Biography and episodes of life Charles de Gaulle. When born and died Charles de Gaulle, memorable places and dates important events his life. Politician Quotes, Photo and video.
Years of life of Charles de Gaulle:
born November 22, 1890, died November 9, 1970
Epitaph
We love you, we are proud of you,
And in our memory you are always alive.
Biography
He was an outstanding person and, like any man of his stature, caused much controversy as to his personality and methods of government. And yet the biography of Charles de Gaulle is the biography of an undoubtedly great politician and military commander. De Gaulle's lifelong goal was to liberate France and return it to its former greatness, and he did everything to achieve it.
Charles de Gaulle was born into an aristocratic, patriotic Catholic family. Military biography de Gaulle was predetermined - first the Saint-Cyr School, and then participation in the First World War. At the beginning of World War II, de Gaulle had already received the rank of general. It was a war that turned de Gaulle's whole life upside down, a war in which he showed all his leadership skills and declared himself throughout the country as a decisive politician. Thus, Charles de Gaulle categorically rejected the defeatist policy towards fascism pursued by the then French Prime Minister Henri Pétain. De Gaulle led the Free French movement and became the head of the Provisional Government of the French Republic. True, not all of de Gaulle’s views were shared by his contemporaries, and, after serving as prime minister for two years, the ambitious general left politics for a while. But he returned later - when “Gaullism” had already formed as a political movement and the number of de Gaulle’s supporters was impressive.
De Gaulle became the first president of the Fifth Republic and in this post did a lot of important things for his country: he was able to resolve the Algerian crisis, make serious amendments to the Constitution, achieve good results in relations with Germany, the USSR, China, third world countries, and carry out a number of other significant reforms. It was President de Gaulle who came up with the idea of greatness not only of France, but of all of Europe; he was the first to put forward a proposal to create a “united Europe” in which each country would maintain its independence. De Gaulle voluntarily resigned as president when he began to realize that he was losing the support of his people. After de Gaulle's death, the French were still able to rethink the role of their former ruler and appreciate it. Today in France, an airport in Paris is named in honor of “General de Gaulle” (no other name is given to him), and a monument to the general was erected in memory of de Gaulle not far from the Champs-Elysees. Today de Gaulle is considered one of the most significant people in the history of France along with Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte.
He resigned as president in April 1969. He traveled for some time and then settled in the small French commune of Colombey-les-deux-Eglises with his wife, where he worked on his memoirs. Alas, a quiet life apparently did not suit de Gaulle. De Gaulle's death came a year and a half after his retirement from politics. The cause of de Gaulle's death was a rupture of the aorta. De Gaulle's funeral took place there, in Colombey; de Gaulle's grave is located in the village cemetery.
All his life, de Gaulle was devoted to two women - France and his wife Yvonne. In the photo on the left is a bronze monument to the de Gaulles in front of the cathedral in Calais, where their wedding took place.
Life line
November 22, 1890 Date of birth of Charles de Gaulle ( full name Charles Andre Joseph Marie de Gaulle).
1921 Marriage to Yvonne de Gaulle, birth of son Philip.
1924 Birth of daughter Elizabeth.
1928 Birth of daughter Anna.
1940 Receiving the rank of brigadier general.
1941 De Gaulle's leadership of the French National Committee.
July 3, 1944 Chairman of the Provisional Government of the French Republic.
June 1, 1958 Prime Minister of France, Minister of National Defense of France.
January 8, 1959 President of the Fifth Republic, President of France, Prince of Andorra.
April 28, 1969 Resignation from the presidency.
November 9, 1970 Date of death of de Gaulle.
November 12, 1970 De Gaulle's funeral.
Memorable places
1. The city of Lille, where Charles de Gaulle was born.
2. De Gaulle's house in Lille, where he spent his childhood, is today the de Gaulle house-museum.
3. Notre Dame Cathedral in Calais, where de Gaulle married his wife and in front of which today there is a monument to the couple.
4. Military Academy Saint-Cyr, where de Gaulle studied.
5. Higher military school in Paris, where de Gaulle taught.
6. Monument to de Gaulle in Paris.
7. Monument to de Gaulle in Warsaw.
8. De Gaulle Memorial in Colombey-les-deux-Eglises, where Charles de Gaulle died and was buried.
Episodes of life
When de Gaulle was studying at the Saint-Cyr Academy, one of his friends told him that Charles was destined for a great destiny. The young man answered quite seriously: “Yes, I think so too.” It is not surprising that at the Academy de Gaulle was considered an arrogant youth and a troublemaker, for which he was even nicknamed “the king in exile.” De Gaulle himself would later say: “A real leader keeps others at a distance. There is no power without authority, and no authority without distance.”
De Gaulle was famous for his excellent oratory skills. People close to de Gaulle claimed that the general was able to easily learn large speeches by heart. During his speeches, he almost never used written text and always spoke very smoothly. Former USSR Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko recalled that de Gaulle never answered sensitive questions directly, preferring to avoid answering with the words “anything can happen,” rather than baffling his opponents.
Charles de Gaulle died while working on his memoirs, just a few days shy of his eightieth birthday. Before his death, de Gaulle bequeathed that he should be buried modestly in a small cemetery and not have public ceremonies. In accordance with his will, only members of his family and comrades in the Resistance were invited to the funeral of Charles de Gaulle. But when the funeral bell sounded from the small church where farewell to former president France, thousands of church bells throughout the country responded to it.
Covenant
"Always choose the best one hard way“You won’t meet any competitors there.”
Documentary film “Charles de Gaulle. His Majesty the President"
Condolences
"General de Gaulle died, France became a widow."
Georges Pompidou, 19th President of France
Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle was a French general and politician, known primarily as a tank battle tactician before World War II. Leader of the Free French Forces in World War II, head of the provisional government in 1944-46. Inspirer of the new constitution and first president of the Fifth Republic from 1958 to 1969.
Origin and beginning of military career
Charles was the third child of a morally conservative but socially progressive Catholic bourgeois family. His father came from an old aristocratic family from Normandy. The mother belonged to a family of wealthy entrepreneurs from the industrial region of Lille in French Flanders.
