The town of Saint-Raphaël is offering visitors the chance to discover a dozen remarkable historic sites, spread over 23km, from the town centre to the Trayas district. The sites cover a wide range of little-known topics, including the resistance of the people of Saint-Raphaël to the occupying forces, the bombardments in preparation for the landings, the role of the Estérel coast in the Resistance, and the Allied landings on 15 August 1944. Each site has an information table, accessible to people with reduced mobility. A QR code takes you to a website in 5 languages giving details of the route. Together, they form a coherent and attractive route, a genuine way of passing on the memory to younger generations. The town of Saint-Raphaël was part of the Camel zone, one of the three theatres of the Provence Landings on 15 August 1944 (Operation Dragoon). Along with Normandy, these landigs played a decisive role in the fall of the Nazi state and the end of the war. For its role during the war, the town of Saint-Raphaël was named in the Order of the Division, and awarded the Croix de Guerre with Silver Star.The route, which largely follows the main road, is accessible to walkers and mountain bikers.

France

Saint-Raphaël

Pourrousset Beach

Boulouris National Necropolis

Remains of Flak at the Pointe de l'Observatoire opposite Anthéor 

US soldiers and the Île d'Or

Saint-Raphaël: le Chemin de Mémoire

The Saint-Raphaël memory trail

As early as 25 June 1940, handwritten flyers calling on people to listen to the BBC and warning against the armistice were thrown into the streets. These were the first signs of the Resistance. In the summer of 1940, Pierre-Jean Herbinger (Bressac), director of the Malpasset mines, created the Dumas/Nilo/Mithridate military intelligence network, which was national in scope (consisting of nearly 2,000 agents).In 1942, the ‘Réseau Carte’ (maps network) organised clandestine embarkation and disembarkation operations at night in the Agay, Anthéor and Trayas coves. The local Resistance fighters transported, sheltered and protected intelligence agents, Resistance leaders, and political figures who wanted to get to London or who were on their way there. English submarines and ‘felouques’ (small 14m mediterranean fishing boats), crewed by Polish Resistance fighters, made the connections.The first sabotages of railway equipment targeting trains heading for Germany took place in 1941. Roger and Léon Landini's FTP-MOI group, made up of Communists of Italian origin, carried out several explosive attacks against the Marseille-Nice railway line and buildings frequented by soldiers of the occupying Italian army.The occupation did not slow down the Resistance, despite the blows dealt by the Italian fascist police, the OVRA: propaganda remained very active, particularly through leaflets calling for demonstrations by housewives. Roger Lombard, director of technical services for the city, took part in the NAP network (Noyautage des Administrations Publiques).From September 1943 onwards, the German occupation led to the hunting down of Jewish people, destruction and forced evacuations. However, intelligence networks kept an eye on the coastal defence work being undertaken and provided information to the Allies. The occupiers were targeted by attacks. Repression was harsh. Several members of the Resistance were deported.In 1943-44, the local Resistance expanded, bringing together young people and sending them into the maquis. However, poorly armed and weakened by the Gestapo’s arrests and the departures to the inland region, it was mainly through intelligence that it played a part in the Liberation. One piece of information, provided by Louis Marchand, deputy director of the Dramont quarries and English agent, proved vital: the beach was not mined. The 36th Texas Infantry Division landed safely on 15 August 1944.

