The General: Charles de Gaulle and the France He Saved

Fendy's new biography on Charles de Gaulle is a welcome worthwhile contribution of our understanding and appreciation for a man and his times. This is an excellent portrayal of one very complex, brilliant, conflicted, paranoid and ultimately important and critical leader. He has foibles galore along with the self importance, bravado and confidence (and perhaps arrogance) of a thousand peacocks. My own thought is that it is probably best for those pre-disposed with a curiosity for de Gaulle rather than a random reader of biography.On June 18, 1940 Charles de Gaulle made his first and now most famous speech from the BBC in London to launch the French Resistance and declare that there were no legitimate rulers in France, squarely breaking with and opposing his old commander Marshal Philippe Pétain, France's biggest hero of the Great War and the leader of the Vichy government. He was an obscure soldier only recently promoted from Colonel to one stare General, hardly the only resistance and not an obvious figure to rally around by either the Allies or his countrymen. And yet by force of will, determination, daring and bluff he earned the support of Churchill and Eisenhower and the backing of many French. The Vichy government charged him with treason and sentenced him to prison if he ever returned. For 4 long years he worked day by day to support and build a legitimate army of resistance that France could ultimately rally around and he had the intelligence and presence to pull it off.English written WWII history books are generally not kind to de Gaulle; portraying him as leading a non-existant army into Paris claiming a false glory and implying that there wasn't much else to tell. That's unfair and untrue. His military credentials were well earned. In WWI he was both a courageous soldier and a POW that tried to escape on at least 7 occasions earning harsher treatment with each attempt. Between the wars he was a lonely voice for mechanized warfare and the need for tanks and airplanes. In the early stages of war he lead a French tank command that performed admirably. He was hurt in battle in both wars.The book gives a rich account of his dealings with the Allies, particularly Churchill along with his cunning political gains at the expense of other would be French leaders based in North Africa.The middle of the book slows along with de Gaulle's life as he was largely sidelined during the post war era and not a part of some of the major historical events of the time; Indochina, the Suez Canal or the economic struggle leading to the Marshall Plan. However we are quickly back to the fast pace as de Gaulle is critical to unifying the disparate constituencies fighting over the future of Algeria. This was to me, the meat of the book with both fascinating anecdotes and valuable lessons on the price and complexity of long-term colonial rule. I had not appreciated how close France was to civil war and how the army had gone nearly rogue. It is a moment of high drama. Simultaneously he tears up the constitution and leads the creation of the 5th Republic.Throughout both the the early post WWII era and his Presidency France is struggling with how to bring unity between collaborators and the resistance. Resistance included many communists, socialists and Jews. Collaborators were from the most conservative elements of the Army, Church and Royalists. Both groups have been around for 100 years or more but this was a schism that might not be repairable. Fendy presents how these challenges played out organically (reprisals) and the efforts of de Gaulle to shape them and unify the country. He consistently highlights de Gaulle's overall aim to restore France to the league of greatest nations. He falls short in terms of the hard power won through guns, ammo and money but perhaps unappreciated by de Gaulle he has won the soft power game where French food, culture and thought are welcome and with outsized influence.This is a well delivered biography; fast paced, excellently research and consistent in its objectives.

