Who is Pericand Family from Suite Franaise and what is their importance?

The Pericands are a very wealthy family, primarily due to the elderly Pericand's family connections with the Maltete family fortunes. The Pericands have one daughter and four sons, as well as an elderly father-in-law and a number of servants. Their son, Philippe, their pride and joy, is a Catholic priest. The younger son, Hubert, is a soft, sensitive teenager who cries easily and is drawn by patriotic fervor to wanting to join the French army, ashamed that the French have capitulated to the Germans.