Frayssinet-le-Gélat
Encyclopedia
Frayssinet-le-Gélat is a commune
in the Lot department in south-western France
.
shot and killed a German officer. For this crime, fifteen hostages were taken and assassinated. Most of the hostages were young males from one-child families. This, in the twisted minds of the SS
, was to prevent any further family line of descent. However, five of the hostages were young women. The schoolmaster attempted to escape, and was shot outside the school. Each year, on May 21, many of the villagers gather outside the church for an act of remembrance. Outside the entrance to the local church in Frayssinet-le-Gélat stands a small monument mounted with a stone cross, and a plaque bearing the names of all the fifteen young victims. Another monument to the fifteenth victim stands where he was shot.
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...
in the Lot department in south-western France
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...
.
History
In Frayssinet-le-Gélat, members of the French undergroundFrench Resistance
The French Resistance is the name used to denote the collection of French resistance movements that fought against the Nazi German occupation of France and against the collaborationist Vichy régime during World War II...
shot and killed a German officer. For this crime, fifteen hostages were taken and assassinated. Most of the hostages were young males from one-child families. This, in the twisted minds of the SS
Schutzstaffel
The Schutzstaffel |Sig runes]]) was a major paramilitary organization under Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party. Built upon the Nazi ideology, the SS under Heinrich Himmler's command was responsible for many of the crimes against humanity during World War II...
, was to prevent any further family line of descent. However, five of the hostages were young women. The schoolmaster attempted to escape, and was shot outside the school. Each year, on May 21, many of the villagers gather outside the church for an act of remembrance. Outside the entrance to the local church in Frayssinet-le-Gélat stands a small monument mounted with a stone cross, and a plaque bearing the names of all the fifteen young victims. Another monument to the fifteenth victim stands where he was shot.
See also
- Communes of the Lot department