German Reichskommissariat France

German Reichskommissariat France
Name	German Reichskommissariat France
Status	Occupation authority
Era	World War II
Life span	1940–1944
Capital	Paris
Established	1940
Abolished	1944
Predecessor	French Third Republic
Successor	Provisional Government of the French Republic

German Reichskommissariat France The German Reichskommissariat France was the civilian occupation administration established by Nazi Germany following the Battle of France and the Armistice of 22 June 1940. It functioned as an instrument of occupation, coordinating policies enforced by the Ostministerium, the Abwehr, and the Wehrmacht while interacting with the Vichy France apparatus, the Milice française, and local French Resistance networks. Key figures and institutions, including Ernest Perrin, Wilhelm Röpke, and the Reich Ministry for the Occupied Eastern Territories, shaped its actions amid diplomatic struggles involving Adolf Hitler, Philippe Pétain, Pierre Laval, and representatives of the Allied powers.

Background and Establishment

The occupation followed the Fall of France and the signing of the Armistice of 22 June 1940, after which the German High Command and the OKW implemented an administrative division that reflected debates between the Auswärtiges Amt and the Nazi Party leadership. Initial planning drew on models from the Protektorat Böhmen und Mähren and the General Government (Poland), with influence from jurists associated with the Interior Ministry and colonial administrators from the Schutzstaffel and SS Main Office. Strategic concerns, cited by the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe, prioritized control of ports like Le Havre, Brest, and Cherbourg and transportation hubs such as Paris Gare de Lyon and Marseilles.

Administrative Structure and Governance

The administration centered in Paris and was led by a Reichskommissar appointed by Adolf Hitler; subordinate offices mirrored German ministries, including liaison with the German Foreign Office, the Reich Ministry of Transport, and the Reich Ministry of Economics. Regional governance relied on civil servants, police officials from the Sicherheitspolizei and Sicherheitsdienst, and collaborationist French officials linked to Vichy France ministries and municipal bodies like the Prefecture of Paris. Courts referenced directives from the Reich Ministry of Justice while security coordination involved the Wehrmachtbefehlshaber Frankreich and units of the SS-Verfügungstruppe and Waffen-SS.

Policies and Legal Framework

Policies implemented drew on decrees issued under the auspices of the Nazi leadership and legal instruments influenced by the Nuremberg Laws framework and orders from the Reich Chancellery. Measures included population registration coordinated with the Gestapo, anti-Jewish statutes paralleling actions in the Netherlands and Belgium, and forced labor enforced through the Service du travail obligatoire arrangements negotiated with Vichy ministers. Legal authority intersected with international provisions such as the Hague Conventions (1907) but was routinely overridden by directives from the OKW and the Reich Security Main Office.

Economic Exploitation and Resource Management

The occupation integrated French industrial capacity, ports, and transportation into German strategic logistics, with requisitions managed by agencies linked to the Reich Ministry of Economics, the Organisation Todt, and the Four Year Plan. Coal and steel from regions like Nord-Pas-de-Calais and Lorraine fed industries in the Ruhr, while agricultural yields from Bordeaux and Burgundy were shipped to Germany under convoys protected by the Kriegsmarine. Corporations such as Volkswagen, Krupp, and subsidiaries of Thyssen profited from contracts; banking interactions involved the Banque de France and directives from the Reichsbank. Resistance sabotage targeted rail lines on the Paris–Le Havre railway and supply depots at Le Bourget, disrupting the coordination between the Reich Transport Ministry and the Militärverwaltung.

Collaboration, Resistance, and Society

The occupation produced complex relationships among collaborationist movements like the Milice française, organizations associated with Jacques Doriot and the Parti Populaire Français, and conservative elements loyal to Philippe Pétain. Opposing these were networks tied to the Free French Forces, Charles de Gaulle, communist factions linked to the French Communist Party, Gaullist groups, and clandestine cells coordinated with the Special Operations Executive and the Office of Strategic Services. Cultural policies affected institutions such as the Comédie-Française and universities including the Sorbonne, while censorship involved the Reich Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda and German-controlled media outlets.

Military and Security Operations

Military oversight alternated between the Wehrmacht command and SS security organs, with anti-partisan operations carried out by units of the Feldgendarmerie, Sicherheitsdienst, and Einsatzgruppen. Major operations and reprisals referenced events like the Oradour-sur-Glane massacre and the Vel' d'Hiv Roundup, implicating actors from the Gestapo and collaborationist police. Coastal defenses integrated fortifications from the Atlantic Wall and coordination with the Kriegsmarine to protect bases at Saint-Nazaire and Brest, while Allied operations such as Operation Overlord and Operation Dragoon precipitated intensified German military responses.

Dissolution and Aftermath

The collapse of the administration followed the Allied invasions and liberation campaigns culminating in Operation Overlord, the Liberation of Paris, and the advance of Allied Armies into France, leading to arrests of collaborators and trials under the épuration légale. Transitional authority transferred to the Provisional Government of the French Republic under Charles de Gaulle, with legal and economic rehabilitation involving the Nuremberg Trials influence on prosecutions and restitution efforts coordinated with the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration and the Marshall Plan. The occupation's legacy affected Franco-German relations, Cold War alignments involving NATO, and postwar European integration processes leading to institutions like the European Coal and Steel Community.

Category:Occupation governments Category:World War II in France Category:Nazi Germany administrative divisions