Non-recognition of the Dissidence in the Second World War

Thousands of young men and women left the French Antilles (Martinique, Guadeloupe and French Guyana) to join the Free French from 1941 to 1944. The contributions made by these dissidents, in campaigns in North Africa, France and even on German soil, has for decades been overlooked in both the Antilles and in metropolitan France. Their marginalisation is rooted in both the universalist ideals of the French Republic, which obscure colonial particularities, and the enduring dominance of Eurocentric frameworks that privilege metropolitan forms of resistance. This thesis reveals how such historical omissions shape questions of national identity and belonging in the Antilles, through an analysis of commemorative ceremonies, documentaries, literature, memorials, museums, and school curricula. It interrogates both official and unofficial initiatives, assessing the power dynamics and agency that shape how this history is remembered. It establishes the Dissidence's place within national narratives of liberation and resistance, foregrounding the structural limits of commemoration. This thesis asks to what extent the French state integrates the Dissidence into existing resistance frameworks or frames them as part of a distinct colonial memory, while interrogating whether these commemorations sustain Eurocentric discourses or offer decolonial perspectives. It also turns to unofficial commemorations, examining whether these reproduce state narratives or succeed in articulating counter-discourses that challenge the commemorative status quo. The thesis ultimately argues that the Dissidence continues to occupy a marginal position within French collective memory.