Description
Welcome to Quare, the educational podcast for young and old alike. Today, in the History category, our episode is dedicated to General de Gaulle.
Who was General de Gaulle?
Charles de Gaulle was a French military officer and statesman. He was born on 22 November 1890 in Lille and died on 9 November 1970 in Colombey-les-Deux-Églises. He is one of the most important figures in 20th-century French history: leader of Free France during the Second World War, liberator of his country, and founder of the Fifth Republic.
Why is he famous?
He is best known for his Appeal of 18 June 1940, broadcast from London on BBC Radio. While France had just been invaded and the French government was surrendering to Nazi Germany, de Gaulle refused to accept defeat. He called on the French people to continue the fight from abroad. It is this act of courage that made him legendary.
How did he become a soldier?
He graduated from the Special Military School of Saint-Cyr in 1912. It was there that he first crossed paths with a certain Philippe Pétain, then a respected instructor, who would go on to become his mentor… and then his most bitter adversary.
Did he fight in the First World War?
Yes, and with great bravery. He was wounded three times. On 2 March 1916, during the Battle of Verdun, he defended Fort Douaumont with his regiment. His unit was decimated, the survivors surrounded. He was wounded by a bayonet thrust to the thigh and taken prisoner.
Was he a prisoner for long?
Yes, nearly two and a half years. He attempted to escape five times, without success. What is remarkable is what he did during his captivity: rather than giving up, he organised lectures for his fellow prisoners on the state of the war, and he studied the German press to better understand the enemy. Already, the future strategist was taking shape.
And after the war?
Between the two world wars, he distinguished himself as a military theorist, championing the use of armoured tanks — an idea the French army unfortunately ignored. It is ironic: it was precisely with tanks that Germany crushed France in 1940.
So he had a strong bond with Pétain?
Yes, and it is one of the great paradoxes of history. Pétain was de Gaulle's mentor. In 1916, it was Pétain himself who cited the young captain in dispatches, believing him dead in combat. But in 1940, when Pétain chose to capitulate before Hitler and lead the Vichy regime, de Gaulle refused to follow. The student rose against the master. It was this courageous — and painful — choice that defined de Gaulle forever.
What did he do after the Appeal of 18 June?
From London, he organised Free France, the French forces that continued to fight alongside the Allies. He had to assert himself with difficulty against Churchill and Roosevelt, who did not always trust him. But he succeeded in being recognised as the legitimate representative of France. In August 1944, he entered liberated Paris and walked triumphantly down the Champs-Élysées before a delirious crowd.
What role did he play after the war?
After the Liberation, he presided over the provisional government of the French Republic. But he quickly resigned in 1946, dissatisfied with the parliamentary regime of the Fourth Republic, which he considered too unstable. He retired to Colombey. He returned to power in 1958, during the Algerian crisis, and founded the Fifth Republic, of which he became the first president.
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