THE CUSTOMS OFFICERS IN THE BATTLE OF FRANCE 1939-1940

1939, the year France was plunged into a new world conflict, marked a third black chapter for the customs officers. After 1870 and 1914, the Military Corps of Customs was once again mobilised. Like their predecessors before them, this third generation of customs fighters did their duty, upholding the motto « Honneur et Patrie » on their standard.

These officers carried out military surveillance of the borders during the « Drôle de Guerre » and in the East, customs officers served as guides for the franc-tireur units conducting incursions into enemy territory.

On 10 May 1940, under enemy pressure, the Eastern and then Northern customs brigades received orders to fall back. Some battalions managed to reach the South. Others ended up being captured without being able to make use of their meagre weaponry.

But in May and June, with their backs to the wall, customs formations went above and beyond the call of duty. Courageous officers distinguished themselves notably at Boulogne-sur-Mer, at Calais, in the entrenched camp of Dunkirk, and in the defence of Fort du Larmont near Pontarlier… Some agents gave their lives for France; others were wounded and maimed.

As a consequence of the armistice, the customs battalions were officially dissolved on 27 June 1940. These soldiers, who were forgotten after the war, had nonetheless done their duty. This book sets out to retrace the curious and little-known history of these military customs formations during the dramatic period of 1939–1940.

Author Christophe Mulé trained as a lawyer and comes from a family of customs officers. A history enthusiast, he takes a particular interest in the past of the customs brigades. For the Centenary of the First World War, he published two works on the history and uniform traditions of the customs battalions in 1914–1918.