France 1940 defending the republic

In this revisionist account of France's crushing defeat in 1940, a world authority on French history argues that the nation's downfall has long been misunderstood. Philip Nord assesses France's diplomatic and military preparations for war with Germany, its conduct of the war once the...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Nord, Philip G. 1950- (Author)
Format: Book
Language:English
Published: New Haven Yale University Press [2015]
Subjects:
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!

MARC

LEADER 00000nam a2200000 c 4500
001 101293
003 MY-KLNDU
005 20241220035658.0
008 221104 2015 ctu bi 000 0 eng d
020 |a 9780300189872 
039 9 |a 202211041151  |b VLOAD  |c 201707191244  |d azraai  |c 201707191220  |d azraai  |y 201704051555  |z helmey 
040 |a UPNM  |b eng  |c UPNM  |e rda 
090 |a D 755.2  |b .N67 2015 
100 1 |a Nord, Philip G.  |d 1950-  |e author 
245 1 0 |a France 1940  |b defending the republic  |c Philip Nord 
264 1 |a New Haven  |b Yale University Press  |c [2015] 
264 4 |c ©2015 
300 |a xviii, 189 pages  |c 23 cm 
336 |a text  |2 rdacontent 
337 |a unmediated  |2 rdamedia 
338 |a volume  |2 rdacarrier 
504 |a Includes bibliographical references and index 
505 0 |a Introduction: Strange defeat? -- Diplomacy -- Armaments and morale -- Battle plans -- Lightning war -- Armistice -- The road to Vichy -- Conclusion: The 1940 syndrome 
520 |a In this revisionist account of France's crushing defeat in 1940, a world authority on French history argues that the nation's downfall has long been misunderstood. Philip Nord assesses France's diplomatic and military preparations for war with Germany, its conduct of the war once the fighting began, and the political consequences of defeat on the battlefield. He also tracks attitudes among French leaders once defeat seemed a likelihood, identifying who among them took advantage of the nation's misfortunes to sabotage democratic institutions and plot an authoritarian way forward. Nord finds that the longstanding view that France's collapse was due to military unpreparedeness and a decadent national character is unsupported by fact. Instead, he reveals that the Third Republic was no worse prepared and its military failings no less dramatic than those of the United States and other Allies in the early years of the war. What was unique in France was the betrayal by military and political elites who abandoned the Republic and supported the reprehensible Vichy takeover. Why then have historians and politicians ever since interpreted the defeat as a judgment on the nation as a whole? Why has the focus been on the failings of the Third Republic and not on elite betrayal? The author examines these questions in a fascinating conclusion. 
592 |a 0010/UPNM  |b 5/7/17  |c RM131.10  |h Ridha 
650 0 |a World war, 1939-1945  |x campaigns  |z France 
999 |a vtls000058505  |c 101293  |d 101293