The resistance to Nazi Germany in Saint-Raphaël

This beach, along with the Pointes Longues rocks, closed off the Agay harbour, which was controlled and defended, along with its counterpart located opposite, by the Pointe de la Baumette and its lighthouse.Situated between Agay and Dramont, the area offered discreet shelter, ideal for exfiltrating and infiltrating English secret agents, French Resistance leaders, compromised members of the Resistance, and political figures coming from or going to London. This was one of the activities carried out by ‘le réseau Carte’ (maps network), which carried out clandestine embarkation and disembarkation operations on moonless nights in various places along the coast, including the Agay, Anthéor and Trayas creeks. These operations sometimes involved submarines, and more frequently "felouques" (small 14m fishing boats with sails), belonging to the very active Franco-Polish F2-Azur intelligence network. Off the coast, they met up with larger boats making the shuttle to Gibraltar. But the operations were not always successful and sometimes a submarine went to the wrong cove. Thus Jean Moulin and other great names of the Resistance waited in vain in September 1942.The local Resistance fighters provided transport, shelter and protection, including Paul Labbe, Marie-Louise Robinson and Marceau Sciaguato. The Resistance fighter Germaine Sablon, a member of the maps network and a major music-hall performer in the 1930s, lent her neighbouring villa and sometimes took part in operations with her companion, the writer Joseph Kessel.The area provided a natural base for an effective defensive system: pillboxes, bunkers, reinforced concrete blockhouses for land and anti-aircraft artillery, cannons and machine guns.These fortifications, which caught the beaches in a crossfire, kept watch over the harbour and protected the occupying forces' long-range radars installed at La Baumette and on the Dramont summit. By chance, some of the fortifications are still visible on the hill behind the road.In 1943, the occupying forces laid a metal net at Pointes Longues, that crossed the Agay harbour as far as La Baumette. This metal net, fitted with underwater mines, prevented submarines from entering the harbour and prohibited any landings.

There are few places where the coastal defences are as visible as they are at the Pointe de l'Observatoire (Observation Point). Because they are located in an area that cannot be built on, they have not have been used to support new constructions, disappearing from view by being "absorbed" into villas, swimming pools, walls, etc., as is all too often the case. The defences visible here have been relatively well protected and provide a very interesting record, although heavy use of the site by the public has meant some of the remains have had to be modified, for example being filled in to prevent them from falling.The system consisted mainly of anti-aircraft artillery guns (Flak), of various calibres from 20 to 88mm. These could be put on alert at the slightest flight approaching the coast, thanks to the detection of air movements by the German radars at Dramont and La Baumette in Agay. Several "cisterns" (protective masonry structures) housing these guns are clearly identifiable by their hexagonal shape.These defences were steadily strengthened from autumn 1943 onwards, making the bombardment of the Anthéor viaduct extremely difficult and risky.The coastal defences also included trenches and individual posts equipped with machine guns. Communication cables between posts were housed in trenches on the ground.In July 1944, the Nazi occupying forces had to contend with increasingly frequent Allied bombing raids on the south of France, particularly on bridges over the Rhône, in preparation for the Provence landings. They therefore decided to move almost all the cannons located here further north.The way was now clear for the Allied air convoys carrying the airborne forces. Flying over the Cap Roux massif in the Estérel, they were dropped or landed in gliders on the plain of Le Muy on the night of 14 to 15 August 1944, to protect the landing. It was also clear for the American bombers responsible for pounding the beaches of Saint-Raphaël and making it easier for the attacking troops to get ashore.War is also a matter of luck.

Pointe de l'Observatoire - Observation point

The Anthéor viaduct was considered by the Allies as early as 1943 as a strategic objective to cut the only rail link between southern France and northern Italy. Up to 15,000 tonnes a day were transported over the viaduct to supply the Nazi armies.The objective proved very difficult to achieve. In September 1943, the Royal Air Force sent in the "Dambusters", the famous squadron that had distinguished itself by its precision bombing of the Ruhr dams. A second bombing by the American air force took place a few days later, then the Allied bombing raids continued without interruption until June 1944. However, they only caused minor damage, which was quickly repaired, as the occupiers had installed numerous batteries of anti-aircraft guns (Flak) in the surrounding area, making it difficult to strike such a narrow target from the air. It wasn't until 15 August 1944 and the preparations for the Provence landings, that three waves of American bombers and the destroyer USS Brooklyn destroyed two pillars, making the viaduct impassable.It's hard to imagine that this cove was also a landing beach. The beach played a strategic role, blocking any reinforcements from the Alpes-Maritimes. The 860 men of the 1st Battalion / 141st Regiment / 36th United States Infantry Division (from Texas) landed here. The first two waves of the assault landed fairly easily. Then the Polish-Russian occupying forces (OST 661) rallied and opened fire on the attackers: machine guns and cannons were unleashed. Two barges were sunk, fortunately after disembarking their soldiers. Another was unable to leave the beach. The command boat was hit and had to return to the open sea. At 10 am, the beach was declared conquered.The battalion then moved towards Agay before returning, more heavily armed, to advance as far as Théoule-sur-Mer. This was not reached until 16 August, due to the fierce resistance of the occupying troops. 1,200 occupants were taken prisoner.A plaque on the viaduct commemorates this feat of arms. 2 airmen, 2 sailors and 5 infantrymen lost their lives here.

