Defeat and Division

A definitive new history of the France at war from the war's outbreak to the invasion of North Africa in late 1942.

Defeat and Division launches a definitive new account of France in the Second World War. In this first volume, Douglas Porch dissects France's 1940 collapse, the dynamics of occupation, and the rise of Charles de Gaulle's Free France crusade, culminating in the November 1942 Allied invasion of French North Africa. He captures the full sweep of France's wartime experience in Europe, Africa, and beyond, from soldiers and POWs to civilians-in-arms, colonial subjects, and foreign refugees. He recounts France's struggles to reconstruct military power within the context of a global conflict, with its armed forces shattered into warring factions and the country under Axis occupation. Disagreements over the causes of the 1940 debacle and the subsequent requirement for the armistice mirrored long-standing fractures in politics, society, and the French military itself, as efforts to reconstitute French military power crumbled into Vichy collaboration, De Gaulle's exile resistance, Alsace-Moselle occupation struggles, and a scuffle for imperial supremacy.

Vorwort
A definitive new history of the France at war from the war's outbreak to the invasion of North Africa in late 1942.

Autorentext
Douglas Porch is Distinguished Professor Emeritus and former Chair of the Department of National Security Affairs at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California. His previous books include Counterinsurgency: Exposing the Myths of the New Way of War (2013), The Path to Victory: The Mediterranean Theater in World War II (2004; published in Britain as Hitler's Mediterranean Gamble), The French Secret Services: From the Dreyfus Affair to the Gulf War (1995), The French Foreign Legion: A Complete History of the Legendary Fighting Force (1991), The Conquest of the Sahara (1984), The Conquest of Morocco (1982), The March to the Marne: The French Army 18711914 (1981), The Portuguese Armed Forces and the Revolution (1977), and Army and Revolution: France 18151848 (1974).

Klappentext

"... a definitive new account of France in the Second World War."--Provided by publisher.

Zusammenfassung
A definitive new account of France in World War II exploring the country's collapse in 1940, the rise of Charles de Gaulle's Free French, the occupation, and culminating in the November 1942 invasion of French North Africa. In Defeat and Division, Douglas Porch launches an unparalleled history of France's wartime ordeal.

Inhalt

Introduction; 1. 'Missed Opportunity Mythology'; 2. From Phoney Peace to Phoney War, 1938-1940; 3. Case Yellow; 4. 'Stand and Fight...'; 5. "The War is Over for Us"; 6. "The Wisdom of a Great Leader."; 7. La France libre; 8. 'Grandi soldati'; 9. France's North African Hinterland; 10. TORCH; Epilogue.