This 1942 AP Wirephoto captures Marshal Philippe Petain, head of the Vichy French State, and Admiral Jean-Francois Darlan touring the battleship Dunkerque at Toulon following repairs to damage inflicted by the British Royal Navy's attack on the French fleet at Mers-el-Kebir in July 1940. The photograph, distributed to American newspapers, also carried news that Petain would soon be succeeded by Pierre Laval, reflecting the shifting and closely watched political currents within Vichy France during the war. Project: 218598