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After Dunkirk (May 26-June 4) with very little respite, the Germans turned south. The refugees began fleeing south as the Germans drove to the Channel. This complicated French Army effirts to mive forces forward. There are many reports of Lufwaffe pilots straffing the refufee columns. We are not sure just how common this was or the extrent to which Luftwaffe commanders ordered the pilots to do this. Few World War II films fail to have a scene depicting this. Jut how historically baccurate it is we are not sure. As the Germans turned sout after Dunkirk, even larger numbrs of refugees began clogging the roads. And Parisians for the first time began to pour out of the city in large numbers and head south to escape the advancing Germans. The Germans had been stopped in World War. There was still hope tht theu would be stopped again. Trains at first carried refugees south as well as vehicles of every sort--although gas was very difficult to obtain. The French Gobernment after only 5 days abandoned Paris and declared it an an Open City. The French Givernment knew what the Germans had done to Warsaw and Rotterdam and didm't want that fate for Paris. The Government joined the throng if regugees. And then quickly abandoning one city after another. They finally ended up in the resort town of Vichy which had many hotels to recosition. Huge numbers of people were turned into trfigees. No provisions or accomodations had been prepared for the growing throng of refugees. Paris earlier in the War had trouble dealing with the refugees. Small towns and villages to the south were simply overwealmed.
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