Madeleine Cestari (7 October 1921 – 12 August 2016) was a

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 ...

fighter from France. A member of the Confrérie Notre-Dame network, she was arrested in 1942 and deported to the

Ravensbrück concentration camp Ravensbrück () was a German concentration camp exclusively for women from 1939 to 1945, located in northern Germany, north of Berlin at a site near the village of Ravensbrück (part of Fürstenberg/Havel). The camp memorial's estimated figure o ...

in 1944.

Biography

Born Madeleine Alice Renault on 7 October 1921 FrancaisLibres.net
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Vannes Vannes (; br, Gwened) is a commune in the Morbihan department in Brittany in north-western France. It was founded over 2,000 years ago. History Celtic Era The name ''Vannes'' comes from the Veneti, a seafaring Celtic people who lived ...

to Léon Renault, professor of philosophy and English and inspector general of an insurance company and her Marie Decker, daughter of composer Théodore Decker. Madeleine Renault came from a family of ten. Her brother was

Gilbert Renault Gilbert Renault (August 6, 1904 – July 29, 1984), known by the nom de guerre Colonel Rémy, was a notable French secret agent active in World War II, and was known under various pseudonyms such as ''Raymond'', ''Jean-Luc'', ''Morin'', ''Watteau' ...

, Colonel Rémy and her sister was

Maisie Renault Maisie Renault (13 December 1907 – 7 April 2003) was a French Resistance fighter, a member of the Confrérie Notre-Dame network, she was arrested in 1942 and deported to the Ravensbrück concentration camp in 1944. Biography Born May Renault in ...

. Her other siblings included Isabelle, born on 26 August 1923 and also deported, and Philippe, born 29 March 1915, deported and later killed in Lübeck-Neustadt Bay, 3 May 1945, both members of the Confrérie Notre Dame-Castille network. With her sister, Cestari was arrested in 1942 by the Gestapo. She was imprisoned in Vannes, in the Royallieu-Compiègne internment camp and in

Romainville Romainville () is a Communes of France, commune in the Seine-Saint-Denis department and in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. Location It is located from the Kilometre Zero, center of Paris. History On 24 July 1867, a part of the territory ...

, before being deported to the Ravensbrück concentration camp. She remained there, with her sister, until the camp was liberated by the Soviet Army in April 1945. She died on 12 August 2016 in Vannes.

Honors

* Knight of the

Legion of Honor 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 ...

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 ...

1939-1945 *

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 ...

References and sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cestari, Madeleine 1921 births 2016 deaths People from Vannes French Resistance members