Another Milsurp Movie Post - Days of Glory (Indigenes)

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skirsons

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This is a French movie with English subtitles. It follows the story of French colonial troops (muslims) as they fight their way through Europe in 1944-45 and ends in Alsace.

This is a great movie for milsurps. Imagine a unit that fought with MAS-36s, Garands, Thompsons, Mausers (one soldier has a GEW-98 Sniper rifle), Walther P-38s, SMLEs, and I thought I even saw a P-14 or two. This was the widest variety I'd ever seen on one side of a conflict, especially one that focuses on just one unit!

Indigenes1.jpg


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indigenes.jpg
 
The title translates into "indigenous people" but could also be translated into "savages" depending on whom you ask .... I'd LOVE to see period photos of that unit, if it ever existed ...
 
I think I saw some of this somewhere... was fairly well done. For some reason I had them pegged as algerians.

Also - resupplying those guys must have been a pain in the butt. I guess they just scrounged.
 
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Goums...

They existed. And they weren't the only ones.
My uncle Albert Ferrer, born in Oran, Algeria, fought along his comrade North African colonial troops, goumiers and tirailleurs and they were very brave people.
These troops were invariably sent to the worst parts of a battle. They were "indigènes" and the colonialists considered them as cannon fodder.
Among other places (even if mostly untold), some of them played a significant role in the bloody skirmish at Monte Cassino.
Later, they followed Leclerc's 1rst and 2nd D.B. in their progression along the Rhone Valley.
My uncle was in one of Leclerc's tanks. On one particular occasion he's seen many of these people die alongside his vehicle when they were pinned down by a group of 88s and the preceding Sherman's turret exploded. They had to maneuver over dead bodies to get out of the german's line of fire.
During this episode, one of the flanking tirailleurs (and one of my uncle's friends) was hit in the head by a bullet and he spinned around and fell in the tank's tracks.
They finished the fight with the guy's remains stuck in the cleats and they had to pick him out once all was clear...
They were some of the untold heroes of that war.
PP.
 
I went and saw it in the theatre when it came out, I thought it was very good, and the ending sad but reflective of much of the contributions of colonial troops.

Its very different in that it provides a significantly different perspective on the war that hasn't really every been made before (I don't think) and as a result, increased my awareness of something I didnt know about.
 
Awesome movie. Didnt notice the one character only had one arm until the last fight though, lol.

Thats quite a story you have, PP. Interesting and disturbing.

One fact of note is that the Moroccan "Goumiers" (portrayed by the two brothers who rob corpses) were known to run amock and rape and pillage (with the passive consent of their French commanders of course). It seems the movie didnt cover this though.

It is quite a disgrace that the French govt isnt providing military pensions to "natives". A lot of these soldiers would probably also fight for France against Algerian rebels (and many against, I am sure). The same goes for the Brits. Lots of African veterans who served in the war now live in poverty.

Its sort of ironic in a way, because in 1963(?) the FDR decided they will start paying pensions to the Askaris, Tanzanians who helped the German Empire fight the Brits in eastern Africa. Youda thunk the good guys would at least act the part.

edit to add:

theres also a little extre featurette about a Senegalese or West African returning home, and then being shot and killed after he goes to demand his pay (along with many others). This actually happened AFTER the war. makes you wonder why many Africans feel some restentment against their old masters. And I am sure a lot of these events are hidden, covered up, or just plain forgotten.
 
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And this was with the second generation of those "indigènes", mind you!
The first ones were the Senegalese troops and others sent in France during the First Great Unpleasantness.
My grandfather witnessed their arrival near Verdun; they had received uniforms and they were very proud of it. To avoid wearing their new boots they used to hang them around their necks by the laces!
They were given revolvers and machetes and a very good supply of cheap red wine and were told to collect the ears of every German they would kill for they'd be given a bottle of wine for each pair...
Next night they were sent to the german trenches, wearing only a black loincloth and their machetes. They crawled to the outposts, killed sentinels and everyone they found there. The regular troops just followed them.
They were drunk for a week after that and were sent back to the rear because of very fierce fights occurring between them when "partying"...
PP.
 
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PP - sounds like Canadians! I guess both Britain and France had a love-hate relation with their Colonials during WWI.
 
Huh, thanks for the info guys. I keep seeing it in Blockbuster and wondering if it is any good. Now I know I should rent it.
 
I recognize one of the troops from the movie "Amelie", the second from the right in the last picture. It'll be hard to dismiss his role as a mentally handicapped person after watching that movie so many times.
 
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