Roland Dorgelès and the first reconstruction

The First World War left behind immense damage in northern and eastern France. At the end of 1918, important reconstruction work began, which Roland Dorgelès evokes in Le Réveil des morts, published in 1923 by Albin Michel. By comparing this novel with archival sources and other testimonies, this article shows how this work paints a very accurate picture of the reconstruction carried out in the Aisne department after 1918, which is of great value to historians.