By Kevin M. Hymel

Almost every soldier on western European battlefront wanted to get to Paris. Once it was liberated on August 25, 1944, it became a mecca for Allied soldiers on leave who filled the streets, bars, and historic buildings, enjoying a brief respite from the war. American soldiers, with their vast numbers and deep pockets, made up most of the crowd.

American men and women from farms, small towns, and big cities enjoyed strolling down the Champs Elysees, touring Notre Dame, watching the exotic dancers of the Follies Bergère, or riding an elevator to the top of the Eiffel Tower. Some shopped in the open-air markets, others were content to sip coffee at an open-air café. Nights were filled with dancing and drinking some of finest wines and champagnes the country had to offer.

One GI referred to his time in Paris as “a glorious world of wine, women and song.” Another remembered, “The women danced on piano tops, we all got high and kept singing the ‘Marseilles’ even though we didn’t know the words.” Lieutenant Andrew Tuck, a paratrooper with the 101st Airborne Division, wrote his family about drinking cognac in a café: “result: mild paralysis.”

But there were still signs of war: Antiaircraft guns throughout the city pointed skyward; military policemen moved traffic, secured military buildings, and maintained order; and buildings still bore the scars from the street fighting. Of course, every night, when the sun went down, the whole city was blacked out. The lights would not come on in the City of Lights until the end of the war, when everyone could enjoy a truly free Paris.

Accompanied by a French sailor, two American soldiers enjoy the view of the Eiffel Tower.
Accompanied by a French sailor, two American soldiers enjoy the view of the Eiffel Tower.
A First Army soldiers helps a female sergeant into bicycle-drawn carriage. Because of fuel shortages during the long German occupation, bicycles were the main transportation for the city.
A First Army soldiers helps a female sergeant into bicycle-drawn carriage. Because of fuel shortages during the long German occupation, bicycles were the main transportation for the city.
Two soldiers buy flavored ice in front of Notre Dame Cathedral.
Two soldiers buy flavored ice in front of Notre Dame Cathedral.
American anti-aircraft gunmen site their 40 mm. gun in front of the Trocadéro’s Palais de Chaillot.
American anti-aircraft gunmen site their 40 mm. gun in front of the Trocadéro’s Palais de Chaillot.
Two women NCOs from the Army’s supply service headquarters examine some renaissance lithographs from an open-air art peddler.
Two women NCOs from the Army’s supply service headquarters examine some renaissance lithographs from an open-air art peddler.
On a crowded street, a French Arm officer and a French woman help two American NCOs find themselves on a map.
On a crowded street, a French Arm officer and a French woman help two American NCOs find themselves on a map.
Two American soldiers watch a street painter complete his canvas, while a third enjoys a different view.
Two American soldiers watch a street painter complete his canvas, while a third enjoys a different view.
In front of the Obelisk of Luxor, American, French, Canadian and British WACs (Women’s Army Corps), prepare to parade down the Champs Elysees in honor of the WACs’ third anniversary.
In front of the Obelisk of Luxor, American, French, Canadian and British WACs (Women’s Army Corps), prepare to parade down the Champs Elysees in honor of the WACs’ third anniversary.

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