Calanque of Anthéor

On the night of 11 November 1943, part of the 617th Squadron of the British Royal Air Force, which had come to bomb the Anthéor viaduct, missed its target and bombed Agay. The Lancasters were carrying an experimental bomb designed to shake the pillars of the viaduct by a sort of seismic tremor acting on the foundations. The blast effect of the 2.4 tonnes of explosive per bomb was devastating. It was the most powerful of the Allied bombs.The inhabitants were surprised in their sleep. The district was destroyed. The toll was heavy: 15 killed and 7 injured.Today, the "rue du 11 novembre 1943" is a reminder of this massacre, to which elders of the area have left poignant testimonies: memories of the terrifying noise, the burning blast of the bombs, and the victims.Aware of the beach's potential as a landing site, the occupying forces built a powerful defence system to counter it: closing off the harbour with a steel anti-submarine net, mining the bay, installing two long-range radar stations, building pillboxes, bunkers and blockhouses to house anti-aircraft guns, and finally demolishing the historic Château d'Agay.Château d'Agay, built under Richelieu in 1635-36, was a fort used to defend the Provencal coast against barbarian incursions. In 1750, François de Giraud, Lord of Agay, built a château on top of this Vauban-style star-shaped fort. It was here that writer-pilot Antoine de Saint-Exupéry married in 1932, staying with his sister and brother-in-law, Gabrielle and Pierre d'Agay.The castle was destroyed by the occupying army in May 1944 because it masked the lines of fire from the German armoured train travelling along the coast.The Allies, considering that Agay beach (Camel Yellow Beach) would be too difficult to conquer by sea, decided to take control of it by land; a mission accomplished by the 141st US Infantry Regiment. After the net had been destroyed and the harbour cleared of mines, the beach was used for unloading. Thanks to the help of the inhabitants, lorries immediately set off to supply the fighting units in Saint-Raphaël and Fréjus, via the Gratadis.

Beach of Agay

On Saturday 27 May 1944, four bomber groups of the 304th Bomber-Wing of the 15th Air Force U.S. took off from their bases in the recently liberated south of Italy to attack the German airfield at Montpellier/Fréjorgues, including the 30 aircraft of the 454th Bomber-Group. Shortly before crossing the French coast over the Cap Roux massif in the Estérel, a B-24 Liberator heavy bomber took a direct hit from the German Flak (anti-aircraft defence) protecting the Anthéor viaduct.The aircraft, nicknamed "Miss I Hope", spiralled outwards and hit the sea in the Agay harbour channel.4 men managed to parachute out and were immediately taken prisoner. The parachute of a fifth man, the nose turret gunner, unfortunately went up in flames, while the five remaining crew members died, having been unable to evacuate the aircraft. Several of these men are buried in the Rhone American Cemetery in Draguignan.The sea closed in on the bomber, which had become a wreck. It wasn't until the end of August 1984, during an exploration dive in the Bay of Agay, that its dislocated remains were discovered at a depth of 42 metres.The team of divers was deeply moved by this shapeless mass lying on the sandy seabed where anti-Flak jackets, a parachute wrapped around a machine gun and boots lay.... The aircraft's registration number was still inscribed (stenciled on the left side of the fuselage), the black paint having miraculously withstood 40 years of immersion.A stele in memory of the crew of this bomber was unveiled in this garden on Saturday 5 October 1997. A commemoration is held here every year at the end of May.In spring 2002, as a safety precaution, the Toulon bomb disposal divers explored the site and destroyed 29 bombs that were still active, causing a gigantic geyser. It was by mistake that the name "Ophelia Bump" was inscribed on the stele. It is the serial name of this type of aircraft. The real name of the aircraft is "Miss I Hope".

