Francs-Tireurs Et Partisans
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The ''Francs-tireurs et partisans français'' (, FTPF), or commonly the ''Francs-tireurs et partisans'' (FTP), was an armed resistance organization created by leaders of the
French Communist Party The French Communist Party (, , PCF) is a Communism, communist list of political parties in France, party in France. The PCF is a member of the Party of the European Left, and its Member of the European Parliament, MEPs sit with The Left in the ...
during
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
(1939–45). The communist party was neutral at first, following the
Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
's official view that the war was a struggle between imperialists, but changed to a policy of armed resistance against the German occupation of France after Germany invaded the Soviet Union in June 1941. Three groups were formed, consisting of party members, young communists and foreign workers. Early in 1942 they were merged to form the FTP, which undertook sabotage and assassinations of the occupation. The FTP became the best organized and most effective of the
French Resistance The French Resistance ( ) was a collection of groups that fought the German military administration in occupied France during World War II, Nazi occupation and the Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy#France, collaborationist Vic ...
groups. In March 1944, before the Allied forces returned to Normandy, the FTP was theoretically merged with the other Resistance groups. In practice, it retained its independence until the end of the war.


Background

Germany attacked the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941 in
Operation Barbarossa Operation Barbarossa was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and several of its European Axis allies starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during World War II. More than 3.8 million Axis troops invaded the western Soviet Union along ...
. With this, the policy of the
French Communist Party The French Communist Party (, , PCF) is a Communism, communist list of political parties in France, party in France. The PCF is a member of the Party of the European Left, and its Member of the European Parliament, MEPs sit with The Left in the ...
(''Parti communiste français'', PCF) switched to support for armed struggle against the German occupiers. The National Front (''Front national de l'indépendance de la France'') was created as a
French Resistance The French Resistance ( ) was a collection of groups that fought the German military administration in occupied France during World War II, Nazi occupation and the Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy#France, collaborationist Vic ...
movement in the northern area in June 1941. The ''Front national'' was theoretically independent of the PCF, but in reality it was dominated by the PCF. At first the objectives were mainly political, taking advantage of the unstable situation under the occupying German army. Charles Tillon was put in charge of military matters. On 2 August 1941 Albert Ouzoulias was put in charge of the ''Bataillons de la Jeunesse'', fighting groups that were being created by the '' Jeunesses Communistes''. Soon after, Arthur Dallidet introduced him to Eugène Hénaff, who was responsible for the armed struggle under the direction of Tillon. In October 1941 the PCF decided to unify its armed groups into the '' Organisation spéciale''. Hénaff joined the leadership of the PCF's ''Organisation Spéciale'', where he was responsible for coordinating between the various armed units. He was a member of the ''Comité militaire national'', which became the ''Francs-tireurs et partisans français'' (FTPF).


Formation

Rather than limit armed action to Communists, it was decided to create a non-Communist organization, the ''Francs-Tireurs et Partisans'' (FTP), under the ''Front national''. The FTP was open to non-communists but operated under communist control. The FTP movement was seen as a way to increase the political influence of the Communist Party in the future government of France. A special issue of ''
L'Humanité (; ) is a French daily newspaper. It was previously an organisation of the SFIO, ''de facto'', and thereafter of the French Communist Party (PCF), and maintains links to the party. Its slogan is "In an ideal world, would not exist." History ...
'' in February 1942 confirmed the existence of "partisans et de francs-tireurs" (partisans and free-shooters) to whom patriots should give aid and assistance. Another special issue in March 1942 urged people to form such groups to conduct guerrilla war and help the population defend itself against the " ''boches''". The FTP was created in April 1942, led by Charles Tillon. On 3 April 1942 ''
L'Humanité (; ) is a French daily newspaper. It was previously an organisation of the SFIO, ''de facto'', and thereafter of the French Communist Party (PCF), and maintains links to the party. Its slogan is "In an ideal world, would not exist." History ...
'' used the expression "''Francs-Tireurs et Partisans''" for the first time, and in following weeks reported acts of sabotage of war production and attacks against German soldiers and French collaborators. The paper began using the initials FTP in July 1942. The FTP's mandate was to sabotage railways and factories, punish collaborators and assassinate German soldiers.