The young de Gaulle chose a military career and studied for four years at the prestigious military school of Saint-Cyr. During World War I, Captain de Gaulle was seriously wounded at the Battle of Verdun in March 1916 and captured by the Germans.
After the end of the war, he remained in the army, where he served on the staff of General Maxime Weygand and then General Philippe Pétain. During the Polish-Soviet war of 1919-1920. de Gaulle served in Polish Army infantry instructor. He was promoted to major and received an offer to build further career in Poland, but chose to return to France.
The Second World War
By the outbreak of World War II, de Gaulle remained a colonel, arousing hostility from the military authorities with his bold views. Following the German breakthrough at Sedan on 10 May 1940, he was finally given command of the 4th Armored Division.
On May 28, de Gaulle's tanks stopped German armor in the battle of Caumont. The colonel became the only French commander to force the Germans to retreat during the invasion of France. Prime Minister Paul Reynaud promoted him to acting brigadier general.
On June 6, 1940, Reynaud appointed de Gaulle Under Secretary of State for National Defense and responsible for coordination with Great Britain. As a member of the cabinet, the general resisted proposals to surrender. Attempts to strengthen the resolve of those in the French government who favored continuing the war failed, and Reynaud resigned. Pétain, who became prime minister, intended to seek an armistice with Germany.
On the morning of June 17, with 100 thousand gold francs from secret funds provided to him the night before by Paul Reynaud, the general fled Bordeaux by plane and landed in London. De Gaulle decided to abandon the surrender of France and begin to create a Resistance movement.
On July 4, 1940, a military tribunal in Toulouse sentenced de Gaulle in absentia to four years in prison. At the second military tribunal on August 2, 1940, the general was sentenced to death penalty for treason.
At the Liberation of France, he quickly established the authority of the Free French Forces, avoiding the Allied military government. Returning to Paris, the general proclaimed the continuity of the Third Republic, denying the legitimacy of Vichy France.
After the end of the war, de Gaulle became president of the provisional government from September 1944, but resigned on 20 January 1946, complaining about the conflict between political parties and disapproving of the draft constitution of the Fourth Republic, which seemed to place too much power in the hands of parliament with its shifting party alliances.
1958: Collapse of the Fourth Republic
The Fourth Republic was marred by political instability, failures in Indochina and the inability to resolve the Algerian question.
On May 13, 1958, settlers took over government buildings in Algeria. Commander-in-Chief General Raoul Salan announced on the radio that the army had temporarily assumed responsibility for the fate of French Algeria.
The crisis deepened as French paratroopers from Algeria captured Corsica and discussed landing troops near Paris. Political leaders of all parties agreed to support de Gaulle's return to power. The exception was communist party Francois Mitterrand, who condemned the general as an agent of a fascist coup.
De Gaulle still intended to change the constitution of the Fourth Republic, blaming it on France's political weakness. The general made the condition of his return the provision of broad emergency powers within 6 months and the adoption of a new constitution. On June 1, 1958, de Gaulle became prime minister.
On September 28, 1958, a referendum was held, and 79.2% of voters supported the new constitution and the creation of the Fifth Republic. The colonies (Algeria was officially part of France, not a colony) were given a choice between independence and a new constitution. All colonies voted for the new constitution, with the exception of Guinea, which became the first French African colony to gain independence, at the cost of immediately cutting off all French aid.
1958-1962: Foundation of the Fifth Republic
In November 1958, de Gaulle and his supporters gained a majority, and in December the general was elected president with 78% of the vote. He promoted tough economic measures, including the issuance of a new franc. On August 22, 1962, the general and his wife narrowly escaped an assassination attempt.
At the international level, he maneuvered between the USA and the USSR, promoting an independent France with its own nuclear weapons. De Gaulle began to build Franco-German cooperation, as cornerstone EEC, making the first state visit to Germany by a French head of state since Napoleon.
1962-1968: politics of greatness
In the context of the Algerian conflict, de Gaulle was able to achieve two main goals: to reform French economy, and support in foreign policy strong position France, the so-called “politics of grandeur”.
The government actively intervened in the economy, using five-year plans as its main tool. Thanks to the unique combination of Western capitalism and state-oriented economics, major projects were implemented. In 1964, for the first time in 200 years, France's GDP per capita overtook that of Great Britain.
De Gaulle was convinced that a strong France, acting as a balancing force in the dangerous rivalry between the United States and Soviet Union, was in the interests of the whole world. He always tried to find counterbalances to both the USA and the USSR. In January 1964, France officially recognized the PRC, despite US opposition.
In December 1965, de Gaulle was elected president for a second seven-year term, defeating François Mitterrand. In February 1966, the country withdrew from military structure NATO. De Gaulle, while building independent nuclear forces, did not want to depend on decisions made in Washington.
In June 1967, he condemned the Israelis for their occupation West Bank and Gaza after the Six Day War. This was a major change in French policy towards Israel.
1968: leaving power
The demonstrations and strikes of May 1968 were big problem for de Gaulle's presidency. He dissolved parliament, in which the government had almost lost its majority, and held new elections in June 1968, which became great success for the Gaullists and their allies: the party received 358 of 487 seats.
Charles de Gaulle resigned on April 28, 1969 after the failure of the referendum he initiated. He went to Colombey-les-deux-Eglises, where he died in 1970 while working on his memoirs.
, Statesman, Minister, Prime Minister, President
Charles de Gaulle (Gaulle) (1890-1970) - French political and statesman, founder and first president (1959-1969) of the Fifth Republic. In 1940, he founded the patriotic movement “Free France” (from 1942 “Fighting France”) in London, which joined the anti-Hitler coalition; in 1941 he became the head of the French National Committee, in 1943 - the French Committee for National Liberation, created in Algeria. From 1944 to January 1946, de Gaulle was the head of the French Provisional Government. After the war, he was the founder and leader of the Rally of the French People party. In 1958, Prime Minister of France. On de Gaulle's initiative, a new constitution was prepared (1958), which expanded the rights of the president. During his presidency, France implemented plans to create its own nuclear forces, withdrew from military organization NATO; Soviet-French cooperation received significant development.
