Description: In July 1945, France's disgraced former head of state was on trial. As head of the Vichy regime, Philippe Pétain was a lightning rod for collective guilt and retribution. But he has also been a conservative icon ever since. Julian Jackson blends courtroom drama and brilliant narrative history to examine one of history's great moral dilemmas.
Brief description: Julian Jackson is Professor of History, Emeritus, at Queen Mary University of London and one of the foremost experts on twentieth-century France. His De Gaulle won the Duff Cooper Prize and Elizabeth Longford Prize for Historical Biography, among other awards, and was a New Yorker, Financial Times, Spectator, Times, and Telegraph Book of the Year. His previous books include France: The Dark Years, 1940-1944, a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize; and The Fall of France, which won the Wolfson History Prize. He is a Fellow of the British Academy, Commandeur de l'Ordre des Palmes académiques, and Officier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres.
Review Quotes: This is a finely tuned history...Those who enjoy tales of the sparring among excellent lawyers arguing an important case will find this book riveting. And for those who want to understand contemporary France and its intricate politics, France on Trial provides...a vibrant analysis of a trial and verdict that remain contentious almost eight decades later.--Ronald C. Rosbottom "Wall Street Journal" (8/25/2023 12:00:00 AM)