The Oradour Martyred Village
The martyred village of Oradour-sur-Glane, a symbol of the atrocities committed during the Second World War, today had benefitted from significant support toward the preservation of its memory. The Ministry of Culture and the Fondation du Patrimoine recently announced the signing of a patronage agreement with Dassault Histoire et Patrimoine, which will secure a financial contribution of one million euros to a restoration project of this Haute-Vienne site.
Contributing to safeguarding history and to our duty to memory.
“The total annihilation of the Oradour-sur-Glane village and its population, the merciless determination of is executioners [have raised] Oradour to the level of ‘archetype of civilian massacres.’” The patronage of the Dassault Group, announced within a few months of the massacre’s 80th anniversary, takes part in securing its history and cementing our duty to remember. Marie-Hélène Habert, Director of Communication and of Patronage of the Dassault Group , explained the importance of this gesture: “There is no progress without memory. To save and to give for heritage is to continue the possibility of collective symbiosis and to afford us a chance of creating a successful future together.”
The support of Dassault Histoire et Patrimoine will reinforce efforts already underway to protect and restore the Oradour-sur-Glane ruins, a site visited by almost 300,000 people annually. This site, classified as an Historical Monument, not only embodies the memory of the 643 innocent victims of the massacre perpetuated by a unit of the Waffen SS on June 10, 1944, but also serves as a universal warning about the dangers of xenophobia and nationalism.
Crystalizing the memories of Oradour-sur-Glane
This secured funding is part of a comprehensive restoration of the site, whose total cost is estimated between seven and 25 million euros. This project, supervised by the State in collaboration with local collectives and the national association of families of the Oradour-sur-Glane martyrs, aims to preserve the most sensitive elements of the village, restore the iconic buildings, and to guarantee the protection of moveable artefacts.
First, the work will concentrate on the restoration of four particularly damaged buildings: a butcher’s, a hardware store, and two barns. This first phase, with a 700,000 euro budget, marks the beginning of a larger preservation process, which will extend over 10 hectares (24 acres) of the site.
A call to action
The Ministry of Culture and the Fondation du Patrimoine have also launched a collection of donations in June 2023 to support these essential works. With more than 220,000 euros already collected, this initiative aims to mobilize a large community of donors, in France as well as abroad. The engagement of Dassault Histoire et Patrimoine, the foremost major national patron of this project, is a call to all those who wish to participate in the preservation of this unique site of memory.
The website of the Foundation remains open to all those who wish to contribute to the collective effort.
https://www.fondation-patrimoine.org/les-projets/village-martyr-doradour-sur-glane/87672
