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| 1941, Oct. 21 |
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| The assassination of a German officer in Nantes was punished by the execution of 50 French hostages. | 1 |
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| 1942, April 14 |
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| Pétain reinstated Laval under German pressure. | 2 |
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| July 16 |
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| The Vichy government ordered a massive raid on the Jewish population of Paris. More than 13,000 Jews were arrested and then gathered at the Vélodrome d'Hiver to await transfer to Auschwitz. | 3 |
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| Sept. 14 |
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| The Vichy government decreed compulsory labor for men between 18 and 65 and for unmarried women between 20 and 35. This move was regarded in France as an enforcement of German demands for labor collaboration. | 4 |
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| Nov. 11 |
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| In retaliation for the Anglo-American invasion of French North Africa, German forces moved into the hitherto unoccupied portions of France. At Toulon, where most of the surviving ships of the French navy were stationed, the ships were sunk by their crews (Nov. 27) to frustrate German efforts to seize them. | 5 |
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| Nov. 17 |
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| Pétain appointed Laval his successor and assigned him the power to make laws and issue decrees. This step reflected the increased German control over the Vichy regime. | 6 |
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| Dec. 1 |
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| Adm. Jean-François Darlan assumed authority as chief of state in French North Africa, with the approval of the British and U.S. governments. He was assassinated three weeks later (Dec. 24). | 7 |
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