Relations with the Vichy regime On 2 July 1942, Moncef Bey was awarded the Grand Cross of the
Légion d'honneur by the
Vichy regime. Nevertheless, his attitude on the throne was not one which France found easy to deal with. Thus, in a memorandum of 2 August 1942 to
Marshall Pétain presented by his
Grand Vizier Hédi Lakhoua he reaffirmed his belief in Tunisian sovereignty, undiminished by the
French protectorate. He insisted on the establishment of a consultative legislative council in which Tunisians would predominate, access to civil service roles for Tunisians, and measures against poverty and unemployment. He also wanted compulsory schooling in Arabic, the nationalisation of key enterprises, and a range of other measures of a broadly nationalist character. On 12 October 1942, at the
Eid al-Fitr ceremonies in the palace of
La Marsa, Moncef Bey expressed his surprise that there was not a single Tunisian among the senior government personnel who were attending with the French Resident General, Admiral
Jean-Pierre Esteva. Esteva replied 'seuls les Français sont aptes aux postes de commande' ('only the French are suited to positions of authority'). The Bey then sent a telegram to Marshal Pétain asking for Esteva to be recalled, the request was denied and tensions continued to mount between the Bey and Esteva In December 1942, a confrontation blew up during a session of the Council of Ministers between Esteva and the Minister of Justice
Abdeljelil Zaouche, after the Minister expressed reservations about funding for the
National Gendarmerie and Esteva angrily rejected any criticism of the gendarmerie. Moncef Bey considered that the Resident General's tone was an insult to his representative and thus to his own person.
Axis troops arrived in Tunisia on 16 November 1942, and the
Tunisian Campaign turned much of the country into a battlefield. Moncef Bey was confronted by demands from Pétain to remain loyal to France and from
Roosevelt to allow free passage for Allied troops. Moncef Bey proclaimed Tunisian neutrality while secretly providing assurances to Roosevelt that Tunisia would support the Allies.
Protector of the Jews His predecessor
Ahmed Bey was often referred to as 'the Bey of the French' and signed several decrees prepared by the Vichy regime which were detrimental to
the Jewish community in Tunisia. Moncef Bey on the other hand was referred to as 'the Protector of the Jews' and made efforts to ensure that these decrees were not put into effect. He also refused to sign any other anti-Jewish decrees, including those requiring Jews to wear the yellow star, or to undertake forced labour, or to exclude Jews from certain activities. Between November 1942 and May 1943, while Axis troops occupied the country, he intervened repeatedly to protect his people, particularly the Jewish community, from their exactions. ==Deposition and exile==