March 14, 2000

phony war

Recently the term phoney war came up, referring to the time before WWII. What exactly does it refer to?

Phoney is a British spelling; phony is the usual spelling in American English.

The term phony war refers to the relatively quiescent period in 1939 and 1940, after the fall of Poland and before the German attack on Norway and Denmark. The Americans who coined the term thought that France and England (and even Hitler's Germany) did not really want to fight a war, and did so only grudgingly in order to fulfill a committment to the defense of Poland. In England there was talk about weak leadership and poor strategic planning. But after Winston Churchill replaced Neville Chamberlain as prime minister, there was no basis for the allegation of a phony war. A similar term derived from German is sitzkrieg, literally meaning 'sitting war', an obvious play on the term blitzkrieg, literally meaning 'lightning war'.

Paul Reynaud, premier of France, used the term phony peace in a radio speech in April of 1940. Translated into English, he said: "'It must be finished'; that is the constant theme heard since the beginning. And that means that there will not be any 'phony peace' after a war which is by no means a 'phony war.'"

The term phony war is still used in contexts other than World War II: "A curious 'phoney war' atmosphere has pervaded Ulster during the past few days" (Daily Telegraph, 1972). The term phony peace also continues to be used: "At this stage of phoney peace, the Americans are being careful to say or do nothing that might alarm Israel" (Guardian Weekly, 1977).

Carol