The Gravediggers of France at the Château d’Itter, 1943-1945
2013-08
Loading...
View/Download File
Persistent link to this item
Statistics
View StatisticsJournal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Title
The Gravediggers of France at the Château d’Itter, 1943-1945
Authors
Published Date
2013-08
Publisher
Journal of Opinions, Ideas & Essays (JOIE)
Type
Article
Abstract
Discussion of responsibility for the defeat of France in 1940 has been a matter of controversy
and debate among historians of France. Given the importance of this event in French history, which
brought the downfall of the Third Republic, the establishment of the collaborationist Vichy Regime and
Occupation by the Germans, these debates have led to accusations of incompetence and even treason.
One author has called these individuals the “gravediggers” of France. A number of these individuals
were arrested by the Germans in 1943 and assigned to a prison, the Château d’Itter (or Schloss Itter) in
annexed Austria from 1943-45. This imprisonment compelled those whom some see as the guilty parties
to confront one another and assess their own roles in the conduct of French politics leading up to the
defeat and armistice. The paper revisits the way these individuals assessed their roles in the immediate
aftermath of defeat, going back to the atmosphere at the time and a reexamination of responsibilities
through the eyes of the participants. The article concludes that the severe condemnation of these
individuals as “gravediggers” is excessive, reflecting the anger and frustration felt in the immediate
aftermath of defeat.
Keywords
Description
Related to
Replaces
License
Collections
Funding information
Isbn identifier
Doi identifier
Previously Published Citation
Kim Munholland, The Gravediggers of France at the Château d’Itter 1943-‐1945. Journal of Opinions, Ideas, and Essays. August 15, 2013. Article #5.
Suggested citation
Munholland, Kim. (2013). The Gravediggers of France at the Château d’Itter, 1943-1945. Retrieved from the University Digital Conservancy, https://hdl.handle.net/11299/155578.
Content distributed via the University Digital Conservancy may be subject to additional license and use restrictions applied by the depositor. By using these files, users agree to the Terms of Use. Materials in the UDC may contain content that is disturbing and/or harmful. For more information, please see our statement on harmful content in digital repositories.