The Last Train to Castres

Welcome to the latest episode of Telling Tales, where we'll embark on a journey through history, courage, and the enduring bonds of friendship in "The Last Train to Castres." Join us as we uncover the untold story of bravery and sacrifice set against the backdrop of World War II.

Meet Benoît and his grandfather, whose seemingly ordinary trip to Castres unveils a hidden past of heroism and camaraderie. As they reunite with old comrades, memories of a pivotal moment in history come flooding back.

Discover the remarkable tale of young boys turned soldiers, united in defiance against oppression. Through ambushes, surrenders, and daring negotiations, witness the resilience of the human spirit in the face of adversity.

From the narrow valley where a train met its fate to the streets of Castres, where a city found freedom, each moment is etched with courage and sacrifice.

As we unravel the layers of this gripping narrative, prepare to be inspired by the resilience of the human spirit and the power of unity in the darkest of times.

So, join us as we board "The Last Train to Castres" and embark on a journey through history's most defining moments. Stay tuned for an unforgettable tale of bravery, friendship, and the enduring legacy of those who fought for freedom.

© Jeff Price, February 2024

Transcript

The Last train to Castres

Benoît stepped down from the train at Castres and held out his hand.

"Papy, let me help you."

The old man stepped gingerly down.

"Thank you, Benoît. I am so pleased you came with me today." He handed Benoît his small suitcase.

"No problem, Papy, but you are being really mysterious. What is going on?"

"I told you, I am here to meet some old friends that I haven’t seen since the end of the war. We fought in the same brigade.”

Benoît looked puzzled. "What Brigade?"

"Not now; let us find Gaston. He said he would meet us here."

As they approached the ticket barrier, Benoît could see a man who looked even older than his Grandfather walking toward them.

"Robert , Robert !" He shouted.

The two men stood in front of each other for a moment as if they were transfixed, and then they embraced. It was a huge hug with much slapping of backs and "I nearly didn’t recognise you" and "It’s been too long." Benoît saw tears running down his Papy’s face. Never once had he ever seen him cry or show much emotion at all. Even when Grandma passed away, he was sad, but he never saw a tear.

Gaston kissed Robert  on both cheeks. "Comrade," he said, the emotion shaking in his voice. We have missed you."

Then he looked over his shoulder and saw the young man standing behind Robert .

"Who's this, then?"

"Gaston, this is my Grandson Benoît. He has been kind enough to come along with me today. I am afraid that, at my age, I am not very confident about travelling alone on a train."

Gaston laughed, "What, one of the heroes of Lautrec, afraid of a train, never. Come, we have a short walk; They others are here already, but there are only a few of us left now."

The two old comrades made their unsteady way out of the station.

"Is the Pontier Cafe still there?"

"No, it closed years ago; we are going to the Cafe du Commerce. It’s not far.

Benoît tugged on his grandfather's sleeve.

"Papy, what is going on?"

"You will understand soon. I want to sit down and have a coffee and maybe even a brandy before I talk anymore."

The terrace of the Cafe du Commerce was busy, and in one corner sat four men. As Gaston, Robert , and Benoît entered the cafe, they stood up, and again, there were many hugs and greetings but soon the comrades settled down and Benoît was introduced to the group.

"This is my favourite Grandson, Beniot."

Beniot gave his grandfather a quizzical look"I am your only grandson, Papy." There was much laughter, and the little joke seemed to break the sombre mood that had descended. There followed much clinking of glasses and more toasts to fallen comrades.

Robert  turned and looked at his grandson.

"These men you see before you are my comrades Benoît. We were Boy Scouts. These are two, Saul  and David  They were with the EIF. They have come from America to be with us. Gaston, you have already met him; he was the oldest of us at twenty-two and our commanding officer. The other two are more scouts from Toulouse. Benoît, this is Henry  and Michael .”

Towards the end of the second world war, when the Nazis marched south taking control of the Free Zone, they started to round up the fit young men to take to Germany as forced labour. Many of us took to the forest to escape and we survived with help from the partisans, and there were we met the EIF. They were young Jews who were helping smuggle the Jewish children out of the town of Mossiac. Now the whole area was crawling with soldiers, and it was too dangerous to move anyone. We joined forces with the EIF and the local Partisans then trained us in sabotage, survival, and weapon use. I might have been 15 when I joined, but a year later I had blown up bridges, mined roads, and even killed a German soldier. I was no longer a boy but a battle-hardened soldier.

Tell him about the train” Begged Gaston.

