Morvan Resistance Museum

© Vincent Arbelet

The project was born 20 years ago, when Morvan Regional Natural Park submitted a project under the French Ministry of Defence’s nationwide Chemins de Mémoire, or “Paths of Remembrance”, programme. In 2015, in partnership with the organisation Morvan Terre de Résistance - ARORM, which runs the Morvan Resistance Museum, and the local authorities, landscaping and development work was carried out at 21 Second World War remembrance sites (cemeteries, plaques, monuments, stone slabs, etc.) across Morvan Park. The area has been extended in 2022, with the development of a further eight sites by the Morvan Sommets et Grands Lacs Community of Communes.

These landscaping and development works give improved readability and communication to the sites, by means of a recognisable visual identity (figure of the maquisard, rusty-looking material, graphic design, etc.). Each looks at a different theme: the Allies, repression, the maquis, the fighting, etc. The content, in French and English, presents the chosen theme, the events being commemorated and the history of the site, all illustrated with screen-printed photographs. Although they do not constitute hiking trails, the sites are located in villages, forests or by roadsides. Each has its own design, inviting locals and tourists alike to stop and turn their attention to the sites.

Finally, they form part of a wider history and remembrance tourism offering on the Resistance in Morvan, which includes the Morvan Resistance Museum, with its insights into the role and significance of the Resistance in rural areas and the maquis (rural guerrilla groups), and the Dun-les-Places Memorial, an interpretation centre on the history of the worst hit of Burgundy’s Second World War “martyr villages”.

A series of tools are available to aid this discovery of the Resistance in Morvan: the Le Petit Célestin guide, which charts the history of the remembrance sites and maquis groups; a touch table at the Resistance Museum, with an interactive map that allows you to explore the sites and access archive documents; and a map of the sites so you can plan your itinerary, available at wwww.museeresistancemorvan.fr .

© Vincent Arbelet

Exhibitions to see in 2022

• •    at the Morvan Resistance Museum, in Saint-Brisson: Les Enfants de la Résistance (Children of the Resistance), until 13 November 2022. The exhibition, which takes its name from the popular comic-book series, accompanies the museum displays, finding resonance with the different rooms and collections. Aimed at children and families, the exhibition explains in a fun way the major themes of the Second World War and the Resistance.

• •    at the Dun-les-Places Memorial, in the open air, Histoires de fausses nouvelles. Désinformation, mensonge, canular et propagande (Stories of fake news: misinformation, lies, hoaxes and propaganda), until 16 October 2022. By looking at heritage documents, this educational exhibition offers visitors the tools and tips they need to navigate their way around sources, sorting and identifying the relevant information, in order to cultivate the practice of citizenship. Exhibition produced by CLEMI (Centre de liaison de l’enseignement et des médias d’information) and the Bibliothèque Nationale de France.

© Vincent Arbelet  

Find out more:

• www.museeresistancemorvan.fr