Inflexible, courageous, arrogant, charismatic, egocentric, intelligent, and controversial--these words describe one of the most interesting figures to come to prominence during the Second World War. Although General Charles de Gaulle was a soldier and the author of several books on military theory and leadership, he is best remembered as a skillful politician and statesman who during his four-year exile from France embodied the spirit of his country.
After graduating from the French Military Academy of Saint-Cyr, the young second-lieutenant's military career began when he was assigned to a regiment commanded by Philippe PΘtain. Here began the close and often times stormy relationship between the two men, each of whom came to think of himself as the embodiment of France. During World War I, de Gaulle was wounded three times and spent thirty-two months as a German prisoner of war. In 1925, Marshal PΘtain promoted de Gaulle to the Conseil SupΘrieur de la Guerre (Supreme War Council). After several other postings, both at home and abroad, de Gaulle served for four years as a member of the National Defense Council.
Simultaneously, but to the detriment of his military career, de Gaulle began a publishing career. His 1924 book, "Discord Among the Enemy," examined the relationship between the civil and military authorities in Germany. De Gaulle outlined his conception of leadership in the 1932 book, "The Edge of the Sword." In his study of military theory in his 1934 book, de Gaulle advocated small, mobile, professional armies--The Army of the Future--over the fixed fortifications exemplified by the Maginot line. His final pre-war book, "France and Her Army," was published in 1938, and caused a rift with Marshal PΘtain. Indeed, many of the thoughts expounded in his books were not endorsed by the high command of the French army.
On May 10, German forces rolled over the borders of France, sweeping across the countryside and defeating French and British forces at almost every pass. During the Battle of France, de Gaulle was given the temporary rank of brigadier general and commanded the 4th Armored Division. Although he never distinguished himself on the battlefield, General de Gaulle was appointed the Under Secretary for National Defense in the government of Premiere Paul Reynaud. This post brought him to the attention of Sir Winston Churchill.
On June 11, Churchill visited France to discuss British aid to the French forces. De Gaulle impressed Churchill as young and energetic. In contrast, Churchill described Marshal PΘtain as a defeatist and very dangerous.
Churchill left the meeting with the idea that there might be "two French governments, one which made peace, and one which organized resistance from the French colonies, carrying on the war at sea through the French Fleet and in France through guerrillas." (1) It was the latter group that de Gaulle would eventually lead against the German military machine to become a hero of the French people.
De Gaulle traveled to Britain on 14 June 1940 to make shipping arrangements to carry the French government and as many troops as possible to the relative safety of French-colonial Africa. He returned to France two days later, delivering a message from the British government. The message pledged a union between Britain and France to fight a common evil--Nazi Germany. It was hoped that the formation of a union would strengthen France's resolve in the battle with the Germans. The British declaration had the opposite effect, however, hastening the collapse of the Reynaud government. The majority of Reynaud's government strongly felt that not only was Germany going to conquer France, but it was going to conquer Britain as well. The French saw the pact as futile.
With his friends fearing for his safety, his brief tenure in the Reynaud government for credentials, and the admiration of Churchill, de Gaulle returned to Britain to continue his struggle to free France. General de Gaulle won recognition as leader of all Free French forces, wherever they might be, from the British government on June 28.
PΘtain remained in France, took over the reigns of government upon Reynaud's resignation, and was given full powers to revise the French constitution when the French National Assembly voted itself out of existence July 10. Although the Vichy government of PΘtain was legally established and supported by the vast majority of French people, de Gaulle refused to recognize its legitimacy, setting the stage for the struggle over who represented the French people. In fact, the Vichy government sentenced de Gaulle in absentia to death for treason.
De Gaulle waged another struggle to consolidate his power as the undisputed head of the Free French Forces. By November 1942, the resistance had recognized de Gaulle as its leader and as a symbol for the struggle to free France from German occupation. At the same time, however, many of these resistance leaders were concerned about the role de Gaulle would play in France after liberation. In May 1943, de Gaulle moved his headquarters to Algiers and in June became the president of the French Committee of National Liberation, first with General Giraud, a senior French general supported by the Americans. Through a series of skillful political moves, he consolidated his control of the committee by the end of July. The committee proclaimed itself the central power of France, until a provisional government was reestablished in France, and directed all French involvement in the war.
De Gaulle's increasing political activity lead to strained relations with Churchill, Roosevelt, and other Allied leaders. Because of his poor track record as a team player and in keeping secrets, the Allies kept de Gaulle at arms length from Operation Overlord. He was not briefed on the operation in detail until the last minute, on a June 4 trip to London requested by Churchill. Even then he objected to many things both major and minor: Roosevelt planned for AMGOT (Allied Military Government, Occupied Territories), under Eisenhower, to take France under his military authority. De Gaulle interpreted this as a major rebuke of the position he had so carefully cultivated as the undisputed leader of France. In retaliation, de Gaulle refused to participate in a post-invasion BBC radio broadcast featuring the leaders of European countries in exile addressing their citizens. He was concerned that he was the last speaker on the program, and following Eisenhower might imply that he agreed with the statement Eisenhower was scheduled to deliver.
De Gaulle and a small entourage arrived in France on June 12, and immediately began to consolidate their position, first in Bayeux, as the official government of France. They even began distributing part of the secret cargo they brought into France, Free French currency destined to make the hated AMGOT currency irrelevant.
The first week of July, de Gaulle paid a much-delayed visit to Roosevelt. This visit, urged by Churchill, was planned as an expression of friendship between the French and American peoples, to pay homage to America for her leadership and sacrifice during the war, and to establish that de Gaulle's visit was one between two equal heads of state. Much to Churchill's surprise, after returning to Algiers on July 13, he was greeted with the text of an agreement from Roosevelt recognizing de Gaulle's provisional government as the sole representative of liberated France. This provisional government alone would act as liaison for the Allied forces to provide them services, and would serve as the sole source of currency suitable for exchange with the Allies for dollars and pounds.
It was agreed among the Allies that the honor of liberating Paris would fall to the French by the 2nd Armored Division commanded by General Leclerc. These troops did not take part in the early stages of the Normandy campaign, but were held back for the liberation of Paris. While the stage for the liberation of Paris was being set, de Gaulle was touring liberated French cities to consolidate his power. Eisenhower, wanting to avoid a Stalingrad-like battle for a major metropolitan center, gave the order to liberate Paris only after the resistance uprisings began and de Gaulle threatened to order Leclerc to detach himself from General Bradley's U.S. 12th Army Group and move on to Paris alone. Ultimately, Eisenhower also ordered the U.S. 4th Infantry Division to join in the race.
Shortly after Leclerc's troops reached the center of Paris the evening of August 24, de Gaulle entered Paris to the frenzied celebration that accompanied French liberation. Two days later, de Gaulle led a victory parade from the Arc de Triomphe to the Notre Dame Cathedral. In that moment, through the adulation expressed by the French people, de Gaulle achieved the status he had sought four years earlier: de Gaulle became the liberator of France, and to many, the very embodiment of all French hopes and dreams for the restoration of France to its rightful place in Europe and the world.
De Gaulle went on to serve as president of the provisional French government until 1946 and again served his country as president from 1959-1969.
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1. Winston S. Churchill, "The Second World War: Their Finest Hour," (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1949), p. 160.
