Ouvert depuis 1911, il est dédié à la mémoire des Périgourdins et de leurs familles qui y ont déposé, depuis cette époque, armes, uniformes et souvenirs de toutes sortes, en complément de dons de l’État et de dépôts d’autres musées. Les collections évoquent la mémoire des combattants de la région, à toutes les époques, dans leur vie quotidienne, leurs engagements, qu’ils aient été soldats de métier ou simplement appelés sous les drapeaux, en la situant dans le cadre global de l’histoire militaire de la France.

Du Moyen Age à l’époque actuelle, les objets et documents présentés sont le plus souvent rares, remarquables, émouvants ou simplement pittoresques et proviennent autant de personnages célèbres (Daumesnil, Bugeaud …) que de simples soldats. Vous trouverez au Musée Militaire du Périgord, plus de 15 000 objets militaires.
Les conflits de 1914/1918, 1939/1945, Indochine, Algérie ont apporté leur lot de souvenirs, parfois remis par l’Etat comme les canons et mitrailleuses, prises de guerre sur l‘ennemi d’alors, mais aussi et toujours par les combattants eux-mêmes ou leur famille.

Et le flot ne tarit pas puisque ces dernières années, des souvenirs d’ex Yougoslavie ou de la guerre Du Golfe ont été inscrits à l’inventaire du musée. La présentation permanente des collections au public, s’accompagne d’expositions annuelles consacrées à un thème historique, tout en accordant également une assistance à l’organisation de manifestations locales organisées par diverses collectivités par le biais d’un service de conseil et de prêts d’objets.

Un effort particulier est exercé dans le domaine de l’éducation par un accueil des classes gratuit et accompagné sur des thèmes choisis par les enseignants. L’établissement est, depuis sa création, toujours géré par les membres bénévoles de l’Association du Musée Militaire des Gloires et Souvenirs du Périgord qui ont en charge la présentation et l’entretien des collections, organisent les expositions et assurent les visites guidées.

The Post Office Museum is a place of both remembrance and conservation, a research and documentation centre, focussing on writing, the fine arts, history and society. History Opened in 1946, the Post Office Museum was situated in the 6th district of Paris, in the former Choiseul Praslin Hotel, which dates from the beginning of the 18th century. In 1973 this location had become too cramped and the museum moved into its current purpose-built building at 34 boulevard de Vaugirard, right in the heart of the Montparnasse area. Today the museum occupies 15 rooms and the general public starts its tour from the 5th floor, following a circuit that finishes on the ground floor. Setting the scene In fifteen rooms the Post Office Museum offers an introduction into the history of the Post Office, from its origins to the modern day, along with a taste of the world of philately. The circuit (the tour starts from the 5th floor), which links the chronology with important events, emphasises the social aspect of this business. But it is also a history of the French people that is told here, through the Post Office and philately. Old post boxes, postillion and postmen's uniforms, models of mail coaches, valuable postage stamps and artistic works: all the items in this exhibition form part of a collection that is extraordinary and rich in colour.

