The Genesis of the 70th Anniversary Stamp
When the Martyrs Committee and the municipality of Tulle wished to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the ordeal of June 9, 1944, by issuing a commemorative stamp, La Poste raised no objections.
The design chosen by the Committee is inspired by the book by ZAD and Didier Jean, “c’était écrit comme ça” (“it was written like that”), featuring drawings and texts intended for younger audiences to learn about this tragic event.
The stamp’s design, in a 40/30 rectangle, symbolizes the horrifying sorting into three human columns of victims designated for hanging, deportation, or release, with the Tulle Arms Factory in the background, the site where this sinister “selection” took place.
This stamp has a face value of €0.66 and was printed in 1.2 million copies at the national printing press Phila@poste located in Boulazac, Dordogne, on April 28, 2014. The technique of photogravure was chosen.
The inauguration of the first day of issue of the “Martyrs de Tulle” stamp took place on June 9, 2014, at 9 a.m. at the Tulle Souilhac post office. The event was attended by Mrs. Soume, chief of staff to the prefect of Corrèze, Mr. Bernard Combes, Mayor of Tulle, Mr. Besseyre, Director of La Poste, Limousin region, and Michel Drelon, president of the Martyrs Committee, along with several other dignitaries.
Throughout the day, philatelic souvenirs (postcards and first day covers) were offered to the public by the Committee at the Tulle Souilhac post office and at the temporary post office set up in the University Popular Room (formerly Marie Laurent Room).
In the early afternoon of the same day, President François Hollande, after attending the screening of Patrick Séraudie’s film “Le silence et la douleur” at the media library, successively visited the two post offices and signed numerous philatelic souvenirs.
