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WWI: France Hoped Fake Paris Would Fool Germany

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

Good morning. I'm Renee Montagne, with a long ago tale of going to great lengths to fool the enemy, retold this week in honor of Veteran's Day. During World War I, France created a fake Paris just outside the real one. There were lights, buildings, artists even painted dirty glass on the top of sham factories. France hoped German bombers would hit the phony Paris. The Daily Telegraph reports the sham city was never finished, because the war to end all wars ended. It's MORNING EDITION. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.