Camp des Milles
Encyclopedia
The Camp des Milles was a French
internment camp, opened in September 1939, in a former tile
factory near the village of Les Milles
, part of the commune
of Aix-en-Provence
(Bouches-du-Rhône
).
area, and by June 1940, some 3,500 artists and intellectuals were detained there. Inmates included men of letters such as Fritz Brugel, Leon Feuchtwanger, William Herzog, Alfred Kantorowicz, Golo Mann
, Walter Hasenclever
, scientists such as Nobel Prize
laureate Otto Fritz Meyerhof
, as well as musicians and painters such as Erich Itor Kahn
, Hans Bellmer
, Max Ernst
, Hermann Henry Gowa
, Gustave Herlich, Max Lingner, Ferdinand Springer, Franz Meyer, Jan Meyerowitz, Franz Waxman
, François Willi Wendt and Robert Liebknecht.
Between 1941 and 1942 Le Camp des Milles was used as a transit camp for Jews, mainly men. Women were at the Centre Bompard in Marseille, while they waited for their visas and anthorisations to emigrate.
As emigration became impossible, Les Milles became one of the centres de rassemblement before deportation. About 2,000 of the inmates were shipped off to the Drancy internment camp
on the way to Auschwitz.
After the war, the site was briefly re-opened in 1946 as a factory.
Since 1993, the sites serves as a World War II
memorial.
In 1995 a movie titled Les Milles commemorating this camp and the events that took place in this camp at the time of the Armistice in June 1940 was made.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
internment camp, opened in September 1939, in a former tile
Tile
A tile is a manufactured piece of hard-wearing material such as ceramic, stone, metal, or even glass. Tiles are generally used for covering roofs, floors, walls, showers, or other objects such as tabletops...
factory near the village of Les Milles
Les Milles
Les Milles is a village, part of the commune of Aix-en-Provence, in southern France.-See also:* Camp des Milles...
, part of the commune
Communes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...
of Aix-en-Provence
Aix-en-Provence
Aix , or Aix-en-Provence to distinguish it from other cities built over hot springs, is a city-commune in southern France, some north of Marseille. It is in the region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, in the département of Bouches-du-Rhône, of which it is a subprefecture. The population of Aix is...
(Bouches-du-Rhône
Bouches-du-Rhône
Bouches-du-Rhône is a department in the south of France named after the mouth of the Rhône River. It is the most populous department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Its INSEE and postal code is 13.-History of the department:...
).
History
The camp was first used to intern Germans and ex-Austrians living in the MarseilleMarseille
Marseille , known in antiquity as Massalia , is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of...
area, and by June 1940, some 3,500 artists and intellectuals were detained there. Inmates included men of letters such as Fritz Brugel, Leon Feuchtwanger, William Herzog, Alfred Kantorowicz, Golo Mann
Golo Mann
Golo Mann , born Angelus Gottfried Thomas Mann, was a popular German historian, essayist and writer. He was the third child of the novelist Thomas Mann and his wife Katia Mann.-Life:...
, Walter Hasenclever
Walter Hasenclever
Walter Hasenclever was a German Expressionist poet and playwright.-Biography:...
, scientists such as Nobel Prize
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
laureate Otto Fritz Meyerhof
Otto Fritz Meyerhof
-External links:* *...
, as well as musicians and painters such as Erich Itor Kahn
Erich Itor Kahn
Erich Itor Kahn was a German composer of Jewish descent, who emigrated to the United States during the years of National Socialism.-Biography:...
, Hans Bellmer
Hans Bellmer
Hans Bellmer was a German artist, best known for the life-sized pubescent female dolls he produced in the mid-1930s. Historians of art and photography also consider him a Surrealist photographer.-Biography:...
, Max Ernst
Max Ernst
Max Ernst was a German painter, sculptor, graphic artist, and poet. A prolific artist, Ernst was one of the primary pioneers of the Dada movement and Surrealism.-Early life:...
, Hermann Henry Gowa
Henry Gowa
Henry Gowa was a German painter and stage designer.-Life:Gowa was born Hermann Gowa in Hamburg. After studying in Munich he established himself as a stage designer, and was active in Munich, Leipzig and Frankfurt...
, Gustave Herlich, Max Lingner, Ferdinand Springer, Franz Meyer, Jan Meyerowitz, Franz Waxman
Franz Waxman
Franz Waxman was a German-American composer, known for his bravura Carmen Fantasie for violin and orchestra, based on musical themes from the Bizet opera Carmen, and for his musical scores for films....
, François Willi Wendt and Robert Liebknecht.
Between 1941 and 1942 Le Camp des Milles was used as a transit camp for Jews, mainly men. Women were at the Centre Bompard in Marseille, while they waited for their visas and anthorisations to emigrate.
As emigration became impossible, Les Milles became one of the centres de rassemblement before deportation. About 2,000 of the inmates were shipped off to the Drancy internment camp
Drancy internment camp
The Drancy internment camp of Paris, France, was used to hold Jews who were later deported to the extermination camps. 65,000 Jews were deported from Drancy, of whom 63,000 were murdered including 6,000 children...
on the way to Auschwitz.
After the war, the site was briefly re-opened in 1946 as a factory.
Since 1993, the sites serves as a World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
memorial.
In 1995 a movie titled Les Milles commemorating this camp and the events that took place in this camp at the time of the Armistice in June 1940 was made.
External links
- Website about the Camp des Milles
- The artists of the Camp des Milles (in French)
- Personal website about the camp (in French)
- Webpage about the camp (in French)