basically coming out of WWI France was extremely anti-German, especially the right wing who pushed for crushing Germany at the treaty of Versaille, but in the 30s with nazis rising and the soviets looking scarier , many right wingers in France stopped being so hawkish on Germany, as their ideological and economical goals converged. Many of these people were officers in the army. There isn't much evidence, but seeing how enthusiastically some in the army (Petain) and administration collaborated with the nazis in the Vichy regime, it makes me think they lost on purpose (or at least didn't fight as hard as in WWI).
basically coming out of WWI France was extremely anti-German, especially the right wing who pushed for crushing Germany at the treaty of Versaille, but in the 30s with nazis rising and the soviets looking scarier , many right wingers in France stopped being so hawkish on Germany, as their ideological and economical goals converged. Many of these people were officers in the army. There isn't much evidence, but seeing how enthusiastically some in the army (Petain) and administration collaborated with the nazis in the Vichy regime, it makes me think they lost on purpose (or at least didn't fight as hard as in WWI).