Pierre Laval

Pierre Laval was a French politician who served as prime minister and became the leading civilian figure in the Vichy regime, collaborating with Nazi Germany during World War II.

Philippe Pétain: French marshal who headed the Vichy regime from 1940 to 1944. Pétain appointed Laval to lead the Vichy government and later dismissed him.
Service du travail obligatoire: A Vichy policy that required French workers to perform labor in Germany. Laval announced the compulsory labor program in 1943 to meet German demands.
French Third Republic: The French republican government that lasted from 1870 until 1940. Laval rose through its parliamentary politics and held several ministerial posts.
Purge of collaborators in France: The post-liberation punishment of people accused of collaboration with occupying Germany and the Vichy regime. Laval’s prosecution became one of the most prominent cases in the purge.
Otto Abetz: German ambassador to occupied France from 1940 to 1944 and a key intermediary with French collaborators. Abetz negotiated with Laval on behalf of Nazi Germany.
Relève: A Vichy labor scheme that exchanged French workers sent to Germany for the return of French prisoners of war. Laval promoted this earlier scheme before compulsory labor replaced it.
Battle of France: The 1940 German invasion that defeated France and forced its government to seek an armistice. The defeat ended the political order in which Laval had built his career.
High Court of Justice (France): A French court established to try senior officials accused of treason after the liberation. The court tried Laval for his conduct as a Vichy leader.
Charles de Gaulle: French general who led the Free French movement against the Vichy regime and German occupation. De Gaulle represented the resistance to the collaboration Laval pursued.
Statut des Juifs: Vichy legislation that excluded Jews from public roles and professions and defined Jewish status. Laval’s government expanded anti-Jewish policy and enforced discriminatory measures.

Linked from 3 pages