Glimpses on the History of Jews in Occupied France
The UGIF was created in November 1941 and served as a French Judenrat consisting of two separate administrations — one for Occupied (Northern) France and one for the Free Zone (Southern France) — and employed thousands of workers in eighty-four numbered departments, groups, sections, and directorates, carrying out a vast diversity of tasks. Collection of the special tax imposed on the Jews kept many occupied. The president was in the Free Zone and his deputy, in the Occupied Zone. In both zones there were officers for liaison with the Vichy and Italian authorities. After the occupation of the Free Zone, administrative changes were made to permit tighter control of the Nazis in that area. At the beginning of 1943, all employees who were not French citizens were dismissed. In October 1943, the headquarters of UGIF was transferred to Paris.
In December 1940, the Germans decreed that all Jews register by October 1941. In September 1940, the French were ordered to stamp all Jewish ID cards with the word Juif. Different numbers were published for the Seine region including Paris. No nationwide figures are available. In 1946 and 1947, the Ministry of the Interior had instructed all Prefectures to destroy all documents relating to racial discrimination during the war. However, a 1941 census of Jews had registered a total of 287,962.
