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    The lost generation of Oradour-sur-Glane
    Robert Pike
    • Nov 23, 2021

    The lost generation of Oradour-sur-Glane

    Originally published on French History Network Blog When a single singed page landed at his feet, having drifted down from the...
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    The Girl in the School Photograph
    Robert Pike
    • May 16, 2021

    The Girl in the School Photograph

    There are far more personal stories attached to Oradour-sur-Glane than I was able to fit into a single volume. Now that the book, Silent...
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    Silent Village launch
    Robert Pike
    • May 9, 2021

    Silent Village launch

    I first visited Oradour-sur-Glane in 1993. My mother was an A level History teacher and my parents were Francophiles. It followed that I...
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    The teacher, the mother and Oradour
    Robert Pike
    • Mar 19, 2021

    The teacher, the mother and Oradour

    Louise Bardet never got to eat lunch with the elder of her two children on 10 June 1944. That morning the sky had been grey and the air...
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    The Welsh Silent Village
    Robert Pike
    • Jun 29, 2020

    The Welsh Silent Village

    Two years to the day before Oradour-sur-Glane was destroyed by the SS Das Reich (the subject of my own upcoming book, Silent Village)...
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    The Road to the Silent Village
    Robert Pike
    • Jun 10, 2020

    The Road to the Silent Village

    On June 10 1944 The French village of Oradour-sur-Glane was destroyed by the SS. Here Robert Pike previews his next book 'Silent Village
    2 comments
    The Resistance: Maryse and Monette – agents and life-savers
    Robert Pike
    • May 24, 2019

    The Resistance: Maryse and Monette – agents and life-savers

    In April 1943 two young French men, both of Eastern European-Jewish heritage, struck up a friendship with Maryse Nicolas and Monette...
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    The footballer and his band of killers
    Robert Pike
    • Feb 12, 2019

    The footballer and his band of killers

    Alexandre Villaplane and the 'Phalange nord-africaine' in the Dordogne. Alexandre Villaplane described the day he led the French national...
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    The changing face of Vichy
    Robert Pike
    • Oct 4, 2018

    The changing face of Vichy

    In 1971 Marcel Ophuls released a film that sparked a change in how France viewed the occupation. Four hours long, it upset the...
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    Vichy and the occupation in film
    Robert Pike
    • Aug 30, 2018

    Vichy and the occupation in film

    Cinema is important to the French. As the birthplace of the motion picture, the country shares a special relationship with the medium....
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    Archive interview with SOE agent Jacques Poirier
    Robert Pike
    • Aug 21, 2018

    Archive interview with SOE agent Jacques Poirier

    Jacques Poirier was a Frenchman who joined Maurice Buckmaster's F section of the Special Operations Executive (S.O.E) in London. He was...
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    Lucie Aubrac's views on the beginnings of the Resistance
    Robert Pike
    • Sep 1, 2017

    Lucie Aubrac's views on the beginnings of the Resistance

    The development of the Resistance accelerated greatly due to military developments well outside the sphere of influence of the...
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    Prof. Rod Kedward and Patrice Rolli
    Robert Pike
    • Aug 26, 2017

    Prof. Rod Kedward and Patrice Rolli

    I recently spent an extremely profitable not to mention enjoyable day at the Brighton home of Rod Kedward, Emeritus Professor of History...
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    Where it all began...?
    Robert Pike
    • Aug 24, 2017

    Where it all began...?

    I was lucky enough to meet Jacques de la Bardonnie at his Château Laroque, overlooking the picturesque village of...
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    Resistance of the 'first hour'
    Robert Pike
    • Aug 22, 2017

    Resistance of the 'first hour'

    I first met Ralph Finkler in 1996 and was delighted to catch up with him again on two occasions recently. His story led to my deep...
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