François Amoudruz (7 September 1926 – 21 July 2020) was a member of the

French Resistance The French Resistance ( ) was a collection of groups that fought the German military administration in occupied France during World War II, Nazi occupation and the Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy#France, collaborationist Vic ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Biography

Amoudruz was born in

Albertville Albertville (; Franco-Provençal, Arpitan: ''Arbèrtvile'') is a Subprefectures in France, subprefecture of the Savoie Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, region in Southeastern France. It is best k ...

on 7 September 1926. His father was Director of Contributions Directes et du Cadastre. His mother was a teacher in upper secondary school. He was the younger brother of Madeleine Rebérioux. He began living in

Auvergne Auvergne (; ; or ) is a cultural region in central France. As of 2016 Auvergne is no longer an administrative division of France. It is generally regarded as conterminous with the land area of the historical Province of Auvergne, which was dis ...

in 1934, where his father was transferred for work. He was involved in

Scouting Scouting or the Scout Movement is a youth social movement, movement which became popularly established in the first decade of the twentieth century. It follows the Scout method of informal education with an emphasis on practical outdoor activi ...

with the

Éclaireuses et Éclaireurs de France Éclaireuses et Éclaireurs de France (''Guides and Scouts of France'', EEdF) is an interreligious and coeducational Scouting and Girl Guides, Guiding association in France. The first interreligious Scouting groups in France were founded in 1911 ...

Clermont-Ferrand Clermont-Ferrand (, , ; or simply ; ) is a city and Communes of France, commune of France, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes regions of France, region, with a population of 147,284 (2020). Its metropolitan area () had 504,157 inhabitants at the 2018 ...

. Amoudruz entered the law school in Clermont-Ferrand. However, on 25 November 1943, the

Gestapo The (, ), Syllabic abbreviation, 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 F ...

raided the school and Amoudruz was taken as a hostage after having just turned 17. In December 1943, he was held captive at the

Royallieu-Compiègne internment camp The Royallieu-Compiègne was an internment and deportation camp located in the north of France in the city of Compiègne, open from June 1941 to August 1944. French resistance fighters and Jews were among some of the prisoners held in this camp. ...

. He left the camp on 17 January 1944, being deported to the

Buchenwald concentration camp Buchenwald (; 'beech forest') was a German Nazi concentration camp established on Ettersberg hill near Weimar, Nazi Germany, Germany, in July 1937. It was one of the first and the largest of the concentration camps within the Altreich (pre-1938 ...

. He was eventually locked up at the

Flossenbürg concentration camp Flossenbürg was a Nazi concentration camp built in May 1938 by the SS Main Economic and Administrative Office. Unlike other concentration camps, it was located in a remote area, in the Fichtel Mountains of Bavaria, adjacent to the town of Flos ...

on 23 February 1944. He was assigned to the special commando of

Johanngeorgenstadt Johanngeorgenstadt (, ) is a mining town in Saxony’s Ore Mountains, 17 km south of Aue, and 27 km northwest of Karlovy Vary. It lies in the district of Erzgebirgskreis, on the border with the Czech Republic, is a state-recognized hea ...

, where he was forced to work on the production of

Messerschmitt Messerschmitt AG () was a German share-ownership limited, aircraft manufacturing corporation named after its chief designer Willy Messerschmitt from mid-July 1938 onwards, and known primarily for its World War II fighter aircraft, in parti ...

aircraft. Amoudruz escaped during a

death march A death march is a forced march of prisoners of war, other captives, or deportees in which individuals are left to die along the way. It is distinct from simple prisoner transport via foot march. Article 19 of the Geneva Convention requires tha ...

in April 1945, but was captured and sent back to camp. However, he would be freed by Allied Forces on

Victory in Europe Day Victory in Europe Day is the day celebrating the formal acceptance by the Allies of World War II of Germany's unconditional surrender of its armed forces on Tuesday, 8 May 1945; it marked the official surrender of all German military operations ...

. He returned to

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

on 24 May 1945. He resumed his law studies in

Strasbourg Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...

in 1947 and earned his degree. He started as a trainee lawyer with the Strasbourg bar before working in the Strasbourg public prosecutor's office. Starting in 1950, Amoudruz was involved with a number of associations devoted to keeping the memory of the

Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

alive. He gave numerous talks in schools and universities. He was Deputy President of the Fédération nationale des déportés et internés résistants et patriotes until 2013 and was vice-president of the Fondation pour la Mémoire de la Déportation. He was also a member of the European Centre on Resistance and Deportation and the Concours national de la resistance et de la déportation. François Amoudruz died on 21 July 2020 in Schiltigheim at the age of 93.

Distinctions

* Political deportation and internment medal *

Resistance Medal The Resistance Medal (, ) 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 February 1943 "to recognize the ...

(1947) *Commander of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

(2016)

Publications

*''Le Struthof, le seul camp de concentration en France'' (1995) *''Allocution-témoignage prononcée à l’Université de Strasbourg lors de la cérémonie commémorative du 25 novembre 2010'' (2011)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Amoudruz, François 1926 births 2020 deaths People from Albertville French Resistance members 20th-century French lawyers