#bleuet

Yes, of course they do. It’s called Armistice Day - and it’s 11 November. As time went on, the day came to mark the victims of all wars and several countries changed the name – in the UK it is now Remembrance Day and in the US it is Veterans Day – but France has stuck with Armistice Day.

The Great War officially ended with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles on June 28, 1919. But 11 November is chosen because it commemorates the signing of the armistice between Germany and the Allies that led to the ceasefire and finally put an end to World War I in 1918 - which took place at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918.

It’s a national holiday and also a time to remember the war dead. There are memorial services all over France. All municipalities, regardless of their size, have a commemorative ceremony. A wreath of blue-white-red flowers is placed on each War Memorial, which is located either on the town’s square or by the church.

The President of the Republic presides over the Parisian comemoration and lays a wreath on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier under the Arc de Triomphe at 11am. Two consecutive minutes of silence are observed at 11am local time. The first minute is dedicated to the nearly 20 millions people who lost their life during World War One. The second pays tribute to the living left behind, the mourning mothers, wives, brides to be and sisters. It’s quite a solemn and moving ocassion.

The red poppy, synonymous with Remembrance Day in the UK, is not used however. Instead the symbol of remembrance in France is the bleuet, or cornflower.

Although it is reported that France showed solidarity with the USA in 1920 (and again, with other World War One Allies, in 1921) by wearing the Remembrance Poppy, it is the cornflower (le bleuet) which was eventually adopted as the country’s memorial flower.

The young French army recruits, who arrived at the Front from 1915 onwards, were called “les bleuets” – because of the new blue version of jackets. Thus, there was a personal French connection with the dainty blue flower - that also grew profusely on the battlefields, with the poppy. It would make sense for the French to choose the bleuet because cornflowers have traditionally symbolised “pure and delicate” sentiments.

As with the Madame Guérin’s Poppy Day idea, as an emblem of remembrance and to help victims of war, French women were behind the idea of the cornflower / le bleuet as the memorial emblem of France. They were Suzanne Lenhardt and Charlotte Malleterre. It’s more than likely that Madame Guérin knew about le Bleuet, given it was begun in Paris in 1915, when she came up with her own red poppy idea.

Suzanne Lenhardt was a nurse and her husband had been killed on the Massiges battlefield, in the Marne. Charlotte Malleterre was daughter of General Niox - who was Commander-in-Chief of the hospital ‘Hôtel des Invalides’.

The two women arranged for the maimed French veterans (“les gueules cassées”) of the ‘Hôtel des Invalides’ to make the bleuets as an aid to their rehabilitation and as a means of earning money of their own. Such an occupation was the only thing many could have coped with. As Madame Guérin, and her one-time French co-lecturer Robert Arbour, used to state whilst fundraising for these men – such men did not receive a pension when they were medically discharged.

The soldiers would craft the petals from fabric and stamens from newspapers. In the beginning, les bleuets were only sold locally, in Paris, and not on a national scale. But that has changed in recent years as it is available nationally now.

The bleuet campaign is run on behalf of the Office National des Anciens Combattants et Victimes de Guerre and supports families of servicepeople or police officers who died or were injured in service, as well as victims of terrorism. Profits from bleuet sales go to veterans’ charities. However the flower is less ubiquitous in France than the poppy is in Britain. Why that is, I don’t know. But you do see more people wearing it as the years have increasingly passed.

Alongside my poppy, I wear it as a mark of respect for my French partner’s family, but also for the country I currently make my home. It’s also a way to honour the war dead of France who sacrificed their lives for their homeland and our freedom.

Une parenthèse pour revenir aux jours actuels !