Collections The Post Office Museum looks after the stamp and postal collections belonging to the State and those of the Post Office. In a space of 1500 m² the historical, philatelic, scientific and artistic heritage is displayed, consisting of exhibits as diverse as postage stamps, the first road maps, postmen's uniforms, artists' mock-ups, archives and common objects and finally a large collection of mail and postal art.
The historical collections department is a valuable mine of information for historians and those interested in the history of Post Office administration. The Museum holds collections of postmen's almanacs, Post Office calendars, postcards, archives, touring guides, post office books and itineraries, stamps, common objects and contemporary works of art.
The Photographic Library The photographic library contains over 150,000 plates, from famous characters of the airmail service to Villemot's posters for savings accounts and the plates of all French postage stamps. Consultations and loans by appointment on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Tel.: 01.42.79.24.16 The Llibrary With over 25,000 volumes and more than 850 periodical titles, the Museum's library is host to researchers and those interested in information about stamp collecting or on the history of the Post Office. Works and periodicals can be consulted on the premises, with a charge for photocopies. Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays 10 am until 6 pm. Tel.: 01.42.79.24.03 The Philately Point In the Museum lobby there is a "Philately Point" where purchases can be made of stamps from France, Monaco, Andorra, Mayotte, Saint-Pierre and Miquelon, newly released current stamps, pre-paid envelopes and the Post Office's philately products, such as First day covers. The philately point is open during Museum opening hours, from Monday to Saturday from 10 am to 6 pm. The Loans Department The loans department can respond to any requests about: Historical collections - tel.: 01.42.79.24.27 Philately collections - tel.: 01. 42.79.24.41 The Conference area The Museum has an auditorium for hire, seating 162 people. Tel.: 01 42 79 23 33 The Historical Collections Department This department looks after iconographic objects and documents that relate to the development of the organisation and the jobs within the Post Office, as well as traditions in writing and correspondence. The Museum also has extensive archives on the history of the Post Office and the telegraph. Consultation of items not on display is by appointment on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Tel.: 01.42.79.24.23
Post Office Museum of Paris 34 Bd de Vaugirard 75731 PARIS CEDEX 1e-mail: collections.historiques@laposte.net Access by underground: Montparnasse, Pasteur, Falguière Access by bus: lines 28, 48, 88, 89, 91, 92, 94, 95, 96 Opening times The Post Office Museum is open Monday to Saturday from 10 am until 6 pm. It is closed on Sundays and Bank Holidays Admission charges Permanent Collections: Full price: 5 € Reduced rate: 3.50 € Free for: the under 18's, The Post Office Group, the Friends of the Post Office, holders of an ICOM card, group leaders and Inter-Museum pass holders. Temporary Exhibitions: Full price: 5/6 € Reduced rate: 3.50 € / 4.50 € Guided tours: (Additional charge for tours in English) Joint visit (museum and exhibition): Full price: 7 € / 8 € Reduced rate: 5.50 € / 6.50 € (for the unemployed, students and groups of more than 20 people) Free for postal workers

The Saint-Denis art and history museum is housed in the town’s former Carmelite convent. Founded in 1625, the convent was enlarged by Louis XV’s daughter, Madame Louise of France, following her time there from 1770 to 1787.

The building was bought by the town council in 1972 and has been used as a museum since 1981. The archaeology collections in the old refectory display the results of digs carried out since 1973 by the Saint-Denis Archaeology Unit. Between 1973 and 1992, 33 000 objects were unearthed, added to which are millions of potsherds, animal bones and building materials.

They constitute an important documentary record of everyday life in the Middle Ages, from various angles: home and crafts, music and games, cooking and diet, clothes and jewellery, etc.

The former sacristy, converted into a parlour in the 18th century, houses the collections from the old hospital: paintings, sculptures, decorative ironwork and many documents on hospital life under the Ancien Régime.

An adjoining room known as the “Apothecary’s Room”, presents a remarkable series of pharmaceutical ceramics produced in the workshops of Rouen, Never and Saint-Cloud. Restored cells on the first floor give an insight into the workings and everyday life of the convent.

A reconstruction of Louise of France’s cell adjoins a display of liturgical ornaments, monastic artworks, Guillot canvases, and masterpieces like Laurent de la Hyre’s triptych Mary Magdalen at the Foot of the Cross or François Perrier’s St Augustine offering his heart to the Baby Jesus.

Split between two floors of the Louis XV pavilion, the Paul Éluard collection sheds light on the private life and political engagement of the poet and co-founder of the Surrealist movement, through original documents (manuscripts, letters, photographs), original editions, personal belongings and books from his own library.

Still on the second floor, in the 350 sqm of apartments where Louis XV’s daughters stayed when visiting the convent, is an important collection on the Commune and Sieges of Paris.

The collection, begun in 1930, comprises over 10 000 pieces, including weapons and a wealth of images: Épinal prints, portraits and caricatures of generals, letters, posters, lithographs, photographs, paintings and sculptures by artists of the time: André Gill, André Lançon, Draner, Klenck and Jules Girardet.

