13

The problem of supplies is central to any discussion on material difficulties in France during the Occupation, it goes without saying that the question of how supplies and rationing were maintained is a central one. However, questions linked to the issue of supplies seem most often to focus merely on the daily life of citizens whereas, in reality, they were a key political issue during the Occupation. Thus, although initially the supply system embodied the promise of a more equitable distribution of resources, Vichy’s failure to deliver on this (shortage of rations, rise of the black market) considerably weakened the regime itself. From the beginning of 1941, the crisis in the provision of supplies became one of the most decisive factors in the detachment of public opinion from the regime. Aware that this question was of critical importance, Vichy tried to win "the supplies battle" by mobilizing substantial resources and by significantly reorganizing the system put in place during the 1940 autumn. However, the return of Pierre Laval to power and his wish to satisfy the Germans’ supply needs –?which increased substantially from summer 1942–? led to a definitive failure of the supplies system which increasingly appeared in the eyes of public opinion to be an instrument at the service of the occupying forces.