Place de la Bastille

Place de la Bastille, a historic square in Paris, is transformed during the German occupation into a space dominated by Nazi military activity. For Isabelle Rossignol, it becomes a landmark she must navigate as she moves through the occupied city, a place where the reality of the occupation is inescapable. The square, once a symbol of revolutionary fervor, now bears the weight of a conquered city, its character reshaped by the presence of the enemy.

Location and Occupation

During the occupation, Place de la Bastille is a site of constant German military presence. When Isabelle returns to Paris in 1941, she observes that the only cars on the streets are black Mercedes-Benzes with miniature swastika flags, Wehrmacht lorries, and gray panzer tanks. As she pedals her bicycle past the square, she sees pods of German soldiers and sidewalk cafés hosting uniformed men. The square, like the rest of Paris, has been stripped of its essence by the endless clatter of German jackboots and disfigured by swastikas. The clocks have been changed to run on German time, and signs in bold, black lettering offer directions in German, making the familiar space feel foreign and hostile.

Isabelle's Navigational Use

Isabelle uses Place de la Bastille as a navigational point during her resistance work. As she rounds onto the boulevard de la Bastille, she encounters an old woman on a bicycle trying to bypass a barricade, only to be berated by a Nazi soldier. This incident underscores the constant danger and restriction of movement that defines life under occupation. The square is not merely a backdrop but an active obstacle in her journey, a place where the occupation's power is visibly and audibly enforced. Her passage through it is a small act of defiance, a movement through a space the enemy claims as their own.

Symbolic Significance

The square's transformation from a symbol of popular uprising to a site of Nazi control mirrors the broader subjugation of France. The presence of German soldiers and military vehicles in a place historically associated with the storming of the Bastille and the French Revolution creates a stark contrast between the nation's past ideals and its present humiliation. For Isabelle, who is determined to resist, the square represents the very thing she is fighting against: the occupation of her country and the erasure of its identity. Her determination to continue her work, even as she passes through such a heavily occupied space, underscores her commitment to the resistance.