In this world, no one can separate opinion from politics.
de Gaulle Charles
Origin. Formation of worldview
Charles De Gaulle was born on November 22, 1890, in Lille, into an aristocratic family and was brought up in the spirit of patriotism and Catholicism. In 1912, he graduated from the Saint-Cyr military school, becoming a professional soldier. He fought on the fields of the First World War 1914-1918, was captured, and was released in 1918.
De Gaulle's worldview was influenced by such contemporaries as philosophers Henri Bergson and Emile Boutroux, writer Maurice Barrès, and poet and publicist Charles Péguy.
Even in the interwar period, Charles became a supporter of French nationalism and a supporter of strong executive power. This is confirmed by the books published by de Gaulle in the 1920-1930s - “Discord in the Land of the Enemy” (1924), “On the Edge of the Sword” (1932), “For a Professional Army” (1934), “France and Its Army” (1938). In these works devoted to military problems, de Gaulle was essentially the first in France to predict the decisive role tank troops in a future war.
People, in essence, can do no more without control than they can without eating, drinking and sleeping. These political animals need organization, that is, order and leaders.
de Gaulle Charles
Second World War
The Second World War, at the beginning of which Charles de Gaulle received the rank of general, turned his whole life upside down. He resolutely rejected the truce concluded by Marshal Henri Philippe Pétain with Nazi Germany, and flew to England to organize the struggle for the liberation of France. On June 18, 1940, de Gaulle spoke on London radio with an appeal to his compatriots, in which he urged them not to lay down their arms and to join the Free France association he founded in exile (after 1942, Fighting France).
At the first stage of the war, de Gaulle directed his main efforts towards establishing control over the French colonies, which were under the rule of the pro-fascist Vichy government. As a result, Chad, Congo, Ubangi-Chari, Gabon, Cameroon, and later other colonies joined the Free French. Free French officers and soldiers constantly took part in Allied military operations. De Gaulle sought to build relations with England, the USA and the USSR on the basis of equality and upholding national interests France. After the landing of Anglo-American troops in North Africa In June 1943, the French Committee for National Liberation (FCNL) was created in the city of Algiers. Charles De Gaulle was appointed its co-chairman (along with General Henri Giraud), and then its sole chairman.
When I want to know what France thinks, I ask myself.
de Gaulle Charles
In June 1944, the FCNO was renamed the Provisional Government of the French Republic. De Gaulle became its first head. Under his leadership, the government restored democratic freedoms in France and carried out socio-economic reforms. In January 1946, de Gaulle left the post of prime minister, disagreeing on major domestic political issues with representatives of the left parties of France.
Charles de Gaulle during the Fourth Republic
That same year, the Fourth Republic was established in France. According to the 1946 Constitution, real power in the country belonged not to the president of the republic (as de Gaulle proposed), but to the National Assembly. In 1947, de Gaulle again became involved in political life France. He founded the Rally of the French People (RPF). The main goal The RPF began to fight for the abolition of the 1946 Constitution and the conquest of power through parliamentary means to establish a new political regime in the spirit of de Gaulle's ideas. The RPF was initially a great success. 1 million people joined its ranks. But the Gaullists failed to achieve their goal. In 1953, de Gaulle dissolved the RPF and distanced himself from political activity. During this period, Gaullism finally took shape as an ideological and political movement (ideas of the state and “national greatness” of France, social policy).
Politics is too serious a matter to be left to politicians.
de Gaulle Charles
Fifth Republic
The Algerian crisis of 1958 (Algeria's struggle for independence) paved the way for de Gaulle to power. Under his direct leadership, the 1958 Constitution was developed, which significantly expanded the prerogatives of the country's president (executive branch) at the expense of parliament. This is how the Fifth Republic, which still exists today, began its history. Charles de Gaulle was elected its first president for a seven-year term. The priority task of the president and government was to resolve the “Algerian problem.”
De Gaulle firmly pursued a course towards Algerian self-determination, despite serious opposition (rebellions French army and ultra-colonialists in 1960-1961, terrorist activities of the OAS, a number of assassination attempts on de Gaulle). Algeria was granted independence with the signing of the Evian Accords in April 1962. In October of the same year, the most important amendment to the 1958 Constitution was adopted in a general referendum - on the election of the president of the republic by universal suffrage. On its basis, in 1965, de Gaulle was re-elected president for a new seven-year term.
You will live. Only the best are killed.
de Gaulle Charles
Charles de Gaulle sought to implement his foreign policy in line with his idea of the “national greatness” of France. He insisted on equal rights for France, the United States and Great Britain within NATO. Having failed to achieve success, the president withdrew France from the NATO military organization in 1966. In relations with Germany, de Gaulle managed to achieve noticeable results. In 1963, a Franco-German cooperation agreement was signed. De Gaulle was one of the first to put forward the idea of a “united Europe”. He thought of it as a “Europe of fatherlands,” in which each country would retain its political independence and national identity. De Gaulle was a supporter of the idea of détente. He set his country on the path of cooperation with the USSR, China and third world countries.
Charles de Gaulle paid less attention to domestic policy than to foreign policy. The student unrest in May 1968 indicated a serious crisis engulfing French society. Soon the president put forward a draft for a new administrative division France and Senate reform. However, the project did not receive the approval of the majority of the French. In April 1969, de Gaulle voluntarily resigned, finally abandoning political activity.
When I'm right, I usually get angry. And he gets angry when he is wrong. So it turned out that we were very often angry with each other.
de Gaulle Charles
How General de Gaulle defeated America
In 1965, General Charles de Gaulle flew to the United States and, at a meeting with American President Lyndon Johnson, announced that he intended to exchange 1.5 billion paper dollars for gold at official rate at $35 per ounce. Johnson was informed that a French ship loaded with dollars was in the New York port, and a French plane had landed at the airport with the same cargo on board. Johnson promised the French president serious problems. De Gaulle responded by announcing the evacuation of NATO headquarters, 29 NATO and US military bases from French territory and the withdrawal of 33 thousand alliance troops.
