Week 13: Vichy France

World at War

German Invasion of Poland

• September 1, 1939: Germany invades Poland.
• Britain and France declare war on Germany.
• Poland defeated by end of September 1939.
• Sept. 17, Poland set up government in Paris.

• Blitzkrieg tactics: fast-moving, coordinated attacks
• Soviet Union invades eastern Poland (with consent from Germany) on Sept. 17, 1939
• While France and Britain declared war, they did little to help Poland.

The Phony War: October 1939 to April 1940

• Germany planned invasion of France for November 1939 but delayed.
• Winter War:
  • Soviet Union invades Finland.
  • Germany invades Denmark and Norway

• France and Britain mobilized forces but did not attack Germany planned invasion of France for November 1939 but delayed.
• Soviet Union invaded Finland to secure its northwestern border and gain territory.
• Britain began mining the coast of Norway (without Norways approval) to prevent iron ore shipments from Sweden to Germany through Norwegian waters.
• Germany invaded Denmark and Norway to secure supply routes.
• Denmark surrendered without a fight.
• Allied forces attempted to defend Norway but were ultimately defeated.
• Norway remained under German occupation until the end of the war.
• Due to this development, Neville Chamberlain lost his position as British Prime Minister in May 1940.
  • too much capitulation to Germany that led to this outcome.
• Winston Churchill became the new Prime Minister.

Failure of the Maginot Line

• Maginot Line was a series of fortifications along the French-German border.
• Designed to prevent German invasion.
• Static defense; could not adapt to mobile warfare.
• Didn’t cover entire border with Belgium due to Belgium being an ally.

Fall of France

• May 10, 1940: Germany invades Belgium and France.
• Blitzkrieg tactics overwhelm French defenses.
  • Nazis invade through Ardennes Forest.
• By June 1940, France is defeated.
  • French government fleas to Bordeaux.
  • Marshal Philippe Pétain appointed Premier in Paris

• French intelligence expected attack through plain of Belgium.
• Germans bypassed Maginot Line by invading through the Ardennes Forest
• French forces were weaker behind the forest.
• Took 4-5 days for France to realize it was being outflanked.
• German forces quickly advanced, leading to France’s surrender.
• Vichy government established in southern France under Philippe Pétain.

Occupied and Vichy France

Map from Encyclopedia Britannica

• France divided into two zones:
  • Occupied Zone: Northern and Western France under German control.
  • Free Zone: Southern France under Vichy government control.
• Vichy government collaborated with Germany.
• 1942, Germany occupied the Free Zone after Allied landings in North Africa.

Battle of Britain: July to October 1940

German Bomber over London

• goal to wear down British morale and air defenses
• Luftwaffe had numbers, but RAF had radar.
• GER aircraft were vulnerable. Bombers needed fighter escorts.
• Fighters had limited range.
• GER never had element of Surprise.
• September, transitioned to night bombing (The Blitz).
• British resilience and effective air defense led to GER postponing its invasion.

Vichy France Established

• Philppe Pétain, head of state (1940-1944)
• National Revolution
  • “Travail, Famille, Patrie” (Work, Family, Fatherland)
  • Conservative, Traditional Value, Anti-republican
• Service du Travail Obligatoire (STO) (1942).

• Pétain was a WWI hero, seen as a stabilizing figure.
• Pétain’s government rejected the ideals of the French Republic.
• Vichy regime promoted traditional values, rejected republican ideals.
• Was not a fascist regime, but an authoritarian conservative one that collaborated with fascist Germany.
• STO required French workers to work in Germany to support war effort.
• Vichy collaborated with Nazis.

North South Divide

• Northern Zone: Occupied by Germany
  • Greater German control
  • Economic exploitation
• Southern Zone: “Free Zone”
  • Vichy government control
  • Collaboration with Germany

French Resistance

• Charles de Gaulle
  • Leader of Free French Forces
  • Broadcasts from London
• Special Operations Executive (SOE) (19 July 1940)
  • British organization supporting resistance
  • Sabotage, intelligence gathering

• Had experience with Petain. He was Petain’s ghost writer.
• they had a falling out over strategy.
• De Gaulle was a French general who advocated for mobile tank-based warfare.
• he was one of the few successful French commanders during the Battle of France.
• Before the fall of France, he took up a post that coordinated between France and Britain.
• Before France’s surrender, he fled to Britain.
• After France’s defeat, he fled to London and set up the Free French Forces.
• SOE was a British organization that supported resistance movements in occupied countries.
• They provided training, equipment, and support for sabotage operations.