Located at the heart of the Hotel National des Invalides,

the Musée de l'Armée (Army Museum) contemporary

Department (1871-1945) recounts a near-century

of military history, from the defeat of France against

Prussia in 1871 to the German surrender in May

1945. Reminding the public of the epic histories

of the two 20^th century World Wars, with the Battle

of the Marne, the trench warfare, the European crises

of the 1930s, the phoney war of 1940, the June 18call, the

Normandy landings and the liberation of Paris,

it also recalls the times of relative peace that preceded

them, retracing in particular the 19^th century French

colonial expansion.

Through a great variety of artefacts - French or foreign

uniforms, posters, photographs, war material - this book

aims at providing its readers a better understanding of

the different phases of the two World Wars.