Raymond-Aubrac-Obituary

Raymond Aubrac

Obituary

PARIS (AP) - Raymond Aubrac, one of the last major figures of the French Resistance who got away from the Nazis' grasp in a now-legendary escape led by his equally renowned wife, has died. He was 97.

Aubrac died late Tuesday at Paris' Val-de-Grace military hospital, said his granddaughter Helene Helfer Aubrac. She said he had been hospitalized in recent days after suffering from fatigue.

Born Raymond Samuel on July 31, 1914, to Jewish parents who were deported to Auschwitz, he and his wife - born as Lucie Bernard - took up the nom de guerre Aubrac after joining the Resistance early on in World War II. They helped set up Liberation-Sud (Liberation South), one of the first networks of the Resistance against the Nazi occupation of France.

Raymond Aubrac was captured along with celebrated Resistance hero Jean Moulin on June 21, 1943, when police raided a Resistance meeting spot - a doctor's office - near the southeastern city of Lyon.

Luci e Aubrac helped orchestrate her husband's escape from a Lyon prison following his arrest. She persuaded the local Gestapo leader, Klaus Barbie, to let her meet with her imprisoned husband. During the meeting, she told Aubrac of the Resistance's plan to attack the German truck that was to transfer him to another prison, then herself led the armed commando attack that sprung both her husband and Moulin.

President Nicolas Sarkozy, in a statement, said the escape had "entered into the legend of the history of the Resistance," and praised Aubrac and all Resistance members as "heroes of the shadows who saved France's honor, at a time when it seemed lost."

After the war, Lucie Aubrac returned to the classroom, teaching history and geography, while Raymond went on to a successful career in government and banking. He retained ties to Communists and Socialists.

Raymond Aubrac backed Socialist Francois Hollande for France's two-round presidential election starting on A pril 22; his wife died at age 94 just weeks before the last presidential election in 2007 when Hollande's longtime partner and fellow Socialist Segolene Royal lost to the conservative Sarkozy.

"The death of a man doesn't prevent his fight from continuing," Hollande told reporters. He said he'd met with Aubrac about three weeks ago and was told that the ex-Resistance fighter was closely watching the race.

Aubrac is survived by three children - son Jean-Pierre Aubrac and daughters Catherine Vallade and Elisabeth Helfer Aubrac - and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Funeral arrangements were not yet clear, Helfer Aubrac said.

JAMEY KEATEN, Associated Press


Copyright © 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Guest Book

Not sure what to say?

A gracious and respectable person whose work has done so much to bring so much joy to many of us and made us aware of endless personal possibilities in these troubled times hard to deal with (2 Tim 3:1). Perhaps more will continue to have positive experiences from a wonderful work that has had many impactful contributions to life and its anxieties.

Alors j'ai entendu une voix forte venant du trône dire : “ Voyez ! La tente de Dieu est avec les humains, et il résidera avec eux, et ils seront ses peuples. Et Dieu lui-même sera avec eux. Et il essuiera toute larme de leurs yeux, et la mort ne sera plus ; ni deuil, ni cri, ni douleur ne seront plus. Les choses anciennes ont disparu. ”
Révélation 21:3,4

Dear Aubrac Family: Je suis vraiment désolée d'apprendre la mort de votre membre de la famille. Mais, vous avez tellement de choses à en être fiers. Vos parents ont laissé un héritage merveilleux de vous aider maintenant et à l'avenir. Espérons que, la même espérance d'Abraham et le roi David est celui qui est partagé par vos parents (Ps 37:9-11).

A la famille Aubrac et en particulier a Elisabeth veuillez accepter mes plus sinceres condoleances. Ce que j'ai appris de Raymond et de Lucie lors de mes annees grenobloises m'a ete d'un soutien inestimable tout au long de mon parcours. Merci a eux pour l'exemple si genereusement offert.
Hubert Broux
([email protected])

Please accept my condolences. May the words at Isaiah 65:17-22 comfort you during this difficult time.

Mere words cannot express the world's gratitude for such courage. May more people follow in both he and his wife's foot steps. Blessings to all his family.

words can not express the pain that loved ones is experiencing. I am so sorry for your loss.

Sincere condolences to family and loved ones. May the God of all comfort be with you.