Maintain

Our goal: no grave of a soldier who “Died for France” should disappear from Poland’s cemeteries, and no monument, memorial stone or plaque honouring French servicemen should fall into neglect.

In Poland, this commitment answers a particular reality. The French who “Died for France” rest here, often far from their families, in municipal and parish cemeteries, military plots and the sites of former prisoner-of-war camps and Stalags, scattered across the whole country. Distant from their relatives and from the watch of veterans’ associations, these graves and monuments are especially exposed to oblivion and disappearance; many memorial stones and plaques, raised over the decades, are deteriorating for lack of regular care.

To meet this challenge, Le Souvenir Français en Pologne records, maintains and restores these graves, monuments and plaques. Cleaning and repair, floral tributes during commemorations, restoration of threatened graves and monuments: carried out with the help of municipalities, parishes, French and Polish authorities and volunteers, this work ensures that the memory of the French who served in Poland remains visible and dignified, generation after generation.