The original village was destroyed on 10 June 1944 , when 642 of its inhabitants , including women and children , were massacred by a company of troops belonging to the 2nd SS Panzer Division '' Das Reich '' , a Waffen-SS unit of the military forces of Nazi Germany . A new village was built after the war on a nearby site , but on the orders of the then French president , Charles de Gaulle , the original has been maintained as a permanent memorial . The Centre de la mémoire d'Oradour museum is located beside the historic site
The original village was destroyed
Oradour-sur-Glane massacre
Oradour-sur-Glane