Occupation of the southern zone


November 11, 1942, the Germans crossed the line of demarcation which, since 1940, separated north from France, placed under German administration military, of the territory on which was exerted the sovereignty of the Vichy government and occupied the " free zone ". Invasion to which the authorities of Vichy gave the command not to be opposed.
The input of the German troops, which made definitively of the treaty of armistice of 1940 a died letter, was indicated as being a response to the unloading of the Anglo-American troops in North Africa. In the morning of November 12, motorized columns of Wehrmacht reached the coast of the Mediterranean and early in the evening, German tanks ran on Canebičre.

November 12 first armoured units
allemandes arrives to Marseilles

Song of Panzer division "Panzerlied"

German armoured tanks on Canebičre
(Tanks Panzer III)
As the sovereignty of the Vichy government was to remain formal, the capacities of the German military commander in France, von Stülpnagel, were not wide officially with the lately occupied territory. Thus, the person in charge of the southern zone was the marshal von Rundstedt, controlling as a head in the west.
Von Rundstedt
To represent the German interests with respect to the French authorities, it installed in Lyon the post of a " commander of the armies of the south of France ".
In the same way, of the organizations of connection were created with the seats of the regional prefects, for example in Marseilles the staff of connection 894 (under the commands of the Mylo General). The 328e division of infantry, controlled by the General von Tresckow, dealt with the military command of the sector of Marseilles at the end of the year 1942 and was subordinated to the command higher than the west and the group of Felber army stationed in Avignon.
The group of Felber army controlled all the Mediterranean coast of the Spanish border to bay of Ciotat.
The navy of war, its side, sent in Marseilles a commander of the port and, as the occupation of the city was economically interesting because of the importance of the merchant fleet, a delegation of the ship-owners hambourgeois under the direction of the police chief in Reich for the marine, Kaufmann, got under way towards the south to confiscate the tonnage of the French fleet.
In parallel, the SS started to settle. Himmler was interested particularly in the development of Marseilles as it arises from the telegrams sent to his delegate, the higher head of the SS and the font in France, Oberg. To mid-December 1942, a regiment of font SS formed especially to this end and controlled by colonel Griese arrived to Marseilles. It was obviously not only to take police measures, but to also take care of defensive military functions in the city. In any case, the SS and Wehrmaeht had already agreed at at the end of December on a task sharing in the military field. Little time after its input in the south of France, Wehrmacht took part, under pretext of fight against resistance and military security, with police measurements which were to move initially against the Jewish population.
January 4, 1943, in reaction to several attacks * armed perpetrated by resistant Communists in Marseilles, the commander as a head in the west issued the state of siege.
In fact, attacks against the occupying forces in France were not any more thing rare at that time. The military administration and the heads SS (who held in hand, since spring 1942, the capacities of the font in the occupied zone) had reacted with reprisals such as for example of the massive executions hostages and the deportation of Communists and Jews, without considering that the security and the command in France were really in danger.
On another side, the French movement of resistance did not have yet, in the population, this significant base that it was to have at the end of 1943 until the release. The Germans themselves knew, that by occupying the southern zone, they should count on some actions isolated from resistance, however they hitherto did not take any measurement of terror towards the totality of the French population, as that was to be the case in 1944.
The execution of the emergency state fell within the competence of the group of Felber army and 328e division of infantry stationed in Marseilles.
The staff of the 328e division of infantry was with the Noailles hotel.


* There had already been, December 2, 1942, of the attacks in Marseilles. The 3 jan­vier 1943, there were again two bombings, an attack was directed against the hotel Splendide, another attack against a house cd. tolerance requisitioned by the Germans. The two actions were carried out by the Marseilles group of resistant of the F.T.P-M.O.I.

According to the newspaper of war of the 33ë division of infantry : "At 19 hours, one deposits an explosive machine in front of the " Grand Hotel " (place of lodging of the staff) and at 21 hours 25 front the Rome hotel and St Pierre (place of lodging of the company of propaganda). Civil French is slightly wounded in front of the Large Hotel and a vehicle of the current events of the company of propaganda damaged in front of the Rome hotel and St Pierre. " (December 2, 1942)

Newspaper of war of the commander of the wearing of Marseilles : ..."The Communists deposited this week and the last week some light bombs without much importance..." (November 30 and December 6, 1942)
- Same newspaper : "21 hours 35, attack on a tram in Marseilles. Seriously wounded three members of the marine and a German sailor of the merchant fleet." (January 22, 1943)