Emile Borel's difficult days in 1941

TL;DR

This paper investigates the circumstances surrounding Emile Borel's arrest during the 1941 German occupation of Paris, analyzing archival sources to understand the occupation's impact on French academia and mathematicians.

Contribution

It provides new insights into the German occupation's influence on French scientists and offers hypotheses on Borel's arrest based on archival research.

Findings

Borel was detained for about five weeks during the occupation.

The occupation targeted French higher education and mathematicians.

Archival sources reveal complex interactions between German authorities and French academics.

Abstract

The German forces occupying Paris arrested Emile Borel and three other members of the Acad\'emie des Sciences in October 1941 and released them about five weeks later. Why? We examine some relevant German and French archives and other sources and propose some hypotheses. In the process, we review how the Occupation was structured and how it dealt with French higher education and some French mathematicians.