September 1, 1939 — German troops invade Poland; two days later, Britain and France declare war on Nazi Germany. Despite this, there were no major battles between the three countries for several months, the so-called “Sitzkrieg” or “phony war.” That changed drastically with the German invasion of France in May 1940. In six short weeks, the Germans defeated the French Army, taking almost two million prisoners; the Nazis occupied Paris on June 14th. French Prime Minister Paul Reynaud resigned on June 16th, and was replaced by World War I hero Marshal Phillipe Petain, who asked the Germans for an armistice. The agreement was signed on June 22nd. According to the terms of the agreement, the North of France would be occupied by the Germans; the rest of the country would remain nominally independent, but a de facto German puppet state, with its capital in Vichy.
William C. Trimble was posted to Embassy Paris shortly before the War began and discusses how “regulations were bent” to help the flood of refugees. Douglas MacArthur II was posted there in 1937 and describes his frustrations with the French and chasing the government out of Paris to Bordeaux and then to Vichy. They were interviewed by Charles Stuart Kennedy beginning in 1990 and 1986.
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