The oratory garden

The African Army consisted of troops from French North Africa (AFN) in regiments of Zouaves, Tirailleurs, Spahis, Goumiers, Meharists and the Foreign Legion. This corps was responsible in particular for the security and control of the Algerian departments, then the protectorates of Tunisia and Morocco.The African Army took part in the distant expeditions recalled around the monument: the Crimean War (1853-56), the Italian War (1859) and the Mexican War (1863-67). The African Army also took part in the fighting during campaigns in mainland France (wars of 1870-71, 1914-1918, 1939-40) and in Italy (1943-44).In July 1944, the African Army was incorporated into General de Lattre de Tassigny's B army. It was particularly represented by General de Monsabert's 3rd Algerian Infantry Division (3rd DIA).On the eve of the Provence landings, the B army also included :- the 1st Free French Division (1ère DFL), the first unit to land on 16 August 1944. This included units from all over the colonial empire, most of which immediately rallied to General de Gaulle and whose numbers were increased by Resistance fighters who had escaped from France.- Colonial troops, drawn from the marine infantry, who formed the bulk of the 9th Colonial Infantry Division (9th DIC). Soon to be known as the 1st French Army, De Lattre's army comprised around 240,000 men, half "Europeans" and half "Muslims" and "colonials" (to use the terminology of the time). They fought until Germany's surrender on 8 May 1945, after fighting the difficult battles of Toulon and Marseille.The African Army was also involved in Indochina.A major remembrance ceremony is organised every year at the beginning of June by the town of Saint-Raphaël and the Souvenir Français. The ceremony is attended by numerous authorities and flag bearers, as well as the regiment that came from Canjuers as the heir to the African Army (1st RCA).The Chant des Africains (Song of the Africans) is the official marching song of the African Army. Along with the Marseillaise, it is the only military song that is sung and played whilst standing to attention during the taking up of arms.

African Army Memorial

The 36th ID had 29,820 men and 3,597 vehicles loaded onto 94 ships. It bore the famous T-Patch, formed by a capital T (State of Texas) over a Native American arrowhead (Oklahoma), a reminder of its origins.Preceded by intense naval shelling, the landing benefitted from the complete control of the skies and the sea by the Allied armies.This beach (code name Camel Green Beach) had been chosen to establish the bridgehead of the Provence Landings at Saint-Raphaël and Fréjus, facing the plain of the Argens, which opened the road to Toulon. This Camel zone was also intended to protect the areas further west (between Cavalaire and Sainte-Maxime), from any German counter-attack from the Alpes-Maritimes.Exceptionally, the beach was not mined. It was used for shipping esterellite, a very hard blue volcanic rock that was extracted from the quarry just above. This was prized by the occupying forces for reinforcing their buildings. The Allies obtained this precious information thanks to Louis Marchand, the quarry's deputy manager and a member of English intelligence; this greatly helped the success of the operation.Three regiments followed one another on 15 August 1944:<ul><li>The 141st at 8am, with the exception of the 1st Battalion (860 men), which attacked the cove of the Anthéor viaduct (Camel Blue Beach) at the same time.</li><li>The 143rd at 10.30 am.</li><li>The 142nd at 3pm, which, unable to reach its original destination of Fréjus beach (Camel Red Beach), which was too heavily defended, was diverted to Dramont. </li></ul>At 8.43pm several German bombers attacked the area. A remote-controlled gliding bomb hit the LST 282 (Landing Ship Tank), which was waiting to be unloaded, head-on. The ship was totally destroyed. The death toll was 49. The landing barge on the esplanade was given the number 282 as a reminder of this fact. Three bombers were shot down.Leaving Dramont, the 3 regiments immediately set out to conquer the bridgehead (the Blue Line), towards Saint-Raphaël and Fréjus, and Théoule-sur-Mer via the Estérel. These three towns were liberated on 16 August following fighting which was, at times, difficult.

