Sigmaringen enclave
Established in the requisitioned Sigmaringen Castle in southwestern Germany, it was created after the German military evacuated key Vichy officials, including Marshal Philippe Pétain and other collaborators, to avoid capture by advancing Allied forces.Though coerced into relocation, Pétain and ex-Prime Minister Pierre Laval refused to cooperate, leaving leadership to figures like Fernand de Brinon and Marcel Déat, who sought to maintain a semblance of legitimacy.Designated as an extraterritorial French enclave by Nazi Germany, the commission hosted Axis embassies and operated propaganda outlets but struggled with internal dysfunction and harsh living conditions for its 6,000 residents, including soldiers, forced laborers, and prominent collaborationist writers like Louis-Ferdinand Céline.[3] But ultra-collaborationists Marcel Déat and Fernand de Brinon protested to the Germans, who changed their minds[4] and took Laval to Belfort[5] along with the remains of his government, "to assure its legitimate security", and arrested Herriot.[12] The Germans, wanting to present a facade of legality, enlisted other Vichy officials such as Fernand de Brinon as president, along with Joseph Darnand, Jean Luchaire, Eugène Bridoux, and Marcel Déat.[15] It was a matter of some importance to attempt to gain legal recognition for the government in exile from other countries, however at Sigmaringen, there were only the embassies of Germany and of Japan[16] and an Italian consulate which maintained a presence.[20] Céline describes at length the Löwen Brasserie where the French gathered to follow the news of the approaching Allied armies and to talk about the latest rumors about the imminent, albeit improbable, German victory in the war.
Fernand de BrinonLaval government of 1942French occupation zone in GermanyProvisional Government of the French RepublicSigmaringen Castlegovernment-in-exilePhilippe PétainPierre LavalMarcel DéatenclaveLouis-Ferdinand CélineBattle of FranceZone libreVichy regimeinvaded FranceWorld War IIArmistice of 22 June 1940Occupied zoneFrench Statefull powersoccupied by the Germanslanding of the Allies in North AfricaMetropolitan FranceAllied invasion in June 1944liberation of FranceNational AssemblyOtto AbetzÉdouard HerriotChamber of DeputiescollaborationistsBelfortCecil von Renthe-FinkFührerHôtel du ParcSigmaringenHitlerHohenzollernsSwabiaJoseph DarnandJean LuchaireEugène BridouxMiliceJe suis partoutFranc-Gardeenforced labor campsNational RevolutionMaquisextraterritorializedLe Petit ParisienAxis powersLucien RebatetRobert Le ViganFrench civilian forced laborersCastle to CastletuberculosisBernard MénétrelGeneral de LattreAbel BonnardMaud de BellerocheJean BichelonneVictor BarthélemyVictor DebeneyLucette DestouchesRoland GaucherJacques Bouly de LesdainCorinne LuchaireGeorges OltramareSimon SabianiSerge MoatiArte FranceCollaboration with the Axis Powers during World War IIÉpuration légaleForeign relations of Vichy FranceFrance–Germany borderFree FranceFrench prisoners of war in World War IIFrench ResistanceGerman occupation of FranceGovernment of Vichy FranceItalian occupation of France during World War IILiberation of ParisMilitary history of France during World War IIOperation DragoonPursuit of Nazi collaboratorsAttentistesLibérationAron, RobertLe PointCointet, Jean-PaulOxford University PressKupferman, FredRousso, HenryVichy FranceAlbaniaBaltic statesBelarusCroatiaDenmarkFranceGreeceLuxembourgNorwayPolandSerbiaSlovakiaSoviet UnionUkraineAction FrançaiseBoulangismCamelots du RoiDreyfus affairFall of FranceFrench colonial empireNuremberg LawsPhoney WarThird RepublicHistory of the Jews in FranceTreaty of VersaillesArticle 231War guilt questionHenry DorgèresFrench Constitutional Law of 1940The EightyJoseph AntignacJean-Marie BergeretRené Bousquet