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Part 2 will be available soon.
The Summer of 1945
5 Parts
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Part 2 will be available soon.
Bastille Day in 1945: Versailles, the city of the Sun King, swept up in republican jubilation
News'1945, A French Summer' (1/6). On Saturday, July 14, 1945, Versailles was celebrating as it had not done in years. But the carefree spirit of some clashed with the return of deportees and the restrictions still in place.
Madeleine Leguedey would never forget that wild farandole dance in front of the main gates of the Château de Versailles. The weather was beautiful that morning of Saturday, July 14, 1945. With her friends Yves, Bernard, Gilberte, Denise and Alain, the teenager spun and zigzagged until she was out of breath. Picking up the pace, the boys led the girls, whose flared dresses twirled with even more abandon.
How they laughed! "Oh yes, that's right, we laughed all the time. I remember that wonderful day so well. Our little group would have fun over nothing at all. We felt so free, you know?" Their joy was understandable. That July 14 was the first since the Nazi surrender was signed on May 8, 1945; the war was finally over in Europe. Using every superlative, the press in 1945 referred to it as either "le 14-Juillet de la paix" (Bastille Day of peace), "le 14-Juillet de la victoire" (Bastille Day of victory), or, in a more patriotic tone, "le 14-Juillet de France" (Bastille Day of France).
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