Charles de Gaulle

Charles de Gaulle (1890–1970) was a French army officer and statesman who led the Free French forces during World War II. After France’s defeat in 1940, he rejected the armistice and, from London, became the principal voice of resistance, working to restore French sovereignty and international standing. Following the war he briefly headed the provisional government, then returned to power in 1958 amid the Algerian crisis. He founded the Fifth French Republic and served as its first President (1959–1969), shaping modern French institutions and foreign policy. De Gaulle also wrote influential political and war memoirs, notably *Mémoires de guerre*.