The Third Republic existed as the French government between the Franco-Prussian War and World War II (1870 – 1940). It followed the French Second Empire and was succeeded by the Vichy regime. So it began in the turbulence after the Franco-Prussian War and ended in the turbulence of the quick French defeat at the hands of Nazi Germany early in World War II. Both the beginning and the end came about due to shocking defeats at the hands of German armies.