Ultimately, both were done.
Charles de Gaulle was born on November 22, 1890 into a patriotic Catholic family. Although the de Gaulley family is noble, the de in the surname is not the traditional French “particle” of noble surnames, but the Flemish form of the article. Charles, like his three brothers and sister, was born in Lille in his grandmother's house, where his mother came every time before giving birth, although the family lived in Paris. His father Henri de Gaulle was a professor of philosophy and literature at a Jesuit school, which greatly influenced Charles. From early childhood he loved to read. History struck him so much that he developed an almost mystical concept of serving France.
Already as a boy he showed great interest in military affairs. After a year of preparatory exercises at the Stanislav College in Paris, he was accepted into the Special Military School in Saint-Cyr. He chooses the infantry as his branch of the army: it is more “military” because it is closest to combat operations. The training took place in the 33rd Infantry Regiment under the command of the then Colonel Pétain. He graduated from military college in 1912 with 13th rank.
Since the beginning of the First World War on August 12, 1914, Lieutenant de Gaulle has taken part in military operations as part of the 5th Army of Charles Lanrezac, stationed in the northeast. Already on August 15 in Dinan he received his first wound; he returned to duty after treatment only in October. On March 10, 1915, at the Battle of Mesnil-le-Hurlu, he was wounded for the second time. He returns to the 33rd Regiment with the rank of captain and becomes company commander. In the Battle of Verdun near the village of Douaumont in 1916, he was wounded for the third time. Left on the battlefield, he - posthumously - receives honors from the army. However, Charles survives and is captured by the Germans; he is treated at the Mayenne hospital and held in various fortresses.
De Gaulle makes five attempts to escape. M. N. Tukhachevsky, the future marshal of the Red Army, was also captured with him; Communication begins between them, including on military-theoretical topics. While in captivity, de Gaulle read German authors, learned more and more about Germany, this later greatly helped him in his military command. It was then that he wrote his first book, “Discord in the Enemy's Camp” (published in 1916).
De Gaulle was released from captivity only after the armistice on November 11, 1918. From 1919 to 1921, de Gaulle was in Poland, where he taught the theory of tactics at the former imperial guard school in Rembertow near Warsaw, and in July-August 1920 he fought for a short time on the front of the Soviet-Polish war of 1919-1921 with the rank of major (in the troops of the RSFSR in this conflict, the commander, ironically, is Tukhachevsky). Having rejected the offer of a permanent position in the Polish Army and returning to his homeland, on April 6, 1921 he married Yvonne Vandrou. December 28th next year his son Philippe is born, named after the boss - later the notorious traitor and antagonist of de Gaulle, Marshal Philippe Pétain. Captain de Gaulle taught at the Saint-Cyr school, then in 1922 he was admitted to the Higher Military School. On May 15, 1924, daughter Elizabeth is born. In 1928, the youngest daughter Anna was born, suffering from Down syndrome (the girl died in 1948; de Gaulle was subsequently a trustee of the Foundation for Children with Down Syndrome).
In the 1930s, Lieutenant Colonel and then Colonel de Gaulle became widely known as the author of military theoretical works, such as “For a Professional Army”, “On the Edge of the Sword”, “France and Its Army”. In his books, de Gaulle, in particular, pointed out the need for the comprehensive development of tank forces as the main weapon of a future war. In this, his works come close to the works of the leading military theorist in Germany, Guderian. However, de Gaulle's proposals did not evoke sympathy from the French military command.
By the beginning of World War II, de Gaulle had the rank of colonel. On May 14, 1940, he was given command of the new 4th Regiment (5,000 soldiers and 85 tanks). From June 1, he temporarily acted as a brigadier general (he was never officially confirmed in this rank, and after the war he received only a colonel’s pension from the Fourth Republic). On June 6, Prime Minister Paul Reynaud appointed de Gaulle as deputy foreign minister during the war. The general invested with this position did not accept the terms of the truce, and on June 15, after the transfer of power to Marshal Pétain, he emigrated to Great Britain.
De Gaulle's appeal “To all Frenchmen,” 1940. It was this moment that became a turning point in de Gaulle’s biography. In “Memoirs of Hope” he writes: “On June 18, 1940, answering the call of his homeland, deprived of any other help to save his soul and honor, de Gaulle, alone, unknown to anyone, had to take responsibility for France " On this day, the BBC broadcasts a radio speech by de Gaulle calling for the creation of the Resistance. Leaflets were soon distributed in which the general addressed “To all the French” (A tous les Français) with the statement:
“France lost the battle, but it did not lose the war! Nothing is lost because this war is a world war. The day will come when France will regain freedom and greatness... That is why I appeal to all French people to unite around me in the name of action, sacrifice and hope."
The general accused the Pétain government of treason and declared that “with full consciousness of duty he speaks on behalf of France.” Other appeals from de Gaulle also appeared.
So de Gaulle became the head of “Free (later “Fighting”) France,” an organization designed to resist the occupiers and the collaborationist Vichy regime.
At first he had to face considerable difficulties. “I... at first did not represent anything... In France, there was no one who could vouch for me, and I did not enjoy any fame in the country. Abroad - no trust and no justification for my activities.” The formation of the Free French organization was quite protracted. Who knows what de Gaulle's fate would have been like if he had not enlisted the support of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. The desire to create an alternative to the Vichy government led Churchill to recognize de Gaulle as “the head of all free Frenchmen” (June 28, 1940) and to help “promote” de Gaulle internationally. However, in his memoirs about the Second World War, Churchill does not give de Gaulle a very high assessment, and considers his cooperation with him forced - there was simply no other alternative.