Thus, alongside the red flag of the church of Saint-Leu on Boulevard de Sébastopol are Georges Salendre’s bust of Gustave Courbet, Philippoteaux’s Fighting in Père-Lachaise, caricatures by Daumier, Cham and Le Petit, Appert’s photographic portraits of Communards, military illustrations by Bertrall, and anti-Communard photomontages by Bruno Braquehais.

Political posters and periodicals such as L’Île des Pins, a newspaper of Communards deported to New Caledonia, round off the political presentation of events. Objects from everyday life tell of the struggle for survival during the siege.

A collection of old books, historical research by pioneers (Camille Pelletan, Louis Veuillot, Henri Monin), monographs and memoirs of Communards, military surveys (Pichon), books on the caricatures and writings about the provincial communes (Lyon, Bordeaux, Marseille) are all available for researchers to complement their visit to the museum.

Other services

The Cultural and Educational Outreach Service invites the public of all ages to explore the collections through guided tours, activities and workshops.

Meanwhile, researchers can consult the works and documents in the drawing collection, housed in the former convent printing house.

The book and gift shop sells a wide variety of reproductions and postcards in connection with the museum’s collections.

Musée d’Art et d’Histoire de Saint-Denis 
22 bis avenue Gabriel Péri - 93200 Saint-Denis
Tel.: +33 (0)1 42 43 05 10 - Bookings: +33 (0)1 42 43 37 57
Email: musee@ville-saint-denis.fr

Getting there

Metro (Line 13) - Station: Saint-Denis Porte de Paris (exit 4)
Bus: 154, 254, 177, 255, 170
Car: A1 and A86 - exit Saint-Denis Porte de Paris
Parking: Porte de Paris and Basilique

The Naval School of Medicine still looks the same today as it did in the middle of the 19th Century. The objects, works and the way the information is displayed, categorised and staged are just as scholars and doctors 150 years ago wanted. For 20th century visitors, the School of Medicine is primarily a place where they can experience a tangible contact with an exceptionally well preserved scientific imagination. It is a strong, emotional place, opening the doors to a dense history where science, technology, politics and society merge. It provides a glimpse of a state of knowledge that we have inherited. They are the footprints of human endeavour, through which sailors and navy surgeons contributed to breaking down taboos in order to unlock the secrets of the human body and grasp the living world in all its diversity. The history of the place The former School of Naval Medicine is located in a wing of the second Naval Hospital, which opened in Rochefort in 1788. Through its architecture, the building exhibits the latest developments in medicine with regard to the spread of diseases. In this respect it constitutes the first French attempt at multi-wing hospital architecture. It also demonstrates urban concerns in opening up a broad perspective that still influences the development of the town today.

