The French honorary consul’s main function is to aid French nationals on his (or her) patch of British soil. Over the years, French nationals have had their political differences: Bonapartists v. royalists; royalists v. imperialists; imperialists v. republicans and republicans v. communards. However, once any French citizen is on British soil, s/he is under the protection of the apolitical French consul in their area.
In 1940, The Brighton consul was an exception to the ‘apolitical’ rule.
Honoré Migot Honorary Consul for Brighton 1937-1947
Following the armistice of 22 June 1940 and the occupation of large parts of France by the Nazi forces, the French, yet again, became a divided nation. The government decamped to Vichy and became a puppet of the Nazi regime. General de Gaulle decamped to London and vowed to fight on – with or without the British. Most of the consular staff in London were attached to the Vichy (collaborationist) regime. Many of them hurried back home to France.
French Brighton 