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Peace was not to last, however, as decades, indeed centuries, of mistrust among European powers led again to war. France was taken by surprise at the outbreak of World War I (1914–1918). The loss of life was staggering by the time France and its allies, including Britain and eventually the United States, finally won the war. Reconstruction of the country began in earnest in the all-too-short period before 1940, one year into World War II. By June of that year, France had sur- rendered to Nazi Germany, which occupied just under half of the country with a pro-Nazi “puppet” government based in Vichy, central France. The Allied Forces of the United States, Britain, and Canada invaded on D-Day, June 6, 1944, and Paris was liberated on August 25th of that year. General Charles de Gaulle served briefly as president right after the war and regained the presidency in 1958, serving until 1969. In May 1968, unrest among students—unhappy with capitalism—quickly spread to factories, where masses of workers went on strike for two weeks. De Gaulle called for new parliamentary elections, and the violence came to an end. President Charles de Gaulle famously said, in celebrating the regional diversity of France and its people, “How can you govern a country that has 246 varieties of cheese!” Since the 1970s, leaders from both the right and left have been in power. While problems plague the country—such as the unrest of immigrants from its former African colonies and high rates of unemployment—it remains one of the world’s major industrial powers and a vibrant cultural mecca . Its turbulent history has surely enriched le patrimoine —its heritage. REGIONAL DIVERSITY AND CHEESE!

U.S. troops landing in the Normandy invasion on D-Day in June 1944.