The first naval hospital was opened in 1683, close to the naval shipyard and near the food store. It was inside its walls that Jean Cochon-Dupuy's School of Surgery was established in 1722. The building, still known today as the Charente Hospital, was gradually incorporated into the town. As it became surrounded by houses, it was the cause of numerous problems with epidemics. Typhoid and other fevers that the sailors brought back from their expeditions were transmitted to other patients and regularly spread to the general public. In the 1770's, medicine became concerned about air quality, its chemical composition and its role in spreading diseases. Too cramped and exposed to the unhealthy air from the marshland on which Rochefort is built, the hospital also presented a major fire hazard in the town centre: the destruction of the Hôtel-Dieu de Paris in 1772 stuck in people's minds. As a result, in 1781 the king decided to build a new hospital. Pierre Toufaire, the engineer in charge of works on the port, designed a large scale project, on an enormous H-shaped blueprint comprising a central main building flanked by four wings, with the façade completed by two other wings. These wings were designed to contain patients with the same diseases in order to prevent their transmission. In addition, the skylight above the main building and the wide windows and dormers that let in sunlight created the circulation of air that was vital for the hygienists of the day. In terms of departments, Toufaire planned a rational organisation of the areas allocated to offices, doctors' bedrooms, chapels, treatment rooms and patient reception, as well as areas for training the sea-faring surgeons, who had the use of a theatre, an anatomy laboratory and a library. The Hospital was eventually supplied with running water via a fire hydrant and a system of waste water drainage. It was thus a model Hospital and the most modern in the Kingdom. Topographically, the Hospital is located outside the town centre on a small promontory that looks out over the flat Rochefort countryside. For this reason, it was known for a time as the Hôpital de la Butte (Hospital on the Mound). Toufaire included the building in a plan that linked it with the church of Notre-Dame, also called the Vieille Paroisse (currently the Archaeological Museum), thus opening up an enormous urban swathe that would become the Cours d'Ablois. Even today, after the demolition of the ramparts, this urban programme still influences the development of Rochefort. In use until 1983, the Naval Hospital was privatised in 1989. Only the Wing of the Former School of Medicine is now open to the public.
The school: a historical place Throughout the 17th Century, at the same time as a permanent navy was created in France, it was standard practice to have a surgeon on board warships. Surgeon, a manual profession, was therefore strongly distinct from doctor, an intellectual profession. This sector often included former barbers who knew how to use a few cutting tools and whose expertise was more than cursory. However, the emerging Navy had serious sanitary problems: the living conditions, poor diet and contagious tropical diseases caused a very high mortality rate in the crews. Up until the beginning of the 19th century, sailors were more likely to die from disease than from the after effects of combat. The increased length of campaigns along with the shifting of conflicts to the other side of the Atlantic increased the problems and led to the appearance of a disease that was to become the symbol of naval morbidity: scurvy. For the Navy, preserving the lives of its marines was a major strategic issue. Curing, understanding and transmitting became a matter of State, which was necessary for the very existence of a war fleet, such was the recurrent difficulty to recruit competent marines. In 1704, Jean-Cochon Dupuy, Doctor of Medicine at the faculty of Toulouse and a doctor at the military hospital of La Rochelle, arrived in Rochefort as deputy doctor. He became head doctor in 1712. In 1715, he demonstrated the need to establish a training centre for the surgeons of the Navy. The naval school of anatomy and surgery was inaugurated in 1722. It was the first in the world. Based on this model, the navy opened two other establishments, in Toulon in 1725 and in Brest in 1731. Jean-Cochon Dupuy worked as a teacher and organiser. He wrote anatomy and surgery manuals and set up the every day operation of the School. Requirements for admission were to be over 14 years old, be able to write, shave and bleed and have healthy hands without any deformities. Boys from poor families could therefore be accepted and in this respect the School played an important social role. Students visited patients in the hospital, watched dissections, took apothecary training and followed internal medicine, surgery and botany lessons, which were essential at a time when pharmaceutical drugs came almost exclusively from plants. The degree course was 4 years. Within