Black jackboots or “marching boots” (Marschstiefel), already used by the German infantry during World War I, were still part of the German army uniform during World War II, though they were gradually replaced by lace-up ankle boots (Schnürschuhe) from 1941 onwards. Although the phrase “sous la botte” was already used to describe German domination during World War I, it became widely used in reference to World War II, sometimes associated in the titles of books from the Liberation collection (1944-46) with a more or less precise time-span, ranging from 1940 to 1943, 1944 or 1945. The expression has become synonymous with that period of German occupation of France and Belgium. The military boot has become strongly associated with the image of the German soldier/officer in popular imagination and cultural representations, from contemporary posters to current historical movies. According to Google search results, they seem to be a particularly successful retail item nowadays, whether as (presumed) original artefacts, or as faithful reproductions. The footwear was used as a potent symbol of the German occupation of France and Belgium and of the oppression endured by the local populations. In particular, the recurring use of the expression “sous la botte” provided an evocative image of the German occupation as an oppressive regime of (military) tyranny (eluding the responsibility of the Vichy government and the question of French collaboration).