The Provence landings at Dramont

On Thursday 25 May 1944, two groups of B-24 Liberator heavy bombers from the 55th Bomber-Wing of the 15th U.S. Air Force, the 464th and 465th Bomber-Group, took off from their base at Gioia del Colle, in the recently liberated Puglia region of Italy. Their mission was to decommission the major railway junction at Givors, some twenty kilometres south of Lyon in the Rhône valley.During this mission, four aircraft were seriously damaged, and three did not return to their base. The American bombers were badly battered on their return route, both by Flak (German anti-aircraft defence), and by Luftwaffe fighters based at Istres, Salon-de-Provence and Arles.Aircraft ‘The Lucky Lady’ had its main fuel tanks hit. The aircraft crashed in the Estérel massif, on the Belle Barbe pass, less than 2km south of a German fighter shot down a few seconds earlier by the B-24's gunners.Only four crew members were able to eject from the flying wreckage, which had turned into a fireball, according to several eyewitnesses in the vicinity. Of these four airmen, only the pilot, Second Lieutenant William O. Trotter, landed alive near the Anthéor viaduct. Treated and evacuated by the Germans, he died of his wounds on 25 August 1944. He is buried in the American cemetery at Épinal.Of the three other paratroopers who disappeared, only one was found. In April 1947 his skeleton was discovered, still wrapped in his parachute, which had gone up in flames.A stele in memory of these men has been erected here at the site of the crash, on the Belle Barbe pass in the Esterel mountains. A path leads to the stele, which marks the spot where the crew members were temporariliy buried after being extracted from the wreckage, a few dozen metres higher up in the forest. Seven of the crew are buried in the United States and two in the American cemetery in Draguignan.A commemoration is held there every year at the end of May.The stele mistakenly mentions the serial number 4129582. The aircraft's real number is 4129382.

The Belle Barbe pass monument

Set up in 1964 and inaugurated on 15 August by General de Gaulle, then President of the Republic, this necropolis is managed by the French National Office for Veterans (ONAC: Office National des Anciens Combattants).The alphabetical list of names (the sign at the entrance on the right), and the names on the graves recall the very varied and faraway origins of the soldiers of the French Army of the Liberation. This included soldiers from Metropolitan France having often reached North Africa via Spain, North Africans of European or local origin, immigrants from Sub-Saharan Africa, and not forgetting the French territories of the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Religions, limited to Christianity, Judaism and Islam, are specified, as are the military units.During the fighting in August 1944, the victims were buried on the spot and in communal cemeteries. Twenty years later, they were brought together here by the State. Only those not claimed by the families can be found here. The dates of death, indicated on each stand, range from 16 to 28 August.A further 3077 French servicemen from the Second World War, most of whom fell in the fighting to liberate Provence, are buried at the national necropolis at Luynes. Located south of Aix-en-Provence, it was inaugurated in 1969.The American soldiers who died are buried in the Rhone American Cemetery in Draguignan. Those from the German army are gathered at the Dagneux necropolis to the east of Lyon.On 15 August 2019, the Boulouris National Necropolis was chosen by the President of the Republic to be the official French location for the commemoration of the Provence Landings, every 15 August.

The national necropolis of Boulouris in Saint-Raphaël in southern France was inaugurated on August 15, 1964 by General Charles de Gaulle. Buried here are 464 combatants of all origins and all denominations belonging to the 1st French Army commanded by General de Lattre de Tassigny, killed during the landing of Provence.