how an association tracks the trafficking of veterans’ funeral plaques

The association which fights against this trafficking in memory has several hundred volunteers who observe the theft of objects on the ground and alert the authorities. Actions also take place online, where announcements of resale of these plates are increasing.

“No fighting stele should be abandoned.” On its website, the French Souvenir association assures, its main fight is that the graves bearing the inscription “Death for France”, in particular those of soldiers who disappeared during the First World War, do not disappear from cemeteries. communal.

Several hundred euros

The battle against this disappearance of a part of French history involves the fight against the theft and the resale of the enameled plaques which adorn the tombs of the poilus. Stolen from cemeteries and sometimes sold for hundreds of euros depending on the ranks and condition of the object, they are most of the time unscrewed from soldiers’ graves.

On a daily basis, the French Souvenir association scrutinizes sites specializing in the resale of war objects and tracks down suspicious advertisements. This is the main mission of Jean-Pierre Mennessier, responsible for online memorial monitoring at Souvenir français, who details his mode of action.

“The only weapon I have is to annoy the seller, it’s to publicize, to prevent justice. We also contact sites,” he says.

The association can also boast of having several hundred volunteers on the ground, “watchers” keen on genealogy, former police officers or soldiers who travel across France to fight against this trafficking. Their mission is to note thefts in cemeteries and also have the possibility of warning the police.

“Add emotion to History”

Most of the time, the matter is resolved amicably between the thief and the association, which, after investigation and after recovering the plate, hands it over to the municipalities or families concerned.

Serge Barcellini, president of Souvenir français, tells BFMTV about his association’s latest victory. “It was a soldier who was wounded and died of his wounds on February 3, 1916,” he explains, showing a plaque bearing the name of Jean Lougratte, offered for sale for more than 700 euros on a website. ‘auction.

For him, recovering these plaques, in addition to being a militant act, is also the way to transmit the memory of this era to new generations while the last furry man still alive, Lazare Ponticelli, died in 2008 at the age 110 years.

“Returning a plaque means adding emotion to History. Plaques bring an emotion that the history book does not provide. We believe that we must restore this emotion, preserve this emotion, to share the knowledge of 14-18”, he insists.

As TF1 points out, concealment of funeral plaques is punishable by five years in prison and a fine of 375,000 euros.