Vichy France: Old Guard and New Order, 1940-1944 Revised Edition

by Robert Paxton (Author)

31 customer reviews

ISBN-13: 978-0231124690

ISBN-10: 0231124694

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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.

Vichy France: Old Guard and New Order, 1940-1944

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Editorial Reviews

Review

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)

Book Description

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

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Product details

Paperback: 438 pages
Publisher: Columbia University Press; Revised edition (September 15, 2001)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0231124694
ISBN-13: 978-0231124690
Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 1.2 x 8.2 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 31 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #240,002 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #364 in Books > Textbooks > Social Sciences > Political Science > Political History
- #489 in Books > Textbooks > Humanities > History > Military
- #499 in Books > History > Europe > France

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Top customer reviews

A good introduction for the English speaking to the history of the German occupation of France and the Vichy government

ByCentral Texason August 11, 2016

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

In my opinion a very interesting, informative, and useful book. Like many Americans, I have scant knowledge of the workings of French politics and government save to note that, much as we continue to rehash our civil war, the French re-litigate the revolution of 1789. Paxton does and excellent job of putting into perspective who, why, how and when the French civilian population collaborated/survived/resisted the German invasion and occupation from 1940-45. He dissects the various political and social groups at the outbreak of hostilities, their various reactions, and the ways in which the Vichy government came to be a vehicle for the French right to attack their enemies of the center and left. In so doing, they also increasingly collaborated with the Nazi regime, often leading rather than being forced into acts against some portions of the French population.

The book was written some time ago (Kindle does not see fit to reproduce the copyrights, so my memory is that it was published around 1971) and is largely based on research in German archives which are available, rather than the French which were largely closed for a 70 year period. It is difficult to avoid the impression that the French archives were closed because a large number of French politicians and civil servants who continued in office, post-war, would have been compromised by their contents. There may now be better books, at least in French, that address this period after access to French archives.

Some of the book is slow going. A political system with dozens of splintering, rejoining, and relabeling parties is difficult for a non expert to keep straight. It may help to review an overview of the French government, at least to the point of understanding the relationship of President, Parliament, Prime Minister and the standing bureaucracy that supports them.

The Resistance is a small part of the book as it was a relatively small part of the story of France during the occupation. Paxton does make plain that Vichy government fought the French Resistance with as much or more ferocity as did the Germans. For an interesting window into one family's experience in the resistance, The Cost of Courage by Charles Kaiser is a good read. Kaiser is not a particularly gifted writer, IMO, but does graphically outline the risks, costs, and consequences of joining the resistance.

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A Wonderful Piece of WW II Scholarship of Surprising Relevance 75 Yrs Later

ByBartlebyon September 11, 2015

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Paxton demonstrates a command of all available materials as he dismantles what was the conventional wisdom, prior to the initial publication of this book in 1972, that Vichy shielded the French from the German occupiers. He carefully weighs the evidence before concluding that Vichy leaders, who were mostly traditionalists, were culpable on various counts, but perhaps mostly for their attempted use of leverage with the German occupiers to defeat their domestic opponents. Time and time again, Vichy leaders, especially Laval, proposed that the "New France" assume a role in the "New Europe" that Hitler was forging. And, time and time again, Hitler and von Ribbentrop dismissed these proposals out of hand.

Although Paxton lays out his portrait of Vichy in great detail, he leaves it to the reader to connect the dots. Numerous times, I closed the book and thought about a point that he had just raised. For instance, I have long posited the freedom-loving US, Britain, and the Resistance as the happy middle, surrounded by totalitarian communists in the form of the Soviet Union and totalitarian fascists in the form of Nazi Germany. But the Vichy traditionalists posited the US and the Soviet at the extremes along the freedom continuum, but yoked by urges to reduce men and women to units of production and to wield hegemonic power in the post-imperial era ushered in by the end of WW II. Hmm.

At the very end of the book, Paxton constructs a "moral balance sheet." The ultimate driver of the Vichy leaders was their fear of social disorder as the highest evil. Commoners among the occupied, as well as the occupiers, made peace with men of evil to maintain a degree of normalcy in their lives. In the final paragraph, Paxton addresses the reader directly, noting that readers, as well as the author, will not identify with these commoners, but will instead be tempted to identify with the Resistance, assuring themselves that they too would have resisted. But Paxton warns that we are far more likely to have acted like the Vichy majority. He then sets the hook in the final three sentences of the book:

"Indeed, it may be the German occupiers rather than the Vichy majority whom Americans, as residents of the most powerful state on earth, should scrutinize most unblinkingly. The deeds of occupier and occupied alike suggest that there come cruel times when to save a nation's deeper values one must disobey the state. France after 1940 was one of those times."

Written in the early 1970s, these words alluded to the US occupation of SE Asia. In the introduction to the 2001 edition, Paxton admits that some of his judgments about Vichy were colored by his "loathing" of the Vietnam War. The frightening thought is that, over 40 yrs later, this paragraph is as applicable today to our occupation of Iraq, Syria, and Afghanistan. Understanding the Vichy experience, we can begin to ask what Vichy dilemmas have we, the occupiers, imposed on these occupied peoples.

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Five Stars

ByRextilleonon July 13, 2017

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Brilliant book by one of the greatest historians of France. He's American to boot.

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Most recent customer reviews

Five Stars

Interesting look into Vichy France, very enjoyable reading.

Published 1 month ago by Real Book Lover

Expectations fully met

Received in good time. Condition as expected. Would buy again.

Published 1 month ago by PIERRE NADON

Five Stars

Book arrived in perfect condition, as described.

Published 8 months ago by Richard M. Berrong

Five Stars

very happy with my order!

Published 11 months ago by Darrin C

You may get a better organized analysis from other books than this one by ...

I recently finished reading this book.

It's okay and is a resource for anyone interested in the not-too-talked-about history of France during WWII.Read more

Published 1 year ago by beetdaddy

As a brit, have long been curious about our ...

As a brit, have long been curious about our neighbour. This book manages to explain the twists and turns of a tough time for France.

Published 1 year ago by Amazon Customer

Great insight into thoughts of Vichy leaders and condition of the French people

This book provides great insight into what the Vichy leaders were thinking and into the reactions and situation of the French people.

Published 1 year ago by Barbara A. Anderson

Occupied France

Just started reading this book. I'm learning so much just from the prologue. Great history lesson.

Published 1 year ago by avid fan

Five Stars

In depth and very well written, just as most of Robert Paxton's research.

Published 1 year ago by Kimberly Muller

№1 on the French collaborationism

The book is well-written and totally up to the point. As far as I'm concerned, it is believed - and rightfully so!Read more

Published on May 30, 2015 by Stanislav

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