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In January 1920, the French embassy, legation and consulates were reopened in Germany, leading to the brutal re-insertion of French diplomats and consular employeesthroughout a country traumatised by its defeat and political upheaval, as well as by international treaties. Sent as emissaries of the winners, French diplomats and consuls were quickly seen by German residents as being responsible for the unfair treatment imposed on their country. The diplomats consequently had to face widespread hostility on a daily basis, which came to a head in 1923. Their difficult living and working conditions shed light on the diplomatic profession, as well as on Franco-German relations following the First World War.