The Week France Fell: June 1940

The Week France Fell is a moving account of how ordinary men and women faced the sudden and unexpected defeat of their beloved nation to ruthless Nazi invaders. Based upon interviews and other primary sources, this history offers a revelatory view of the mixture of relief and puzzlement the Germans experienced at the ease of their victory. The author relates how the intrusive hand of bureaucracy paralyzed the nation's response, and how French leaders—Paul Reynaud, Marshal Pétain, Pierre Laval, General Weygand, and Charles DeGaulledeadlocked by conflict, rivalry, and personal ambition, failed to prevent a national catastrophe.