Organization

The FTP unified three Communist organizations, the ''Bataillons de la Jeunesse'', the ''Organisation Spéciale'' and the '' Main-d'œuvre immigrée'' (MOI). The FTP national committee was headed by Charles Tillon, commander in chief. Eugène Hénaff was political commissioner of the force until May 1943, when he was replaced by . Albert Ouzoulias was in charge of operations, and Georges Beyer was responsible for armaments and recruitment. , a captain of the reserve, was Chief of Staff. He wrote some of the manuals on tactics and armament, but his main role was to act as liaison between the FTP and the Gaullist resistance groups. The inter-regional and departmental military committees reported to the central organization in groups of three, a basic principle in the communist Resistance. In the field, each group would consist of two groups of three or four men under a commander and his assistant. For as long as possible they would continue to work in their normal occupations, only coming together to undertake an operation and then if possible returning to their normal daily life. Ouzoulias was a proponent of quick strikes against carefully studied targets by small groups of fighters, who would then rapidly withdraw. He also drew up guidelines for urban warfare in which FTP units could attack greatly superior German forces and be protected while they withdrew. Tillon called this a strategy of "drops of mercury", through which the group could use surprise and mobility to achieve transient superiority before disappearing. The FTP-MOI (''Francs-tireurs et partisans – main-d'œuvre immigrée'') was created in the spring of 1942 with four detachments made up of communists of "immigrant" origin. Most of its fighters were Jews from France, Hungary, Romania or elsewhere in Europe. Some were former volunteers in the
International Brigades The International Brigades () were soldiers recruited and organized by the Communist International to assist the Popular Front (Spain), Popular Front government of the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War. The International Bri ...
of the
Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...
(1936–39). Leaflets and publications were issued in Yiddish. Although integrated with the FTP, the FTP-MOI groups retained their autonomy, which caused problems at times. The FTP-MOI were aroused to violent reprisals against the Germans by the '' Vel' d'Hiv Roundup'' in July 1942 in which Jews in Paris and other parts of France were arrested, detained and then deported to be killed in the
Auschwitz concentration camp Auschwitz, or Oświęcim, was a complex of over 40 Nazi concentration camps, concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany, occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) d ...
. The violence of the FTP-MOI in their struggle for survival did not always coincide with the interests of the French people. They received little recognition in France after the war. The FTP-MOI were the target of the notorious '' Affiche Rouge'' poster campaign, which emphasised the composition of the group's membership in an attempt to discredit the Resistance as not "French" enough. The campaign seems to have had the effect of highlighting their feats to the general public as freedom fighters.


History

The military strength of the communists was still relatively feeble at the end of 1941, but the rapid growth of the FTP ensured that French communists regained their reputation as an effective anti-fascist force. Arthur Dallidet was placed in charge of security. Dallidet was recognized talking to a woman in a cafe beside the Reuilly metro station on the evening on 28 February 1942. He was arrested, taken to
La Santé Prison La Santé Prison (named after its location on the Rue de la Santé) ( or ) is a prison operated by the French Prison Service of the Ministry of Justice (France), Ministry of Justice located in the east of the Montparnasse district of the 14th arr ...
, chained, handcuffed and severely beaten. He did not reveal any information, but had been carrying a long list of names and addresses. This led to other arrests including "Betty" ( Madeleine Passot), his most important liaison officer. Further names and addresses were found in Betty's apartment. Gradually the FTP developed a more military organization, with sections, companies and battalions, each containing three lower-level groups. There were often gaps in this paper organization. The FTP complained that the British and Gaullists were deliberately depriving them of arms, although more likely the problem was that they did not have the necessary contacts to arrange delivery. In November 1943 Joseph Epstein, the FTP Chief of Staff, was arrested and subjected to extreme torture, but revealed nothing. This was followed by a major police operation that largely destroyed the FTP's Paris organization. From the end of 1943 the national organization began to intensify preparation for a national uprising to support the expected Allied landings in Europe. By 1944, the FTP had an estimated strength of 100,000 men and women. In March 1944 General
Charles de Gaulle Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French general and statesman who led the Free France, Free French Forces against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Government of the French Re ...
placed all the French Forces of the Interior (''Forces françaises de l'intérieur'', FFI) under the authority of General Marie-Pierre Kœnig, but the FTP retained its de facto independence. During the Allied Normandy Campaign the FTP conducted delaying actions in the center and southwest of France against the German troops who had been recalled to the battle zone.


