Former resistance fighters, families of the victims and deportees, as well as students and ordinary residents of Tulle, around 1200 people participated in the late afternoon march in memory of the tragic events of June 9, 1944.
Under the gladioli adorned with a purple ribbon, symbols hung on the balconies and lampposts for the 99 hanged on June 9, 1944, the crowd gathered in the late afternoon in a solemn atmosphere.
Jean Maison, 90 years old, was once again present this year, near the monument of the martyrs in the Souilhac district of Tulle. With the Resistance medal on his lapel, he explains that he has not missed any of the commemorative marches: “At the Haut lieu de Cueille, I have friends.”
Moved to see many young participants from elementary schools, as well as middle and high schools, he asserts that this march of remembrance must continue for future generations: “I continue to tell the young people in schools that they need to know what happened and the fact that some fought for freedom.” A message in the form of passing on the memory that the schoolchildren have understood well. Called to lay the flame of hope at the foot of the Souilhac memorial, they begin the march with seriousness. “It’s the history of Tulle but also of our country,” explains 9-year-old Chloé, while Mathéo, a year older, emphasizes, “It’s important to remember what happened so that it doesn’t happen again.”
Before boarding the bus to the Haut lieu de Cueille, Maguie Clique, Honorary President of the Souvenir Français, recalls with a solemn face: “I was 14 years old at the time of the tragedy. Today, I live in an apartment with a flowered balcony… I have often been asked to tell the story. It had to be done, to speak of the horror…”. Speaking of the horror is also the meaning of the silent march observed, behind the flag bearers and the children, by the families of the 99 victims and the 101 deportees who died in the camps. “This march is a symbol that must endure, especially through the children who are the bearers of memory,” insists Paul Mons, son of a victim and vice-president of the Martyrs Committee.
Before the names of the disappeared are read out in front of the Cueille memorials in solemnity and in the presence of François Hollande, Danièle Picard-Delors, who lost her brother 71 years ago, confides: “It remains a very intense moment of emotion, he was 20 years old.”
