Resumen de Die französische Vergangenheitsbewältigung des Zweiten Weltkriegs durch die Rechtsprechung am Beispiel des "Oradourprozesses"
The trials against German and English officials who were responsible for crimes committed during the occupation of France (1940-1944) are important elements of the French memory of that time. The author's contribution focuses on the trials against members of the 2nd SS Panzer Division "Das Reich" who had massacred the inhabitants of the village of Oradour-sur-Glane in June 1944. The proceedings took place in Bordeaux from January 12th until February 13th, 1953. Difficulties arose from the fact that only low-ranking soldiers were accused, and that all but one of the Alsatians -i.e. French nationals- claimed to have recruited by force. The court imposed rather low penalties. Protests in Alsace pressed the French parliament to pass an amnesty law for all Alsatians only a week after the trial. The few survivors in Oradour reacted with resignation and isolation. It took decades untils contacts with the French and German governments were established.
