80 ans de la Libération - 1945/2025

The La Rochelle pocket was a resistance zone at the end of the Second World War. The pocket includes the town of La Rochelle and surrounding communes, the La Pallice submarine base and the Île de Ré.
It is the only pocket to have retained a large population, to have been spared the fighting, to have emerged from the turmoil without too much damage, to have negotiated a modus vivendi with the occupying forces and, finally, to have been liberated only by French troops. After various meetings between Commandant Meyer (FFI) and German Admiral Schirlitz, a temporary agreement was signed with the agreement of General Adeline, commander of the French forces in the southwest.
In La Rochelle, on May 7, 1945, with the announcement of the German surrender, all the city's strategic points fell into the hands of the Resistance's interior regiment, Jean Guiton. By 5 p.m., La Rochelle was all decked out.
On May 8, Colonel Granger's French troops entered the city and marched with the Jean Guiton regiment amid a jubilant crowd. Admiral Schirlitz surrendered, officially liberating La Rochelle from the occupying forces.
La Rochelle was the last prefecture in France to be liberated.
The act of surrender was signed on May 9, 1945.
On July 23, General Charles de Gaulle visited La Rochelle and gave a speech in front of the station.