Militarily, the main task was to transfer to the side of the French patriots the “French Empire” - vast colonial possessions in Africa, Indochina and Oceania. After unsuccessful attempt capture Dakar de Gaulle creates in Brazzaville (Congo) the Council of Defense of the Empire, the manifesto on the creation of which began with the words: “We, General de Gaulle (nous général de Gaulle), head of the free French, decide,” etc. The Council includes anti-fascists determined military governors of the French (usually African) colonies: generals Catroux, Eboue, Colonel Leclerc. From this point on, de Gaulle emphasized the national and historical roots of his movement. He establishes the Order of Liberation, the main sign of which is the Lorraine cross with two crossbars - an ancient symbol of the French nation, dating back to the era of feudalism. The decree on the creation of the order is reminiscent of the statutes of the orders of the times of royal France.
The great success of the Free French was the establishment, shortly after June 22, 1941, of direct ties with the USSR (without hesitation, the Soviet leadership decided to transfer Bogomolov, their ambassador under the Vichy regime, to London). For 1941-1942 The network of partisan organizations in occupied France also grew. Since October 1941, after the first mass executions of hostages by the Germans, de Gaulle called on all French people for a total strike and mass actions of disobedience.
Meanwhile, the actions of the “monarch” irritated the West. Roosevelt's staff spoke openly about the “so-called free French” who were “sowing poisonous propaganda” and interfering with the conduct of the war. On November 7, 1942, American troops land in Algeria and Morocco and negotiate with local French military leaders who supported Vichy. De Gaulle tried to convince the leaders of England and the United States that cooperation with the Vichys in Algeria would lead to the loss of moral support for the allies in France. “The United States,” said de Gaulle, “introduces elementary feelings and complex politics into great affairs.” The contradiction between de Gaulle's patriotic ideals and Roosevelt's indifference in the choice of supporters (“I like all those who help solve my problems,” as he openly declared) became one of the most important obstacles to coordinated action in North Africa.
De Gaulle (left) in Tunisia, 1943The head of Algeria, Admiral Darlan, who by that time had already defected to the Allies, was killed on December 24, 1942 by 20-year-old Frenchman Fernand Bonnier de La Chapelle. The suspiciously quick investigation ended in the hasty execution of La Chapelle just a day after Darlan's murder. The Allied leadership appoints Army General Henri Giraud as the “civil and military commander-in-chief” of Algeria. In January 1943, at a conference in Casablanca, de Gaulle became aware of the Allied plan: to replace the leadership of “Fighting France” with a committee headed by Giraud, which was planned to include a large number of people who had once supported the Pétain government. In Casablanca, de Gaulle shows understandable intransigence towards such a plan. He insists on unconditional respect for the country's national interests (in the sense as they were understood in "Fighting France"). This leads to the split of “Fighting France” into two wings: nationalist, led by de Gaulle (supported by the British government led by W. Churchill), and pro-American, grouped around Henri Giraud.
On May 27, 1943, the National Council of the Resistance gathers at a founding conspiratorial meeting in Paris, which (under the auspices of de Gaulle) assumes many of the powers to organize internal struggle in an occupied country. De Gaulle's position became increasingly stronger, and Giraud was forced to compromise: almost simultaneously with the opening of the NSS, he invited the general to ruling structures Algeria. He demands the immediate submission of Giraud (the commander of the troops) to civil authority. The situation is heating up. Finally, on June 3, 1943, the French Committee of National Liberation was formed, headed by de Gaulle and Giraud on equal terms. The majority in it, however, goes to the Gaullists, and some adherents of his rival (including Couve de Murville, the future Prime Minister of the Fifth Republic) go over to de Gaulle’s side. In November 1943, Giraud was removed from the committee. The story of Giraud is precisely the moment when the military leader de Gaulle becomes a politician. For the first time he is faced with the question of political struggle: “Either I, or him.” For the first time, de Gaulle uses effective political means of struggle, rather than declarations.
On June 4, 1944, de Gaulle was summoned by Churchill to London. The British prime minister announced the upcoming landing of allied forces in Normandy and, at the same time, full support for Roosevelt's line of complete dictate of the will of the United States. De Gaulle was made to understand that his services were not needed. In the draft appeal written by Gen. D. D. Eisenhower ordered the French people to comply with all instructions of the allied command until the elections of legitimate authorities. It is clear that in Washington the de-Gaulle Committee was not considered such. De Gaulle's strong protest forced Churchill to grant him the right to speak separately to the French on the radio (rather than join Eisenhower's text). In the address, the general declared the legitimacy of the government formed by Fighting France and strongly opposed plans to subordinate it to American command.
On June 6, 1944, Allied forces carry out a successful landing in Normandy, thereby opening a second front in Europe. De Gaulle, after a short stay on liberated French soil, again headed to Washington for negotiations with President Roosevelt, the goal of which was still the same - to restore the independence and greatness of France (a key expression in the general’s political vocabulary). “Listening to the American president, I was finally convinced that in business relations between two states, logic and feeling mean very little in comparison with real force, that the one who knows how to grab and hold what is captured is valued here; and if France wants to take its former place, it must rely only on itself,” writes de Gaulle.
De Gaulle in liberated CherbourgAfter the Resistance rebels led by Colonel Rolle-Tanguy open the way to Paris for the tank troops of one of de Gaulle's most loyal associates, the military governor of Chad Philippe de Hautecloque (who went down in history under the name Leclerc), de Gaulle arrives in the liberated capital. A grandiose performance takes place - de Gaulle’s solemn procession through the streets of Paris, with a huge crowd of people, to which a lot of space is devoted in the general’s “War Memoirs”. The procession passes by historical places capitals, consecrated by the heroic history of France, and the general admits: “With every step I take, walking through the most famous places in the world, it seems to me that the glory of the past seems to join the glory of today.” De Gaulle never considered himself a politician only of his time, did not put himself on a par with such figures as Churchill or Roosevelt, but was aware of his significance, his mission in the context of centuries-old French history.
