Churchill: 'Prancing' de Gaulle, 'Sagacious' Stalin
sundayherald: Churchill's animosity towards Free French leader General Charles de Gaulle brings further revelations about their troubled relationship.
The wartime Prime Minister said de Gaulle was a barrier to "trustworthy" relations between France and Britain and even ordered that he should be arrested if he tried to leave the UK to visit Free French troops
De Gaulle had fled to Britain after France fell to the Nazis in 1940, but remained a popular figure among resistance fighters.
In March 1943, the Cabinet was told he had asked permission to visit Free French troops.
When the request was refused on grounds that the timing was "unsuitable" - delicate negotiations were ongoing between the US and one of his main rivals, General Henri Giraud, over operations in North Africa - de Gaulle inquired whether he was a prisoner of war. Churchill's response was that the general should be told "bluntly" to do as he was instructed: "And arrest him if he tries to leave, eg by Fr[ench] destroyer. Security measures should be laid on to prevent that."
Cabinet again considered the problem of de Gaulle's poor relations with General Giraud, who was favoured by the US, in June 1943.
Churchill expressed fears that de Gaulle would "prance" out of the newly formed French Committee of National Liberation (NCNL) after the Americans insisted Giraud must have effective control of the French military.
"If he resigns & makes a fuss I'll have to make a statement in Parlt [parliament] if pressed: but that will mean making the case v[ery] de G[aulle]. Greatest living barrier to re-union & restoration of France: insensate ambition."
According to the records, however, Churchill's opinion of Josef Stalin was rather higher. After a meeting with him in Moscow, he told the Cabinet Stalin was a "large man" of "great sagacity."
Link
The wartime Prime Minister said de Gaulle was a barrier to "trustworthy" relations between France and Britain and even ordered that he should be arrested if he tried to leave the UK to visit Free French troops
De Gaulle had fled to Britain after France fell to the Nazis in 1940, but remained a popular figure among resistance fighters.
In March 1943, the Cabinet was told he had asked permission to visit Free French troops.
When the request was refused on grounds that the timing was "unsuitable" - delicate negotiations were ongoing between the US and one of his main rivals, General Henri Giraud, over operations in North Africa - de Gaulle inquired whether he was a prisoner of war. Churchill's response was that the general should be told "bluntly" to do as he was instructed: "And arrest him if he tries to leave, eg by Fr[ench] destroyer. Security measures should be laid on to prevent that."
Cabinet again considered the problem of de Gaulle's poor relations with General Giraud, who was favoured by the US, in June 1943.
Churchill expressed fears that de Gaulle would "prance" out of the newly formed French Committee of National Liberation (NCNL) after the Americans insisted Giraud must have effective control of the French military.
"If he resigns & makes a fuss I'll have to make a statement in Parlt [parliament] if pressed: but that will mean making the case v[ery] de G[aulle]. Greatest living barrier to re-union & restoration of France: insensate ambition."
According to the records, however, Churchill's opinion of Josef Stalin was rather higher. After a meeting with him in Moscow, he told the Cabinet Stalin was a "large man" of "great sagacity."
Link
posted by exoplanet at 12:15 PM
<< Home