Veni Vidi Vichy

Why Vichy?
After recently watching the movie Inglourious Basterds (and, yes, fellow wegetlearned-blogger, I know this wasn't your favorite), I was reminded of a topic I have been meaning to learn more about for a while: the Vichy. As with the post on the Balkans in WWII (and I know I need to get back to the Balkans mess, but it really did crush my soul a little bit, the difficulty of finding any real narrative), researching the Vichy presents the opportunity to explore the interplay between Nazi ruthlessness, reaction by the pillaged, and the ever-difficult quandary of opting to stand up to your captors--and face certain punishment and/or death--or pragmatic surrender. We all obviously hope that we would do the former, heroically housing enemies of the Nazi Party, but definitely an uncomfortable question...
Invasion and Surrender
Many in France were confronted with this very dilemma when the Germans invaded in 1940, with France officially surrendering on June 22, 1940. France had declared war on Germany after the Nazi invasion of Poland. The Nazis military might overwhelmed France and their imminent defeat inspired infighting in the military and governmental command, with some factions promoting a move to Northern Africa. An armistice was eventually agreed to between Hitler and the French command.
Formation of the Vichy
The vice-premier at the time of surrender, Petain, was named president and, in July 1940, a new capital was established in Vichy, France. So was born the infamous Vichy regime--a name that would become synonymous with lack of principles, cowardice and 'sleeping with the enemy.' A vote took place at that first meeting in Vichy, the results of which granted Petain full powers to do basically whatever he wanted--including writing a new constitution. Many argue that the vote--and, accordingly, the actions that followed--were not legitimate. Petain executed a full-on collaborationist effort with the Nazi regime, including registration and, eventually, internment of all undesirables (Jews, homosexuals, gypsies) at places such as Camp Gurs--an internment camp set up in Southwestern France.
US reaction to Vichy
The US originally recognized the Vichy government, but, after their offical support of the Nazi Barbarossa campaign against Russia, denounced recognition. All the while, the Free French regime, headed by Charles deGaulle, was stationed in the UK. Roosevelt apparently preferred the Vichy regime to de Gaulle--not sure WHY.
Post-Liberation
Following the Allies invasion of France in 1944, and subsequent Liberation of France/Paris, the Vichy were taken to Germany. The provisional government declared the Vichy unconstitutional, so any actions taken by them were nullified. The laws sanctioning the discrimination against undesirables were loudly denounced. A wave of executions of collaborationists swept France in the immediate aftermath of the Liberation. After the provisional govt took power, random convictions were replaced by commissions and, eventually, amnesty for many former Vichies. Petain was found guilty of treason and sentence to death, but his sentence was commuted to life imprisonment by de Gaulle.
Afterthoughts
There is still much debate regarding whether or not France should take collective responsibility for the horrors perpetrated by the Vichy govt. Some maintain that the actions taken by Petain were in France's best interests and intended to preserve the state during wartime, to stave off complete annihilation. Difficult to say what would have been the best thing to do, but it certainly is a dark and shameful part of France's history...supposedly, 75,000 Jews were deported to internment camps and countless more suffered at the hands of the Vichy.