Since August 1944, de Gaulle has been Chairman of the French Council of Ministers (Provisional Government). He subsequently characterizes his short, one-and-a-half-year activity in this post as “salvation.” France had to be “saved” from the plans of the Anglo-American bloc: the partial remilitarization of Germany, the exclusion of France from the list of great powers. Both at Dumbarton Oaks, at the Great Powers Conference on the creation of the UN, and at the Yalta Conference in January 1945, representatives of France are absent. Shortly before the Yalta meeting, de Gaulle went to Moscow with the aim of concluding an alliance with the USSR in the face of the Anglo-American danger. The general first visited Moscow from December 2 to 10, 1944. On the last day of this visit in the Kremlin, J.V. Stalin and de Gaulle signed an agreement on “alliance and military assistance" The significance of this act was primarily in the return of France to the status of a great power and its recognition as one of the victorious states. French General Delattre de Tassigny, together with the commanders of the Allied powers, accepted the surrender of the German armed forces in Karlshorst on the night of May 8-9, 1945. France has occupation zones in Germany and Austria.
This period was marked by an intensified contradiction between the foreign policy “greatness” of the country and the poor internal situation. After the war, the standard of living remained low, unemployment grew against the background of the strengthening military-industrial complex. It was not even possible to properly define the political structure of the country. Elections in constituent Assembly did not give an advantage to any party (the Communists received a relative majority - which eloquently demonstrates the situation; Maurice Thorez became Deputy Prime Minister), the draft Constitution was repeatedly rejected. After one of the next conflicts over the expansion of the military budget, de Gaulle left the post of head of government on January 20, 1946 and retired to Colombey-les-Deux-Églises, a small estate in Champagne (Haute-Marne department). He himself compares his situation with the expulsion of Napoleon. But, unlike the idol of his youth, de Gaulle has the opportunity to observe French politics from the outside - not without the hope of returning to it.
Further political career The general is associated with the “Union of the French People” (according to the French abbreviation RPF), with the help of which de Gaulle plans to come to power through parliamentary means. The RPF is organizing a noisy campaign. The slogans are still the same: nationalism (the fight against US influence), adherence to the traditions of the Resistance (the emblem of the RPF becomes the Cross of Lorraine, which once shone in the middle of the “Order of Liberation”), the fight against a significant communist faction in the National Assembly. Success, it would seem, accompanies de Gaulle. In the fall of 1947, the RPF won the municipal elections. In 1951, 118 seats in the National Assembly were already at the disposal of the Gaullists. But the triumph that de Gaulle dreamed of is far away. These elections did not give the RPF an absolute majority, the communists further strengthened their positions, and most importantly, de Gaulle’s electoral strategy brought bad results. The famous English analyst Alexander Werth writes: “He was not a born demagogue. At the same time, in 1947, the impression was created that he decided to behave like a demagogue and resort to all demagogic tricks and tricks. This was difficult for people who in the past had been greatly impressed by de Gaulle’s stern dignity.” Indeed, the general declares war on the system of the Fourth Republic, constantly emphasizes his right to power in the country due to the fact that he and only he led it to its liberation, spreads openly offensive anti-communist statements, etc. A large number of careerists and people join de Gaulle , which did not perform well during the Vichy regime. Within the walls of the National Assembly, they are involved in the parliamentary “mouse race”, giving their votes to the extreme right. Finally, the complete collapse of the RPF comes - in the same municipal elections as those with which the story of its ascent began. On May 6, 1953, the general dissolves his party.
The least open period of de Gaulle's life begins. He spends five years in seclusion in Colombey, working on the famous “War Memoirs” in three volumes (“Conscription”, “Unity” and “Salvation”). The general not only sets out the events that have become history, but also seeks to find in them the answer to the question: what led him, an unknown brigadier general, to the role of a national leader? Only the deep conviction that “our country, in the face of other countries, must strive for great goals and bow to nothing, because otherwise it may find itself in mortal danger.”
1957-1958 became the years of deep political crisis of the IV Republic. The war in Algeria (which spread to the territory of the neighboring colony of Tunisia, which led to senseless casualties), unsuccessful attempts to form a Council of Ministers, and finally the economic crisis. The so-called “ultra” - semi-fascist groups putting strong pressure on the Algerian military leadership. On May 10, 1958, four Algerian generals addressed President Rene Coty with an essentially ultimatum demand to prevent the abandonment of Algeria. On May 13, armed ultra forces seize the colonial administration building in Algeria; the generals telegraphed to Paris with a demand addressed to Charles de Gaulle to “break the silence” and make an appeal to the citizens of the country with the aim of creating a “government of public trust.”
“...For 12 years now, France has been trying to solve problems that are beyond the capabilities of the party regime, and is heading towards disaster. Once, in a difficult hour, the country trusted me so that I would lead it to salvation. Today, when the country faces new challenges, let it know that I am ready to assume all the powers of the Republic.”
If this statement had been made a year ago, at the height of the economic crisis, it would have been perceived as a call for a coup d'etat. Now, in the face of the serious danger of a coup, the centrists of Pflimlin, the moderate socialists of Guy Mollet, and - above all - the Algerian rebels, whom he did not directly condemn, are pinning their hopes on de Gaulle. The scales tip towards de Gaulle after the putschists capture the island of Corsica in a matter of hours. Rumors are circulating about a parachute regiment landing in Paris. At this time, the general confidently turns to the rebels demanding that they obey their command. On May 27, the “ghost government” of Pierre Pflimlen resigns. President Rene Coty, addressing the National Assembly, demands the election of de Gaulle as prime minister and the transfer of emergency powers to him to form a government and revise the Constitution. On June 1, with 329 votes, de Gaulle was confirmed as Chairman of the Council of Ministers.
Decisive opponents of de Gaulle's coming to power were: radicals led by Mendes-France, left-wing socialists (including future President Francois Mitterrand) and communists led by Thorez and Duclos. They insisted on unconditional compliance with the democratic foundations of the state, which de Gaulle wanted to revise in the very near future.