the school, progression was through passing examinations, a measure of the seriousness of the courses. On the death of Jean-Cochon Dupuy in 1757, his son Gaspard succeeded him and continued his organisational work. At sea, surgeons trained by the School had to fulfil a threefold role, as surgeon, doctor and pharmacist and the course developed accordingly. Above all, the School confirmed its role in caring for patients in the hospital, in training and in research, three functions that are similar to the missions of modern day University Hospitals. Pierre Cochon-Duvivier, the School's third Director from 1788 to 1814, was subject to the upheavals of the Revolution and the Empire. A health council, a sort of Naval Hospital Administration Council, was set up. The completely restructured School reaffirmed its fundamental missions of treatment, training and research. In 1798, it took the name of the School of Naval Medicine and the apothecaries became pharmacists. In 1803, former students of the schools of naval medicine were allowed to adopt the title of Doctor of Medicine by studying for a thesis at the faculty, an essential stage in the promotion of surgery. The curriculum followed that of the civilian schools.
In 1836, new regulations put the emphasis on exotic diseases, anatomy, surgery and naval hygiene in the study programme. Botany was also a speciality of Rochefort. In fact, the training programme was quite broad-based and endeavoured to turn health officials into professionals, whose knowledge lay somewhere between that of the encyclopaedic scientist of the Enlightenment and the highly specialised practices of today. The School was thus far more than just a medical arena, operating as a regional intellectual centre and a place where knowledge was gathered and disseminated. The works in the library and the ethnographic collections bear witness to this. The School was in contact with the whole of the European medical and scientific milieu. Understanding diseases, unlocking the secrets of the human body and improving operating techniques were all amongst its objectives when it was created: dissections, experiments and discussion were the driving forces of the continual quest for cures. It was in Rochefort in 1818 that the first French vaccine was administered, a few months after its development by Jenner; it was one of the School's directors, Amédé Lefebvre, who discovered the causes of lead poisoning in 1818; less dramatic but just as significant, several surgical instruments were designed or improved by doctors at the School. In 1890 the Bordeaux School for the Health Service was founded, close to a civilian faculty. The schools of Brest, Rochefort and Toulon became associated establishments where students completed their first year before transferring to Bordeaux. Between 1890 and 1963, the subsidiary schools operated with a certain uniformity. In 1964, the Rochefort School of Naval Medicine held its final course.
The Wing of the Former School of Medicine: a historical site The building, its library and its collections were managed by the Navy until the closure of the naval hospital in 1983. The Wing of the Former School of Medicine was donated to the Public Administrative Department of the National Navy Museum in 1986, who undertook its renovation. The School of Medicine opened to the public in 1998, entering a new phase in its history. The School of Naval Medicine is a unique place in France, with its library and anatomical, zoological, botanical and ethnological collections that were assembled in the 18th century to be used in training the surgeons on board ships. It is both a museum (its collections are of primary importance), a historic monument (today it is the only part of the former Naval Hospital of 1788 open to the public), a scientific library (its 25,000 works, of which many were printed before 1500, are available to everyone by appointment) and a place of remembrance (an area of discovery, learning and healing, engraved deeply in the history of the people of Rochefort and of the Navy). For the Navy, the fight against the diseases that ravaged its crews, of which scurvy is only the best known, was one major strategic issue. The voyages of discovery and their batches of samples bear witness to a slow learning process about other populations.
Former School of Naval Medicine of Rochefort 25, rue de l'Amiral Meyer 17300 Rochefort Tel.: + 33 (0) 5 46 99 59 57 E-mail: d.roland@musee-marine.fr [list]Guided tours, every day at 10:30 - Duration: 1:15 Adult: € 8 Reduced price: € 7 Under 26: 3 € [list]Guided discovery, daily at 14:00, 15:00 and 16:00 Adult: € 5 Reduced: € 4 Free for children under 26. [list]Closed annually on the 1st May, 25th December and the 1st and 31st January Getting there Rochefort-Saint Agnant Airport Rochefort Railway Station TGV to Surgères and SNCF bus service or change at La Rochelle A10 Motorway from Paris to Bordeaux, taking the Surgères or Saint-Jean-d'Angély Rochefort exit: follow signs for town centre

