EVACUATION, PHONY WAR
AND COLLAPSE, MAY-JUNE 1940
From 1939 to 1940
On 1st September 1939, Germany invaded Poland. France mobilized its troops right away.
The Alsace and Moselle border zone’s complete evacuation was ordered, spread over an area of about 10 kilometres deep. More than 600,000 residents of Alsace and Moselle were required to leave, carrying as few possessions as possible, abandoning their houses and assets. They are guided towards the host départements, such as Charente, Vienne and Dordogne…
This exodus lasted until July 1940, when the German authorities repatriated the evacuees.