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Charles de Gaulle

Charles de Gaulle

1890 CE1970 CE · Lille, Nord, France

Charles de Gaulle was a French general and statesman who led the Free French forces against Nazi Germany during the Second World War and later became the founding President of the Fifth Republic. After France's defeat in 1940 he rejected the armistice and organized resistance from abroad, and he headed the provisional government from 1944 to 1946. Returning to power amid the crisis over Algeria in 1958, he established a new constitution and served as president from 1959 to 1969. He oversaw Algerian independence and an assertive, independent French foreign policy before resigning in 1969; he died the following year.

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Stop 1 of 61890Born Into A Catholic Teaching Family

Lille, Nord, France

What they did here

Charles de Gaulle was born in Lille on 22 November 1890, the third of five children.

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