This book takes the trial of Marshal Petain in 1945 as a lens through which to examine the central crisis of twentieth century France: the defeat of 1940, the signing of an armistice with German and collaboration with Hitler - history of France under occupation. It examines the ways in which Pétain’s ‘treason’ was constructed in 1945 and follows the debates over the Pétain case up to the last French election in 2022.

Julian Jackson is emeritus professor of French history at Queen Mary University of London. His publications include France: the Dark Years 1940-1944 (2001), The Fall of France (2003), which won the Wolfson Prize for History, and A Certain Idea of France: A life of Charles de Gaulle (2018) which won several prize including the Duff Cooper Prize for non-fiction.

The Washington History Seminar is co-chaired by Eric Arnesen (George Washington University) and Christian Ostermann (Woodrow Wilson Center) and is organized jointly by the American Historical Association and the Woodrow Wilson Center's History and Public Policy Program. It meets weekly during the academic year. The seminar thanks its anonymous individual donors and institutional partner (the George Washington University History Department) for their continued support.