On July 16, 1870, France declared war on Prussia. However, the larger and better-equipped Prussian army quickly launched a counterattack and advanced through France from the northeast. When the Prussians arrived in Le Mans in December, fear overtook Louise and Zélie for their daughters, Pauline and Marie, who were still residing at the Visitation convent. Therefore, Zélie ventured into the war-torn area to retrieve her daughters: "All I see is only sorrow and plundering; it weighs heavily on my heart. … We are truly unhappy, like never before."
At the beginning of January 1871, two years before Thérèse's birth, the Prussian army occupied Alençon. The town was first shelled, and the Martin family took refuge in the basement from the shells; their house remained unharmed. Twenty-five thousand Prussian soldiers entered the sixteen-thousand-strong town, and nine were assigned to the Martins for lodging and food. Zélie commented, "I do not hesitate before them; if they ask too much from me, I will tell them it is not possible. … Everyone is crying except me … In fact, what can we want? Once this suffering passes, we will gather the remnants of what is left and manage so that we can live with this little."
On January 17, 1871, newspapers reported the apparition of the Virgin Mary in Pontmain (a place less than a hundred kilometers west of Alençon). The Mother of God appeared as the Lady of Hope and called for prayers for peace – a truce was signed on January 28…
Saints Zélie and Louis, intercede for us!
(processed according to the book by H. Mongin, Parents of Thérèse of Lisieux;
edited; quotes in quotation marks are taken from Zélie's correspondence)
