Radio Paris was a French radio broadcasting company best known for its Axis propaganda broadcasts in

Vichy France Vichy France (french: Régime de Vichy; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was the Fascism, fascist French state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II. Officially independent, but with half of ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. Radio Paris evolved from the first private radio station in France, called Radiola, founded by pioneering French engineer

Émile Girardeau Émile Girardeau (12 October 1882 – 7 December 1970) was a French engineer, famous for being the first person to patent the original system of frequencies that is used and known today as radar. He was born in 1882 at Luçon, France (the Vendée ...

in 1922. It became Radio Paris on March 29, 1924, and remained so through June 17, 1940, transitioning to state ownership in December 1933 as the premier station in the country. It kept its name from July 1940 until August 1944, but the station was then run by Nazis and French collaborators. From 1940, collaborationist voices on Radio Paris included

Jacques Doriot Jacques Doriot (; 26 September 1898 – 22 February 1945) was a French politician, initially communist, later fascist, before and during World War II. In 1936, after his exclusion from the Communist Party, he founded the French Popular Party (PP ...

and

Philippe Henriot Philippe Henriot (7 January 1889 – 28 June 1944) was a French poet, journalist, politician, and minister in the French government at Vichy, where he directed propaganda broadcasts. He also joined the Milice part-time. Career Philippe Henriot, ...

. From 1942, Jean Hérold-Paquis broadcast daily news reports on Radio Paris, in which he regularly called for the "destruction" of the United Kingdom. His catch phrase was "England, like Carthage, shall be destroyed!", echoing

Cato the Elder Marcus Porcius Cato (; 234–149 BC), also known as Cato the Censor ( la, Censorius), the Elder and the Wise, was a Roman soldier, Roman Senate, senator, and Roman historiography, historian known for his conservatism and opposition to Hellenizati ...

's slogan '' Carthago delenda est''. On September 19, 1941,

Maurice Chevalier Maurice Auguste Chevalier (; 12 September 1888 – 1 January 1972) was a French singer, actor and entertainer. He is perhaps best known for his signature songs, including " Livin' In The Sunlight", "Valentine", " Louise", "Mimi", and "Thank Heav ...

sang in ''Le Poste Parisien'' his last success, "Notre Espoir", composed by his accompanist Henri Betti. Radio Paris broadcasts were intended to counter the BBC broadcasts of ''

Radio Londres ''Radio Londres'' (, French for "Radio London") was a radio station broadcast from 1940 to 1944 by the BBC in London to Nazi-occupied France. It was entirely in French and was operated by the Free French who had escaped from occupied France. I ...

'' by Free French figures like Pierre Dac, who sang the taunting refrain, ''Radio Paris ment, Radio Paris ment, Radio Paris est allemand'' ("Radio Paris lies, Radio Paris lies, Radio Paris is German"), to the tune of "

La Cucaracha La Cucaracha ("The Cockroach") is a popular Mexican folk song about a cockroach who cannot walk. The song's origins are unclear, but it dates back at least to the 1910s during the Mexican Revolution. The song belongs to the Mexican genre. The ...

". On 8 May 1942 its transmitter in

Bourges Bourges () is a commune in central France on the river Yèvre. It is the capital of the department of Cher, and also was the capital city of the former province of Berry. History The name of the commune derives either from the Bituriges, ...

was blown up by the

Resistance Resistance may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Comics * Either of two similarly named but otherwise unrelated comic book series, both published by Wildstorm: ** ''Resistance'' (comics), based on the video game of the same title ** ''T ...

. The station was shut down on the evening of 15 August 1944 by a trained police

commando 40_Commando.html" ;"title="Royal Marines from 40 Commando">Royal Marines from 40 Commando on patrol in the Sangin area of Afghanistan are pictured A commando is a combatant, or operative of an elite light infantry or special operations forc ...

action, as part of the

liberation of Paris The liberation of Paris (french: Libération de Paris) was a military battle that took place during World War II from 19 August 1944 until the German garrison surrendered the French capital on 25 August 1944. Paris had been occupied by Nazi G ...

References

{{Authority control French collaboration during World War II World War II propaganda radio stations Radio stations established in 1922 Radio stations disestablished in 1944 Radio stations in France Nazi propaganda organizations 1944 disestablishments in France Radio in Paris Radio during World War II Public radio in France Defunct mass media in France Fascist propaganda Nazi propaganda radio