Historic Helmet From Le Paradis Repatriated
An original helmet from the massacre has been brought back from France and has been confirmed to have been worn by a soldier from the Royal Norfolk Regiment who was involved in the massacre. Our photograph shows the handover of the helmet to Norfolk Museum Service. The helmet is on display in the Norfolk Regimental Museum which is part of the Norwich Castle Museum collection. In the photograph is Dennis O'Callaghan, founder member of the Le Paradis Commemoration Group and son of one of the only two survivors of the massacre, Kate Thaxton, curator of the Norfolk Regimental Museum and Biddy Fisher who brought the helmet back from France.
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The repatriated helmet is pictured top left and next to it is a chin strap modification confirming that the helmet was manufactured 1938/1939. Bottom left is Biddy Fisher with Jean-Charles Defour and the photogrpah bottom right is of the original graves with wooden crosses at Le Paradis. Helmets can clearly be seen.
Below is a provenance document put together regarding the helmet:
Those who were massacred at Le Paradis were buried by the French in temporary graves in front of the barn with helmets placed on and around some of the wooden crosses. In May 1942 their bodies were exhumed and re-interred in Le Paradis churchyard.
Since then, the barn has changed hands several times before being purchased by Claud Dufour. Following the death of Claud in 2018 the barn was inherited by his son Jean-Charles Dufour who decided in 2023 he would sell up and move to Sweden but not before he had thoroughly cleared all the farm buildings. It was during this clearing he came across two military helmets which he thought were English. He advised the Le Paradis Commemoration Group (LPCG) of his find and forwarded two photographs for them to examine.
With the assistance of Norfolk author and military historian, Neil R. Storey, the photographs established the helmets would have belonged to British infantry soldiers present at Le Paradis in 1940 owing to the chin strap modifications made in 1938/39 on existing Brodie helmets to accommodate new liners. The yellow oblong, partially displayed on the side of the helmets, had suffered wear and tear over time which had probably accounted for the removal of most of the black stripe that ran through the centre of it. This was confirmed as being the insignia of the Royal Norfolk Regiment.
On 17th July 2023 came the news from Jean-Charles which LPCG had waited for;
“These helmets have found their place, and so much the better!
Yes, they were certainly among the wooden crosses on the temporary graves”
The helmets could only have come from the neighbouring field where the 99 soldiers were stripped of their equipment. If the helmet did not belong to the two survivors it would have belonged to one of the Royal Norfolk soldiers who were in the 97 who died that day. It would be the only artefact that returned home from those Royal Norfolk soldiers who did not return.
The helmet was repatriated by Biddy M. Fisher OBE 20th June 2023.
The remaining helmet was placed in the small museum in the centre of Le Paradis.
Those who were massacred at Le Paradis were buried by the French in temporary graves in front of the barn with helmets placed on and around some of the wooden crosses. In May 1942 their bodies were exhumed and re-interred in Le Paradis churchyard.
Since then, the barn has changed hands several times before being purchased by Claud Dufour. Following the death of Claud in 2018 the barn was inherited by his son Jean-Charles Dufour who decided in 2023 he would sell up and move to Sweden but not before he had thoroughly cleared all the farm buildings. It was during this clearing he came across two military helmets which he thought were English. He advised the Le Paradis Commemoration Group (LPCG) of his find and forwarded two photographs for them to examine.
With the assistance of Norfolk author and military historian, Neil R. Storey, the photographs established the helmets would have belonged to British infantry soldiers present at Le Paradis in 1940 owing to the chin strap modifications made in 1938/39 on existing Brodie helmets to accommodate new liners. The yellow oblong, partially displayed on the side of the helmets, had suffered wear and tear over time which had probably accounted for the removal of most of the black stripe that ran through the centre of it. This was confirmed as being the insignia of the Royal Norfolk Regiment.
On 17th July 2023 came the news from Jean-Charles which LPCG had waited for;
“These helmets have found their place, and so much the better!
Yes, they were certainly among the wooden crosses on the temporary graves”
The helmets could only have come from the neighbouring field where the 99 soldiers were stripped of their equipment. If the helmet did not belong to the two survivors it would have belonged to one of the Royal Norfolk soldiers who were in the 97 who died that day. It would be the only artefact that returned home from those Royal Norfolk soldiers who did not return.
The helmet was repatriated by Biddy M. Fisher OBE 20th June 2023.
The remaining helmet was placed in the small museum in the centre of Le Paradis.