The Postcard
A carte postale that was published by Laurent-Nel of Rennes. The image is a glossy real photograph. It was posted in Quiberon on Saturday the 10th. July 1937 to:
Miss M. Reeks,
74, Elphinstone Road,
Hastings,
England.
However, Miss Reeks' address has been crossed out and the card was forwarded from Hastings on the 13th. July 1937 to:
1, Chandos Road,
Cricklewood,
London NW2.
The pencilled message on the divided back of the card was as follows:
"Saturday.
Dear Miss Reeks,
No doubt you will be
surprised to hear from
me.
I had a very nice time in
Paris, the Exhibition was
really lovely, but not near
finished yet.
Now we have moved
further on to Quiberon, a
pretty seaside, but nothing
to do.
The women dress in their
national costume and the
men go out fishing.
There is no music or lights
in the town. All you do is
watch the fishermen or go
on the beach.
Kind regards to Mrs. Taylor.
Hoping to see you soon,
V. M. Alan".
The International Exhibition in Paris
The exhibition to which the writer referred was the
Exposition Internationale des Arts et Techniques Dans la Vie Moderne.
The Exposition was held from the 25th. May to the 25th. November 1937 in Paris, France. It was held in the Palais de Chaillot, with 45 countries participating.
Quiberon
Quiberon is a commune in the French department of Morbihan, administrative region of Brittany, western France.
It is situated on the southern part of the Quiberon peninsula, the northern part being the commune of Saint-Pierre-Quiberon. It is primarily known as a seaside resort for French tourists during summer, and for its history of sardine production.
Quiberon is connected to the mainland by a tombolo which is a sandy isthmus.
History of Quiberon
During the Seven Years' War the bay was the site of the Battle of Quiberon Bay (1759) between the French and British fleets. Then later in July 1795 during the period of the French Revolution, Quiberon was used by French Royalist exiles, with assistance from the British, as the base for a failed invasion of Brittany (traditionally a royalist area). However the invasion was defeated by the Revolutionaries under General Lazare Hoche.
In the 19th. century, Nicolas Appert, a chemist, developed a technique that permitted the sterilisation of food. Thanks to this process, Quiberon became the leading harbour for sardine fishing and the production of canned sardines in France.
Many families from the Finistère département migrated to Quiberon for the fishing season (May to October). When the men put out to sea, the women worked in the sardine can factories.
The railway between Auray and Quiberon was inaugurated in 1882. It changed Quiberon's way of life. Fishing, canning and the exploitation of seaweed became replaced by tourism. At that time, some famous people stayed in Quiberon, including the writers Gustave Flaubert and Anatole France, and the actress Sarah Bernhardt.
The year 1924 was important for the peninsula because it was classified as health resort.
Penthièvre Fort
During the Second World War, Penthièvre Fort at the narrow isthmus was occupied by the Germans, and incorporated into the Atlantic Wall. It housed various blockhouses, but was mainly used by the infantry.
In July 1944, 59 resistance fighters were tortured and buried alive there. A Cross of Lorraine mounted on a stone pillar, with a plaque listing the names of the fighters, stands there in memory of them. Although the fort is still of military importance (as a training base), a tunnel where the bodies were discovered can be visited.
Note on the left of the photograph there is an advertisement for 'Bains Penthièvre'.
George Eliava
So what else happened on the day that the card was posted?
Well, the 10th. July 1937 was not a good day for George Eliava, because on that day he was executed at the age of 45 in Tbilisi, Georgian SSR, Soviet Union.
George, who was born on the 13th. January 1892 in Sachkhere, Kutais Governorate, Russian Empire, was a Georgian-Soviet microbiologist who worked with bacteriophages (viruses that infect bacteria).
George Eliava's Career
From 1909 to 1912 George studied medicine at Novorossiysk University and continued his studies in Geneva until 1914. He graduated at Moscow University in 1916. The same year, he became head of the bacteriological laboratory in Trabzon.
in 1917 he headed the bacteriological laboratory in Tbilisi. In 1918–1921, and again in 1926–1927, he worked at the Pasteur Institute in Paris, where he met Félix d'Hérelle, the co-discoverer of bacteriophages.
Eliava became excited about the potential of bacteriophages in medical applications, and brought the research (and, eventually, d'Hérelle), to Tbilisi.
In 1923, Eliava founded a bacteriological institute in Tbilisi to research and promote phage therapy. The institute was renamed George Eliava Institute in 1988.
From 1927, Eliava held the chair for hygiene at the medical faculty of Tbilisi, and from 1929 the chair for microbiology.
In 1934, the Tbilisi Black Death Centre was founded and headed by Eliava.
The Death of George Eliava
In 1937, Eliava was arrested and (together with his wife) executed as a "People's Enemy", either for being an intellectual or for competing for a woman with Lavrenti Beria, chief of the secret police to Joseph Stalin.
Mass Executions in Siberia
Also on that day, 24 people were executed in Siberia for sabotaging Soviet railways.
Chiang Kai-Shek
Also on the 10th. July 1937, Chiang Kai-Shek made a radio address to millions announcing the Kuomintang's policy of resistance against Japan.
