Georges Blind: The Smiling Resistance Fighter
Roger Viollet via Getty ImagesFrench Resistance fighter Georges Blind smiles during a mock execution in 1944.
In October 1944, a Nazi soldier dropped off his camera for development at a shop in Belfort, France. But one of the photos stopped the shop owner, Aloyse Ball, cold. It showed a man, facing a Nazi firing squad with his hands tied behind his back, smiling. That man was Georges Blind.
But for a long time, no one knew the identity of the smiling man. Ball quietly made copies of the photo, which he distributed to the French Resistance. Only after the war did Blind’s son, Jean, identify his father and tell his story.
Born on November 17, 1904, Georges Blind grew up to become a member of the fire brigade in the town of Belfort. He was dedicated to his job, and often went above and beyond in trying to save people.
“It has just been reported to me that… when called to rescue a person suffocated by the lighting gas, you succeeded after an hour and a half of efforts to revive the victim,” the mayor of Belfort wrote to Blind in 1941. “Thus bringing a total of 21 the number of successes recorded to your credit.”
Musée de la RésistanceGeorges Blind in his fire brigade uniform.
As a member of the fire brigade, Blind was well-positioned to help the French Resistance. Though the Germans heavily occupied Belfort, Blind could easily move about town because of his job — even during the night. He and other fire brigade members helped transport Resistance members, weapons, information, and clandestine newspapers.
However, his activities eventually drew suspicion. The Nazis ended up arresting Blind on October 14, 1944. Soon afterward, they staged a mock execution to try and get Blind to talk. But instead, he just smiled.
Blind looked across the terrain at his would-be execution and grinned. He didn’t talk — he didn’t reveal any information about the French Resistance. And the Nazis grudgingly revealed it had all been a farce.
Tragically, however, Blind did not survive the war. Shortly after the photo was taken, he died in the Auschwitz concentration camp. Nevertheless, his image — his moment of quiet, cheerful bravery — lives on.
