章 83: 83
June 4, 1940
Place Etoile in Paris, France
The French called Paris the 'City of Light'.
It was a nickname given because it shines as beautifully as daylight even at night when the sun sets and darkness falls.
Even after the war broke out, Paris' nickname remained for a while.
Although air defense devices installed for the purpose of disrupting air raids by German bombers were floating in the clear sky, and there were several occasions when lights were turned off throughout the city as a training exercise in preparation for air raids, the beauty of Paris did not disappear.
But now, the lights of the City of Light were slowly going out in front of a huge storm.
As German battleships opened fire on the Polish fortress of Danzig, the French government, which had proudly declared that France would never stand by and watch German aggression, was not in Paris.
They packed their bags and left Paris even before the German army arrived.
Tours, far southwest of Paris, was declared the new capital of France.
Although it was only 'temporary', it was clear that Paris had been abandoned.
With the government and military leaving and only citizens who had given up on refuge, the mayor of Paris declared Paris a defenseless city.
An undefended city refers to a city declared as having no military facilities or stationed troops, and it was in effect a declaration of surrender as a means of preventing the city from being destroyed by pointless battles in a situation where its fall was almost certain.
Declaring the capital, let alone any other city, as a defenseless city meant that the war had already been lost.
The Germans accepted Paris's declaration that it was an undefended city.
When Paris was declared a defenseless city, the French troops who had been holding out on the outskirts of Paris surrendered without hesitation.
Finally,
German troops entered Paris.
The German military band that entered Paris marched while playing the Badenweiler March.
This song was composed to commemorate the victory at Badonvillers, France, in the early days of World War I. It was sung as the Badonvillers March, but was renamed the Badenweiler March after Hitler came to power.
A song written to commemorate the victory against the French army is played upon entering the French capital.
It would be difficult to find a more perfect revenge than this.
When the German army entered Paris, media outlets around the world rushed to get it out of the news.
People flocked to each radio station like bees, and everyone who heard the news was shocked.
'Breaking news, Paris has fallen!'
'The fall of the City of Light!'
'Hitler, is he a war-mad devil or a genius of the century!?'
While the whole world, from New York to Tokyo, from Moscow to Buenos Aires, could not help but be shocked by the huge news of the fall of Paris, the reaction of the Parisians, who were actually involved, was calm.
Wasn't this something that had been predicted from the day the government left Paris and declared Tours the temporary capital?
The people who made a fuss were those who had left Paris a long time ago or did not live in Paris in the first place.
The people who remained in Paris were powerless small-town citizens such as office workers, cleaners, restaurant workers, housewives, students, children, and the elderly.
People quietly watched the procession of enemy soldiers entering their city with a mixture of fear and curiosity.
Some of those watching the German military procession could not hold back their tears and burst into tears, but the majority of people just watched the victors march in silence.
The German Hakenkreuz flag was hoisted atop the Eiffel Tower, and the German army marched past the Arc de Triomphe, a famous landmark in Paris that comes to mind when thinking of Paris, along with the Eiffel Tower.
Considering the fact that the Arc de Triomphe was built to commemorate Napoleon's defeat of the Russian-Austrian army in the Battle of Austerlitz, it was a terrible irony of history.
On the day that Paris fell to the Germans, Army Group C occupied Pontarlier, located on the French-Swiss border.
As a result, the 40 divisions of the French army on the Maginot Line became rats in a poison.
Although this was also a very noteworthy achievement, it received relatively little attention because it was buried under the enormous big news of the occupation of Paris.
After completing the inspection ceremony, the German army stormed into major government offices in Paris and secured various important documents.
Lists of French spies and German defectors to France, as well as the original copy of the Treaty of Versailles, which had brought humiliation to Germany, were immediately sent to Germany.
***
June 6, 1940
Hotels in Tour de Ville, France
Henri Philippe Pétain.
Pétain, now 84 years old, was a war hero who was respected by the French people as a master general who led France to victory during World War I.
Born as the son of a poor farmer, his life had many ups and downs.
Pétain, who grew up listening to his father and uncle's stories about his great-uncle's experiences fighting in the Napoleonic Wars, decided to join the military after his native France was defeated by Prussia.
In 1876, he entered the Military Academy of Saint-Cyr and was recognized by everyone for his excellent grades. A year later, he entered the Grande École, France's most elite educational institution, and became an officer.
However, in order to get promoted, both in the past and now, you need to have a lot of connections or a strong background.
Although Pétain was highly capable, he had no personal connections and was extremely slow in his advancement.
Still, his ability did not disappear, and Pétain worked hard and was somehow able to reach the rank of colonel.
However, there was no news of any promotion after that.
