The French Riviera under Italian Rule during WW2
The Val Dora battalion of the 5th Alpini Regiment in action in the Col de Pelouse during the Italian invasion of France in June 1940
Introduction
During World War 2, southeastern France experienced two distinct periods of occupation by Fascist Italy. The first occurred from June 1940, following the Italian invasion, and continued until the Armistice between Italy and the Allied armed forces on 8 September 1943. Subsequently, the German forces compelled Italian troops stationed in France to retreat within their own borders, marking the end of the Italian occupation of southern France. The second occupation took place in November 1942, as Italy asserted control over the region once again during this period.
Occupation zones of France during the Second World War
The Italian Occupation
Benito Mussolini initiated the invasion of France on June 10, 1940, with limited success. Following France's surrender to Germany on June 25, an Armistice was signed between France and Italy, designating a 830 km² Italian-controlled zone in southeastern France, which included nearly 30,000 French citizens. Notably, Menton became part of the Kingdom of Italy during this period, with Grenoble and Nice as major cities within the 50-km 'demilitarized zone' near the Italian Alpine Wall.
In November 1942, there was an expansion of Italian-held territory as Nazi Germany assumed control over most of Vichy France, which had been a French Puppet state led by Marshal Pétain. This military occupation was referred to as 'Case Anton.'
The Royal Italian Army extended its authority to Toulon and Provence, reaching the Rhône River, and claimed Corsica as well. The intention was to annex Nice and Corsica to Italy, mirroring the 1940 incorporation of Menton. However, Italy's surrender to the Allied forces in September 1943 marked the conclusion of Italian rule in France.
Secret signing of the Cassibile armistice on 3 September 1943:
Major General Walter Bedell Smith for the Allies and Brigade General Giuseppe Castellano for Italy
The Italian Army
In June 1940, the Italian occupational army, numbering 700,000 troops, had significant numerical superiority over the French. However, they faced numerous challenges, including inadequately light tanks, a lack of artillery and motor transport, and ill-preparedness for the cold Alpine climate. The French had established substantial fortifications along the Alpine Line, referred to as the 'Little Maginot.'
In November 1942, the Italian occupation of most of southern France and Corsica encountered no resistance from the Vichy Army.
Until the summer of 1943, there was minimal guerrilla warfare against the Italian occupation.
Benito Mussolini
Margherita Sarfatti
Benito Mussolini and his Jewish mistress Margherita Sarfatti, who was instrumental in shaping Italian “fascism” without the “Jew hate”.
A 'Safe' Haven
During the early years of WW2, many French and European Jews sought refuge in the Italian-occupied part of France to escape Nazi persecution in Vichy France. When Italy expanded its control over additional French territory in November 1942, almost 80% of the remaining 300,000 French Jews found sanctuary there, as Mussolini did not share Hitler's views on the "Jewish problem," possibly influenced by his Jewish mistress, Margherita Sarfatti.
An Italian Jewish banker named Angelo Donati played a vital role in convincing Italian civil and military authorities to protect Jews from French persecution. In January 1943, the Italians refused to cooperate with the Nazis in rounding up Jews in their occupied territory and even prevented German deportations from their zone in March. This led to German Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop complaining to Mussolini about Italian military circles' insufficient understanding of the "Jewish question."
However, after Italy signed an armistice with the Allies in September 1943, Nazi forces swiftly took control of the Italian zone, leading to raids against Jews. Alois Brunner, the SS official responsible for Jewish affairs, oversaw the search for hidden Jews and deported over 5,000 within five months.
The memorial plaque on the boulevard
(click to enlarge image)
The plaque reads:
During the German occupation of Nice from September 1943 to August 1944, more than 3,000 Jews including 264 children were arrested in the Alpes-Maritimes, Basses-Alpes and the principality of Monaco and deported by the Gestapo in application of Nazi anti-Semitic ideology.
Before being transferred by rail to the Drancy camp near Paris from where they were sent to the Auschwitz extermination camp, the victims had been interned in the Excelsior hotel, which became an annex to the Drancy camp and was requisitioned by the Germans because of its proximity to Nice station.
"Inaugurated on October 9, 2009 by Christian Estrosi, Minister of Industry, Mayor of Nice, President of Nice Côte d'Azur in the presence of Serge Klarsfeld and Eric Ciotti, Member of Parliament, President of the General Council of Alpes-Maritimes"
The memorial plaque across the street from Hotel Excelsior
In The Highland Raven, secret agent Sable Montgomery embarks on an SOE mission in occupied France, arriving via felucca on the French Riviera and staying at the Excelsior Hotel in Nice. In The Partisan Fighter (upcoming), Count and Countess de Dragoncourt assist Jews in escaping from Nice during WW2.
Research revealed the disturbing history of the Hotel Excelsior under German occupation that same year.
Today, this Belle Époque hotel, boasting four stars and a prime city center location near the Mediterranean, welcomes tourists seeking French Riviera delights. However, a nearby plaque tells a grim WW2 story about the hotel's role in Nazi war criminal Alois Brunner's operations.
After France's fall in June 1940, Nice was in the unoccupied zone, providing a safe haven for Jewish refugees despite Vichy's anti-Jewish laws.
In 1942, the Allies invaded North Africa, and the Germans and Italians occupied southern France, with the Riviera under Mussolini's control. Although not philanthropic, Mussolini refrained from collaborating with Vichy and refused to persecute Jews or enforce yellow star badges.
However, when Italy surrendered on September 8, 1943, the Germans assumed control of the Nice region, with Alois Brunner, Adolf Eichmann's top aide, establishing his headquarters at the Hotel Excelsior just two days later. This marked the start of a horrific crackdown on the Jewish population. SS officers systematically patrolled the city, arresting anyone who appeared Jewish, including those in mixed marriages, of certain nationalities, children, elderly, and invalid individuals. These individuals were interrogated at the hotel and subsequently deported to death camps from a nearby train station.
Alois Brunner
Alois Brunner
In just 80 days, Brunner oversaw the deportation of over 2,000 Jews from Nice to their deaths.
As the Wehrmacht retreated from France, Brunner arrested and deported 1,327 Jewish children in Paris in July 1944. He left Paris on August 17, a week before the city's liberation, taking deported personnel as potential hostages.
Overall, Brunner orchestrated the deportation of an estimated 23,500 Jews from France to death camps. From September 1944 to March 1945, he quelled the Jewish underground movement in Slovakia and led the Sered concentration camp, deporting about 11,500 people to Auschwitz, Sachsenhausen, Bergen-Belsen, and Terezín for extermination.
Alois Brunner remained one of the top Nazis who evaded capture after the war and lived freely, reportedly passing away in Damascus around 2010.
The Plaque
In modern times, the Hotel Excelsior's plaque was unveiled in 2009 by Mayor Christian Estrosi. He noted that the hotel still carries the painful memories of Jewish suffering, where innocent men, women, and children once sought refuge, believing Nice would be a safe haven.
