October 15th, 1945.
Fresnes Prison, France.

Before dawn, prison guards drag a weak, half-conscious old man across a prison yard.

Hours earlier, he had swallowed poison hidden inside his clothing.

He hoped to cheat the firing squad.

Instead, doctors pumped his stomach and forced him back to life.

Now he can barely stand.

His legs tremble.

His face is gray.

French soldiers tie him to an execution post as reporters watch in silence.

Then, gathering the last strength left in his body, the condemned man suddenly shouts:

“Vive la France!”

Seconds later, rifle fire tears through his chest.

And Pierre Laval — the French prime minister who collaborated with Hitler and helped deport thousands of Jewish children to Nazi death camps — collapses dead against the wooden post.

THE MAN WHO ONCE DEFENDED WORKERS

What shocked many French citizens was this:

Pierre Laval had not begun as a fascist.

As a young lawyer in Paris, he became famous defending trade unionists, striking workers, and left-wing activists.

He was once seen as a champion of ordinary people.

A socialist voice for the poor.

Many believed he represented the future of progressive French politics.

But ambition slowly changed him.

By the late 1920s, Laval had transformed into what critics called a political chameleon — a man willing to abandon principles for power.

THE POLITICIAN WHO KEPT CHANGING SIDES

Laval climbed rapidly through French politics.

Minister of Labor.

Minister of Justice.

Prime Minister in 1931.

That same year, Time magazine even named him “Man of the Year.”

But beneath the prestige, many already saw something dangerous:

An obsession with control.

A willingness to manipulate democracy.

And a growing belief that authoritarian power could “save” France.

THE DEAL WITH FASCISM BEFORE HITLER EVEN OCCUPIED FRANCE

Years before collaborating with Nazi Germany, Laval had already shown sympathy toward dictatorships.

In 1935, when Benito Mussolini invaded Ethiopia, Laval secretly negotiated a deal that would have handed huge areas of Ethiopian territory to Fascist Italy.

The scandal exploded when newspapers exposed the agreement.

Public outrage forced Laval to resign in disgrace.

But his political career was not over.

And soon France itself would collapse into catastrophe.

THE MOMENT FRANCE FELL

May–June 1940.

German blitzkrieg smashed through France with terrifying speed.

Millions of civilians fled south in panic.

French defenses collapsed in only six weeks.

And Pierre Laval saw an opportunity.

He convinced terrified politicians that surrender and cooperation with Hitler were France’s only hope for survival.

On June 22nd, 1940, France signed an armistice with Nazi Germany.

The country was divided.

And the Vichy regime was born.

Officially led by Marshal Philippe Pétain.

But many believed Laval quickly became the true architect behind the collaborationist government.

THE FRENCH LEADER WHO “WISHED FOR A GERMAN VICTORY”

Unlike some officials who cooperated reluctantly, Laval openly supported Nazi success.

On June 22nd, 1942, during a nationwide radio broadcast, he stunned listeners by declaring:

“I wish for a German victory.”

Why?

Because Laval feared Soviet communism more than Hitler.

He believed Nazi Germany would dominate Europe forever — and he wanted France aligned with the winning side.

THE FRENCH POLICE WHO HUNTED JEWS FOR HITLER

Under Laval, collaboration spread into nearly every part of French society.

French police hunted resistance fighters.

French bureaucrats organized deportation lists.

French officials helped enforce anti-Jewish laws.

Laval even created the Milice — a brutal paramilitary force infamous for torture and executions.

But his darkest crime was still coming.

THE ROUNDUP OF CHILDREN

July 1942.

Paris.

French police launched the infamous Vel’ d’Hiv roundup.

More than 13,000 Jews were arrested.

Including over 4,000 children.

Families were packed into the Vélodrome d’Hiver sports stadium under horrific conditions before being transported to internment camps and eventually Auschwitz.

German orders had originally focused mainly on adults and teenagers.

But Pierre Laval personally intervened to ensure children under 16 would also be deported.

When a Protestant church leader warned him the children would almost certainly die, Laval reportedly replied coldly:

“Not one Jewish child must remain in France.”

THE MAN WHO CALLED MASS DEPORTATION “HUMANITARIAN”

Perhaps the most disturbing detail was Laval’s justification.

He claimed deporting children alongside their parents was “humane” because families should stay together.

In reality, he was sending entire families directly into the Nazi extermination system.

By the end of the war:

Approximately 77,000 Jews from France had been murdered in concentration camps — most at Auschwitz.

Thousands were children.

THE COLLAPSE OF VICHY FRANCE

As Germany began losing the war after Stalingrad and D-Day, Laval’s position became desperate.

French resistance fighters launched open attacks.

Allied armies liberated French cities one after another.

Yet Laval refused to abandon Hitler.

Even in August 1944, as Paris rose against the Germans, he still tried to preserve the Vichy regime.

Finally, with Allied troops approaching, Laval fled into Germany alongside other collaborators.

Then to Spain.

Hoping fascist dictator Francisco Franco would protect him.

Instead, international pressure forced Spain to expel him.

American forces arrested him and returned him to France.

THE TRIAL THAT SHOCKED POSTWAR FRANCE

Laval’s trial opened in Paris in October 1945.

The courtroom overflowed with survivors, journalists, and furious citizens.

The evidence was devastating:

• collaboration with Nazi Germany
• support for Hitler
• forced labor deportations
• participation in Jewish deportations
• complicity in genocide

Yet Laval remained defiant.

He insisted he had tried to “save France.”

At one point he angrily declared:

“I may be the victim of a judicial crime.”

The judges were unmoved.

Verdict:

Guilty.

Sentence:

Death by firing squad.

THE FAILED SUICIDE

Hours before his execution, Laval attempted one final escape.

Suicide.

He swallowed poison hidden inside his jacket lining.

But the poison had degraded with age and failed to kill him quickly.

Doctors pumped his stomach and revived him against his will.

Weak and barely conscious, he was carried toward the execution yard at dawn.

“VIVE LA FRANCE!”

Witnesses said Laval could hardly stand as soldiers tied him to the post.

Then came the final irony.

The man who had collaborated with Hitler.

The man who publicly wished for German victory.

The man who helped deport Jewish children to Auschwitz…

…suddenly shouted:

“Vive la France!”

Moments later, the firing squad opened fire.

Pierre Laval slumped lifeless against the execution post.

THE LEGACY OF A MAN MANY FRENCH STILL DESPISE

No monument honors Pierre Laval today.

No major French streets bear his name.

For many historians, he remains the symbol of France’s moral collapse under Nazi occupation.

A man who began life defending workers and the powerless…

…and ended it helping send children to extermination camps.