Paris between two world wars (1914-1945)

On June 28, 1914, the Austro-Hungarian Crown Prince and his wife were shot dead in Sarajevo. As a result, Europe quickly descended into world war, due to a series of alliances that forced each power to mobilize to help its ally. France, which was allied with Russia and Britain, found itself facing Germany, which sought the help of its ally Austria-Hungary. Sounds complicated? Maybe this song will help you understand:

At the outbreak of war, Germany invaded Belgium and from there continued its outflanking movement south. The French and British armies were surprised, and the German army arrived very close to Paris, in what seemed like a rerun of the war of 1870. However, by then, General Gallieni, the military governor of Paris, had gathered a significant military force and, thanks to the taxi drivers of the City of Lights , was able to lead the troops to the front of the Marne River. This move, which was dubbed the “Miracle on the Marne,” allowed the French army to attack the German flank and drive the enemy away from Paris (the taxi drivers, by the way, were not shy about charging the soldiers full fare).

The result of the Battle of the Marne was the entrenchment of both sides along a front line that stretched from the Atlantic Ocean to the Swiss border, transforming the war from a war of movement into a static war of trenches. Over the next four years, France paid a terrible bloody price, losing millions of soldiers and civilians, including prominent intellectuals such as the writer Charles Peggy and the poet Guillaume Apollinaire , who was seriously wounded in battle and died of the Spanish flu on the last day of the war.

Paris itself was largely unscathed for most of the war, as the fighting took place far from it. However, in early 1918, the Germans launched their Spring Offensive, and their long-range guns (the “Paris Cannon”) began shelling the city. The result was hundreds of deaths and damage to several buildings. The most famous incident was a shell hitting the church of Saint-Gervais during Good Friday services, killing dozens of worshippers and destroying the church’s roof.

But none of this helped the Germans. The entry of the United States into the war tipped the balance, and within a few months the German armies were forced to retreat and finally request an armistice, which came into effect on November 11, 1918, at 11:00 AM.

Paris between the two world wars (1918-1939): “The Crazy Years”

The period between the two world wars was rightly called in Paris, “The Merry Years” or “The Mad Years” (Les Années folles). After four years of war and bereavement, the city felt a strong need to be happy again. The Parisians were joined by many Americans who had arrived in Europe during the war and decided to stay in Paris, thanks to the strong dollar that allowed them to live in the city with a high standard of living and a low price.

The most famous example is the writer Ernest Hemingway , who spent his best years in Paris, and described them in his book “A Traveling Celebration.” Paris attracted Americans not only because of its low cost and joie de vivre, but also because of its liberality. As a result, many African Americans, who had suffered from racism in the United States, settled there and brought jazz music with them. The new music became an immediate hit, and to this day, the city can still boast fine jazz and blues clubs.

In general, during this period the Left Bank, and especially the Montparnasse district, became the center of Parisian bohemia. Artists and writers gathered in the district's famous cafés, many of which, such as Le Dôme, La Coupole, and La Closerie des Lilas, still exist today.

However, it is important to remember that that period, which saw such a significant cultural flourishing, was also characterized by deep political polarization, which was one of the reasons for the collapse of France in World War II. French society was divided between an extreme left and an equally extreme right. The left, which included socialists and communists, opposed capitalism, which they believed caused war and widespread poverty. They were joined by the Dadaists and later the Surrealists, who advocated pacifism and opposed the bourgeois lifestyle.

Opposing them were right-wingers who saw the fascist movement that had emerged in Italy as a model to emulate, and who sought to protect France from the “Red Peril.” As a result, the political system suffered from chronic instability. In 1934, there was even a real fear of a fascist coup, similar to Mussolini’s “March on Rome.” In response, the socialists and communists united to form a “Popular Front,” which won the elections and brought Leon Blum to power.

Blum's government did not last long, but it managed to bring about significant changes in French labor laws. Among other things, the workweek was shortened, and workers were granted, for the first time in French history, paid annual leave. This reform completely changed the face of tourism in France, and enabled mass tourism throughout the country.

World War II (1939-1944): An indelible stain on Paris and France

While the French continued to fight among themselves, Nazi Germany grew stronger. In 1939, after annexing Austria and Czechoslovakia, Germany invaded Poland. As a result, France and Britain were forced to declare war on Germany.

The French entered the war without enthusiasm, entrenching themselves in the “Maginot Line” – a massive chain of fortifications designed to protect France’s eastern border. But the Germans outmaneuvered the French, and in May 1940 invaded France through the Ardennes Forest, bypassing the Maginot Line. The result was a morale collapse that led to a rapid military collapse. Within weeks, the Germans had reached Paris.

The defeated army demanded surrender. The government resigned, and Marshal Pétain, a hero of World War I, came to power. But despite the hopes pinned on him, Pétain chose to surrender to the Nazis. As a result, Paris became part of the German occupation zone, while the south of France became a fascist puppet state headed by Pétain (“Vichy France”).

Charles de Gaulle, a relatively junior officer, refused to accept the surrender. He fled to London and founded “Free France,” an organization whose role was to continue the war with the Germans. However, in practice, de Gaulle was mainly concerned with harassing Churchill and Roosevelt, and his military contribution to the liberation of France was negligible.

French Jewry is being systematically exterminated

The years of occupation were some of the most difficult for Paris. The longer the war dragged on, the heavier the Nazis' grip on its inhabitants. But while the French suffered mainly from deprivation and humiliation, the Jews of Paris faced the threat of extermination.

In accordance with the “Final Solution,” the “Ministry of Jewish Affairs” was established in Paris, ironically located in a pastoral square near the Place de Victoire. In this office, the extermination of the Jews of Paris was planned in detail.

In July 1942, the French police raided the homes of the city's Jews, arrested thousands of them, including children, and gathered them in the Vélodrome d'Hiver (or 'Vel d'Hiver' for short), a bicycle racing stadium in the 15th arrondissement . Many died there in appalling sanitary conditions. Those who survived were sent to the Drancy concentration camp, and from there to extermination camps in Poland.

Today, you can see black memorial plaques on the walls of many schools, indicating the number of Jewish students who studied there and were sent to their deaths. Make no mistake, this is not an initiative of the French government, which until President Chirac's speech in 1995, even denied its responsibility for the Holocaust. It is an initiative of a private organization, working to preserve the memory of the large Jewish community that lived in Paris, of which only a few survived.

And what about the “Resistance,” you ask? Indeed, many French people joined the underground. The problem is that most of them did so only after the liberation.

Films about Paris between and during the two world wars

Chapters from "Once Upon a Time"

There is one chapter in "Once Upon a Time" that deals with the period between the two world wars, and World War II itself:

Films about the period

The first film, starring Audrey Tautou, is called “Long Years of Engagement,” and it is about a woman trying to decipher what happened to her fiancé in the trench battles of World War I. A wonderful film with a fascinating plot and excellent acting (the director is Jean-Pierre Genet, who also directed Amelie , and the special style of photography is evident here as well).

The second film is Woody Allen's immortal film, "Midnight in Paris," part of which takes place in Paris during the "Joyful Years" and introduces us to the community of American writers and artists who lived in the city at that time, led by Hemingway and Gertrude Stein.

The third film is “Faubourg 36,” a great musical that depicts the Parisian chanson scene in the 36s. Although the music and songs sound authentic to the period, they were all written specifically for the film.

And finally, it is impossible not to recommend the film “Diplomacy” (2014), which depicts the efforts to prevent the destruction of Paris in the final days of the German occupation.

Want to read more about the history of Paris?

You are invited to move on to the next chapter in the history of Paris series and learn about additional periods in the history of the City of Lights.

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