I can’t ever recall reading a book that started out so promising, so enrapturing, and yet by the midway point, turned into a disappointing thud of a clunker. It might be a tad unfair to blame this sudden reversal of fortune on the author. Instead, one might concede that the life of the subject matter just became uninteresting as did the events that surrounded him at a certain point. Still, one wishes that the author may have realized this as well, and therefore had handled the latter half of the man’s life in not so quite of a meticulous fashion.As the title implies, yes, Charles De Gaulle did save France, and he “saved” it on more than one occasion. For me, the story that was the most engrossing was the role De Gaulle played in World War II. At the conclusion of World War II, the story then shifts to De Gaulle’s political life. Sadly, this is where the book became about as interesting as picking out a pair of socks to wear for the day.The author treats his subject matter in a fairly balanced way. He comes across in the author’s view as a positive figure (after all, he ‘saved’ France), yet it makes your head spin how many of De Gaulle’s contemporaries loathed him. Churchill, Stalin, Roosevelt, Khrushchev, Truman….none of them had kind words for the man. As we see, however, this is mainly due to his hard, uncompromising arrogance and such a trait is necessary because of the circumstances.De Gaulle’s early life is quickly glossed over – a bit more attention is focused on his comings and goings during the first world war. He was quickly made a commander, quickly became one of the first of the wounded, quickly resumed command and was quickly captured by the enemy and made prisoner. He then attempted an escape no less than five times. This stuff is exciting to read about.Even better is the transition to World War II. France, the ultimate victor of World War I is basically so exhausted and fatigued, that they ignore Hitler and rival Germany as they slowly grow to become the most fearsome army in modern civilization. With revenge on Hitler’s mind, France is quickly added to his list of conquests. France capitulates – mainly because they simply don’t have it in them to fight anymore. The battle scars from 25 years ago are still fresh. Except De Gaulle. He remains the only key player that refuses any part of the puppet Vichy government and quickly sets up base in the French North Africa. Although the allies ultimately prevail, the hawk De Gaulle isn’t allowed to be a major player, and is rather upset when the U.S. and England basically leave him as a spectator on the sidelines. This is the case even during the Battle of Normandy (D-Day). De Gaulle simply can’t fathom this. It is after all, HIS ‘country’. So one begins to see why the other leaders consider him a burr in the butt. Again, exciting stuff.I wish the book would have wound down at this point. After World War II, the book turns into a giant Wikipedia article with mostly the everyday comings and goings of the French government. There are brief bits of interesting material – such as the failures in Algiers and Indochina, but the book focuses too much on the minutia of the fall of the Fourth Republic, the rise of the Fifth Republic, etc. Yes, De Gaulle was a major player, but all of this is simply not exciting stuff. I confess that there were times where I became so bored, I would basically scan a 50-page chapter in about five minutes. At least it helped me fall asleep some nights.Another minor irritant is that the author simply won’t refer to his subject as “De Gaulle”. He is always referring to him by his rank, title, or some other euphemism. It became confusing when he’s referred to as “The Colonel”, “The General”, and “The Free French Leader” all in a span of about 50 pages. On a positive note, a fair amount of time is spent with his immediate family, and De Gaulle does come across as quite the loving husband and father – especially with his daughter who suffered from Down’s Syndrome.Perhaps a reader with a more thorough understanding of the ins and outs of the French government and its personalities will enjoy the latter half of the book more than I did. I still would recommend it, just be prepared to be bogged down rather heavily during the latter portions.

I recently read this book over a holiday break. Jonathan Fenby is a good writer and keeps you engaged with his subject matter, De Gaulle throughout the book.If I had one criticism of the book is that he could have done more to put De Gaulle in the context of his times. The France of today is one of the most secular societies in Europe yet was once known as the Eldest Daughter of the Church. Fenby tells us about De Gaulle's Catholicism in passing and treats it almost as an assumed fact.It would have provided better context to the book to provide more explanation of the France in the interwar years 1919-1940 and the societal forces at play.That would have helped explained why DeGaulle was such a significant historical figure - in Fenby's account it is somewhat the pre-ordained man of destiny approach.Other than this criticism the book is excellent dealing with De Gaulle's relationship with Petain (pre-dating World War I) and the machinations and intrigues of the French elite coming to terms with the defeat of 1940. The chapters dealing with DeGaulle's return to power in 1958 on the back of dealing with the Algerian Crisis and the skillful way that he extricated France from Algeria over a period of years are also excellent.The twilight years, ie the 1968 protests up to DeGaulle's defeat in a referendum and subsequent resignation in 1969 could also have done with more context. Was it just a case that DeGaulle was a man whose time had passed? Fenby doesn't really explore the generational difference between Pompidou (his successor) and DeGaulle.All in a good book and well worth a read - I rated it 7.5 out of 10.

