Beaune-la-Rolande internment camp
WWII internment camp for Jews in Nazi occupied France From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Beaune-la-Rolande internment camp was an internment and transit camp[b] used by the German occupation authorities in France during World War II. Located in the commune of Beaune-la-Rolande in the Loiret department, the camp operated from May 1941 to July 1943 and primarily held foreign-born Jews from the Paris region. Its function was to detain, segregate, and ultimately deport thousands of Jews to extermination camps, principally Auschwitz-Birkenau.
| Beaune-la-Rolande | |
|---|---|
| Transit camp | |
 Prisoners in front of the barracks of Beaune-la-Rolande internment camp | |
Location of Beaune-la-Rolande in France | |
| Coordinates | 48.0706°N 2.4300°E |
| Location | Beaune-la-Rolande, Loiret German-occupied France |
| Operated by | |
| Commandant |
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| Original use | POW camp |
| Operational | 14 May 1941 – 12 July 1943[2] |
| Inmates | French, Polish, Czechoslovak, Austrian and German Jews |
| Number of inmates | 6.800[a] |
| Killed | 6.400 deported to Auschwitz |
| Notable inmates | René Blum, Zber, Ralph Erwin, Adélaïde Hautval, Denise Kandel |
Originally established in 1939 to accommodate German prisoners of war (POWs), the site was repurposed following the Fall of France in 1940 to hold French POWs under Wehrmacht control. In 1941, it became an internment centre for Jews, run by the French prefecture under Nazi oversight. The camp was surrounded by barbed wire and watchtowers and comprised 14 barracks guarded by French gendarmes. Prisoners were forced to work both inside the camp and on nearby farms and workshops. In May 1942, direct control passed to German authorities, and large-scale deportations began. Among the victims were over 1,500 children who, after the Vel' d'Hiv Roundup, were held in the camp before being transported to Drancy and ultimately murdered at Auschwitz.[4]
In September 1942, the camp was reclassified as a detention site for political prisoners, particularly communists, before closing in August 1943. Beaune-la-Rolande was one of three major internment camps established in the Loiret region, along with Pithiviers and Jargeau. During its operation, an estimated 6,800 Jews passed through the camp, most were deported to Auschwitz, where they were murdered.[5]
History
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The Beaune-la-Rolande camp was initially constructed in 1939 to accommodate prospective German prisoners of war (POWs). Following the Fall of France in June 1940, the facility was repurposed by the Wehrmacht to detain French POWs pending their transfer to camps in Germany. Along with the neighbouring Pithiviers camp, Beaune-la-Rolande formed part of Frontstalag 152, an internment complex established by the German military on 20 July 1940.[6] A German inspection reported that each facility held approximately 13,000 detainees. A separate investigation by a French humanitarian organisation estimated the number at Beaune-la-Rolande alone to be around 14,000. Many prisoners suffered from dysentery, and by late 1940 French authorities acknowledged that the internees, including numerous colonial troops from Morocco and Algeria, were close to starvation. In addition to POWs, the camps also held French political prisoners.[7] Frontstalag 152 was officially dissolved on 21 March 1941.[6]
In the context of the Vichy anti-Jewish legislation of 1940, the Militärbefehlshaber in Frankreich (German Military Commander in France) requested the internment of all foreign Jews. As a result, Beaune-la-Rolande was converted into an internment centre for foreign-born Jews residing in Paris. The first group of detainees, comprising 1,552 foreign and stateless Jews, mostly Polish men, arrived in May 1941 following the Green ticket roundup.[8] The camp was managed by the prefectural office of the Loiret, although regular inspections were conducted by German occupation authorities.[9] Inmates were housed in 19 barracks and guarded by French gendarmes under German supervision.[10] By the end of 1941, the security force consisted of four officers, 80 gendarmes, 43 customs officers, and 22 auxiliary guards, totalling 120 personnel.[11]
Detainees were subjected to forced labour, both within the camp and on nearby farms and industrial sites. The camp's proximity to Pithiviers, approximately 18 kilometres (11 miles) away, reinforced its logistical role.[5] Between 20 July and 23 August 1941, 313 prisoners out of an estimated 2,000 succeeded in escaping, most during work assignments outside the camp. In the final week of July alone, 85 managed to flee. Authorities attributed these escapes to the negligence of the French gendarmes.[12]
In May 1942, SS-Hauptsturmführer Theodor Dannecker ordered that the German authorities assume full control of the camp from the French administration. Prisoners were no longer permitted to leave the premises or participate in labour, and deportations began shortly thereafter. On 20 July 1942, 1,000 Jews from Paris, predominantly women and children, were transferred to Beaune-la-Rolande following the Vel' d'Hiv Roundup.[8] By early August, 1,500 children remained in the camp and in Pithiviers after the deportation of their parents to Auschwitz. On 19, 22 and 25 August, these children were moved to Drancy and subsequently deported to Auschwitz, where they were murdered in the gas chambers.[4]
