Marie-José Chombart de Lauwe facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Marie-José Chombart de Lauwe
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Marie-José Chombart de Lauwe in 2007
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| Born | 31 May 1923 Paris, France
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| Nationality | French |
| Occupation | French resistance fighter, sociologist and militant for the protection of human rights |
Marie-José Chombart de Lauwe (born May 31, 1923) is a brave French freedom fighter and a smart sociologist. During World War II, she joined the French Resistance. This was a secret group fighting against the Nazi occupation.
She was arrested in 1942 and held in different prisons. Later, she was sent to a concentration camp called Ravensbrück. There, she was forced to work in a factory and in a special room for babies. In 1945, she was rescued by the Swedish Red Cross. After the war, she became a well-known sociologist. She also worked hard to protect human rights around the world.
Contents
Early Life and Growing Up
Marie-José Chombart de Lauwe was born in Paris, France, on May 31, 1923. Her mother, Suzanne, was a midwife. Her father, Adrien, was a children's doctor. Her father had been hurt during World War I.
When she was young, Marie-José spent her holidays on the island of Bréhat in Côtes-d'Armor. Her grandmother lived there. In 1936, her family moved to Bréhat. Marie-José was 12 years old and continued her studies from the island by mail.
In 1940, when she was a high school student, she heard a very important speech. It was from Philippe Pétain, who announced that France would surrender to Germany. This was a sad and scary time for many French people.
Joining the Resistance
Marie-José Chombart de Lauwe was only 17 when she joined the Resistance. This was a secret movement fighting against the German army that had taken over France.
In the summer of 1940, German soldiers arrived in Bréhat. They took over many houses. Marie-José's family listened to news from London on a hidden radio. She, her mother, and her father all joined the Resistance. Marie-José became a messenger. She knew how dangerous this was. She said, "Even though I was young, I wasn't naive. People were executed very quickly. We knew the risks."
In 1941, she started studying medicine in Rennes. She got a special pass that let her travel to the coast to see her parents. She used this pass to carry secret information. She would hide important messages in her anatomy notebooks.
She was part of a Resistance group called 'the Bande à Sidonie'. This group helped British pilots who had been shot down. They also sent secret information about German defenses to London.
Arrest and Imprisonment
In Rennes, members of her group met at a cafe. In 1941, many Resistance fighters on the coast were arrested. Sadly, a new person who joined their group was actually working for the Germans.
Marie-José Chombart de Lauwe was arrested at her home on May 22, 1942. She quickly wrote a note on her kitchen table: "I've been arrested. Tell family and friends."
She was first held in prisons in Rennes and Angers. There, she saw her parents and other members of her Resistance group. They had all been arrested too.
Deportation to Ravensbrück
Marie-José was then moved to La Santé Prison in Paris. The Gestapo, the German secret police, questioned her. In prison, she met other brave Resistance fighters. She was able to talk to a neighbor through the toilets. This neighbor, France Bloch-Sérazin, was a Resistance fighter who made explosives. Marie-José said about her time in prison, "At La Santé, I experienced human greatness."
She was later taken to another prison and sentenced to death. But her sentence was changed to 'NN' deportation. 'NN' stood for Nacht und Nebel, meaning 'night and fog'. This meant she was a political prisoner. She would not be allowed to contact the outside world. Also, her burial place would be kept secret.
On July 26, 1943, she was sent by train from Paris to the Ravensbrück concentration camp. Her mother and 56 other French women were in the same train car. When they arrived, these 58 women were put in a special section of the camp.
Marie-José was given the prisoner number 21706. She was forced to work in the camp's Siemens factory. She and her friends secretly made small gifts for other prisoners. These gifts were very dangerous to make. But they wanted to "remain thoughtful and thinking beings by offering something on birthdays, even a poem."
On February 24, 1944, her father died at the Buchenwald concentration camp. Marie-José only learned about his death after the war ended.
The Kinderzimmer
In the summer of 1944, Marie-José was assigned to the Kinderzimmer. This means "children's room" in German. It was a special section in Ravensbrück for newborn babies. More and more children were being born in the camp in 1944. Before this, mothers often died before giving birth, or the babies were killed.
The Kinderzimmer was a small room with two bunk beds. It was meant for up to 40 babies. There was no hygiene, no diapers, and no baby bottles. The women in the camp tried to find some laundry, small bottles, and milk. But out of 500 babies born at Ravensbrück, only 31 survived. Most of these survivors were born just before the camp was freed.
Marie-José also saw Nazi doctors perform terrible medical experiments. These experiments were done on young Polish Resistance fighters. After the war, she spoke out against Fritz Suhren. He was the commander of the Ravensbrück camp. He was later executed for his terrible crimes.
On March 2, 1945, Marie-José and other 'Nacht und Nebel' prisoners were moved to Mauthausen concentration camp. They were finally freed on April 21. They were taken to Switzerland by the International Red Cross. This happened after a deal between Heinrich Himmler and Folke Bernadotte of the Swedish Red Cross. This rescue operation was called the 'white bus' operation.
Life After the War
After being freed, Marie-José Chombart de Lauwe arrived in Paris on May 1, 1945. She then went back home to the island of Bréhat. She worked on getting her strength back, both mentally and physically.
She went back to her medical studies. She married Paul-Henry Chombart de Lauwe and they had four children. She also became active in fighting against torture during the Algerian War. In 1954, she joined the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS). She worked with a famous child psychiatrist.
Marie-José is a member of the League of Human Rights. She also helps lead a group for deported and interned Resistance fighters. Since 1996, she has led the Foundation for the Memory of Deportation. She took over this role from Marie-Claude Vaillant-Couturier, whom she had met in prison.
With her husband, Marie-José Chombart de Lauwe did important research in sociology. Her work focused on the lives of women and children.
Awards and Honors
- Grand-croix de la Légion d'honneur in 2021; Grand officier in 2008.
- Médaille de la Résistance française. March 31, 1947.