Georges Clemenceau s’installa rue Franklin, dans le 16^ème arrondissement, en 1895, peu de temps après le scandale de Panama à la suite duquel, calomnié, il perdit son siège de député. Il vivra dans ce modeste appartement de trois pièces sur jardin avec vue sur la tour Eiffel, durant trente-cinq ans jusqu'à sa mort le 24 novembre 1929. 

Clemenceau ne quittera jamais cet appartement, même quand il exercera, par deux fois, les fonctions de Président du Conseil – d’abord comme ministre de l’Intérieur, entre octobre 1906 et juillet 1909, puis comme ministre de la Guerre, entre novembre 1917 et janvier 1920 - refusant à chaque fois d'habiter dans les palais officiels, ne souhaitant pas « vivre en meublé », selon ses propres termes.

C’est dans cet appartement que le général Mordacq vint lui annoncer la fin de la guerre.

« A 5h45, je recevai la nouvelle que l’Armistice était signé. Je me précipitai aussitôt chez Clemenceau . j’y arrivai vers 6 heures. Je trouvai le Président dans sa chambre, éveillé et levé. Il n’avait pas dû dormir beaucoup car, lui aussi, comme tous les bons Français, se demandait si décidemment, cette fois, c’était bien la fin du long cauchemar. Dès que je lui eu annoncé la bonne nouvelle, il me prit dans ses bras et m’y serra longuement. Très émus tous les deux, nous restâmes ainsi plusieurs minutes sans pouvoir parler » …. 

Général H. Mordacq, « L’Armistice du 11 novembre 1918, récit d’un témoin », Paris, Librairie Plon, 1937, p.78-84

A la mort de Clemenceau, l’appartement fut transformé en musée et conservé dans l’état. Le visiteur peut toujours y admirer les nombreux témoignages reflétant le goût de son célèbre occupant non seulement pour la Grèce antique, mais aussi pour l’Extrême-Orient, de même que la trace de ses amitiés nouées avec les artistes les plus novateurs de son temps (Monet, Manet, Rodin, etc….).

Une galerie documentaire au premier étage est adjointe au musée, quelques années après, retraçant la vie incroyablement riche de cette personnalité aux multiples facettes : médecin, maire de Montmartre, député et journaliste, ministre, Président du Conseil, anticlérical farouche, écrivain, collectionneur, ….

Quatre-vingt-six ans après la mort de Clemenceau, la Fondation a entrepris un premier chantier de restauration dans le cadre du Centenaire de la Grande Guerre. Cette première tranche, regroupant la restauration du cabinet de travail et le vestibule de l’appartement du Tigre, répond à une exigence scrupuleuse dans la restitution fidèle des pièces telles que Clemenceau les avait connues jusqu’à sa mort, exigence répondant à l’objet même de la Fondation du musée. Les travaux de restauration du cabinet de travail et du vestibule auront duré cinq mois pour redonner tout son lustre au décor cher à Clemenceau.

Aujourd’hui, le musée a rouvert ses portes avec le plaisir d’y retrouver ses visiteurs de plus en plus nombreux.

Sources : ©Musée Clemenceau

Built on a rocky outcrop, Brest Castle dominates the Penfeld River and the harbour. It stands on a major strategic site whose importance as such was recognised as early as the 3rd century, when the Romans set up base there to protect the province of Armorique from Frankish and Saxon pirates.

In the twelfth century, the counts of Léon restored the old bases left by the Romans and a small town surrounding a chapel was established within its walls, a town that grew into the Brest we know today! During the Hundred Years' War, the castle was occupied by the English and besieged by Duguesclin. Anne of Brittany also stayed there in 1505 during a pilgrimage. In the seventeenth century, under pressure from Richelieu and Colbert for Brest to become the French Royal Navy's major arsenal on the Atlantic coast, it was decided that the castle's defences needed to be improved. The architect Vauban then transformed it into a veritable citadel, and the town grew below it. In a town that had to be almost entirely rebuilt after the fierce raids of 1944, the castle is the last remaining testimony to centuries past.
The Castle has been constantly adapted to changes in siege tactics and weaponry. It needed to be able to resist two types of attack: those from the sea, but mostly those from the land. Consequently, its architecture is complex and additions were frequently made to it over time. Parts of the Roman walls are still visible, and the Paradis Towers have preserved their medieval character (pepper-box roofs and machicolation). But in its current state, the castle remains characteristic of the defensive fortification architecture developed by Vauban, in particular to respond to the use of siege artillery. For seventeen centuries, from Roman encampment to its role as a naval base, the destiny of the Castle has been linked to the sea, the history of a town, a province and an entire country.
There has been a small museum in the arsenal since the beginning of the nineteenth century: a room devoted to models is home to many sculptures and historic model ships. Fortunately, these collections were stowed away during World War II and thus spared. They now form part of the National Maritime Museum network in Brest, Port-Louis, Rochefort, Toulon and Paris. In 1958, a new museum was established in the castle, the museum that is today visited by the public. Not to be missed are the masterpieces of maritime heritage and culture, the naval history of Brest, the castle's historic rooms and the exceptional views of the harbour and the Penfeld River.
The dungeon houses permanent collections devoted to the golden era of naval construction, as well as the penal system, weapons and scientific instruments. The temporary exhibitions (photos, paintings, case studies) are presented in the Paradis Towers, while the Madeleine Tower displays more modern naval history. Visitors can also see the S622 submarine, an example of a Seehund pocket submarine, and a boat-people vessel.
The Museum offers a series of themed tours for children at the entrance. For its temporary exhibitions, the Museum proposes a discovery tour for children. Booklets on a certain theme and questionnaires designed for children aged 8 and over are available for visitors not part of an organised tour ("Tonnerre de Brest!" a visit questionnaire based on the collections on display at Brest Castle; "Au vent de Suroît" a visit questionnaire based on the history of Brest Castle Museum) For youngsters and adults: - Guided tours all year round for groups on appointment. During the summer months, individual visitors can also follow a guided commentary at fixed times. - Greeting and training for teachers Entry is free for any teachers wishing to prepare a class trip to the Museum.
Musée National de la Marine Château de Brest 29200 Brest Tél. : 02.98.22.12.39 Fax: 02.98.43.30.54 E-Mail: [email = brest@musee-marine.fr] brest@musee-marine.fr [/ email]

