WWII and The French Resistance in Côtes d’Armor, Brittany
Our first trip to our new French village holiday house was only days after settlement of the property had been completed and we had planned a full and varied holiday of purchasing furniture, meeting our neighbours, sightseeing and generally enjoying being in our new French holiday home and fitting it out.
We decided to fly from Australia to Frankfurt, Germany and then make our way to the house in the region of Côtes d’Armor, Brittany sightseeing along the way.
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We had to collect the house keys from the local real estate agent first as the property settlement had taken place while we were still in Australia. Our plans were to collect the keys, get into the house, settle in, do the minor renovations in the attic, welcome a bunch of Australian guests, do some sight seeing and then return to Australia via a short stay in Paris and eventually leave from Frankfurt International Airport doing some more exploring in Germany.
Hiring A Car To Fit All Our Stuff
So with so much planned and plenty of luggage including electrical tools, household linen and a couple of the children's favourite toys and books that we felt would make them feel at home, Paul (my husband) had organised the hire of a station wagon from Frankfurt International Airport.
The vast interior of the station wagon was quickly filled with our stuff, and I complimented Paul on his good choice of vehicle which would serve the multi purposes of luggage hauling, transporting large renovation materials and gardening plants etc and still have space enough for the five of us as passengers.
Persons of Interest in France
Once we left Germany and the further west we headed into France we noticed the increasing stares of pedestrians and other drivers towards us. I couldn’t work it out as I didn’t think we screamed “tourist” from within a vehicle.
Fair enough when we all piled out of the car to get supplies from the boulangerie (bakery) or fill up with fuel at the Carrefour petrol pumps and open our mouths, we told the world we were tourists, but otherwise, what was with the stares! And apart from being tourists we were not doing anything noteworthy, different or illegal.
Stopping at the boulangerie for bread and cakes
This continued to intrigue us as it was so noticeable. The general interest we seemed to create turned then to prolonged stares and whispers when we parked the car in our house driveway for the first time. What was this all about?
With village life slowing down in winter, the arrival of a new family and all their stuff, and of course the pulling down of the À Vendre (For Sale) sign piqued the interest of the village inhabitants. We knew we were being talked about.
Word got round to Monsieur Yves Phillipe, the local Mairie (mayor) of the village and he attended upon us for a surprise visit. He welcomed us to his village and was visibly over the moon that we were Australians. Monsieur Yves Phillipe couldn’t believe that Australians had moved in and he proudly took us all on a tour of ‘his village’. This involved being taken into the depths of the church and clambering up its steeple stairs to view the village from the bell tower, viewing the library and having a tour of his office.
French Resistance Groups in Côtes d’Armor
During this time Monsieur Yves Phillip proudly told us of the fierce resistance that local fighters put up against the Germans who occupied our village; the death of resistance fighters by the German snipper who hid in the church bell tower; the enforced occupation of the large home beside the church by the Nazis; and how the neighbouring woods and lakes became the hiding grounds of organised resistance groups.
It was incredible to think that the church bell tower, that the Monsieur Yves Phillipe opened for our family to climb up, was the same place the German snipper climbed, only to hide in the huge church bell and kill resistance fighters from his vantage point.
We began to understand that the Second World War was very real for the families living in our village and the patriotism they felt for their country still spilt over into quietly harboured distrust or distance from anything German.
All at once we grasped the problem with our hired car and its German number plates. The stares, glances and whispers we’d experienced the further west we travelled made sense. Whilst this saddened us we could appreciate the sentiments of the French men and woman who had suffered terribly under the Germans and found it difficult to forgive, or if they forgave, difficult to forget.
We Are Australian Not English or German!
Taking the issue in hand, we told anyone that wanted to listen we were Australian (not English - still a rivalry going there, and not German) and it seriously made a difference. It also helped that Monsieur Yves Phillipe loved the fact that we had chosen ‘his village’ amongst ‘all the villages in France’ to buy our home, and he spread the word locally that we were from Australia.
From that time on we have only experienced warmth and friendliness from our neighbours and the surrounding farmers and locals. Fresh farm eggs and goats cheese are often delivered to our front door by generous farmers.
We have also never hired a car from Germany again, preferring either to arrive directly at Charles de Gaulle Airport and drive, or take the 'scenic route’ arriving at Heathrow and driving down to Portsmouth where we catch the overnight Brittany Ferries ferry to St Malo. From St Malo it is only a leisurely 1.5 hours drive to the house.
Learning from History
Our kids are learning more of the history and culture of Brittany every time we visit and I know they will be better adults because of it. 'Live and learn always' is one of our family mantras and although we were saddened on our very first stay at our house about the reaction our hire car created, we felt we had no right to judge others who had experienced what we hadn't. If you are interested in French travel or history, then read our articles about Bayeux and its War Museum or the Museum de la Deportation, Paris where I share some very private family history and reflect on WWII.
Hoping you enjoyed my snippet into our French life and the French Resistance in Cotes d’Armor ... Annette xx