This is one of the best biographies I have ever owned and read. Jonathan Fenby has a well-deserved reputation for excellence but his latest work is superbly-researched - of course, there is a great deal of material on his subject out there, but there is much that is original here - and beautifully and perfectly written. All of that makes the book a pleasure to read, but it is also splendidly presented with General de Gaulle's kepi in the centre of the front cover. The whole effect is arresting and the contents - 636 pages of elegant prose as well as a bibliography and index and, most usefully, a list of 'significant people,' those heroes and rogues who played prominent parts in the life of France's saviour and President - a pleasure to devour.Whilst reading - and it took me much longer than 'three sittings' as I wanted to savour the pleasure - I found myself remembering much that I had forgotten from my own earlier years. I was born in 1938. Consequently, I cannot recall General de Gaulle's coming to England following the French capitulation in 1940. Nor can I remember his historic broadcasts from London and the early years of his leadership of the Free French. However, the liberation of Paris and the General's march down the Champs-Élysées in 1944 made an impression on a six-year-old. De Gaulle's premiership following the war didn't make as much of an impression but I was really taking an interest in 'affairs' by the time that the 'Algérie Française' crisis erupted and I recall admiring enthusiastically the leaders of the 'Pieds-Noirs,' the French people who wished for Algeria to remain part of the French Empire. My heroes at the time were General Jacques Massu and Monsieur Jacques Soustelle, both long-time allies and friends of De Gaulle. Fenby's book tells me better than any other source that I have looked into that there was another point of view and another policy for France to pursue. De Gaulle pursued the other policy and he may have been right. The pros and cons are set out fairly in this biography. I still have my opinion but I now have a better understanding.Algeria was, of course, only one episode in this extraordinary man's extraordinary life and the author explains De Gaulle's conservative Catholic origins and upbringing - he had French, German and Irish forebears - his early life, his military training at Saint-Cyr, his exploits both at Verdun in the so-called 'Great War' and his subsequent captivity in Germany, as well as his love/hate relationship with General (later Maréchal) Pétain.It is without doubt that De Gaulle's finest hours were during the Second World War when he defied Pétain and during his Presidency of France from 1958 until 1969. The descriptions of these periods are superb and are so full of 'action' that they read like a thriller. Indeed, Fenby's book is thrilling to read, so much so that I paused from time to time to read some of the more thrilling and/or amusing passages to my wife, who is also a great reader but whose own reading was rudely interrupted on numerous occasions. I regret that I have finished the book (though I shall probably read it again), but my wife is somewhat relieved.As Fenby says, 'We shall not see his [De Gaulle's] like again.' I cannot recommend this superb biography - that is, in reality, a history of France itself from 1890 until 1970 - highly enough. Obviously, I give it five Amazon stars and I defy anyone to contradict me or the other reviewers with whom this great work has found favour. It deserves all of the praise that it has attracted.

