Armistice Army
The Armistice Army (French: Armée de l'Armistice) or Vichy French Army was the armed forces of Vichy France permitted under the terms of the Armistice of 22 June 1940. It was officially disbanded in 1942 after the German invasion of the "Free Zone" (Zone libre) which was directly ruled by the Vichy regime.
Armistice Army
1940–1942
Two military corps, three separate commands and three separate divisions
At the beginning of 1942, the numbers of the Armistice Army reached 550,000 men, including 21,000 officers.[1]
Dissolution of forces in Metropolitan France[edit]
After the Allied invasion of French North Africa (Operation Torch) began, Adolf Hitler ordered the dissolution of the Armistice Army in mainland France on 26 November 1942. Some staff officers clung to the possibility suggested by Hitler to form an army of a new form. On December 23, Hitler finally put an end to this hope by declaring that "the creation of a new French Army [...] is out of the question."[4] The discovery of illegal arms stores had greatly undermined the confidence of the Germans in the French authorities.[5] A deadline of 23 January 1943 was imposed on the French Government: after this date, the commanders of the military regions involved were to be held personally liable. Throughout 1943, a continual stream of active officers passed through Spain to North Africa;[6] Some 12,000 civil or military personnel headed for North Africa.[6]
Despite the German Army's loss of confidence, resulting from the discovery of the camouflaged weapons depots, General Eugène Bridoux, who retained the title of Secretary of State for War, continued his efforts to reconstitute dependent armed units. But Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt refused, and the African Phalange was never to have any connections with a French military organization.[5] Pierre Laval did obtain from Hitler in Berchtesgaden, on April 30, 1943, the permission to create a small military force. The law was promulgated on 15 July 1943 and, on 23 July, Bridoux still managed to form the First Regiment of France composed of three battalions of infantry and cavalry on horseback and bicycle.[5] Designed to maintain traditions, the First Regiment took part in engagements against the Resistance; it eventually became part of the French Forces of the Interior.