The names of 291 French and Swiss soldiers who died for France during the Great War found their place in collective memory on Monday, November 11, on two stelae placed at the Franco-Swiss war memorial in Geneva. The list of these “forgotten by history”born in Geneva or its region, found and identified by the Mémoires association after extensive research in the archives, was presented in the presence of the French minister delegate for Industry, Marc Ferracci, former deputy of the French established in Switzerland and Liechtenstein. .
“The imposing war memorial in front of which we are gathered celebrates the memory of the French people of Geneva and the Swiss volunteers who died for France. France remembers these 883 heroes who attacked enemy trenches, defended our lines and saved the nation.declared the minister. “This monument turns 100 years old and this anniversary is marked by the inscription of the names of almost three hundred more soldiers who died for France. “Three hundred engraved names that each refer to a story, a face.”he stressed.
book project
These combatants were absent from the War Memorial until the Mémoires association, founded in 2020 under the auspices of the Consulate General of France in Geneva, set itself the mission of finding them. they are “many, lost in the archives, waiting for their names to be found”declared Nicolas Ducimetière, president of the association.
The initial objective was to restore the monument and “One of our objectives was to be able to start an investigation to find out if all those missing in action were indeed on this memorial wall”he explained to Agence France-Presse (AFP). “We very quickly realized that the files still contained people who had been left unattended due to the complexity of their situation. French people who died in France but lived in Switzerland, Swiss volunteers, people with dual nationality”he clarified.
The association intends to tell its story in a book based on the memories of Geneva families. He also wants to expand his research to the Second World War, particularly the Swiss resistance fighters who came to fight for Liberation in France.
