Description
Book SynopsisWinner of the 2001 Alf Andrew Heggoy Prize of the French Colonial Historical Society This book examines the role of the Vichy regime in bringing about profound changes in the French colonial empire. It argues that Vichy contributed to postwar decolonization by introducing an ideology based on a new, harsher, brand of colonization.
Trade Review"This well written, fast moving, and always intriguing book looks at the development of Vichy's colonial policy and how it reflected its leaders' deeply held values. Bringing together much previously unknown material, Jennings reveals the extent to which Vichy policy fostered and triggered nationalism in the French colonies."—William B. Cohen, Indiana University
"What Eric Jennings' fine study provides is a look inside Vichy's empire, exploring the ways in which Vichy's ideology played out in three tropical settings."—
H-France Book Reviews"Jennings's study is a first-rate, original contribution to the scholarship of the French empire. His style is clear and coherent, and his work is not ponderous nor slow. Although aimed at advanced students of both the Vichy period and French expansionism,
Vichy in the Tropics is a work that will enlighten anyone with an interest in Europe during World War II."—
History"This excellent book . . . opens up a field that has received scant attention even from French scholars of empire who tend to dismiss it, particularly in terms of its significance for any understanding of French decolonization."—
American Historical Review"This original, timely, and finely crafted comparative study of French colonial policies and ethnic relations during the second quarter of the twentieth century represents a significant contribution to colonial cultural history."—
Journal of Interdiciplinary History"In this interesting an innovative study, Eric Jennings makes an important contribution to the history of Vichy France that is at once original in subject matter, grounded in substantial archival research, and convincing in its key arguments."—Journal of Modern History