• Réagir

Face à la fulgurance de l'attaque allemande, la France signe l'armistice le 22 juin 1940. L'ordre allemand s'impose désormais en zone nord tandis que l'État français, gouvernement autoritaire, choisit comme capitale Vichy en zone non-occupée. La République et la démocratie sont mises en sommeil et les libertés supprimées. Devant l'effondrement militaire et politique du pays, un choix difficile s'impose : Accepter ? Attendre ? Désobéir ?

• S'engager

Nourris d'une révolte individuelle et bravant les dangers, des hommes et des femmes choisissent la lutte clandestine. Ils s'engagent dans des réseaux de renseignements structurés par les alliés tel le réseau Confrérie Notre-Dame qui agit à Thouars dès le printemps 1941 ou des mouvements de résistance pour qui l'action paramilitaire prédomine à partir de 1943. Dans l'ombre, l'espoir d'une libération renaît.

• Construire

Dans la clandestinité – outre la libération du territoire – s'affirme la volonté de créer une société nouvelle. S'appuyant sur les valeurs défendues, les résistants bâtissent un ambitieux programme de réformes. Le retour à la République permet sa mise en œuvre et des avancées sociales majeures. À la barbarie succède le souhait d'une paix mondiale. Cet idéal s'incarne en 1945 dans la création de l'ONU et l'instauration d'une justice internationale.

Le Centre Régional « Résistance & Liberté », en qualité de partenaire pédagogique, culturel et scientifique de la Ville de Montreuil-Bellay, organise des visites du principal camp d’internement de nomades situé dans cette commune. Entre 1940 et 1946, 6000 à 6500 nomades - pour la plupart Tsiganes - sont internés par familles entières en France. À travers l'histoire du camp d'internement de Montreuil-Bellay, où près de 2 000 personnes furent internées, il s'agit de découvrir leur sort et de rompre les préjugés qui les entourent encore aujourd’hui.

Located in the historical centre of Muret, the Clément Ader museum, a State-controlled establishment, invites visitors to discover the rich local heritage.

The city, 25 km south of Toulouse, former capital of Comminges, pays homage to the "Father of Aviation" and to the most famous local inhabitants, such as Nicolas Dalayrac, Adolphe Niel and Vincent Auriol. Associated with the municipal archive department and the library, it is a place dedicated to discovery, research and exchanges.

At the end of the 19th century, a few local scholars donated a number of items to the town of Muret, thus constituting the base of the first collections. Vincent Auriol, Mayor of Muret from 1925 to 1940, set up a museum programme to promote the cultural and historical heritage of the town and its surroundings. He decided to carry out an acquisition campaign to complete the initial collection. He pushed a policy in favour of donations and State deposits. This is how the Ader and Niel collections came to join the museum, and in 1928, the new museum acquired two paintings by François Louis Dejuine (1786-1844): Simon de Montfort and Guy de Lévis Mirepoix.

