Post-War Women's Humiliation in France

After France’s liberation in World War II, about 20,000 women

were forcibly shaved and stripped naked,

and had humiliating symbols drawn on their faces

with lipstick and pens.

What crime had they committed?

This real footage records everything that once

happened. In August 1944,

the Allies entered Paris,

“La Marseillaise” rang out in the streets,

people embraced and wept,

celebrating their regained freedom.

But before the celebrations had even ended,

the reckoning began.

Members of the Resistance stormed into Marie’s home

and dragged her into the street without explanation.

A man brutally cut her hair with scissors,

cutting it off,

strand by strand, as it fell to the ground.

The neighbors gathered around,

their shouts, spitting as they yelled, striking

the woman on the wooden stool. This was not a trial

organized by the government,

but spontaneous revenge by civilians.

Four years of suppressed anger and humiliation needed

an outlet.

Women who had had affairs with German soldiers

became the easiest targets.

From Paris to Marseille, Toulouse, Rennes,

and elsewhere, shaven-headed women could be seen.

The official documents stated that they had

maintained improper relationships with enemy troops

during the occupation.

In fact, the German army occupied France for only 38 days,

occupying France,

and more than 1.8 million people surrendered.

Some French women, forced by necessity,

had no choice but to provide services to German soldiers.

Others were targeted simply because they worked as nurses

in German military hospitals, worked near military camps,

or were reported for having questionable relationships.

In many towns, municipal squares after liberation

became sites of people’s tribunals,

where women were taken by local Resistance groups or crowds

onto makeshift platforms,

and publicly had their heads shaved.

In traditional European culture,

hair symbolizes a woman’s dignity and identity,

and shaving it publicly strips away that dignity.

After having their heads shaved, some women were also

forced to parade through the streets, while people along the way

threw small stones and debris at them.

The blows were not strong enough to kill,

but were enough to leave them with nowhere to escape

their humiliation. It is worth noting that

more serious cases could result in prison sentences of six months to a year,

along with the loss of some

civil rights. The charges against these women

varied greatly.

Marianne in Paris had worked as an interpreter for German officers,

while 12 people in Bordeaux

were reported for dancing with German soldiers.

Others had merely delivered vegetables to German

military camps,

or worked as shop clerks in occupied areas.

They did not understand why

liberation had become another kind of occupation.

And among those inflicting the humiliation,

were many who had once fawned over German troops,

or made fortunes by supplying the occupying forces.

merchants,

many of whom were powerless to resist during the war,

even men who kept to themselves also

stepped forward at this moment,

venting all their anger on these

women. Some waved their arms excitedly,

pointing at the women

and commenting to others on their crimes.

Some even brought their children to watch,

treating this ritual of humiliation as

education in national purification.

This was not justice, but revenge.

Historians later called this phenomenon

fanatical purification. Those who had remained silent during the war

were eager to become heroes after it,

so these women became the most

convenient symbol,

a way to wash away humiliation.