Denise Domenach-Lallich (10 October 1924 – 19 July 2020) was a member of the

French Resistance The French Resistance (french: La Résistance) was a collection of organisations that fought the German occupation of France during World War II, Nazi occupation of France and the Collaborationism, collaborationist Vichy France, Vichy régim ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Biography

Domenach-Lallich was the third child in a family of nine children. Her father was an engineer with a local cable company and her brother, Jean-Marie Domenach, was also a resistance fighter. The Domenach family was

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

and part of the social Catholicism movement. Domenach-Lallich was a student in

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...

when the war broke out. Denise Domenach went to live with her maternal grandparents in Bourg-en-Bresse before moving back to Lyon. Jean-Marie joined the resistance with his friend, Gilbert Dru. Denise joined the Resistance in 1940. In October 1943, she entered the

Lumière University Lyon 2 Lumière University Lyon 2 (french: Université Lumière Lyon 2) is one of the three universities that comprise the current University of Lyon, having splintered from an older university of the same name, and is primarily based on two campuses in ...

and was part of the Jeunes chrétiens combattants (JCC). In May 1944, she was appointed as leader of the '' Mouvements Unis de la Résistance''. Wanted by the

Gestapo The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one organi ...

, she went into hiding in

Hauterives Hauterives () is a Communes of France, commune in the Drôme Departments of France, department in southeastern France. It is home to Ferdinand Cheval's self-made Palais idéal. Geography The Galaure flows southwest through the middle of the comm ...

. After the

Liberation of Paris The liberation of Paris (french: Libération de Paris) was a military battle that took place during World War II from 19 August 1944 until the German garrison surrendered the French capital on 25 August 1944. Paris had been occupied by Nazi Germ ...

, she was a part of the Mouvements de libération nationale. At the same time, she met Bernard Lallich, who was awarded the

Croix de Guerre The ''Croix de Guerre'' (, ''Cross of War'') is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was first awa ...

for his wartime service. They married in 1946. She finished school and became a professor of literature. She eventually published her notebooks documenting her Resistance experiences in 1999. Domenach-Lallich received the

Resistance Medal The Resistance Medal (french: Médaille de la Résistance) was a decoration bestowed by the French Committee of National Liberation, based in the United Kingdom, during World War II. It was established by a decree of General Charles de Gaulle on 9 ...

and was a Knight of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon, ...

. An amphitheater at Collège La Tourette in Lyon was named in her honor. In 2018, the

Centre d'histoire de la résistance et de la déportation The Centre d'histoire de la résistance et de la déportation ( en, Center for the History of the Resistance and Deportation) is a museum in Lyon, France. Located on the former site of a French military health school (École de Santé Militaire) a ...

in Lyon presented ''Génération 40, des jeunes dans la tourmente'', which extracted transcripts from her diary.

Family

Denise Domenach-Lallich died on 19 July 2020, aged 95. Her husband, Bernard Lallich, died of

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegeneration, neurodegenerative disease that usually starts slowly and progressively worsens. It is the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in short-term me ...

on 28 October 1991. She co-founded the Rhône-Alzheimer association, and served as its Vice-President for 10 years. She published articles relating to old age.

Publications

*''Demain il fera beau journal d'une adolescente, novembre 1939-septembre 1944'' (2001) *''Les lieux secrets de la Résistance – Lyon, 1940–1944'' (2003) *''Une jeune fille libre : journal 1939–1944'' (2005) *''Gardons l'espoir'' (2005) *''Grand âge, nous voici'' (2009)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Domenach-Lallich, Denise 1924 births 2020 deaths French Resistance members French women People from Lyon Recipients of the Legion of Honour Recipients of the Resistance Medal