Vichy France

Robert O. Paxton's classic study of the aftermath of France's sudden collapse under Nazi invasion utilizes captured German archives and other contemporary materials to construct a strong and disturbing account of the Vichy period in France. With a new introduction and updated bibliography, Vichy France demonstrates that the collaborationist government of Marshal Pétain did far more than merely react to German pressures. The Vichy leaders actively pursued their own double agenda--internally, the authoritarian and racist "national revolution," and, externally, an attempt to persuade Hitler to accept this new France as a partner in his new Europe.

A disturbing account of the Vichy period, demonstrating how in the interests of stability, French national feeling favored collboration with the German-controlled regime.

Robert O. Paxton is a Mellon Professor Emeritus of social sciences and modern Europe in the department of history at Columbia University. He is the author of Europe in the Twentieth Century (5th ed. Wadsworth Publishing/Cengage, 2012) and The Anatomy of Fascism (Knopf Doubleday, 2005), among others.
Tells us as much of the truth about Vichy as we are likely to have for a long time.... Paxton answers all the basic questions... in an even tone, with a vigorous style, allowing the devastating documents... to speak for themselves.--New York Times Book Review