Liberation of Paris

From June to August 1944 Ouzoulias coordinated the FTP's military action in the Paris region. Ouzoulias and Colonel
Henri Rol-Tanguy Henri Rol-Tanguy (; 12 June 1908 – 8 September 2002) was a French Communism, communist and leader in the French Resistance, Resistance against Nazi Germany in World War II. At his death ''The New York Times'' called him "one of France's mo ...
, who led the
ÃŽle-de-France The ÃŽle-de-France (; ; ) is the most populous of the eighteen regions of France, with an official estimated population of 12,271,794 residents on 1 January 2023. Centered on the capital Paris, it is located in the north-central part of the cou ...
Resistance movement, planned a major rising in Paris which played a vital role during the August 1944 Liberation of Paris. The FFI in Paris led by Alexandre Parodi and Jacques Chaban-Delmas urged patience while Tanguy wanted to start a revolt, being deterred only by the fact that the Resistance in Paris had about 15,000 men, but only 600 guns, mostly rifles and machine guns.Ousby, Ian (2000) 999 ''Occupation: The Ordeal of France, 1940–1944''. New York: Cooper Square Press. pp. 291-292. On 19 August 1944, the Paris police, until then still loyal to Vichy, went over to the Resistance as a group of policemen hosted the ''tricolore'' over the Préfecture de Police on the Ile de la Cité, which was the first time the tricolor had flown in Paris since June 1940. Emboldened, Tanguy and his men started to attack German forces on the Boulevard Saint-Michel and
Boulevard Saint-Germain The Boulevard Saint-Germain () is a major street in Paris on the Rive Gauche of the Seine. It curves in a 3.5-kilometre (2.1 miles) arc from the Pont de Sully in the east (the bridge at the edge of ÃŽle Saint-Louis) to the Pont de la Concord ...
, leading to a mass insurrection as Parisians started to build barricades in the streets. By the end of the day, about 50 Germans and 150 ''résistants'' had been killed and not wanting the Communists to have the credit for liberating Paris, the Gaullist Parodi sanctioned the uprising. Faced with an urban uprising that he was unprepared for, the city's German commander
Dietrich von Choltitz Dietrich Hugo Hermann von Choltitz (; 9 November 1894 – 5 November 1966) was a German general. Sometimes referred to as the Saviour of Paris, he served in the Wehrmacht (armed forces) of Nazi Germany during World War II, as well as serving i ...
arranged a truce with Parodi via the Swedish consul Raoul Nordling, marking the first time that the Germans had treated the resistance as a legitimate opponent. But they skirmished on 22 August, when some German units tried to leave their fortifications. On 23 August, under Choltitz's orders, the Germans opened fire on the
Grand Palais The (; ), commonly known as the , is a historic site, exhibition hall and museum complex located in the 8th arrondissement of Paris between the Champs-Élysées and the Seine, France. Construction of the began in 1897 following the demolitio ...
, an FFI stronghold, and German tanks fired at the barricades in the streets. Hitler gave the order to inflict maximum damage on the city. Among those participating in the fighting were those resisters freed on 19 August Four in a Nordling negotiated prisoner exchange. These included 19 year-old Madeleine Riffaud who on 23 August led the FTP operation that trapped a train carrying loot and munitions from the city in the Buttes-Chaumont tunnel and secured the surrender of the 80 German soldiers aboard. On the 25 August, after an advance unit of General Leclerc's 2nd Armored Division, "'' La Nueve''" (160 men, most of whom were Spanish Republicans) had broken into the city and reached the Hotel de Ville, von Choltitz capitulated. The last FTP operation in the city (in which Riffaud also participated) was on the 26th, an attack on the barracks on Place de la République, whose garrison who refused to accept von Choltitz's order to surrender.


Demobilisation

On 28 August 1944 de Gaulle put Ouzoulias in charge of the FTP and the FFI. In the autumn of 1944 Ouzoulias was charged by de Gaulle with integrating the FTP members with the regular French army. In October 1944 the communist militias were dissolved and the FTP was integrated into General de Lattre's army. In 2019, a surviving member of FTP, Edmond Réveil, revealed details of the June 1944 execution of up to 40 Nazi occupiers, taken during the Tulle uprising, along with a woman collaborator, at , near Meymac. After delay due to the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, forensic examination of the likely burial site only began in May 2023, initially using ground-penetrating radar. 11 bodies had been found at the site in 1967; by August 2023 artefacts had been unearthed, but no further bodies.


See also

*
Free France Free France () was a resistance government claiming to be the legitimate government of France following the dissolution of the Third French Republic, Third Republic during World War II. Led by General , Free France was established as a gover ...
* Lille during World War II * Maquis (World War II) * Military history of France during World War II * Organisation de résistance de l'armée *
Resistance during World War II During World War II, resistance movements operated in German-occupied Europe by a variety of means, ranging from non-cooperation to propaganda, hiding crashed pilots and even to outright warfare and the recapturing of towns. In many countries, r ...
*
Zone libre The ''zone libre'' (, ''free zone'') was a partition of the French metropolitan territory during World War II, established at the Second Armistice at Compiègne on 22 June 1940. It lay to the south of the demarcation line and was administered b ...


Notes


Sources

* * * * * * * * * * * * * {{Authority control French Resistance networks and movements History of the French Communist Party Left-wing militant groups in France