As he was already old enough to retire and prepare for his old age, he faced a turning point in his life when World War I broke out.
Pétain, who knew how ignorant and dangerous the French army's military doctrine 'Élan Vital' was, which was just nonsense but nonsense, refused to engage in meaningless attacks and made it a point to repulse German attacks time and time again with efficient command.
In recognition of his contribution to minimizing the damage to friendly forces and repelling the enemy's offensive, Pétain was promoted to major general, soon to lieutenant general, and in 1916 to general.
He achieved the miracle of being promoted from colonel to general in just three years.
Pétain became a national hero by leading the Allies to victory in the Battle of Verdun, and along with Joseph Joffre and Ferdinand Foch, he was promoted to marshal, one of only three people in the French army.
After World War I, Pétain was involved in strengthening the power of tanks and aircraft and constructing the Maginot Line. When the Rif War broke out in Morocco, he led the French-Spanish allied forces to destroy the Rif Republic established by the Moroccans.
When World War II broke out, Pétain was in Spain as French ambassador to Spain.
As the war situation worsened, Prime Minister Paul Reno summoned Pétain to France.
The person who stood in the way of Pétain, who was preparing to return to France after receiving Leno's summons, was the Spanish dictator, President Francisco Franco.
"Don't go, general. They plan to pass all their mistakes on to you. Stay here. "You must not return home."
Although Franco was famous for his arrogant personality and extreme narcissism, he was polite in front of Pétain, his teacher and role model he respected.
Franco, who was truly worried about Pétain, encouraged him to stay in Spain and discouraged him from going to France.
It was clear what the French government was thinking just by suddenly sending a summons to Pétain, who was in Spain just before the defeat.
No doubt they were thinking of blaming all their mistakes on old Pétain and running away.
Above all, it seemed unlikely that Germany would leave Pétain, a hero of World War I, alone. Who knows what harm will be done to him to avenge his previous actions?
Pétain did not know this either.
When he returns to France, he will have to bear all the mistakes and clean-up made by his government.
And that Germany does not view itself very favorably.
"I know, General. But this is the only thing I can do for my country."
However, Marshal Noh had already made up his mind.
Now that his country was in crisis, Pétain had no intention of relying on his pupil's favor in the safety of Spain.
No matter what happened, he had no intention of returning to his homeland.
Pétain returned to France, rejecting Franco's sincere dissuasion, and took over the position of prime minister from Leno in the temporary capital of Tours.
Pétain, who suddenly became Prime Minister of France, faced reality.
The main force of the French army has disappeared without a trace, Paris has fallen, and the morale of the remaining troops is at rock bottom.
Some even argued for moving the capital to Bordeaux and fighting until the last man.
Although morale is low, France still has hundreds of thousands of troops and a healthy navy.
Unlike Poland, which was surrounded by Germany and the Soviet Union and invaded back and forth before disappearing, France is not under siege.
Although I was a little concerned about Spain, which was on good terms with Germany, it seemed unlikely that Franco, who was truly worried about his teacher's safety, would now join hands with Germany to invade France.
If France chooses a desperate war, the damage to Germany will be severe.
However, Pétain was not unaware that the price was the devastation of the entire French territory.
Above all, the biggest problem was that even if they resisted at the risk of destroying the entire country, their chances of winning were slim.
Britain has already reached a truce with Germany, and there is no way the United States will step forward and support France while Britain remains silent.
Italy? People who can't even think about what to do are helping France? Nonsense.
Pétain was not a person so reckless as to risk the fate of his people and country in a hopeless gamble.
"As everyone knows, this war has been lost. "So perfectly."
"······."
Marshal Noh sighed deeply. He calmly continued his speech without even paying a glance at the coffee served by his adjutant.
"There is only one way to save France from destruction. "There is no other way than to surrender to Germany."
***
The next afternoon, the old man, a hero of the Battle of Verdun, a French soldier himself, and now the Prime Minister of France, announced through a national broadcast that he would negotiate with Germany.
-Dear French people, I today called on the enemy to cease all hostilities. As a soldier, I made this heartbreaking decision because the situation in the military was unavoidable...
Pétain explained how the supposedly invincible French army was defeated by the enemy and why they had no choice but to lose.
While Marshal Roh read a speech prepared in advance, French people gathered in living rooms, streets, squares, schools, and city halls to listen to Pétain's speech with bated breath.
At the end of his speech, Pétain added his last words. His words were extremely calm.
-······Finally, there is something I would like to say to the people. In that moment of glory, I was with you. Even in moments of despair, I will be with you.
***
June 10, 1940
Compiègne, France
As I know from history, France chose surrender rather than a decisive battle.
