French Fascism

Gradually, along with the growing power of Nazism in Germany and Italian fascism, came the growth of a fascist party in France. With sundry few wealthy supporters, with the same catch-cries of nationalism, anti-semitism and the Red menace, the movement grew to considerable proportions.

In 1936 the democratic parties in the French Chamber came together to form the Popular Front. From Liberal to Communist they pledged themselves to stand united in the face of growing fascist activity at home and abroad. Their sweeping victory at the polls indicated how the French people regarded this programme.

There was more than one [unclear: fascis] party in France. One of the smaller of them can only be described as Ger-manophile, so closely did they copy the Nazi model, but the main body was the Croix de feu. It numbered in its heyday about 80,000 members organised on military lines and given military drill and rallies, with perhaps ten times that number of supporters. Their main financial support was the steel king Baron de Wendel, their "leader" Colonel de la Roque. True that the government later uncovered a small arms dump which they confiscated, but the fact that they had large supplies of military material was common knowledge.

1939.—War, long-threatening, broke out the betrayal of the Popular Front by men like Daladier and Blum had been seen in their negative attitude to Spain and Czechoslovakia. The fascists in France grew strong. Their anti-semitic programme was more publicised, their anti-red propaganda more blatant. They counted their strength not in the number of people who supported them, but their power. An arms-king for funds, and Petain was their stooge.

The fall of France was not only a military defeat—it was a betrayal. Deliberate sabotage by military and civilian leaders saw the French army out-generalled and in rout. In the ghastly days that followed, armies of refugees were gunned from the air, and wandered, starved and helpless, over the face of the country. German troops requisitioned or stole the products of the country. The army broken, the government would not act, would not arm the people who wanted to fight the Germans; they hesitated, dithered, and fled. Betrayed by their leaders, the French seemed doomed to be an enslaved people.

General de Gaulle, a young army Colonel at the opening of hostilities, rallied the French people to the banner of "Libre France." Calling together all those who value the freedom of France, be they Catholic or Communist, he stands for National Unity, and for a Free France.

When the Germans came into France, aided by Vichy they sought to suppress the nascent resistance movement, but in vain.

In France today the underground movement has risen to vast proportions. Many illegal newspapers are published—some to the extent of 80,000 copies a fortnight. World-famous men of letters, including Gabriel Perl, editor of I'Humanité, have been victims of the Nazi police.

While bombers of the R.A.F. fly overhead on their way to industrial targets and military installations, Frenchmen set out to do their share by sabotage, destruction of war material and lines of communication. A New Zealand prisoner of war who has recently returned to New Zealand said that on their way across France to Marseilles (where they [unclear: took] ship to neutral Spain) they were held up five times, because the railway lines had been destroyed by local action. When these prisoners got to Marseilles, a French gendarmes, at the risk of his life, with great care and patience managed to send them a message. It read like this:

"Dear Comrades.—We are overjoyed to see you here and we wish you a safe voyage. We await with impatience the arrival of your comrades—we will support them. A bientot (see you soon)."