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Chapter 89: Fleecing the French (1)
🕑 Added 2024-12-14 14:25:19 +0000 UTC"Mr. Kahn, couldn’t you give us a bit more?" In the presidential suite's reception room at the George V Hotel in Paris, De Gaulle looked at Josh, still unwilling to give up. "My people are starving!"
"Mr. De Gaulle, I’m a businessman, not a philanthropist, and certainly not French. The ton of canned meat is a gesture of respect for your personal character. Besides, I must remind you, you are not the legitimate representative of France!" Josh put down his coffee cup and said coldly.
By September, the Allied forces were still clearing out the remnants of German resistance across France while preparing for the final stages of Operation Eagle’s Nest.
But the man standing before Josh—the last man of France—was preoccupied with another matter, food shortages.
France was starving; Paris was starving.
As one of Europe’s longstanding agricultural powerhouses and the world’s second-largest colonial power after Britain, France hadn’t faced a food shortage in over a century, not even during World War I. Back then, its agricultural and industrial outputs were more than sufficient.
But after France’s rapid defeat in World War II, the situation changed dramatically.
Germany’s enormous military machine couldn’t be sustained on domestic production alone. Naturally, they plundered from the occupied nations.
While countries like Austria, Hungary, and Czechoslovakia—Germany’s “own people”—received somewhat lenient treatment, France, being Germany's historic enemy, suffered without restraint.
From 1940 to 1944, during the occupation of northern France, the Germans requisitioned 72.5% of wheat, 100% of sugar, 87% of butter, and 64.6% of beef produced in the region.
Most of these goods were either shipped back to Germany or consumed by the German occupying forces in France.
Even in Vichy France, which had a degree of autonomy, 27.5% of wheat, 13% of butter, and 35.4% of beef were taken.
And that’s just food—other resources were looted even more ruthlessly.
So while Paris was spared the ravages of battle due to the German surrender, leaving the city intact, the people still faced hunger.
American soldiers could charm French women for a night with a pack of cigarettes and a few sticks of gum—cheaper than in England.
And for a tycoon like Josh, the opportunities were even more significant. The George V Hotel, destined to become world-famous, was acquired by him for a pittance.
His associate, Lyndon, had been busy since arriving in Paris, using American military convoys to bring truckloads of goods into the city daily.
Payments weren’t accepted in French francs, of course. After years of occupation, France’s economy was in shambles, with rampant hyperinflation. And that was just the beginning.
Post-war, while Britain’s economy would stabilize somewhat, France’s would decline until De Gaulle’s return to power in the 1960s.
Indeed, De Gaulle, celebrated as a French hero, only served as a provisional leader for a few months after Paris’s liberation before being ousted. It wasn’t until the 1960s that he made a political comeback.
For now, however, De Gaulle’s position as a provisional leader wasn’t recognized by the Allies, who only acknowledged his military rank—not his governmental authority.
This was why Josh dismissed De Gaulle as not being France’s legitimate representative.
In such circumstances, Josh would be foolish to accept francs as payment.
To buy his goods, one needed dollars or gold.
High-end jewelry? Fine, but at a 70% discount.
Land deeds? Acceptable, at a fair price.
Factories or mines? Passable, at a 50% markdown.
Pounds sterling? Sure, but no small denominations, and at a 20% discount.
In just over a month, Lyndon had amassed more wealth and assets in Paris than during his entire time in Britain.
Naturally, such lucrative business attracted envy.
But Josh had the U.S. military transporting goods and maintaining order. Their Pay? could be made in cigarettes or alcohol—or even dollars.
Who would dare disrupt his operations?
Even the last man of France, De Gaulle, had to lower himself to plead with Josh.
But as Josh said, he was a businessman, not a philanthropist.
In his home country, Josh wouldn’t mind being charitable for reputation's sake. But in France? No need.
No matter how much De Gaulle begged, Josh sent him off with just one ton of canned meat—a favor in itself.
One ton of canned meat could buy an entire street in Paris right now.
“If I represent the French government to purchase supplies from you, would that work?” Seeing Josh’s firm stance, De Gaulle’s tone softened. After less than a month as the provisional government’s leader, he had realized the situation was far more complicated than he’d imagined.
A ton of canned meat might sound substantial, but for a city like Paris with millions of mouths to feed, it was a drop in the ocean.
“Mr. De Gaulle, I’m not trying to be harsh, but does your provisional government even have any money?” Josh spread his hands, feigning helplessness.
A provisional government was just a scapegoat for the dirty work.
Only genuine patriots like De Gaulle—or those with ulterior motives—would take on such a role.
No money, no resources.
All they had were a few ragtag military units—units that de Gaulle had cobbled together with great effort and begging during his time in Africa.
“We can offer collateral—” De Gaulle began, but Josh cut him off.
“Mr. De Gaulle, don’t try to issue empty promises here. If your government had anything decent to offer as collateral, you wouldn’t be here; you’d be at my country’s embassy!” Josh said impatiently.
Josh’s reference to the U.S. embassy pointed to the Lend-Lease Act, through which America supplied vast resources to its allies during the war.
However, France received the least support.
The reason was simple: as an occupied territory, France had no internationally recognized government capable of pledging national assets for aid.
The only aid France had received consisted of equipment for two Free French armored divisions under de Gaulle.
And even that came at a cost—de Gaulle had been forced to promise Algeria’s independence and make countless other concessions to secure those donations.
In the original timeline, a similar food crisis in France was eventually resolved with American assistance. However, at this point in the war, U.S. supplies were prioritized for military operations, and whatever remained was directed to Britain first.
France would have to wait at least another one or two months before seeing any American support.
Postwar, France faced additional challenges in repaying its debts due to the lack of a recognized government.
In the original timeline, once France was formally liberated and a government was established, de Gaulle was swiftly pushed out of office. Most of the promises he had made—including Algerian independence—went unfulfilled.
For instance, Algeria eventually gained independence only after a war.
As for the U.S. loans, they were initially repaid through the opening of the French film market. However, public opposition caused this arrangement to collapse within a few years.
Considering France’s hist-no, future of defaulting even on U.S. debts, it was no wonder Josh had no intention of trusting de Gaulle’s promises. If Josh were to provide supplies on credit, he’d essentially be throwing meat to the wolves.
Josh’s stance was clear, no substantial collateral, no deal.
Hearing this, De Gaulle’s expression turned grim. Even he knew his promises were empty. Yet for France, he had to swallow his pride and make them.
While Josh pitied De Gaulle’s plight, he wouldn’t sacrifice his interests to help him.
Still...
“You’re not entirely without collateral,” Josh said, tapping the table.
