A republican politician who became an architect of Vichy collaboration
In 1942, while calling for labor mobilization, he publicly declared that he desired a German victory.
Pierre Laval began as a lawyer and Socialist politician, then moved rightward and became a leading minister and prime minister of the Third Republic. After France's defeat in 1940, he helped secure Pétain's full powers and the dismantling of the constitutional order, making himself central to the Vichy regime. He believed collaboration with Germany could preserve France's position, and after returning to power in 1942 he expanded labor provision and police cooperation. Convicted of treason after liberation, he was executed in 1945.
Activities and affiliations
Career Timeline
- 1903–1922Socialist activist and lawyer
- 1914–1919Deputy in the Chamber of Deputies
- 1923–1944Mayor of Aubervilliers
- 1931–1932President of the Council
- 1934–1936Foreign minister and President of the Council
- 1940.06–1940.12Vice-President of the Vichy Council of Ministers
- 1942.04–1944.08Head of the Vichy government
- 1945Tried by the High Court and executed
Related historical events
- 1940–1944The Fall of France and the Vichy Regimearchitect of the Vichy regime's establishmentHe steered the July 1940 constitutional vote and later drove collaboration, including labor and police policies.
- 1940–1944The French Resistance and the Liberation of FranceVichy roundup policy officialDuring preparations for the July 1942 Paris roundup, he helped shape Vichy policy coordinating French police cooperation with German demands.
Anti-Jewish persecution and forced labor under Vichy
After returning as head of government in April 1942, Laval expanded the role of French state institutions in collaboration with the German occupation authorities. During preparations for the July roundup of Jews in Paris, he took part in Vichy policy that brought French police cooperation into line with German demands. On 4 July, he suggested to German officials that Jewish children should also be deported, presenting this as a way to avoid public opposition to separating families. French police and administrative agencies carried out the arrests; those detained were held in camps and later deported to killing centers in German-occupied Europe. The episode shows that, even under German pressure, Laval and the Vichy government bore responsibility for mobilizing French administrative and police capacities in persecution and deportation. His government also expanded the provision of French labor to Germany. This collaboration cannot be reduced to measures imposed by the occupier: the actions of the French government must be examined distinctly from Germany's coercive and genocidal policies.