On the evening of June 6, when Pétain's request for a cease-fire arrived at the Presidential Palace, the generals, adjutants, and secretaries all shouted hurray in unison.
The world of France collapsed.
"We did it, Mr. President!"
"Congratulations!"
"This is all thanks to the outstanding leadership of His Excellency the President!"
"Again, flattering again. What did I do? "It's all thanks to your good work."
In response to countless compliments and flattery, I waved my hands and pretended to be humble.
I didn't feel that happy, perhaps because I had been confident of victory since the moment our troops succeeded in breaking through Sedan.
Rather, I was happier when the peace treaty was signed with Britain.
This is because, unlike France, it was impossible to figure out how to attack Britain, which was surrounded on all sides by the sea.
But now you don't have to worry about that!
Britain strengthened its alliance and France surrendered.
Italy remains, but since they are the opponent, I am not worried at all.
I headed to France with the feeling of going on a picnic.
I chose the Forest of Compiègne as the place to meet with the French negotiating team and hold ceasefire talks.
It was the place where the armistice talks that ended World War I were held, and in real history, it was also the place where the armistice agreement between Nazi Germany and France was signed.
In the Forest of Compiègne, the Wehrmacht honor guard was lined up and waiting for me.
After getting off the train and being inspected by the honor guard, I headed to the meeting place.
At the meeting place was the carriage of the train in which the German delegation came for the armistice talks of World War I.
After the armistice talks were over, the friendly forces took over what was stored in France and brought it to the meeting place.
Right behind the carriage, a statue of former French Field Marshal Ferdinand Foch faced the meeting place.
At the place where there is a statue of the French marshal who accepted Germany's surrender in World War I, France's surrender in World War II was accepted...
I feel this once again, but Hitler seems to have a really good head in this regard.
I heard you had a good understanding of what modern performance is, including the gestures you developed yourself to maximize the effect of your speech.
Inside the carriage, SS Captain Otto Günsche, who was serving as my exclusive adjutant along with Krause, was standing at attention and waiting.
A few minutes after arriving at the carriage, the French negotiating team also arrived and entered the carriage. I greeted the French negotiating team with a smile as they hesitantly boarded the carriage.
"Welcome. "Nice to meet you."
"Oh, thank you. "My name is Charles Otchize, His Excellency the President."
The German and French negotiating teams exchanged awkward salutes and then took their seats. The meeting began immediately.
Ribbentrop stood up and conveyed Germany's demands to the French negotiators.
The French negotiating team's representative, General Charles Joccize, remained silent until Ribbentrop finished speaking.
After Ribbentrop finished speaking, Jočiže raised his hand and asked to speak.
"Tell me."
When I gave permission, Yokchije bowed his head slightly and spoke in a trembling voice.
"Mr. President, I am here on behalf of France."
"I know."
"I listened closely to Germany's demands. However... I request negotiations on some matters-"
"I refuse."
When I clearly stated my intention to refuse, Yochije's face hardened.
"Don't feel too sad. You don't know what France did to Germany in 1919, right? "We won, and now we have to take revenge."
Unlike Britain, which had at least some leverage, France had already lost its capital and its main force had collapsed, making it virtually impossible to stand up to Germany.
Knowing this, France raised the white flag even though the south had not yet been occupied.
France first had to admit that it was responsible for the war.
In addition, all Germans who had taken refuge in their home country were repatriated to Germany, and the cost of Germany's occupation, equivalent to $100 million per day, became France's share.
Weapons, clothing, and food made to defend France became spoils of war for the German army, and factories and ports throughout France were also taken over by Germany.
Alsace-Lorraine again became German territory.
Luxembourg was annexed, and Belgium, like France, had to give back Eupen-Malmedy acquired through the Treaty of Versailles, but this is not a French problem, so it is omitted.
Up to this point, the conditions Germany has demanded from France throughout history are almost identical.
In addition, I requested the handover of ships owned by the French Navy to Germany.
This was added at Raeder's strong request to return the Kriegsmarine to the German Navy of its heyday by securing the lacking ships, such as destroyers and cruisers, that had been sacrificed to secure U-boat power.
"Going over naval ships, no matter how I think about it, this is a bit..."
Yokchije was in a cold sweat and didn't know what to do.
Even the above demands are confusing to France, and handing over naval ships on top of that would be a dark sight.
I smiled secretly as I looked at the French negotiators who were embarrassed.
"Of course, I won't ask you to hand over all the ships the French Navy has. I also have a conscience. And to the extent that France cooperates with us, we have something to give to France."
"What is that, Mr. Fuhrer?"
Now that we've used the stick enough, it's time to stick out the carrot.
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