After being renovated, Château Saint-Germier was used as the setting for the first Muret museum: the "Musée du Bas-Comminges", inaugurated on 21st September 1930. The collections are presented in four areas: the rooms of Bas-Comminges, Dalayrac-Fons, Niel and Ader. During the Second World War, one of the ceilings collapsed, destroying part of the collections and causing the establishment to close. It was rehabilitated in the 1950s by Robert Mesuret, curator of the Toulouse museum. The institution was thus set up in the town hall. The second museum was inaugurated on 9th December 1954 and was named the "Musée Clément Ader".

The first inventory was carried out by Marthe Moisserand, voluntary curator between 1956 and 1973. Between 1971 and 1983, due to a lack of suitable premises, the museum was closed to the public, pending completion of work to build the new Muret Town Hall, at 27 rue Castelvieh, where the rooms were arranged to house the collections on a temporary basis.

In 1992, the archaeological gallery showed the wealth of the Muret's heritage.

On 29th June 2002, at last, the Musée Clément Ader opend at 58 rue Clément Ader.

The permanent exhibition then developed on one level covering 200 m2. When they first arrive, visitors meet the region's celebrities, before becoming familiar with local archaeology. The collection of Clément Ader (1841-1925), the "Father of aviation", includes furniture from the inventor's office, patents and plans of some of his inventions, personal objects and his library. This collection comes entirely from the donation made by Mrs Clémence de Manthé, Ader's only daughter, to the town of Muret.

The collection of Adolphe Niel (1802-1869), Marshal of France and war minister of Napoleon III, brings together photographs, drawings and etchings, a military atlas, a bust of Gustave Crauck, furniture and personal belongings. It was made from donations from the Marshal's descendants. 

The Vincent Auriol (1884-1966) collection was donated to the museum by his son, Paul Auriol, in 1966. In particular, it presents personal belongings, portraits, medals, etc. The Dalayrac family added to the museum's collection by donating different objects from their ancestor, Nicolas Dalayrac (1753-1809), known for his light operas. It consists mainly of busts, etchings,

instruments, booklets and musical scores. The museum is proud to be able to present, thanks to a State deposit in 1928, two paintings by François Dejuine (1786-1844), who won second prize in the Prix de Rome and was decorated with the Legion of Honour. They are exhibited

in the Salon: Simon de Montfort and Guy de Lévis, lord of Mirepoix. The archaeological area is dedicated to archaeological discoveries in the region of Muret: Bourdaya,

St-Marcet, Cabouillet, La Peyrère. It shows, in chronological order and by theme, artefacts ranging from the Lower Palaeolithic period to the 19th century.

By appointment, the museum's reserve presents other archaeological items and local historical collections. One example is the Guillaume Jbos (1860-1952) collection, an international singer.

This collection, bought from a private person in 1995, contains photographs, stage costumes, musical scores and private documents. The reserve conserves testimonials from other noteworthy Muret inhabitants

such as Gaston and Myriam de Béarn, Jean Decap, and Abbot Lestrade.

The municipal archives, installed inside the museum, conserve a very extensive collection of documents relating to the history of Muret from the Middle Ages to the end of the 1930s:

cadastral maps, debates, civil status documents, etc. These collections, as well as the large collection of photographs and the collection of the local history library, are free to consult in the reading room.

The establishment regularly welcomes school groups, clubs or associations. In this field, the Clément Ader museum wants to improve its policy for receiving young people.

It has set up a learning department in charge of designing and organising actions with different local and national educational and cultural players.

Musée Clément Ader

6 Bd Aristide Briand - 31600 Muret

- Tél. : 05.61.51.91.40 - Fax : 05.61.51.91.41

e-mail : musee@mairie-muret.fr

Postal address: Hôtel de Ville

27, rue Castelvielh

BP 60207 31605 Muret

Mairie de Muret