"Athena at the beach": the IHEDN holiday notebook
The goddess of military strategy, war and wisdom in Greek mythology, Athena is also... the mascot of the IHEDN. In summer, she takes us on an exploration of the culture of defence through a range of erudite and entertaining content.
Athena has decided to leave her wise and pensive pose on the IHEDN logo and head for the beach, where she can relax and explore a variety of strategic themes.
Over a period of several weeks, our website and social media accounts will feature stories, quizzes, games and reading tips to help holidaymakers with a thirst for strategic knowledge explore defence culture in the broadest sense.
Ladies and gentlemen, please get in your car!
summer 2025: the relationship between culture and defence
This summer, our holiday magazine took us on a journey to the crossroads of culture and defence. From literature and film to music and comic strips, it explored the ways in which cultural works represent, question and support the work of the armed forces. It's a fun and rewarding way to rediscover the deep-rooted links between culture and defence, in the service of strategic thinking.
EPISODE 1: Comics, the perfect medium for military stories
To open this holiday notebook, Athéna enthusiastically delved into the links between comics and military history. From the epics of Antiquity to the most recent conflicts, she showed how comics bring to life the great hours and dramas of history, combining memory, education and imagination.
After this illustrated journey, she gave you a quiz to test your knowledge of the subject... before rounding off the week with a selection of 5 must-have comics to (re)discover this summer.
EPISODE 2: When music sounds the marching orders: the army, the nation and its harmonies
For this second week, we're off to explore the fascinating history and development of military music in France, its role in society and its influence. We then went on to discover the role of military musicians, whose activities go far beyond accompanying ceremonies: they are true cultural ambassadors for France and its armies, and are an essential part of our heritage. The week ended with the highlighting of 5 emblematic French military bandsbetween songs of resistance and hymns of fraternity, powerful witnesses to our history and our collective memory.
EPISODE 3: Cinema and defence: two intertwined worlds
For the third week of our holiday notebook, Athéna looked at the links between cinema, armies and the representation of war. Initially a simple communication tool, then a propaganda tool, war films have undergone profound changes: today they question the memory of conflicts and shed light on the daily lives of soldiers. Athena then went on to meet the "image soldiers", the audiovisual specialists who have been accompanying the troops in theatres of operations since 1915. The week ended with a selection of 5 must-see films and series.
EPISODE 4: Ink and weapons: 4000 years of war literature
To round off our summer series, our mascot has put together a selection of masterpieces of French literature through the ages, because war has always inspired writers. From battle stories to personal accounts, literary works delve deep into the daily lives of soldiers and reveal the brutality of conflict. Athéna then proposed a quiz to test your knowledge of the prizes and literary actions supported by the French armies, before concluding with a selection of 5 comic strips to help you discover the military world.
summer 2024: a year of remembrance and transmission
To mark the 80e anniversary of the Liberation, Athéna left its summer beach behind to delve into the decisive moments of 1944 to understand their resonance in 2024.
In collaboration with the Charles-de-Gaulle Foundation, the IHEDN devoted the summer of 2024 to revisiting the major events that took place 80 years earlier. These historic milestones marked the key battles of the war, the key figures, the return of the Republic, the affirmation of national sovereignty and the building of the country's cohesion.
This dossier also provides an opportunity to revisit some of the "fundamentals" of our defence, born out of combat, and to pay tribute to all those who have been involved in promoting the spirit of defence.
summer 2023: the four concentric circles of national defence
This summer, our mascot has decided to take you on a journey of discovery through the four circles of defence, the concentric circles that make up the perimeter of national defence. From territorial protection to international issues, Athena has explored how the missions entrusted to the IHEDN fit together and what nurtures the spirit of defence. An opportunity to shed light, week after week, on the different dimensions that enable France to ensure its security and prepare for the future.
To start with, this week Athena will be testing your knowledge of herself, her attributes and functions, but also of the national defence perimeter and the concepts it encompasses. Our first reading tip is a fascinating historical novel.
EPISODE 1: THE EPIC OF THE BATTLE TANK
Our mascot will begin by exploring the first circle, that of military defence. This corresponds to the use of armed force to deal with an armed threat with a political aim.
The Greek goddess has chosen to illustrate this through the epic story of battle tanks, from their sensational appearance in the trenches of the First World War to the developments these machines are set to undergo in the near future. Athena will also help you refine your knowledge of the vehicles currently in service with the French armies, before taking a step aside for a prestigious reading recommendation on a military epic of the past.
EPISODE 2: ESPIONAGE, FROM FACT TO FICTION
During the week of 7 August, Athéna will be looking at the second circle, that of national defence. In addition to military defence, this circle covers anything that undermines our sovereignty, interests and freedoms without resorting to armed force. It concerns the hostile and politically-motivated intentions of those involved.
To explore this, our mascot will be looking at a practice that is essential to the sovereignty of states, but also deeply rooted in popular culture: espionage. Monday's big story will tell real-life intelligence stories from a city that has long been a magnet for spies and spooks of all stripes: Paris. A fun quiz will look at different fictional spy figures, before an essential reading recommendation, nothing less than the masterpiece by the undisputed master of the spy novel.
EPISODE 3: THE 'NDRANGHETA, A GLOBAL OCTOPUS
From 14 August, the goddess of strategy will be exploring the third circle, which corresponds to the notion of national security. Beyond national defence, it encompasses the management of crises serious enough to undermine our society, our institutions or our powerful interests. These crises are not politically motivated, but nonetheless affect the organisation of the State or its political system, infrastructures or critical companies (operators of vital importance).
This week's big story will trace the history of the 'Ndrangheta, a discreet mafia from Calabria long overshadowed by its Sicilian cousin, Cosa Nostra, before extending its hold over the Italian peninsula, then the whole of Europe and now the whole planet. Computer graphics, quizzes and reading tips will balance the geopolitical reality of the mafias with the massive impact of this form of organised crime on popular culture.
EPISODE 4: THE UN AND PEACEKEEPING
Finally, during the week of 21 August, Athena will focus on the fourth circle, that of international security: bilateral and multilateral diplomacy, arms control and the promotion of collective security mechanisms.
To this end, the goddess of wisdom will be revisiting the UN's peacekeeping activities through a number of emblematic operations. These operations will also be the subject of quizzes and a reading tip, to round off this strategic summer with a reminder of the ideal of multilateralism and universal peace.
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