France on Monday November 11 remembers the Armistice that marked the end of the First World War in 1918 after four years of bloody conflict that cost millions of lives, reports FRANCE 24.
France’s staggering casualty list included around 1.4 million killed in a war that has left an indelible imprint on the national consciousness.
The country is now preparing for the centenary commemorations of the First World War, to begin next year (France entered the war in August 1914), organised by the state-sponsored Centenary Mission which is organising hundreds of events to remember and debate the devastating legacy of the global conflict.
French historian Nicolas Offenstadt, a member of the Mission’s council who has published a new book on the French experience of the war to mark the centenary, tells FRANCE 24 why the First World War remains a crucial event in the country's history and that its legacy, still being felt, needs to be tackled head on.
FRANCE 24: Why is it so important to commemorate a war that took place so long ago?
Nicolas Offenstadt: There is a very real need for this in France. Yes, it is an historical event, but we are still feeling the consequences in almost every aspect of our lives. For ordinary people, memories of the war remain strong, anchored as they are in narratives of millions of French families.
It is also an important time to reflect on France’s experience as a nation. The Great War was a colossal and traumatic event. Millions were killed. It was a demographic, human and economic trauma on a massive scale that had a profound and lasting effect on all those countries that took part.
The questions it raises are as important today as they were then. What is the relationship between the individual citizen and the state? Can citizens still be called on to defend their country? What does it mean to make a collective effort? What is the meaning of national solidarity?
FRANCE 24: What are the challenges for France in dealing with this legacy?
Offenstadt: One of the big challenges is France's colonial history.The Great War included a huge participation of troops from France’s former colonies, a participation that is not nearly as well understood as it should be. The debate will have - and must have - a significant impact on the contentious issue of 21st century immigration while helping France come to terms with the realities of its colonial past.
Read more of this report from FRANCE 24.