After The Battle #170 'Vichy Government In France...' (2015)
 
For nearly 50 years, After the Battle has been presenting the history of the world's conflicts through 'then and now' comparison photographs. From the Zulu Wars through the First and Second World Wars to the Falklands, all are researched on the actual battlefields to show how they appear today.
 
The quarterly magazine concentrates on the Second World War, with comparison photographs adding a new dimension to recent history. In addition to major battles, local actions are explored, and other features include the recovery of aircraft and vehicles on land and at sea, the making of war films, and the preservation of military artifacts.
 
THE VICHY GOVERNMENT From June 1940 to November 1942, the unoccupied part of France was administered by a government headed by Marshal Philippe Petain, the venerated hero of Verdun. When the German Army crossed the Demarcation Line in November 1942, Petain slowly receded into the background as Premier Pierre Laval and other more radical collaborationists came to the fore, maintaining an increasingly hated regime until the liberation of France in the summer of 1944. However, Petain remained popular, being seen by many as the symbol of French unity. Jean Paul Pallud tells this fascinating story.
 
The Capture of Saarbrucken. On March 20, 1945, the US 70th Infantry Division captured the city of Saarbrucken, capital of the Saar industrial and coalmining region and one of the mainstays of Nazi Germany’s war economy. Karel Margry takes us through this battle that lasted over six months.
 
The Death of a Great Escaper Winston Ramsey tells of the plight of Squadron Leader Roger Bushell, the Commanding Officer of No. 92 Squadron, who was shot down on May 23, 1940. He became an inveterate escaper and late, as ‘Big X’ at Stalag Luft 3 at Sagan, he masterminded the ‘Great Escape’ of 76 prisoners on the night of March 24/25, 1944. He lost his life with a fellow escapee, Frenchman Bernard Scheidhauer, who had left France in October 1940 to join the Royal Air Force and had earned his wings by April 1942.
 
Single magazine in Fair to Good Condition