This wonderfully written biography begins with Colonel (recently promoted General) de Gaulle's finest hour: his escape to Britain at the Fall of France in 1940. After that, apart from one lapse into psycho-gobble-de-gook ("constructive narcissism") Fenby tells the tale of the life straight, from his origins to his death, and lets events speak for themselves.After the fall of France, de Gaulle gradually earned a place in history reserved to few, those who seem somehow larger figures than the countries they represent. (Maybe Churchill, Nasser and Ho Chi Min compare?) Reserved, high-principled, convinced of his destiny and moral rectitude, the General is shown here as having near bottomless reserves of low cunning, Machiavellian opportunism and far greater political skills than the politicians he despised.Once installed as undisputed leader of the free French by some more skullduggery, de Gaulle proceeded to irritate his allies with his high minded sense of the dignity of France and his petulant sulks. Churchill was famously exasperated, Fenby does not explain why Roosevelt hated him even before they met. Anyway, de Gualle hitched a ride at the liberation of Paris and became a hero.A blow by blow account of the fall of the fourth republic shows that that little shit Mitterand was dead right: it was a coup d'état.Once installed in power under the fifth republic. mon General betrayed the pieds noirs. It must be admitted that the retreat from Algeria and the colonies was right and just, but it is curious that this was against all that he held dear. He spent endless energy on boosting the prestige of France as a world power while presiding over its decline. Meanwhile (not mentioned by Fenby) he banned patois in schools and insisted that left handers write with their right hands.The "events" of 1968 showed him as a better analyst than an actor: His description of Daniel Cohn-Bendit, leader of a group of second rate students and now an ecologist MEP, as a stroppy baby who should be sent to his bedroom without his supper is as true today as it was then. He banned the pill and tried to make an alliance with soviet Russia.This review may attract a few unhelpful comments but I hope you understand that I'm trying to help you to decide whether to buy the book or not. My advice is: do buy it. If you have already decided that de Gualle is an irrelevant historical abberation (the opinion of most of my French neighbours) or an icon of the EU, don't bother.

The history of the twentieth century provides plenty of examples of men who did great deeds, but whose character flaws were so marked that most people feel uncomfortable about describing them as great men. After reading 'The General', Jonathan Fenby's excellent biography of Charles de Gaulle, I am much better informed about the man, but feel no closer to reaching a conclusion about de Gaulle's true place in history. Fenby treads a neutral line - he certainly doesn't play down de Gaulle's overwhelming ego, which amongst other things led him to believe that he personified the French state even before he came to power, and his assurance that only he could save it from its internal and external enemies. However he also acknowledges de Gaulle's significant role in directing and leading France after the Second World War. Perhaps de Gaulle's finest achievement was extricating France from bloody conflict in Algeria, as it demonstrates his skill as a politician, especially his ability to put pragmatism above any personal views he may have held.It is difficult for a British reader to warm to a man who behaved in such an ungracious and ungrateful way to the country which took him in and supported him through the war years. Indeed, while I was reading this book the British electorate voted to leave the European Community, and I couldn't help but wonder how different things might have been if de Gaulle's vision for Europe had embraced the UK.'The General' is an excellent account of the life of an extraordinary man.

Being french, I must admit I never had the chance to read a biography of the general.The book is a tour de force that manage to summarise the long and eventful life of the general in less than 700 pages unfolding complicate political events with clarity and thought.The clever use of calendar day chronological descriptions for some critical events bring clarity: e.g. His return to power or the "evenements" of Mai 68.The photographs are perfectly choosen and fitting well with the text.The only negative point from my point of view is that the book may be a bit too much orientated on pure politics and I think some events are a bit left over such as the general attidude during the invasion of Normandy, etc.Parts dealing with Algeria, the free french, etc is very well treated.One last negative comment would be that to my mind, the author repeats a bit too much of the stormy relations with the US and Winston CHurchill.One may like or not like De Gaulle and gaullism but what is for sure is that the author has presented his life with touch and brio in this book.5/5 stars definitely despite few personal minuus.

Coming from a partly French background, I have some indirect knowledge of the period and the difficulties faced by some members of my family; the problem with biographies of De Gaulle has been the fact that many have been uncritical hagiographies on the one hand or overly critical ones on the other; this work strikes an impressive middle-ground in that De Gaulle's personal idiosyncrasies and difficult character are not downplayed, but are also given their proper context, and this is where the book shines in my opinion. The complexities of the situation facing the Free French (unlike all other occupied countries, the French had the added problem that they were fighting their own legitimate government) are expressed clearly and in detail. There is a very clear picture created of a complex and not always attractive personality who nevertheless earned respect for the fact that he set high standards for himself as well as others. It is a relevant question to ask whether anyone else could have stepped up to the mark and taken on the mantle of his country's battered reputation, but "cometh the hour, cometh the man". A thorough exposé, evidence of meticulous research and an objective, yet respectful tone - Jonathan Fenby's clarity and writing style are also big plusses.