Extraordinary Photos From History Explained

Like it? Share it!

Facebook

Pinterest

Reddit

Twitter

Google+

Violette Morris at Le Monocle, 1932

Rarehistoricalphotos

This is a photo of a known Nazi collaborator and champion French weightlifter, Violette Morris, at Le Monocle. Le Monocle is credited as being one of the first lesbian nightclubs in the world, as at the time most lesbians were often found sitting together in the outdoor cafes of Montmartre or dancing at the Moulin Rouge. Le Monocle gave them a place to be themselves with people who were similar to them. Women could dress as men, in Tuxedos, and wear their hair in bobs. The name Le Monocle came from the custom at the time, where lesbians would wear monocles to indicate their sexual preference. The nightclub stayed open from the 20s into the early 40s. After the Nazi occupation of France, Le Monocle was closed and homosexuals were persecuted.

Violette Morris was recruited by the German Secret Service in 1935, three years after this picture was taken, and gave partial plans of the Maginot Line, along with detailed plans of strategic points within the city of Paris and the schematics of the army’s main tank. She was sentenced to death in absentia, and killed along a country road by the French Resistance, along with a family who were high in Nazi standing. Her body was never claimed and she was buried in a mass grave.