What happened to the French gold at Martinique during WW2
Upvote:1
My grandfather found the gold in train cars with copy paper on top, 11 or 12 total. Not sure exactly how many. But he told his commander it was 2 miles out, in cars labeled copy paper. He was kept in the brig for two weeks while every bar was counted. William McLaughlin is my grand father. Look it up. Let me know what you find. I have never herd of it only from grandpa. Dan Thompson is my name.
Upvote:5
I believe that the 286 tons Bank of France gold was originally destined for safekeeping in Halifax but was diverted to Vichy-controlled Martinique aboard French cruiser EMILE BERTIN after France surrendered in June, 1940, and was stored in Fort Desaix.
In 1943, when the Free French took over with the aid of the U.S., I understand it had shrunk to 182 tons. Some of it may have been shipped out on voyages of the BARFLEUR to be exchanged for food and fuel during the Vichy years and some may have left with the SURCOUF when she departed in May 1942 to be escorted back to France by U-69. Unfortunately, she was sunk shortly after departure by an American patrol plane from St. Lucia.
Upvote:6
Thanks to @Drux I think I have an answer from the page he posted in the comments.
From the page:
1943 July 14 Ambassador Henri Hoppenot arrives in Fort de France to assume control of the Antilles for the Committee of National Liberation. Admiral Robert leaves for Vichy by way of Puerto Rico. The Free French take control of the Bank of France gold reserves held in Martinique and the Caribbean fleet.
But I am still uncertain as to the final destination of this gold, so I am leaving the question open for the time being.
More post
- 📝 Toyotomi Hideyoshi threatened to exterminate all Japanese foxes unless he heard from the god Inari. What was the aftermath (if any)?
- 📝 Did emperor Kangxi indirectly contribute to China's massive population and subsequent problem?
- 📝 Why and when were ancient Egyptian hieroglyph phonograms used?
- 📝 How many times in history has a government completely "moulded to its own shape the physical character of the people"?
- 📝 Were any tactical missiles used during the 1971 Indo Pakistan war?
- 📝 What other courts were similar to Louis XIV of France's court in Versailles?
- 📝 When and why did tank crews cover their tank markings in WWII?
- 📝 Nazi Germany's secret service SD was first called Ic-Dienst, what does "Ic" stand for?
- 📝 Was hay invented only in the Middle Ages in Europe?
- 📝 Why are doughnuts toroidal?
- 📝 What's the etymology of the name of the Schengen village?
- 📝 Where is it recorded that Spartan common meals were followed by a recounting of noble deeds?
- 📝 How many soldiers did Ghengis Khan field?
- 📝 Why is Crispus Attucks the one who gets all the attention?
- 📝 What happened to all the undivided shares of California ranchos?
- 📝 Was Laz near Pribram at any time situated in the Sudetenland?
- 📝 Why wasn't England/Britain officially an empire (as a form of monarchy)?
- 📝 What are the current obligations of Treaty of Lausanne?
- 📝 In Montgomery, Alabama, how common was it to be arrested for sitting in the incorrect section of the bus?
- 📝 What was typical agricultural produce in Rome or Greece roundabout 2000-3000ya?
- 📝 When and how did classic "Italian" cuisine come to be?
- 📝 Why was there little nonwhite migration to Europe in the 19th century?
- 📝 Was it illegal to express sympathy for Nazi Germany during WW2 in Great Britain?
- 📝 Were there originally seats in the elevators in the Eiffel Tower?
- 📝 Were dissident KPD members ratted out to the Gestapo?
- 📝 Which religion was the first monotheistic one?
- 📝 What was the military age in Romania between the world wars?
- 📝 Was George Washington the thirteenth president?
- 📝 What Factors Contributed to the Success of Certain "Long March" Strategies?
- 📝 In WWII, what were the major differences in tank combat on the eastern and western fronts?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- 📝 What happened to the French gold at Martinique during WW2
- 📝 What happened to the French royal navy during the french-revolution?
- 📝 What happened to the french overseas colonies during the beginning of the french revolution?
- 📝 What happened to all the French guillotines?
- 📝 What happened to those ethnic Greeks who converted to Islam during the Ottoman empire?
- 📝 What changes happened in law enforcement and criminal trials during the Nazi era in Germany?
- 📝 What happened to Muslim spouses who converted to Christianity during the 1923 Graeco-Turkish population exchange?
- 📝 What happened at the Battle (or not?) of Luding Bridge, during the Long March of Chinese Communists in 1935?
- 📝 What happened to all the scholars and scientists of Western Rome during the barbarian invasions?
- 📝 What was the average size of French families during the Middle Ages?
- 📝 What happened to the French soldiers evacuated at Dunkirk and elsewhere in 1940?
- 📝 What happened to the Swiss troops in French service after August 10, 1792?
- 📝 What happened with North African oil during the Second World War?
- 📝 What happened to the foreigners in Germany during the Nazis?
- 📝 What happened to people's houses during the Soviets' reign?
- 📝 What acts of violence happened during the Nazi German annexation of Austria in 1938?
- 📝 During segregation and Jim Crow laws in the US what happened if a person was allowed to use white facilities but other users objected?
- 📝 When did the allies find out about the killing of Jews during WW2
- 📝 What drugs were used in England during the High Middle Ages?
- 📝 During the breakup of the Soviet Union, on what basis was citizenship granted or withheld for each of the fifteen new republics?
- 📝 What was the typical peasant's diet like in Europe during the High Middle Ages?
- 📝 What was the status of Arab Christians during the crusades?
- 📝 What happened in Rome, when the western empire "fell"?
- 📝 What was the role of the Soviet Navy during WWII?
- 📝 Were there any Germans in Japan after the surrender of Germany in May, 1945 and if so, what happened to them?
- 📝 What happened to these buildings near the Seine?
- 📝 On what basis do some historians accuse the British government of genocide during the great Irish famine?
- 📝 What set Checkpoint Charlie apart from the other border checkpoints in Berlin during the Cold War?
- 📝 What was the ratio of German to Soviet losses on Eastern front during different stages of the war?
- 📝 What happened to US's Lend-Lease machinery given to the Soviet Union?