ANGE MARIE MINICONI 1911-1988 : THE TEACHER RESISTANT

He worked as a teacher in Peille alongside his wife for close to a decade before the war and, until 1942, he was closely associated with the members of the “Cercle Peilhasque” who later gave him the idea of creating a Resistance group. He bought a radio set to listen to Radio Londres with his friends.

Antifascist and anti-Pétainist since 1940, he did not give in and refused to force the children of Peille to sing songs in praise of Maréchal Pétain. He became a suspect in the eyes of the authorities in Vichy and was forcibly transferred to Cannes with his wife and children 1942. His friends from the Cercle helped him move and he stayed in contact, in particular with the postman, the butcher Octave Nicolaï, and the priest Farbon. He was still in contact with them when he created the Jean Marie group, with 600 men, which was conducive to the liberation of Cannes on the 23rd of August 1944, saving the city from destruction.

He is the recipient of numerous decorations : Chevalier de la Légion d’honneur, croix de guerre, médaille militaire, étoile vermeil, and the croix du combattant volontaire. He continued to work for national education until his retirement.