Les Français parlent aux Français facts for kids
Commemorative plaque at the
Cemetery of Asnelles. |
|
| Other names | Ici la France |
|---|---|
| Language(s) | French |
| Home station | BBC – Radio Londres |
| Original release | 14 July 1940 – 31 August 1944 |
Les Français parlent aux Français was a very important daily radio show. It was broadcast in French by the BBC from London. The show started on July 14, 1940. At first, it was called Ici la France. From September 6, 1940, until August 31, 1944, it became known by its famous name.
After the Battle of France in 1940, France was taken over by Germany. Charles de Gaulle, a French general, went to London. From there, he asked all French people to keep fighting. This was called the Appeal of 18 June.
The radio show helped a lot during this time. It shared real news, unlike the news controlled by the Germans. It also sent secret messages to the French Resistance. This helped keep up the spirits of the French people.
The show's theme music was special. It used the first four notes of Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 (Beethoven). These notes sounded like the letter "V" in Morse code (three short, one long). This "V" stood for victory.
Contents
Who Was on the Show?
Many people helped create this daily radio show. They worked hard to keep the French people informed and hopeful.
- Journalists like Jean Marin and Pierre Bourdan shared the news.
- Designer Jean Oberlé created a famous saying: "Radio-Paris lies, Radio Paris lies, Radio Paris is German." This reminded listeners not to trust the German-controlled radio.
- Paul Gordeaux translated news from other countries.
- Pierre Lazareff helped prepare for the Allied landings in France.
- Other important people included Pierre Lefèvre, director Jacques Brunius, and actor "Jacques Duchesne" (Michel Saint-Denis).
- Later, Franck Bauer, Maurice Van Moppès, Pierre Dac, Maurice Diamant-Berger, and Maurice Schumann joined the team. Maurice Schumann became the official voice for Free France.
General de Gaulle himself spoke on the program about once a week.
Secret Messages and Morale
The radio show was famous for its special messages. These messages were very important during the war.
Personal Messages
At first, the BBC broadcast personal messages. These helped soldiers who were separated from their families. They could exchange news and let loved ones know they were okay.
Jacques Brunius, one of the show's presenters, once said: "This mail is for those who are prisoners in France. This program is about the proud complaint of a chained people, it is the anger of the prisoner who shakes the bars."
Coded Messages
Franck Bauer's coded messages became very well known. They often sounded funny or strange if you didn't know their meaning. But they hid important secrets.
- They sent codewords to prepare for operations by the French Resistance.
- They confirmed that supplies had been received.
- They shared secret information about plans.
- They thanked or congratulated agents for their brave actions.
- They helped agents prove who they were to others they met.
- They also tricked the enemy. The Germans tried to decode these messages, but there were so many. This made it hard for them to find the truly important ones.
The idea for coded messages came from Georges Bégué. He was a French officer working for the British Secret Service, SOE. He was the first SOE agent to parachute into France in May 1941.
About 2,000 SOE agents went on missions to Europe. Many were caught or killed.
Both the French Resistance and the Nazis listened to these messages. The Germans tried to block the broadcasts, but they rarely succeeded. They also found it hard to understand the coded messages. By the time they did, the operations were often already finished.
Messages for D-Day
Before the Normandy landings (also known as D-Day), many coded messages were sent by Radio Londres. These messages told the Resistance when to act.
- On June 1, 1944, a message warned resistance networks to be ready.
- On June 5, at 9:15 PM, another message told them to start their actions that very night.
A famous example was a line from the poem Chanson d'automne by Paul Verlaine. This was used for a plan to sabotage railways.
- On June 1, the message "Les sanglots longs des violons d'automne..." (The long sobs of the autumn violins...) told railway saboteurs to begin their work.
- On June 5, the message "Bercent mon cœur d'une langueur monotone." (Lull my heart with a monotonous languor.) told the Resistance that the railway sabotage operation was underway.
- The same day, another message announced the landings were coming soon: "The carrots are cooked." Another code using vegetables was "Yvette likes large carrots," which meant paratroopers were arriving.
Pierre Dac's Bulletins
Pierre Dac was a writer and comedian. He often made fun of Adolf Hitler and Joseph Goebbels. He started listening to the BBC's French programs in 1937.
When he heard General de Gaulle's Appeal of 18 June, he decided to join him in London.
After the Germans took Paris, Pierre Dac went to Toulouse. He listened to Les Français parlent aux Français every night. His friend René Lefèvre suggested he join the show's team in December 1940.
Pierre Dac was arrested in Barcelona and imprisoned on his way to London. He finally arrived in 1943 and read his first text on October 30.
His first speech was very popular. Listeners loved it and wanted to hear it again. He then wrote new texts, often making fun of German radio and their failures. He also wrote songs to encourage France against the invaders.
In January 1944, when victory seemed close, he read an optimistic text. It ended with: "Happy New Year, my dear friends, good victory, and see you soon." A few weeks later, after the Siege of Leningrad where the Germans suffered a huge defeat, Radio Paris tried to hide how bad it was. Pierre Dac joked: "So, you need to ask, who's crazy? Is it Radio Paris or me?"
On May 10, 1944, there was a funny exchange between the radio stations. Philippe Henriot on Radio Paris called Pierre Dac a Jew who fled France without caring about its fate. The next day, Pierre Dac calmly replied, explaining that his brother had died fighting for France. Henriot kept insulting him, but Dac stayed calm.
On the day of the Normandy landings, General de Gaulle gave a speech on the BBC. He met Pierre Dac for the first time and they greeted each other warmly. On September 1, General de Gaulle wrote a letter thanking the team for helping to achieve victory.
On August 14, 1944, Pierre Dac left the station. He felt his mission was complete.
See also
- Radio Londres
- Honneur et Patrie, the show that came before Les Français parlent aux Français
