“In 1940, the state of affairs was determined; France was shedding in opposition to Germany. So it was determined to place Pétain on the head of the federal government.
Instantly, he surrendered to Germany, then gave himself full energy, placing an finish to the Third Republic. He turned an in depth collaborator with Hitler, particularly when it got here to deporting Jewish individuals, actually doing greater than Hitler requested of him. With out him, much more French Jews would have most likely survived.
On the finish of the conflict, he was arrested and condemned to loss of life, but it surely was modified to a life sentence. He died just a few years later.
He is remembered as the best traitor in French historical past, and he is most likely the French particular person we hate essentially the most.”
“He threw all of it away to function a Nazi puppet ruler. A reputation that will’ve been synonymous with French patriotism now simply means opportunistic traitor.”
—u/leris1