German occupation of France(1940-1944)model for regime change?

[40below]

How about looking at the French Resistance, armed and supported by opposing nation states and enjoying almost universal support among the population, as a model for current insurgency, esp. when you have a weak and unpopular national government installed and propped up by your occupying power?

[GI Zhou]

What hasn't been mentioned in the last elections in pre-war France there were banners by the right wing parties stating 'Better Hitler than Blum'. There were plenty of right-wing anti-Semetic groups prior to the German invasion of 1940, and the Germans had no trouble tapping into them for recruits. I haven't read of any Afghan groups that were even secretly promoting 'Better Bush than the Taliban'.

[davidbfpo]

This is an interesting historical parallel and so well done to Kevin23. Not sure how our French readers would follow it though.

GI Zhou's comments on the ability of the Germans / Nazis to recruit Frenchmen in support roles has been catalogued IIRC; notably in the paramilitary Milice, apologies they were originally a Vichy regime body: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milice and there was a Waffen-SS French division: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlemagne_Division.

In my reading of the Soviet era in Afghanistan there was a period when some Afghans did fight alongside the Soviet Army, notably in the paramilitary wing of the intelligence service. Let alone the political converts to the "cause" and even after the Soviets left the Kabul regime survived for IIRC two years.

[jmm99]

I ran into a general overview of European pro-Nazi sentiment and those men who then joined Waffen-SS units, when I was researching the Finnish unit (including Lauri Torni, later aka MAJ Larry Thorne US SF) that at times was attached to the Waffen-SS (at other times, attached to the Wehrmacht or simply fighting as a Finnish Army unit).

Anyway, the general overview is found in Richard Landwehr (Wiki), The European Volunteer Movement in World War II (Magna Europa est Patria Nostra), in three parts - with great poster art (which is why I saved it):

Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3.

Be aware that Landwehr is a controversial figure; although I suspect his figures for the SS volunteers are probably accurate. He relies on Leon Degrelle (Belgian), of whom, Hitler said: ""If I should have a son I would like him to be like Leon." Nuff said, at Epic: The Story of the Waffen SS.

Take care when walking in this wilderness.

Mike

[M-A Lagrange]

Well, I will come back to Kevin post first.

The idea that French Government was not cooperating is wrong, unfortunately.
1) The French government from Vichy was one of the most supportive to the racist ideology of the Nazi.
2) The French government was not rebuilt. Actually Vichy government was ruled by the laws of French republique. Which makes a huge difference with Irak or Astan. The French government (against all imaginable possibilities) surrended and this was made by a handfull of politicians and not the majority of the parliament and even less the army. Historians just published an interresting book (only in French unfortunately) of politic fiction on what would have happened if France did not surrender by actually fought until the end.
3) The main actions taken against the civilian populations in France were the fact of the Milice, the French police. Especially if you look at deportations.
4) Finally the French army was not dismantled. Unlike in Irak.

But, to also give some credit to this idea, modern warfare developped during Algeria has a lot to see with what the Nazi (And not the germans as people/folk) did during occupation. This actually one of the critics of the modern warfare and COIN.

I will take more time to look at the issue in details as it is interresting: how to conduct COIN and not end up either as the Nazi or the French during Algeria...

Finally, Mike, you are right, one of my grand father was on the right side. While the otherone was prisonner in Poland as officer for 4 years.