Already in August, a draft of a new Constitution, according to which France has lived to this day, was placed on the Prime Minister’s desk. The powers of parliament were significantly limited. The government's fundamental responsibility to the National Assembly remained (it can declare a vote of no confidence in the government, but the president, when appointing the prime minister, should not submit his candidacy to parliament for approval). The President, according to Article 16, in the case where “the independence of the Republic, the integrity of its territory or the fulfillment of its international obligations is under serious and immediate threat, and the normal functioning of state institutions has been terminated” (what is meant by this concept is not specified) may temporarily take over your hands have completely unlimited power.
The principle of electing the president also changed fundamentally. From now on, the head of state became the representative not only of the will of parliament, but also of the entire people. It was originally planned to elect the president by an expanded electoral college, since 1962, after constitutional amendments - by popular vote.
On September 28, 1958, the twelve-year history of the IV Republic ended. The French people supported the Constitution with more than 79% of the votes. It was a direct vote of confidence in the general. If before this all his claims, starting from 1940, for the post of “Head of the Free French” were dictated by some subjective “calling”, then the results of the referendum eloquently confirmed: yes, the people recognized de Gaulle as their leader, and it is in him that they see a way out of the current situation .
On December 21, 1958, less than three months later, 76 thousand electors in all cities of France elect a president. 75.5% of the electors cast their votes for the prime minister. On January 8, 1959, de Gaulle was solemnly inaugurated.
The post of Prime Minister of France during de Gaulle's presidency was held by Gaullist Party figures Michel Debreu (1959-1962), his future successor, the Dauphin Georges Pompidou (1962-1968) and Maurice Couve de Murville (1968-1969).
“The first in France,” the president was by no means eager to rest on his laurels. He poses the question:
“Can I make it possible to solve the vital problem of decolonization, to begin the economic and social transformation of our country in the era of science and technology, to restore the independence of our politics and our defense, to turn France into a champion of the unification of all European Europe, to return France to its halo and the influence in the world, especially in the countries of the Third World, which it has enjoyed for many centuries? There is no doubt: this is the goal that I can and must achieve."
De Gaulle puts the problem of decolonization first. Indeed, in the wake of the Algerian crisis, he came to power; he must now reaffirm his role as a national leader by finding a way out. In trying to accomplish this task, the president encountered desperate opposition not only from the Algerian commanders, but also from the right-wing lobby in the government. Only on September 16, 1959, the head of state offered three options for resolving the Algerian issue: a break with France, “integration” with France (to completely equate Algeria with the metropolis and extend the same rights and obligations to the population) and “association” (Algerian in national composition a government that relied on the help of France and had a close economic and foreign policy alliance with the metropolis). The general clearly preferred the latter option, which was supported by the National Assembly. However, this further consolidated the ultra-right, which was fueled by the never-replaced Algerian military authorities.
On September 8, 1961, an attempt was made on de Gaulle's life - the first of fifteen organized by the right-wing "Organisation of the Secret Army" (Organisation de l'Armée Secrète) - abbreviated as OAS. The story of the assassination attempts on de Gaulle formed the basis of Frederick Forsyth’s famous book “The Day of the Jackal.”
The war in Algeria ended with the signing of the bilateral agreements at Evian (March 18, 1962), which led to the formation of an independent Algerian state. De Gaulle’s statement is significant: “The era of organized continents is replacing the colonial era.” The French Empire ceased to exist. France has ceased to be a great power in the sense that it was understood at the beginning of the 20th century.
And indeed, de Gaulle became the founder new policy France in the post-colonial space: policies of cultural relations between francophone (i.e. French-speaking) states and territories. After all, Algeria was not the only country that left the French Empire, for which de Gaulle fought in the forties. In 1960 (the “Year of Africa”), more than two dozen African states gained independence. Vietnam and Cambodia also became independent. In all these countries, thousands of French remained who did not want to lose ties with the mother country. The main goal was to ensure French influence in the world, the two poles of which - the USA and the USSR - had already been determined.
In 1959, the newly appointed president transferred the air defense command to the French command, rocket troops and troops being withdrawn from Algeria. The decision, taken unilaterally, could not but cause friction with Eisenhower, and then with his successor Kennedy. De Gaulle repeatedly asserts the right of France to do everything “as the mistress of its policy and on its own initiative.” The first test of atomic weapons, carried out in February 1960 in the Sahara Desert, marked the beginning of a whole series of French nuclear explosions, stopped under Mitterrand and briefly resumed by Chirac. De Gaulle personally visited nuclear facilities several times, paying great attention to both the peaceful and military development of the latest technologies.
1965 - the year of de Gaulle's re-election to a second presidential term - was the year of two powerful blows to the bloc's policy. On February 4, the general announced the abandonment of the use of the dollar in international payments and the transition to a single gold standard. On September 9, the president reports that France does not consider itself bound by obligations to the North Atlantic bloc. February 21, 1966 marks the end of de Gaulle's seven-year struggle against the foreign military presence in France. The republic leaves the NATO military organization. In an official note, the Pompidou government announced the evacuation of 29 bases with 33 thousand personnel from the country.
Since that time, France's official position in international politics has become sharply anti-American. The general condemns Israel's actions in the Six Day War in 1967 and later the Vietnam War.
Charles de Gaulle (Gaulle) (1890-1970) - French politician and statesman, founder and first president (1959-1969) of the Fifth Republic. In 1940 he founded the patriotic movement “Free France” (from 1942 “Fighting France”) in London, which joined anti-Hitler coalition; in 1941 he became the head of the French National Committee, in 1943 - the French Committee for National Liberation, created in Algeria. From 1944 to January 1946, de Gaulle was the head of the French Provisional Government. After the war, he was the founder and leader of the Rally of the French People party. In 1958, Prime Minister of France. On de Gaulle's initiative, it was prepared new constitution(1958), which expanded the rights of the president. During his presidency, France implemented plans to create its own nuclear forces and withdrew from the NATO military organization; Soviet-French cooperation received significant development.
Charles De Gaulle was born on November 22, 1890, in Lille, into an aristocratic family and was brought up in the spirit of patriotism and Catholicism. In 1912, he graduated from the Saint-Cyr military school, becoming a professional soldier. He fought on the fields of the First World War 1914-1918 (World War I), was captured, and was released in 1918.