In September 1942, the camp returned to French control and was reclassified as an internment facility for non-Jewish political prisoners, primarily communists.[5] It remained operational until its closure on 4 August 1943, when SS Sturmbannführer Alois Brunner, commander of the Drancy camp, and his deputy Ernst Brückler shut it down under orders from Heinrich Himmler.[13]
Deportations
Two principal convoys departed directly from Beaune-la-Rolande to Auschwitz in 1942:[14]
- Convoy 5 – Departed on 28 June 1942, comprising 1,038 deportees: 1,004 men and 34 women.[15]
- Convoy 15 – Departed on 5 August 1942, comprising 1,014 deportees: 425 men and 589 women.[16]
In addition, more than 1,500 children who had been interned at Beaune-la-Rolande and Pithiviers following the Vel' d'Hiv Roundup were held in isolation after the deportation of their parents. On 19, 22, and 25 August 1942, these children were sent to Drancy and subsequently deported to Auschwitz, where they were murdered upon arrival.[4]
Notable detainees
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Several prominent individuals were imprisoned at Beaune-la-Rolande before their deportation or release, including artists, intellectuals, and cultural figures:
- René Blum – A French Jewish theatre producer and founder of the Ballet de l'Opéra in Monte Carlo. He was interned at Beaune-la-Rolande before being deported and murdered at Auschwitz.[17]
- Ralph Erwin – An Austrian-born French composer best known for the song Ich küsse Ihre Hand, Madame. He died while detained in the camp.[18]
- Zber – A Polish Jewish painter who continued producing artwork while interned at Beaune-la-Rolande. Several of his works from the camp survive. He was later deported to Auschwitz.[19]
- Denise Kandel – A French-born sociologist and public health researcher. As a child, she was interned in Beaune-la-Rolande with her family following the Vel' d'Hiv Roundup. She later survived the Holocaust and emigrated to the United States.[4]
- Adélaïde Hautval – A French physician and psychiatrist, later recognised as one of the Righteous Among the Nations. She was imprisoned in Beaune-la-Rolande for defending Jewish detainees and refusing to wear the yellow star. Deported to Ravensbrück and Auschwitz, she provided clandestine medical care to Jewish women. Her actions were posthumously honoured by Yad Vashem.[20]
Commemoration
In 1965, a commemorative stele was erected at the former camp site to honour the memory of the Jewish detainees. A second, more prominent memorial was inaugurated on 14 May 1989. Made of black marble, it bears a gold Star of David and lists the names of victims deported from the camp.[21]
The original stele bears the following inscription in French and English:[22]
Que cette pierre témoigne de la souffrance des hommes
May this stone bear witness to the suffering of men
In 1994, a commemorative plaque was affixed to the façade of the former railway station by the Association des Fils et Filles des Déportés Juifs de France (Sons and Daughters of Jewish Deportees of France). This was the station through which most prisoners were transported to Drancy or Auschwitz.[23]
In 2008, the remnants of barrack no. 4, one of the original sleeping quarters for detainees, were recovered and reconstructed in the courtyard of the Musée-Mémorial des Enfants du Vel' d'Hiv in Orléans. The restored structure serves as a physical reminder of the conditions in which prisoners were held.[23]
In popular culture
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Beaune-la-Rolande has been depicted or referenced in several films and literary works that examine the Holocaust in France, particularly the Vel' d'Hiv Roundup and its aftermath:
- Sarah's Key – A 2010 French drama film based on the novel by Tatiana de Rosnay. The story follows a journalist investigating the Vel' d'Hiv roundup and includes scenes set in Beaune-la-Rolande.[21]
- The Round Up – A 2010 French historical film directed by Roselyne Bosch. It dramatizes the events of the Vel' d'Hiv roundup and the internment of Jewish families in camps such as Beaune-la-Rolande.[24]
- Illusions perdues 1941–1942. Fragments d'une vie en sursis – A 2011 French documentary exploring the experiences of Jewish families interned in Beaune-la-Rolande during the early 1940s.[25]
- Beaune-la-Rolande – A 2003 novel by French author Cécile Wajsbrot that reflects on memory, silence, and trauma linked to the camp.[26]
- After the Roundup: Escape and Survival in Hitler's France – A 2017 memoir by Holocaust survivor Joseph Weismann, who was interned in Beaune-la-Rolande as a child and later escaped. The book served as inspiration for the film The Round Up.[27]
- La petite fille du Vel' d'Hiv – A 1991 autobiographical account by Annette Muller, describing her arrest during the roundup and detention at Beaune-la-Rolande.[28]
See also
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Beaune-la-Rolande transit camp.
Notes
References
Sources
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