OK, on the night of August 19th, 1944, our sentries reported that American parachutists had landed nearby, and the Partisans were bringing them to meet us."

Gaston interjected. "The Americans had brought mines and machine guns, and most importantly, news of a train heading north full of weapons and ammunition. By this time, the British and Americans had landed in Normandy and were pushing Rommel’s Panzer divisions back towards the border with Belgium.” 

Saul  took up the story. "There was a narrow valley not too far from our camp where the train could easily be ambushed. We were all excited but very nervous. This was something much bigger than anything we had ever done before. All together we numbered 200 fighters plus the twenty Americans as that night we made our way silently down to the railway line.” 

The young waitress came over and smiled at Benoît. “More coffee Gentlemen?” 

They all looked at Gaston. “No coffee. I think we need to eat something or we will be asleep at the table in an hour.”

“I can bring charcuterie, bread and some cheese.”

“Perfect” Gaston replied as he looked around the table at the nods of approval from his comrades. 

“And a beer.” Saul added.

The waitress nodded and returned to the bar.

“Where were we? “said Robert 

Benoît jumped in “The train, how are you going to stop a train?”

“The mines the Americans brought would do the job and we put them under the tracks, and soon the train arrived, and the first couple of carriages and the engine were blown up. The noise was deafening. The train was heavily armed and also had a lot of armour. 

When the battle began between the heavy artillery on the train and our American machine guns, we threw everything we had at them. We had disabled the front cannons and our mortars finished off the rear gunners. Around midnight, the fighting had slowed down; we had used most of our ammunition, but our boys had killed many of the German soldiers.  

Saul said. “I thought we would have to withdraw as we were down to our last barrage of motors when suddenly a white flag appeared from the train. The German captain surrendered himself, plus fifty-six men and all the contents of the train. We all cheered and hugged each other, we had done it."

David jumped in. " I came up to one of the captives and asked him, "Do you know who I am?" The soldier answered, Yes, you are a partisans. - No, said I, I am stronger than that. "Ich bin ein Jude ." Well, he was wearing a green uniform but his face was much greener when he heard that.  I added that I was not the only Jew but he was surrounded by them. 

Gaston stood up from the table “We all cheered and shouted as one "Ich bin ein Jude." 

They all laughed and once again the battle cry of Lautrec rang out "Ich bin ein Jude  ." They clinked their beer glasses together and cheered. The other customers turned and looked at the group. A young man came across and said “Are you the veterans who have come for the parade tomorrow?

“Yes,” Gaston replied

“Let me shake your hands and welcome to Castres. “ There was much shaking of hands andGurnamiintroductions as each in turn welcomed the stranger.

The young man continued. “My Grandmother used to talk about the day you liberated the city and you all arrived at the town gate and she told stories of the party that night. My name is Gaston, I was named after my Father who my Grandmother said was named in honour of the handsome young officer who commanded the troops who liberated the city“

Gaston blushed and said “I am Gaston. I was the Commander of the Scouts.”  

There was a moment of silence at the table as the comrades looked at each other, Then Saul  said “Not so young and handsome anymore Gaston.” there was a roar of laughter that could have been heard in Paris.

Then came the question that seemed to be on everyone lips. “When was your Father born?” asked Sol. 

There was a pause as the young man did the arithmetic in his head. “1950”

Robert  smiled and said “I probably danced with your Grandmother in the square that night.

Gaston said “I am honoured that she choose to call her son after me. Please give her my regards?”

“Sadly she died a few years ago.” said the young Gaston, his head dropping slightly “Let me buy you all a drink.”

“That is very kind,” Gaston said “but there is no need. We have just ordered some food and we must try and keep a clear head for tomorrow.” 

“Then, I will see you all in the morning.” said young Gaston

Benoît looked bemused “What is happening tomorrow and what happened to the Germans?” 

“He is as impatient as I remember you were, Robert ” Gaston said. “ The surrender, Yes, I think at the moment, they thought we were going to kill them, but we didn’t. We took them further down the line to the little town of Lautrec  and imprisoned them in an old warehouse. Guards were posted, and we went to get some food and some much-needed sleep.``

Henry took up the story. "Not far from Lautrec was Castres where we are now. There was a German Garrison here. Rather than wait for the allied army and the free French who were heading up from the south, we decided to attack the garrison. 

Beniot was puzzled. “If the the Americnas and the free French army would be there soon, why not wait?”

