THE HISTORY OF CAHORS MUNDI
Cahors Mundi – A utopia rooted in history
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A Radical Idea for Peace – 1948-1949
At the end of the Second World War, a breath of utopia swept across the world. On 25 May 1948, Garry Davis, a former US Air Force pilot, publicly renounced his American citizenship at the United Nations. He proclaimed himself a World Citizen, calling for nationalism and borders to be overcome in order to build a real peace. His gesture sent shockwaves around the world.
In this context, one man played a central role in France: Robert Sarrazac, french resistance member. Moved by Davis's appeal, he mobilised the region to support the dream of a united world. Under his impetus, Cahors became the first ‘mundialized’ town in 1949, signing up to the Mundialization Charter.
The World Route Without Borders No. 1
In the process, 239 communes in the Lot joined the movement, a record in France. A “Borderless World Route n°1” was symbolically mapped out across the Lot, marked out by stone markers of peace. These monuments physically mark the communes' commitment to the ideal of universal citizenship.
Leading figures such as Albert Einstein, André Breton and the anthropologist Claude Lévi-Strauss expressed their support for the movement. The “World Citizens” organised themselves, with their own symbolic passports, their own authorities and their own press.
A utopia on standby – then reborn
Over the decades, the movement ran out of steam, a victim of the Cold War, political disillusionment and the weight of institutions. But the ideal never died. The milestones remain in the villages of the Lot. The archives are preserved. The collective memory, handed down by the elders, continues to keep this page of history alive.
The creation of the Cahors Mundi association – 2001
In 2001, a group of citizens, historians and elected representatives from Cahors relaunched the project by creating the Cahors Mundi association. The aim: to keep alive and pass on this local heritage of universal significance. Since then, the association has launched a host of initiatives, including publications, events, school events, remembrance ceremonies and work on existing and lost milestones.
A great deal of research and popularisation has been carried out, in particular by Michel Auvray, author of "L'Histoire des Citoyens du Monde", which illuminates the political, poetic and symbolic significance of this movement.
© Feux D'artifices Pont Valentré 2016 C Novello / Cyrill Novello
Cahors Mundi today: a festival to rekindle the flame
In 2025, to mark the 75th anniversary of the movement, the association is organising, in partnership with the town of Cahors and the "Fabrique des Écritures (MMSH Marseille)", the first edition of the Cahors Mundi - Festival for Peace. The aim of this event is to bring the values of the movement up to date in today's world: openness, fraternity, ecology, dialogue and creative disobedience.