Vichy France

Vichy France was the authoritarian French regime led by Philippe Pétain from 1940 to 1944. It governed unoccupied France while collaborating with Nazi Germany and participating in the persecution of Jews.

Philippe Pétain: French marshal who led Vichy France as its head of state from 1940 to 1944. Pétain headed the regime and became the focus of its claim to political legitimacy.
Vel' d'Hiv Roundup: The July 1942 arrest of thousands of Jews in Paris by French police for deportation. French authorities organized and carried out this mass arrest under Vichy rule.
Battle of France: The 1940 German invasion that defeated France and led to the occupation of much of the country. Military defeat precipitated the political crisis that produced Vichy France.
Free France: The movement led by Charles de Gaulle that continued the fight against the Axis after France's 1940 defeat. Free France rejected Vichy's authority and claimed to represent France's legitimate continuity.
Liberation of France: The 1944–1945 defeat of German forces and restoration of Allied and French control in France. Liberation ended Vichy rule and began the rebuilding of republican government.
Pierre Laval: French politician who served as a leading government figure in Vichy France, including as prime minister. Laval drove closer collaboration with Germany and directed major policies of the regime.
Statut des Juifs: Vichy legislation of 1940 and 1941 that excluded Jews from professions and public life. These laws show that Vichy initiated antisemitic measures rather than merely following German orders.
Armistice of 22 June 1940: The agreement that ended major fighting between France and Germany in 1940 and set terms for occupation. Its terms divided French territory and constrained the government based at Vichy.
French Resistance: The varied clandestine movements that opposed German occupation and Vichy collaboration in France. Resistance groups challenged both the occupiers and the French regime cooperating with them.
Épuration légale: The post-liberation legal purges that prosecuted people accused of collaboration in France. The trials and punishments addressed individual responsibility for service under Vichy.

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