(22 November 1890 – 9 November 1970), in France commonly referred to as Général de Gaulle, was a French military leader and statesman. Prior to World War II, he was primarily known as an armoured warfare tactician and an advocate of the concentrated use of armoured and aviation forces. During World War II, he reached the rank of Brigade General and then became the leader of the Free French government-in-exile and an anti-Nazi guerrilla leader. Between 1944 and 1946, following the liberation of France from German occupation, he was head of the French provisional government.
Called to form a government in 1958, he inspired a new constitution and was the Fifth Republic's first president, serving from 1958 to 1969. His political ideology is known as Gaullism, and it has been a major influence in subsequent French politics.
Charles de Gaulle fought in the First World War, becoming severely wounded at the Battle of Verdun. He survived and went on to lead a military career up until the Second world War. He was one of the few French Generals who refused to accept the surrender of France and on 17th June 1940 fled to Britain where he vowed to continue on the fight against German occupation
Charles de Gaulle in the Free French Movement 1940-44
On 18 June, de Gaulle prepared to speak to the French people, via BBC radio, from London. The British Cabinet attempted to block the speech, but was overruled by Churchill. In France, de Gaulle's Appeal of 18 June could be heard nationwide in the evening. The phrase "France has lost a battle; she has not lost the war", which appeared on posters in Britain at the time, is often incorrectly associated with the BBC broadcast; nevertheless the words aptly capture the spirit of de Gaulle's position.
Only a few people actually heard the speech that night, because the BBC was seldom listened to in France, and millions of French were refugees on the road. However, excerpts of the speech appeared in French newspapers the next day in the (unoccupied) southern part of France, the speech was repeated for several days on the BBC, and de Gaulle spoke again on subsequent nights.
De Gaulle's 22 June speech on the BBC can be heard here in its entirety. Audio excerpts of other speeches, the full texts of the speeches, and reproductions of posters from June 1940 can be found here.
Soon enough, among the chaos and bewilderment in France, the news that a French general was in London, refusing to accept the tide of events and calling for the end of despair and the continuation of war spread by word of mouth. To this day, it remains one of the most famous speeches in French history.
From London, de Gaulle formed and led the Free French movement. Whereas the United States continued to recognise Vichy France, the British government of Winston Churchill supported de Gaulle, initially maintaining relations with the Vichy government, but subsequently recognised the Free French.
On 4 July 1940, a court-martial in Toulouse sentenced de Gaulle in absentia to four years in prison. At a second court-martial on 2 August 1940, de Gaulle was condemned to death for treason against the Vichy regime.
In his dealings with his British allies and the United States, de Gaulle insisted at all times in retaining full freedom of action on behalf of France, even when this might embarrass or inconvenience his partners. "France has no friends, only interests" is one of his best-remembered statements. Churchill is often misquoted as having commented, regarding working with de Gaulle, that: "Of all the crosses I have had to bear during this war, the heaviest has been the Cross of Lorraine" (referring to de Gaulle's symbol of Free France). The actual quote was by Churchill's envoy to France, Major-General Edward Spears Working with the French resistance and supporters in France's colonial African possessions, after the Anglo-American invasion of North Africa in November 1942, de Gaulle moved his headquarters to Algiers in May 1943. He became first joint head (with the less resolutely independent Gen. Henri Giraud, the candidate preferred by the USA) and then sole chairman of the Committee of National Liberation.
At the liberation of France following Operation Overlord, in which Free French forces played a minor, symbolic role, he quickly established the authority of the Free French Forces in France, avoiding an Allied Military Government for Occupied Territories. He flew into France from the French colony of Algeria a few hours before the liberation of Paris, and drove near the front of the liberating forces into the city alongside Allied officials. De Gaulle made a famous speech at that time, which raised eyebrows amongst his allies. [3] After his return to Paris, he moved back into his office at the War Ministry, thus proclaiming continuity of the Third Republic and denying the legitimacy of the Vichy regime.
After the war, he served as President of the provisional government from September 1944, but resigned on 20 January 1946, complaining of conflict between the political parties, and disapproving of the draft constitution for the Fourth Republic, which he believed placed too much power in the hands of a parliament with its shifting party alliances.
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