When Strasbourg was evacuated, my family moved to Rennes (Britanny), where I spent 2 years studying the law.
In 1941, I clandestinely crossed the frontier with Zone Sud* and joined the Strasbourg French University now established in Clermont-Ferrand.
I was allowed to study in the third year by way of "numerus clausus". This particular situation had a consequence: on the very first day, in the University restaurant, my comrades introduced me to Jean-Paul Cauchi, a student in literature. He was 20 years old, born in Mulhouse (Alsace). He was a very tall, with a little stoop, a smooth black hair, an arched nose fitted with thick glasses behind which his eyes sparkled mischievously.
He was a "Gergoviote". I was immediately part of the small group of students he animated.
We were all very upset by the annexion of Alsace-Lorraine and we sought every possible way to show our opposition to the Germans. To tell the truth, in the beginnings the means were more than modest and belonged to the students folklore: songs in the streets, graffitis and small posters applied on the walls with the moto : "You will not have Alsace and Lorraine", together with stinking "bombs" thrown in the meetings held by the Jacques Doriot (a pro-nazi politician) followers.
Towards the end of 1941, tree Movements of Resistance: Combat, Libération, Franc-Tireur * started publishing clandestine newspapers. They approached us through various contacts including our teachers, and asked us to ensure the distribution of their press.
The "Combat" newspaper resulted from the merging of Henri Frenay's "Vérité" (Truth) and "Liberté" (Freedom). The latter was edited by a group of Law teachers, among them Alfred Coste-Floret. We distributed the first issue, which was printed in Clermont-Ferrand in December 1941.
The first issue of "Libération" was printed in July 1941 in La Bourboule. It was introduced to the University by Jean Cavailles, a teacher in literature.
"Franc Tireur" was first published in December 1941. It was introduced in the students' circles by Marc Gerschel.
Besides, these Movements of Resistance tried to create Student Sections within the University. But, since both Jean Cavailles and Marc Genshel had to leave Clermont-Ferrand, Libération and Franc-Tireur had to stop
their projects.
Past January 1942, the University section of Combat only remained and got structured. It had been created at the end of 1941 by Alfred Coste-Floret, with Jean-Paul Cauchi as the organiser.
Cauchi organised "Combat Universitaire" on the replica of the mother Combat organisation, i.e. both highly structured and closely partitioned. There was an "Action Section", led by an assistant called Sturdze, a student in literature, and a "Propaganda Section" which was entrusted to Feuerstein, nicknamed Faillot, a Law student.
Cauchi asked me to be his liaison officer.
 Group of students (the author is 2nd from the left) |
Our appointments were endorsed in November 1942 by Henri Ingrand, the Chief for Combat Region 6 (Puy-de-Dôme)
The Propaganda Section's role was to keep everybody's morals high by collecting and distributing the various publications of the Resistance and some other occasional printings. Our group was made of 4 permanent members, all of us Law students : Jacques Feuerstein, Leon Greisammer, Joseph Fertig and myself. Others occasionally helped. We recruited them easily among our university fellows, either Alsacians and Clermontois. Two of them proved so over zealous that they were pointed out by the Vichy police and ended the night in the police station.
The Action Section had regular contacts with the Combat paramilitary groups established under Henri Frenay's directions. These groups were, on the one hand, the "Secret Army" led by Pierre-Marie Dejussieu and Jean Chappat, which prepared secretly for a future call up and, on the other hand, the "Groupes Francs " led by Jean Renouvin and Pierre Thiebaut, which prepared specific and spectacular operations. Thus, the window panes of a store, place de Jaude, were blown out, the reason being that it had on display the Monitor, the government newspaper. More seriously, the first hand-made explosive was manufactured by Guibert, an assistant in the Institute of chemistry. It was launched by Teddy Piat, a student, against the building where lived the man in charge of the Doriot Association, during the night preceeding the lst of May 1942.
THIRD PHASE : NOVEMBER 1942 - THE GERMANS OCCUPY THE "ZONE SUD* - THE MUR "MOUVEMENTS UNIS DE RÉSISTANCE" ARE CREATED
RETURN TO CHAPTER ONE