1939 Le Petit Parisien Map of the World during World War II

This is a 1939 Le Petit Parisien world map illustrating World War II before the Spring 1940 offensive. The map depicts the world from the Atlantic Ocean to Alaska and Hawaii and from the Arctic to the Cape of Good Hope, Australia, and New Zealand.

Geography of War-torn Europe

Printed before the 1940 German offensive in Western Europe, this map predates the defeat of France. The map reflects the German and Soviet gains of 1939, when Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union signed the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact and divided Poland between themselves. The borders of Nazi Germany also reflect the Anschluss, the annexation of Austria in March 1938, and the occupation of Czechoslovakia, which took place in two phases. First, under the terms of the Munich Agreement, Nazi Germany occupied the Sudetenland (the northern and western border regions of Czechoslovakia), supposedly as a means of protecting ethnic Germans who lived there. Then in March 1939, the German army invaded the rest of Czechoslovakia and proclaimed it a Protectorate of the German Reich.

War in Asia

Meanwhile, in Asia, war had been raging on and off since 1931, with the Second Sino-Japanese War 'officially' beginning in 1937. The Japanese puppet state of Mancukuo (Mandchoukouo), established in 1931 following the Mukden Incident, is the only immediately obvious clue to the fighting in Asia. The Japanese Mandates in the Mariana, Caroline, and Marshall Islands are labeled, but there is as yet no hint of the critical role they will play in the Pacific War.

The Colonies Still Matter!

It is also important to note the unremarkable, though important, presence of colonial labels throughout the map. For example, Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia are referred to simply as Indochine (Indochina), then a French colony, while India is the Indian Empire, the jewel of the British Empire. The political geography of Africa looks nothing like it does today, with French North Africa, French West Africa, French Equatorial Africa, Belgian Congo, and Italian East Africa among the many political entities that have since vanished. Even the United States is included, with colonies in the Philippines, Guam, Wake Island, and Hawaii (which were still a territory in 1939).

A Snapshot of History

Overall, this map provides a snapshot of the world as it stood in the fall of 1939 and the first few months of 1940. A world in chaos, marred by brutal warfare on three continents, with an uncertain future.

Publication History

Although undated, through the geography we are able to date this map to late 1939 or early 1940. It was printed by the French newspaper Le Petit Parisien. We have been unable to locate any other surviving examples.