Foreign Policy of France under Laval

The foreign policy of France under Pierre Laval cannot be elucidated without reference to his career and personality on one hand, and the context in which it emerged on the other. In this connection, Laval's birth into the upwardly mobile peasantbourgeoisie of France cannot be ignored, inasmuch as it appears to have motivated if not facilitated his movement from the practice of law into the sphere of politics and a position as a national legislator (deputy). Of special note is that in 1914, Laval was elected as a Socialist but in 1924, after service in World War I, as a representative of the more conservative Republican wing. Indeed, Laval's actions from the time of his accession to cabinet rank in France reflect a pattern of increasingly conservative/reactionary political views. Between 1931 and 1945, Laval held a series of national positions: premier and minister of foreign affairs (193132); minister of labor (1932); minister of foreign affairs (193435); premier and minister of foreign affairs (1935); after several years out of government, vice premier of the Germancontrolled Vichy government (19401945). Imprisoned at the close of World War II, he was hanged for collaborating with

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s milieu, with as many liabilities as assets to show for it. "In his opinion," wrote a colleague who knew him well during this period, "a frank exchange of views on a personal level, unencumbered by the formal language, the absurd discretion, and the childish precautions of diplomacyabout which he entertained the usual prejudicesmust surely produce results. It was true that he was hampered neither by a knowledge of these problems nor by a desire to study them more closely. He freely admitted . . . that he possessed a rare talent for persuasion, which those with whom he spoke were unable to resist." However successful this technique may have been in dealing with the voters of Aubervilliers, his business acquaintances, and even deputies and senators of the French parliament, something more was needed for negotiations with the world's statesmen (9:25). It may be added that something both more and different was needed for negotiations with a character like Hitler and that, indeed, Laval's penchant for secret negotiations achieved no more for V
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Approximate Word count = 2912
Approximate Pages = 12 (250 words per page)

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