Memorial at Bretenoux
This is the main memorial, in front of the church, to the dead at Bretenoux on the D940. The two large outer tablets remember those killed by Das Reich on the 9 June1944 and the smaller middle one is for the dead of 1914-18 and 1939-45. On the 9 June, Frederic Holtzmann (from Alsace and listed on the left tablet) was the leader of the F.F.I. and after the war he was posthumously awarded the Médaille Militaire. The action took place on the north side of the bridge, about 200 metres to the left of view. Apart from the 20 members of the F.F.I., note that 13 other civilians, who were caught up in the crossfire, were also killed. (See: Notes on Language and Terms used for an explanation of FFI)
© Michael Williams: revised February 2004