The first ceremony since the disappearance of the last companion of the Liberation. Saturday June 18, Emmanuel Macron celebrated at Mont-Valérien, in Suresnes (Hauts-de-Seine), the 82nd anniversary of the call of June 18. In the presence of soldiers, veterans and members of the government, the Head of State attended under a blazing sun the commemorations of the appeal launched in 1940 by General de Gaulle and gathered in the crypt of the memorial of Fighting France, paying homage to the victims of Nazism.
It is “the first commemoration after the disappearance of the last companion of the Liberation”, Hubert Germain, who died on October 12 at the age of 101, recalls the Élysée. Hubert Germain was buried in the crypt of the Mont-Valérien memorial, the main place of execution of resistance fighters and hostages by the German army during the Second World War. Charles de Gaulle inaugurated the Memorial of Fighting France there in 1960.
In this context, the ceremony was “an opportunity to mark the durability of the values of the order of the Companions of the Liberation and to highlight their transmission to young people, as Hubert Germain had ardently wished”, according to the Élysée. . After the Marseillaise and a review of the troops, the text of General de Gaulle’s appeal of June 18 was read before a rekindling of the flame by the mayor of the island of Sein.
On the eve of the second round of legislative elections, several guests spoke about the election during the greetings at the end of the ceremony. “Don’t forget to go and vote above all”, launched a spectator to the head of state. To another who wished him “good luck for tomorrow”, Emmanuel Macron assured that “commemorating these pages of history encourages us to be very humble, to remind us of what we do by being only a handful “. “We are very lucky, that too must oblige us, he added, duty before the rest. »
For this ceremony, the Head of State was notably accompanied by the Prime Minister, Élisabeth Borne, and the Minister for the Armed Forces, Sébastien Lecornu. Former Head of State Nicolas Sarkozy, Senate President Gérard Larcher and Paris Police Prefect Didier Lallement also attended.
