René Chavanne arrived at Porta Westfalica with the first prisoner transport on 18 March 1944. For 12 months, he had to perform forced labour in the underground tunnels. In 1990, 45 years later, he visited Porta Westfalica for the first time as a contemporary witness.
"I was no longer a miner, I became a technician. It was a new training, a new experience. I had to overcome my fear of heights; I hadn't thought it could be so easy. The materials for what was to become an underground factory began to arrive slowly now."
René Chavanne, Le cadavre réchauffé: Villerupt, Luxembourg, Hinzert, Buchenwald, une jeunesse derrière barreaux et barbelés, Metz 1993. Quote translated from German.
Post-war photo of René Chavanne wearing a striped prisoner's jacket. His prisoner number 28131 and the red corner of a political prisoner can be recognised on the jacket.
Source: Publisher Éditions Serpenoise
Biography
René Chavanne was born on 1 July 1924 in Villerupt, in the Lorraine (Lorraine) region of France. Together with Alsace, the region was already the scene of Franco-German conflicts in the 19th century and a pawn in the constantly changing balance of power in Western Europe. René Chavanne remembers his parents talking about the impending war as early as 1935.
read moreRetreat to Angers
His family retreated from the border region to Angers. It was here that René Chavanne witnessed the invasion of the Wehrmacht and the unexpectedly swift defeat of the French troops. In the long term, he was not prepared to accept the situation. In 1941, aged just 16, he returned to Villerupt.Resistance
René Chavanne's active resistance began with small actions, such as disrespectful behaviour towards German officials or distributing leaflets. Subsequently, his resistance activities continued to increase. He organised hiding places, procured weapons and took care of forged papers. He was discovered in the spring of 1943 and arrested by the Gestapo on 30 March of the same year.Imprisonment
Chavanne was transported via the prison in Luxembourg to the special SS camp in Hinzert. After almost a year, he was transferred to Buchenwald concentration camp at the beginning of March 1944. During this time, he had lost a good twenty kilograms in weight. 14 days after his arrival in Thuringia, the SS assigned Chavanne to the next transport - on 18 March 1944, he reached the subcamp in Barkhausen with the first transport of prisoners.In East Westphalia
René Chavanne stayed at Porta Westfalica for a whole year. He was deployed in various forced labour detachments, including assembly work on the "Dachs I" refinery project. On 1 April 1945, he was transported to Beendorf on the evacuation transport and from there to Wöbbelin. On 2 May 1945, he and the other survivors of the camp were liberated by American troops.Back as a contemporary witness
In 1990, René Chavanne visited Porta Westfalica again at the age of 65. Together with a small group of former prisoners, he was received by the town council. The highlight of the visit was a joint event with pupils from Porta Westfalica Grammar School. Two years later, he was one of the guests of honour at the inauguration of the memorial commemorating the prisoners of the Porta Westfalica subcamps in Hausberge.René Chavanne died in Tours on 6 October 1995 at the age of 71.
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"After a quarter of an hour of shouting, a few slaps and a few blows, groups of five were formed, caps were adjusted, coats were shaken and straw was removed read more: those whose coats remained soiled with excrement folded them up and placed them over their arms. Interpreters were introduced: a Pole, a Russian and a Frenchman." read less
René Chavanne, Le cadavre réchauffé: Villerupt, Luxembourg, Hinzert, Buchenwald, une jeunesse derrière barreaux et barbelés, Metz 1993. Quote translated from German.
