Peace Crusade Memorial Vézelay

In 1946, when Europe was just emerging from a deadly world conflict, Father Paul Doncœur, chaplain of the Scouts de France, with the support of the Benedictines of the Abbey of La Pierre-qui-Vire, decided to organize a Peace Crusade "to overcome the forces of hatred and to give thanks for the peace regained". They also wanted to pay tribute to the second crusade that Saint Bernard of Clairvaux had preached in Vézelay in 1146, in the presence of the French king.

Father Doncœur proposed a pilgrimage in the form of a Way of the Cross. Each country of the old continent that was involved in the world conflict would bring a cross on foot to Vézelay. The idea was to enter the basilica in Vézelay together on July 22, the feast day of Sainte Madeleine. About 30,000 pilgrims from Luxembourg, England, Switzerland, Italy, Belgium and various French regions accompanied the fourteen wooden crosses on their journey to Vézelay. The tens of thousands of pilgrims were allowed to pitch their tents in the former German prison camp of Vézelay.

Germany was not invited for the known reasons.
German prisoners, who were held in a camp near Vézelay during the war, heard about this initiative and asked Jesuit Father Doncoeur to be allowed to participate. Since they too had suffered under the yoke of the Nazis during the Second World War, the religious authorities had allowed them to join the procession to carry a cross to the basilica.
They built a fifteenth cross with two burnt beams from a bombed house, a strong sign of a desire for forgiveness.

The crosses are in the basilica The fifteenth cross is marked with the simple words "1946, Germany, Crusade for Peace". It stands apart in the northern transept of the basilica in front of the statues of Saint-Louis and Saint-Bernard.
So many years later, in Vézelay, several hundred young Europeans still gather for a march "for a Europe of peace". In the procession with the 15 crosses, the German cross is carried by three priests, German, English and French.

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Source

• Text: TracesOfWar
• Photos: Wim Wouters