An Uncertain Hour: The French, the Germans, the Jews, the Barbie Trial, and the City of Lyon, 1940-1945

An Uncertain Hour recounts the history of the German occupation of France and the Vichy government, concentrating on events in Lyon. Morgan outlines Vichy policies toward the Jews and describes the cooperation between Vichy officers and Germans in the Final Solution. He dwells on the personalities of leading members of the government in charge of Jewish affairs (Vallat, Darquier de Pellepoix, Bousquet) as well as German war criminals (Dannecker, and especially Klaus Barbie). Morgan draws a line between French "traditional" antisemites and Nazi antisemitism and anti-Jewish policies of the Third Reich. He relates Barbie's activities as chief of the Lyon Gestapo, emphasizing the liquidation of the local branch of UGIF, the deportations to Drancy, and, ultimately, the last train from the Montluc prison to Auschwitz. The comprehensive study is based on materials from the Klaus Barbie trial in 1987, including depositions not made public.