New Book: Gun Control in Nazi-Occupied France

Gun Control in Nazi-Occupied France: Tyranny and Resistance  by  Stephen P. Halbrook is out.

From the blurb:

Nazi Germany invaded France in 1940. In every occupied town, Nazi soldiers put up posters that demanded that civilians surrender their firearms within twenty-four hours or else be shot. Despite the consequences, many French citizens refused to comply with the order. In Gun Control in Nazi-Occupied France: Tyranny and Resistance, Stephen P. Halbrook tells this story of Nazi repression and the brave French men and women who refused to surrender to it. Drawing on records of the German occupation and testimonies from members of the French resistance, Gun Control in Nazi-Occupied France is the first book to focus on the Nazis’ efforts to disarm the French.

 “While not every French citizen caught with a gun was shot,” Halbrook writes, “the very real threat of the firing squad was not enough to induce every gun owner to comply, leading the Germans repeatedly to declare amnesties.

”As Gun Control in Nazi-Occupied France" explains:


“While not every French citizen caught with a gun was shot,” Halbrook writes, “the very real threat of the firing squad was not enough to induce every gun owner to comply, leading the Germans repeatedly to declare amnesties.”

• As Gun Control in Nazi-Occupied France explains:
• In the 1930s, political unrest brought France to the brink of disaster, prompting Prime Minister Pierre Laval to impose restrictions on freedom of assembly, decree gun registration, and ban military-style firearms.
• When France crumbled before the Nazi invasion in 1940, German soldiers mounted posters declaring that all firearms must be turned in within 24 hours under penalty of death.
• The executions of disobedient gun owners failed to sway countless citizens to turn in their firearms. As one German report explained, “Weapons possession is the core of criminal activities of the French.”
• Despite facing repression and terror, Resistance members armed themselves and conducted acts of sabotage, provided intelligence for the Allies, and helped pave the way to the Liberation

A leading authority on the history of firearm restrictions, Stephen P. Halbrook (Gun Control in the Third Reich, Securing Civil Rights, The Founders’ Second Amendment, That Every Man Be Armed) is a Senior Fellow at the Independent Institute. 

Halbrook is an attorney who has won cases in the Supreme Court on constitutional liberties.

Order the book here: