Andrée's War by Francelle Bradford White Page A

Pont de Neuilly were unusually full as more and more protestors got off at the Avenue Georges V
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station and made their way to l’Étoile. Others had cycled from the outskirts of Paris to the Place de la Concorde, where they left their bikes and walked.
    The Champs-Élysées, one of the most majestic avenues in the world, waited for events to unfold. The streets emanating from the Étoile had borne witness for the last four months to the gloom of the citizens of Paris since the Wehrmacht had marched down the Champs-Élysées on 13 June 1940. Several buildings now carried the Nazi flag but, worst of all, the swastika was flying from the Arc de Triomphe.
    An atmosphere of rebellion, defiance and resistance reigned as people started singing the ‘Marseillaise’. By late afternoon it was estimated that up to 3,000 students, some as young as fifteen, were there, demonstrating against the German invasion. 4
    The success of the demonstration took everyone by surprise. By early evening, as the Wehrmacht and the Parisian police caught up with events, they began to take control of the crowds and break up the demonstrators. The retaliation was predictably violent and as the police began to break up the crowd, Alain, Andrée and their friends split up and moved away in different directions. Alain moved quickly on to the rue Avenue Georges V. From there he walked down and crossed the Pont de l’Alma. Once over the bridge he successfully made his way to a friend’s flat on the Left Bank where he could stay the night. Most of the French police and German soldiers had stayed around the Place de l’Étoile, chasing people down the main avenues and onto the small streets off the avenues.
    Andrée and Margit moved away from the crowd arm-in-arm and headedtowards the Avenue Klébert. Should the girls be stopped, they planned to explain that they had been out walking along the Champs-Élysées, unawares, when they had been caught up in the demonstration. Andrée stayed the night at Margit’s parents’ place, not returning home until the following morning.
    German soldiers moved in everywhere, breaking up the crowds. The
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stations were shut so that no one could escape to the trains. Many of the protesters were trapped. The soldiers drove their troop cars and lorries into the crowds of demonstrators, shooting indiscriminately. Some students were wounded by gunfire while others were physically attacked by the soldiers. 5 The French police recorded the names of the individuals they had rounded up, while some of those detained by the Germans spent weeks in the Cherche-Midi prison.
    News of the demonstration and the vicious response of the German armed forces had quickly made its way around Paris and Edmond and Yvonne were beside themselves with worry about Andrée and Alain. They sat up all night, unable to sleep. At six o’clock in the morning, half an hour after curfew had been lifted, Andrée walked in through the front door.
    Her calmness over the previous afternoon’s events soothed her parents’ worries, but Andrée had to move quickly. After reassuring her parents that all was well, she had to get ready for work. No one knew whether Alain had been arrested or escaped, nor was there any news of her other friends, although all had previously planned escape routes and earmarked several safe houses they could go to should events turn nasty. Andrée had a quick bath, put on a black suit and ate breakfast. She wanted to get to work swiftly to find out from her police colleagues the turn of events and the number of arrests.
    As the news of the day started to circulate beyond Paris, the young knew the demonstration had been a huge success. They had shown the world their defiance and their willingness to fight for freedom. There were consequences, however. The chancellor of the Sorbonne was made to resign, and the university itself was closed. Those students