay / The French Resistance during World War II

    We entered Fort Queleu in Metz and the first thing we came across was a monument (pictured below) to the Resistance, which contained the ashes of a camp prisoner. During this tour of the fort, I was inspired by the area and what it represented. Although conditions were horrific for the hundreds of prisoners who were held and tortured there, to me the fort, and especially the monument, represents hope and resilience. The fort, sometimes called "l'Enfer de Queleu" (Hell of Queleu), was not a concentration camp, but rather an interrogation center for captured or arrested members of the French Resistance. Between October 1943 and August 1944, between 1,500 and 1,800 prisoners were interrogated, tortured and kept blindfolded, hand- and foot-tied in horrific conditions before being sent to concentration camps or prison or sentenced to death. Thirty-six people died in the camp while four managed to escape. Say no to plagiarism. Get a custom essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay I'm Jewish, I grew up with my entire family being Jewish, and my grandparents always taught me that we let us live in memory so that events like the Holocaust and World War II will never happen again. It is in the same way that the people of Metz cannot and will never forget the suffering endured and the consequences of the two periods which marked this fort, the war of 1870 between Germany and France and the Nazi internment camp. during the Second World War. The reason I mention hope, however, is that living through this period in Metz and being mentally and physically tortured by other humans in a closed underground camp would force anyone to lose all hope, but the French Resistance was politically and morally edifying for the whole country of France. The Resistance planned, coordinated and executed acts of sabotage against the Nazi German occupation of France, giving the country an inspiring example of what patriotism looked like so that others would join the fight against the SS and d other Nazi organizations. As we entered the fort (pictured below) for our early morning tour, I noticed many runners and bikers passing by. I remember at first how strange it seemed to me that a seemingly historically important place, an interrogation camp where the Nazis held prisoners right next to our dormitories, was being transformed into a running and cycling track. At the time, a few weeks ago, it seemed shocking to me to hide the history of the fort and turn the area into a fitness trail. But recently, as I have done more research on the subject and come to appreciate the history of this field much more, my feelings on the subject have softened a bit. I still wouldn't say I'm entirely comfortable taking a lap or two around camp, but I think I understand why people do it one way or another. Part of the problem, first of all, seems to be funding. Everywhere you look, around every corner you turn in this part of the world, there is another historic site from World War II, another Roman ruin. We don't have as many problems in the United States due to our relatively shorter and less extensive history, but with so many historic sites, funding will eventually run out and only a limited number of places will be preserved. The other problem is memory, the memory of a scarred region. I mentioned earlier that, like the Jewish people, the French people.