Fighting far from home

Explore this new exhibition depicting the contribution of the men of the French colonial Empire during the Great War.

Find out about the 600,000 men from sub-Saharan Africa, the Antilles, Oceania, Asia and North Africa who came to fight a long way from home on the war’s various European fronts. The exhibition also remembers the economic mobilization of the Empire, which contributed to the war effort through the labour of 200,000 workers in ports, factories and fields.

Get to know the many facets of this contribution, the ways in which the sacrifice was recognized, and its historical traces. While the Empire appeared to come out of the war stronger and larger, it was in reality profoundly affected and its participation was without a doubt a key event that shaped its future relations with the mainland.