De Gaulle's worldview was influenced by such contemporaries as philosophers Henri Bergson and Emile Boutroux, writer Maurice Barrès, and poet and publicist Charles Péguy.
Even during the interwar period, Charles became a supporter of French nationalism and a supporter of a strong executive. This is confirmed by the books published by de Gaulle in the 1920-1930s - “Discord in the Land of the Enemy” (1924), “On the Edge of the Sword” (1932), “For a Professional Army” (1934), “France and Its Army” (1938). In these works devoted to military problems, de Gaulle was essentially the first in France to predict the decisive role of tank forces in a future war.
The Second World War, at the beginning of which Charles de Gaulle received the rank of general, turned his whole life upside down. He decisively refused the truce concluded by Marshal Henri Philippe Pétain with Nazi Germany and flew to England to organize the struggle for the liberation of France. On June 18, 1940, de Gaulle spoke on London radio with an appeal to his compatriots, in which he urged them not to lay down their arms and to join the Free France association he founded in exile (after 1942, Fighting France).
At the first stage of the war, de Gaulle directed his main efforts towards establishing control over the French colonies, which were under the rule of the pro-fascist Vichy government. As a result, Chad, Congo, Ubangi-Chari, Gabon, Cameroon, and later other colonies joined the Free French. Free French officers and soldiers constantly took part in Allied military operations. De Gaulle sought to build relations with England, the USA and the USSR on the basis of equality and upholding the national interests of France. After the landing of Anglo-American troops in North Africa in June 1943, the French Committee for National Liberation (FCNL) was created in the city of Algiers. Charles De Gaulle was appointed its co-chairman (along with General Henri Giraud), and then its sole chairman.
In June 1944, the FCNO was renamed the Provisional Government of the French Republic. De Gaulle became its first head. Under his leadership, the government restored democratic freedoms in France and carried out socio-economic reforms. In January 1946, de Gaulle left the post of prime minister, disagreeing on major domestic political issues with representatives of the left parties of France.
That same year, the Fourth Republic was established in France. According to the 1946 Constitution, real power in the country belonged not to the president of the republic (as de Gaulle proposed), but to the National Assembly. In 1947, de Gaulle again became involved in the political life of France. He founded the Rally of the French People (RPF). The main goal of the RPF was to fight for the abolition of the 1946 Constitution and the conquest of power through parliamentary means to establish a new political regime in the spirit of de Gaulle’s ideas. The RPF was initially a great success. 1 million people joined its ranks. But the Gaullists failed to achieve their goal. In 1953, de Gaulle dissolved the RPF and withdrew from political activities. During this period, Gaullism finally took shape as an ideological and political movement (ideas of the state and “national greatness” of France, social policy).
The Algerian crisis of 1958 (Algeria's struggle for independence) paved the way for de Gaulle to power. Under his direct leadership, the 1958 Constitution was developed, which significantly expanded the prerogatives of the country's president (executive branch) at the expense of parliament. This is how the Fifth Republic, which still exists today, began its history. Charles de Gaulle was elected its first president for a seven-year term. The priority task of the president and government was to resolve the “Algerian problem.”
De Gaulle firmly pursued a course towards Algerian self-determination, despite serious opposition (rebellions of the French army and ultra-colonialists in 1960-1961, terrorist activities of the OAS, a number of assassination attempts on de Gaulle). Algeria was granted independence with the signing of the Evian Accords in April 1962. In October of the same year, the most important amendment to the 1958 Constitution was adopted in a general referendum - on the election of the president of the republic by universal suffrage. On its basis, in 1965, de Gaulle was re-elected president for a new seven-year term.
Charles de Gaulle sought to implement his foreign policy in line with his idea of the “national greatness” of France. He insisted on equal rights for France, the United States and Great Britain within NATO. Having failed to achieve success, the president withdrew France from the NATO military organization in 1966. In relations with Germany, de Gaulle managed to achieve noticeable results. In 1963, a Franco-German cooperation agreement was signed. De Gaulle was one of the first to put forward the idea of a “united Europe”. He thought of it as a “Europe of fatherlands,” in which each country would retain its political independence and national identity. De Gaulle was a supporter of the idea of détente. He set his country on the path of cooperation with the USSR, China and third world countries.
Charles de Gaulle paid less attention to domestic policy than to foreign policy. The student unrest in May 1968 indicated a serious crisis engulfing French society. Soon the president put forward a project on a new administrative division of France and Senate reform to a general referendum. However, the project did not receive the approval of the majority of the French. In April 1969, de Gaulle voluntarily resigned, finally abandoning political activity.
In 1965, General Charles de Gaulle flew to the United States and, at a meeting with American President Lyndon Johnson, announced that he intended to exchange 1.5 billion paper dollars for gold at the official rate of $35 per ounce. Johnson was informed that a French ship loaded with dollars was in the New York port, and a French plane had landed at the airport with the same cargo on board. Johnson promised the French President serious problems. De Gaulle responded by announcing the evacuation of NATO headquarters, 29 NATO and US military bases from French territory and the withdrawal of 33 thousand alliance troops.
Ultimately, both were done.
Over the next 2 years, France managed to buy more than 3 thousand tons of gold from the United States in exchange for dollars.
What happened to those dollars and gold?
De Gaulle, they say, was very impressed by one anecdote told to him former minister finance in the Clemenceau government. At an auction for a painting by Raphael, an Arab offers oil, a Russian offers gold, and an American takes out a wad of banknotes and buys it for 10 thousand dollars. In response to de Gaulle's perplexed question, the minister explains to him that the American bought the painting for only 3 dollars, because... The cost of printing one $100 bill is 3 cents. And de Gaulle unequivocally and definitively believed in gold and only gold. In 1965, de Gaulle decided that he did not need these pieces of paper.
De Gaulle's victory was Pyrrhic. He himself lost his post. And the dollar took the place of gold in the global monetary system. Just a dollar. Without any gold content.
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