A dark shadow seemed to pass across Gaston’s face. “The wrecked train would soon be discovered and then the Nazi’s would be searching for their men. Reprisals would follow and we had already seen what they could do. Hostages would be executed, villages bulldozed and much blood would be spilled. The news of the landings of the allies in Normandy had reached us and we knew we had to act fast.”

Gaston picked up Saul’s glass of beer and swallowed in al,l he then wiped a tear from his cheek. “Sorry Sol, I needed that.” 

Saul. “Don’t worry, I get us both another.” 

Gasto continued. “The artillery cannons from the train were reusable, and we mounted them on our trucks, transforming them into makeshift tanks.  We surrounded the town and wanted to soften up the Germans before we talked to them. We knew from our spies in the town where the sentries were posted, and we crept up on them. We took them by surprise, gagged them and took them to our defensive positions in the valley below the town and then for the rest of the night we fired our cannons and directed the occasional mortar against the town walls. We didn’t want to do too much damage but we did want them to have a sleepless, nervous night.  I loved the idea that we were attacking the Germans with their own munitions. In the morning the officers found their sentry posts abandoned.”

Robert  took his Grandson's hand. “Seventy years ago tomorrow just after dawn, we sent one of the sentries back with a message to the colonel of the German garrison in Castres, telling him that he was surrounded by an Army of battle-hardened troops ready for a fierce and merciless fight. A little while later we all watched as Gaston and one of the commanders of the Resistence dressed in the uniforms of officers marched into the town under a flag of truce. I have no idea where they got the uniforms but  when they met the German officers that they would  look the part. They went unarmed and unescorted to the Grand-Hôtel, the headquarters of the Kommandantur in Castres, and demanded that the Colonel surrender, threatening him with an imminent attack. 

They exaggerated the support of the Americans, pretending there were far more than the twenty parachutists. They demanded the officers disarm their men and march them out of the city. If they did not, a bombardment would begin, and no one would be spared. The officers knew the war was nearly over and that they had no chance of getting back to Germany and that the game was up; they thought their men were already deserting and had no stomach for a fight. 

Gaston turned to Saul and said “You were always the one who was good at numbers. How big was the garrison?

Saul paused for a moment and then said “Nearly seventy officers and more than four thousand men surrendered. It was Monday August 21, 1944. The same date as tomorrow.”

Robert  continued “I don't think the officers could believe their eyes when they saw us. Some two hundred men and boys formed a long column on either side of the road leading out of the town gate as the officers and soldiers marched out. We shouted “Hände hoch.” they all thrust their hands into the air. 

The townspeople looks on from the city walls and we kept our machine guns trained on the germans in case there was any funny business

Michael said. "What a day that was! We took the soldiers to the rugby stadium, and they erected their tents on the pitch. It was crowded, but I think they were just relieved to get out alive. We had a party that night in the town square and in the Pontier Cafe, we danced, we sang, and we ate. Those people left in the city did not have much, but we opened the German cellars and food stores and distributed what we found. What a feast we had, what wine we drank and I have never kissed as many girls in my life as I did that night." the six comrades laughed.  

Robert  told his grandson. "Tonight we will be guests of honour at a dinner organised by the Mayor of Castres as a thank you for the part we played in saving the city, and tomorrow we will march to the cenotaph to remember those who gave their lives to free France from fascism. I have spoken to the mayor, and of course, you will be sitting with us."

Benoit was stunned and couldn’t believe what he had just heard. "How come you never, ever mentioned this before?"

The old man smiled and said, "That was a good day, but there were many bad memories also. Things I did, things I saw, and things that happened to my comrades are memories a young man doesn’t want or need. I just wanted to forget, but one thing I have learned in my eighty-six years on earth is that you can never forget."

Benoît said, "Do Dad and Mom know about all this?"

Robert  winked at him. "They know in general terms that I was a scout and that we assisted in the liberation of Castres but they never really asked for details and I never volunteered any further information. 

Benoît took his Grandfather's hand. “I am so proud of you Papy and I have a thousand questions.

“Later Benoît, later.” His Grandfather replied.

Postscript. Whilst the meeting of the comrades in the cafe is entirely fictional all the salient facts concerning the train and the surrender of the Garrison at Castres are a matter of historical fact.  After the war the town of Mossaic was named Rightous amongst the Nations,  a reference to how hundreds of locals helped the EIF rescue about 500 Jewish children — an occurrence that Yad Vashem, Israel’s national Holocaust museum, has defined as “an exceptional episode in the history of World War II.” but that's a story for another day.

©Jeff Price, February 2024