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Chapter 7 - Annexation by Stealth

Italian Occupation from June 1940 to November 1942

from Part II - Local Encounters

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 May 2023

Karine Varley
Affiliation:
University of Strathclyde
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Summary

This chapter examines the Italian occupation between June 1940 and November 1942. Despite covering only a small area of territory, the Italian government saw the occupation as essential to its policy of prestige. Rome, therefore, sought to impose Italianisation, seeing its occupation zone as an opportunity for annexation by stealth. The Italian occupation was thus more akin to the German treatment of Alsace-Lorraine or northern France than the wider German zone of occupation. Defending French territorial integrity was at the heart of Vichy’s claim to legitimacy. However, the French government’s political choices ultimately determined its response. Vichy’s decision to prioritise collaboration with Berlin over objecting to the German annexation of Alsace-Lorraine constrained its ability to oppose similar developments in the Italian zone of occupation. Vichy, therefore, consigned itself to accepting ‘relative’ sovereignty over French territory. In so doing, it experienced further humiliation in failing to prevent de facto territorial annexation by an Italian army whose claims of victory it rejected.

Type
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Vichy's Double Bind
French Collaboration between Hitler and Mussolini during the Second World War
, pp. 141 - 159
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

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  • Annexation by Stealth
  • Karine Varley, University of Strathclyde
  • Book: Vichy's Double Bind
  • Online publication: 18 May 2023
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009368346.010
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  • Annexation by Stealth
  • Karine Varley, University of Strathclyde
  • Book: Vichy's Double Bind
  • Online publication: 18 May 2023
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009368346.010
Available formats
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Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Annexation by Stealth
  • Karine Varley, University of Strathclyde
  • Book: Vichy's Double Bind
  • Online publication: 18 May 2023
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009368346.010
Available formats
×