France and the Second World War is a concise introduction to a crucial and controversial period of French history - world war and occupation. During World War Two, France had the dramatic experience of occupation by the Germans and the legacy of this traumatic time has lived on until today, to the enduring fascination of historians and students.
France and the Second World War provides a fresh and balanced insight into the events of this era of conflict, exploring the key themes of:
* occupation as a social, economic and political phenomenon
* the Vichy regime and the politics of collaboration
* the 'resistance', resistors and its ideology
* the liberation
* the legacy of the wartime period. Topical and compelling, France and the Second World War provides us with great insight into how and what happened in France during 1940. Peter Davies is Lecturer in History at the University of Huddersfield. His books include The National Front in France (Routledge, 1999).