French Resistance Facts for Kids

The French Resistance was the name for different French groups that fought against the Nazi German army occupying France during World War II (1939–1945). These groups were made up of brave men and women.

They worked in secret to resist the German control. These small groups, sometimes called "cells," did many things. They attacked German soldiers, published secret newspapers to share information, and gathered important details about the German army. They also helped Allied soldiers and pilots who were stuck in France to get back to Great Britain. People from all walks of life and different religions joined the Resistance.

The Allied armies helped the French Resistance by giving them weapons and explosives. Being a member of the French Resistance was very dangerous. If members were caught by the Germans, they were often hurt and killed. Sometimes, if the Resistance killed a German officer, the Nazi army would kill many innocent French people as a punishment.

The French Resistance played a big part in helping the Allied armies move through France. After the invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944, and the invasion of Provence on August 15, they gave the Allies important information about where the German defenses were. The Resistance also damaged things like the electrical power grid, transportation, and communication networks. During the time France was occupied by the Nazis, the Resistance was a great example of bravery and love for their country.

After the war ended, the Resistance punished about 9,000 people who had helped the Nazi occupiers. This included many members of the Milices, a group that supported Nazi Germany.

Images for kids

The cemetery and memorial in Vassieux-en-Vercors where, in July 1944, German Wehrmacht forces executed more than 200 persons, including women and children, in reprisal for the Maquis's armed resistance. The town was later awarded the Ordre de la Libération.
Identity document of French Resistance fighter Lucien Pélissou
The ruins of Oradour-sur-Glane, in the Limousin region of the Massif Central
Antisemitic laws proclaimed in 1940
Restiance poster showing the increase in size of the resistance and French forces since 1939
Resistant prisoners in France, July 1944
Resistant prisoners in France, 1940
Free French Generals Henri Giraud (left) and Charles de Gaulle sit down after shaking hands in the presence of Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill at the Casablanca Conference, on 14 January 1943.
Communist prisoner in France, July 1944
Artist's impression of a meeting of the PCF (Parti communiste français) central committee at Longjumeau, 1943. Left to right: Benoît Frachon, Auguste Lecoeur, Jacques Duclos and Charles Tillon.
Dimitri Amilakhvari with Free France legionnaires in French Morocco, 1941
"Nicole Minet", a French Partisan who captured 25 Nazis in the Chartres area (August 1944).
A volunteer of the French Resistance interior force (FFI) at Châteaudun in 1944.
German military and résistants, in Brittany, July, 1944.
Resistants from Huelgoat.
Francs-tireurs and Allied paratroopers reporting on the situation during the Battle of Normandy in 1944.
USAAF B-17 Flying Fortresses dropping supplies to the Maquis du Vercors in 1944.
A group of resistants at the time of their joining forces with the Canadian army at Boulogne, in September 1944.
Leclerc's 2nd Armoured Division parading after the Battle for Paris, August 1944.
French resistance fighters in Paris at the Hotel de Ville, 1944.
Veterans of the resistance raise flags at the annual commemoration ceremony of Canjuers military camp.

French Resistance facts for kids

Images for kids

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