On Sunday, in Chateaubriant, was the the 73rd Anniversary of the Fusillades de la Sabilere, which is in memory of the tragedy that happened on the 27th October 1941 when 27 men, including Guy Moquet the youngest at just 17 years old were taken from the Camp Chisel in Chateaubriant on the back of trucks and were shot. This was done on the orders of hitler as an Officer had been shot by the resistance in Nantes, and this was in retaliation and to send a strong message to the resistance.
After they were shot, on the outskirts of Chateaubriant, there bodies were taken to the chateau, placed into coffins and then buried in unmarked graves in neighbouring villages around Chateaubriant.
The proceedings started with a marching band leading the way, followed by the numerous dignitaries representing the local mairie, The Loire Atlantique, the Communist Party, CGT Union etc. After the laying of the flowers and the period of silence, the formalities ended with The Marseilles.
Attention then switched from the memorial to the large stage area that had been erected, where after the introductory speeches followed a show in several parts charting the recent history of France.
I managed to take some photos as you can see, and if you get chance to go and see the memorial, it is very peaceful and a fitting memory to these brave men that were murdered. I also managed to take some video of some parts of the show, and will upload these in a day or two.
