Anonymous
Posted September 4, 2008
I actually read this book when it was first published and noticed the other day that it is missing - so I am thinking of buying another copy as I want to read it again prior to a trip to France. DeGaulle was a young officer in the WWI and survived in large part because he was captured, no killed, at Verdun. His large family was also so blessed, they were the rare exception, they lost no sons in that war. After the war he continued his military career and observed the Polish / Russian war in 1920 - a war of movement. So he was one of the few, if only, French army officers who understood blitzkrieg when the Germans attacked in 1940. He lead is armored unit is a lightning counter attack that penetrated deeply into German held northern France - but it was totally unsupported to he eventually made it to England. His break with Vichy is well documented - few heard his first radio message as the leader of the Free French - but his message of 'ecout, ecout' never the less eventually resounded. He was also an insufferable egotist - but also a loving father who always found at least 1 hour of every day to play with his Downs Syndrome daughter. And after the war, he and Adenaur made a historic raprochmont between Germany and France that was the basis of the EU.
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More About This Textbook
Overview
Critical acclaim for The Last Great Frenchman
"This is a splendid popular biography . . . recounted with verve and anecdotal warmth, along with fresh appraisals of de Gaulle's career as soldier, politician, and head of state." —Publishers Weekly.
"Highly readable. . . . It is to Williams' credit that he is able to get so close to such a prickly personality." —San Francisco Chronicle
"Charles Williams has matched a great subject by something near to a great book." —Daily Telegraph (London)
"Marvelous vignettes. . . . Williams tells his story with pace and skill." —Martin Gilbert
Editorial Reviews
Library Journal
Williams, deputy leader of the opposition in the British House of Lords, tells the story in English of an emphatically French life, and he fully engages the reader. "Ramrod" and "Wormwood" were code names the British "maliciously but accurately" applied to the leader of the Free French; and their wartime ally, American President FDR, detested De Gaulle. This biography explains well French foreign policy toward the "Anglo-Saxons" during the French Fifth Republic. Although admiring De Gaulle's tenacity and strength, the author does not hide what he considers the unattractive side of the general's aloof grandeur and verbal combativeness, and he terms the way De Gaulle came to power in 1958 nearly Napoleonic. De Gaulle in private was more appealing, according to Williams; he is said to have been extraordinarily fond of his retarded daughter. The only thing lacking here is an explanation of the Vichy regime; however, names are helpfully annotated. Recommended for all libraries.-R. James Tobin, Univ. of Wisconsin Lib., MilwaukeeProduct Details
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Meet the Author
CHARLES WILLIAMS (Lord Williams of Elvel) is Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the British House of Lords. Before embarking on his political career, he spent four years in Paris from 1966 to 1970, the last period of de Gaulle's government.
Table of Contents
CHILD.
A Parisian Boy from Lille.
The Steps of St Ignatius.
SOLDIER.
The Army of the Republic.
A War to End Wars.
Polish Interlude.
Petain's Chicken.
A Toe in Political Waters.
The Cut of the Sickle.
Is He a New Napoleon?
EXILE.
Laying the Corner Stone.
Afric's Sunny Fountains.
Who is Fighting Whom?
The Eagle and the Bear Join the Party.
Resistance on All Fronts.
Mediterranean Storms.
The Darlan Deal.
From Anfa to Algiers.
Waiting for Overlord.
HERO.
A Parisian Summer.
Government Must Govern.
POLITICIAN.
With Peace Comes Politics.
The Gamble that Failed.
PHILOSOPHER.
A Certain Idea of France.
On Public and Private Life.
HEAD OF STATE.
The New Agenda.
Baiting Uncle Sam.
The Ides of May.
Epilogue: Return to Colombey.
Notes.
Select Bibliography.
Acknowledgements.
Index.