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TITLE:
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Pledge to Destiny: Charles de Gaulle and the Rise of the Free French
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AUTHOR:
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Robert Smith Thompson
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PUBLISHER:
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McGraw-Hill, NY
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DATE:
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© 1974, First Edition ("1" on number line)
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FORMAT:
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Hardback, black boards, black-and-white photos, 282 pgs, about 9.25 X 6 inches.
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BOOK CONDITION:
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Near fine -- light shelfwear, one slightly bumped corner, some dust on page edges, contents very clean, no writing.
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DJ CONDITION:
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Good -- some wear on edges, a few small tears, some aging and scuffing, small pinprick tear on spine.
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In June 1940 Hitler posed before the Arc de Triomphe in Paris and the terms of French capitulation were drawn. By June 1942, with the battle of the hopelessly outnumbered Free French against Rommel at Bir Hakeim in Libya, the turning point for France had come. Charles de Gaulle, who held his country's future in balance, had made the leap from obscurity to fame, won the grudging respect of the Allies, and forged a nation-in-exile.
The kaleidoscopic history of those fateful two years is told with breath-taking suspense, as event spins on event and the ordinary and heroic participants spring to life: amateurs who created a brilliant intelligence network, military men who acquired legendary names on the burning sands of Africa, defeatist politicians and their determined opponents, black Africans who defied both Vichy and the Germans.
The interplay and counterplay among de Gaulle, Churchill, Monroe Spears, Reynaud, Retain, and Laval highlight the exploits of lesser-known contributors to the startling twists of fortune. While millions tolerated or embraced Petain, others slipped in and out of
France past German patrols along the English Channel and the Spanish border.
Among them was Gilbert Renault, a cinematographer recruited into intelligence operations who organized a group that played a memorable role in stealing German Atlantic Coast defense plans from under the noses of the Nazis and transmitting them to England.
An essential part of French history took place across the Mediterranean. The astonishing rout of Vichyists from control of Chad, Cameroon, and the French Congo is recounted in compelling detail, as is the poignant defeat at Dakar -- a blow to de Gaulle's personal prestige. Vital to Allied strategy were the French and African soldiers who gave their lives to slow down Rommel's sweep and broke the myth of the Desert Fox's invincibility.
Against the broad and varied canvas of the war stands the lonely, stubborn figure of de Gaulle. Robert Thompson captures the nub of the man, the arrogance that was his strength, and the indefinable quality that made him a symbol of the universal spirit of resistance.
"In an absorbing manner, true to historical fact, Professor Thompson draws an unforgettable picture of de Gaulle ...Thompson's work should be read by all who are fascinated by the role of the leader in history." - Publishers Weekly
Robert Smith Thompson received his doctorate from the University of Michigan, where he wrote his dissertation on French political thought. He now teaches foreign affairs at the University of South Carolina. As part of the research for this book, Professor Thompson visited England and France to consult documents and records and to conduct interviews with participants in the events of 1940-1942.
CONTENTS:
- Foreword
- The Fall of France
- The Birth of Free France
- Free France in the Field
- Confrontation with the Reich
- Epilogue
- Reference Notes
- Bibliography
- Index
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