Charles de Gaulle: The Leader of Free France

[@LocalHeretic-ck1kd]

I will never understand how this guy lived until 1970. He survived several assasination attempts. Look at him. He was so tall you would think that killing him would be an easy job. But he survived every time.

[@maximef4036]

Protected by Providence ^^

[@corsehaigazia]

@Fux News la légion est une sorte de rédemption pour la plus part mais on peut très bien avoir encore l'esprit criminel quand on en sort

[@Bollthorn]

The bullets were obviously deflected by de Gaulle's massive armour plated balls of steel.

[@mechadonia]

Bullets only kill manlets bro

[@aaropajari7058]

Edward Fox came closest.

[@ilo3456]

A yes Colonel Motors the lesser known cousin of General Motors.

[@wkdravenna]

That's super punny

[@ilo3456]

@@wkdravenna The best kinda joke

[@kitcutting]

you win

[@pastaman627]

Which is funny, since De Gaulle said to his aide: "This war is over, and the General Motor is going to win it." as he learned that Japan attacked the US.

[@Ystadcop]

Boom boom!

[@zethwitt384]

During his capture by the Germans in WW1 Charles de Gaulle shared a cell with another major figure in 20th century European history - Mikhail Tukhachevsky, Marshall of the Soviet Union

[@Baelor-Breakspear]

Zeth Witt yeah and the Marshall played the violin much to annoyance of colonel de gaulle

[@xdgiih766]

@@Baelor-Breakspear probably why he hated communists so much

[@theodoros9428]

True

[@Taylor_slayss]

Didn’t Tukhachevsky get purged and die before 1941?

[@vro1899]

@@Taylor_slayssyep

[@alexlee8376]

Can you please do one for Philippe Pétain?? Very few has a greater 'fall from grace' and 'live long enough to see yourself become a villain' than this guy

[@stormbringer2840]

Right ? From the Lion of Verdun to the regime of vichy .

[@patrickmunneke8348]

Regime? Vichy was the legitimate government of France!

[@mat6840]

@@patrickmunneke8348 Why would it be in Vichy instead of Paris then?

[@flamixflame2685]

@@mat6840 because Vichy was the legitimate seat of government at the time. Vichy France France Vichy Vichy France The name says it all in itself lol

[@britishenough7690]

Flamix Flame not everyone agrees. Just because it dominated over a region of France doesn’t mean people saw it as a legitimate government.

[@MudderFukker-m6g]

“If you don’t like it... DEAL WITH IT”.. Your balls are growing by the day, Good Sir.

[@ingridal3060]

"Or comment about it ... I`m not going to read them" *giggle* lol

[@MarielaQue]

In older videos he was so apologetic about it. Not anymore

[@sonicgoo1121]

That's why he's only ever seen from the waist up.

[@tellyintokyo]

Mariela Que His French, not so bad...

[@Not-TheOne]

@@sonicgoo1121 AHHAAHAHAHAHAAAA, true

[@geekdesprairies]

"Great asparagus" is a common expression in French, to refer to a tall person. But of course, De Gaulle more than earned it: being 6.5 feet tall wasn't as common in the early 20th century as it is today!

[@AsadAli-jc5tg]

No it was, today heights are over stated.

[@salvatore5553]

@@AsadAli-jc5tghow so?

[@gstrikr7]

"The Great Asparagus" "Colonel Motors" It's amusing to know how creative people were with nicknames in the past.

[@Supcoop23]

lol just watch British football supporters chant they are really creative too believe me

[@dattallaudiophile236]

How the hell does a 6.5 feet tall sob passes as a nurse!???? LOL

[@edgargarred4319]

this comments deserves a 1000 likes literally, LMAO

[@Froggmeningreen]

Didn't work, obviously. But the fact that he even thought it could is hilarious.

[@경택오-x4b]

maybe male nursery officer or something???? but then again, 6.5 feel tall is virtually 'undisguisable' lol

[@rubenskiii]

Immagine being the German soldier...

[@BHuang92]

Also, how the hell did he try to manage to squeeze himself in a laundry basket?!!!

[@chrisfusco1108]

He needs to upgrade his airport.

[@TalairanPerigord]

LOLOL! Good one!

[@papasteve215]

I’ve wondered if I was the only one to think that! The signage sucks.

[@Spanishdog17]

Hahaha! Everyone I know who goes to France complains about it. My mom said it was disgusting!

[@AvoidTheCadaver]

Orly is just as bad

[@omineol9897]

Wich one The normal airport Or the aircraft carrier

[@Neckelism]

Not mentioned but hugely important: He reached out to Germany and established with Konrad Adenauer the franco-german special relationship via the Elysee Treaty in 1963. For someone with this background that was remarkable I think. So that would be the moment to request one on Konrad Adenauer, the first chancellor of the German Republic :).

[@wertyuiopasd6281]

De Gaulle was betrayed by the germans and the americans. The treaty was a traiterous act against France.

[@fuckinantipope5511]

This is amazing to me as a german too and why I respect De Gaulle so much. He saw how flawed the past between germany and france were and how it only caused suffering, so he went against his upbringing and expierience and started a friendship together with Adenauer that shapes europe to this day. I'd say germany and france are the closest allies in all of europe

[@wuzimu6454]

​@@fuckinantipope5511 Also, when he visited the city of Stalingrad, he told the reporter who asked him what he thought, that they were a very excellent nation. At first, the reporter thought he was talking about the Russians. but at the end of his sentence he said "They were able to come this far"

[@jean-Pierre-bt8xw]

And more important that point, it is that's de gaulle which wished and took the initiative for a french-german "special relationship"...

[@gmicg]

General Eisenhower was the only one to be allowed to call General de Gaulle "Charlie".

[@hossesarse]

Should've called him Chuck. "I demand to be at ze front of ze parade in Paris after you've spent tens of souzands of British and American soldiers to defeat ze nazis!" "Lighten up, Chuckles. You can go up front."

[@gmicg]

"Chuck" is unknown in the French language, "Charlie" yes.@@hossesarse

[@hossesarse]

@@gmicg Je sais, ami. But given DeGaulle's actual contribution toward his eventually walking on the Champs Elysee, I find "Chucky" more fitting. Shame on anyone who considers him more of a hero than the tens of thousands of Brits, Canadians, and Americans who died to allow him the privilege of leading the parade of liberation. Utterly pathetic. France is right to feel ashamed of their limp contribution toward their own liberation.

[@gmicg]

What he has done was a miracle for France. He couldn't make blood ooze from a stone as we say here. La plus belle femme du monde ne donne que ce qu'elle a.@@hossesarse

[@hossesarse]

@@gmicg C'est vrai. En plus d’être pathétique, il n’était pas non plus très beau aussi.

[@manfredrichthofen2494]

..there was this anecdote when Charles de Gaulle was touring the Louvre museum, he wanted to impress his guests his knowledge of the French paintings and their painters. He would point out rather impressively art works of Manet, Gaugain, Monet..and so forth. Coming to one art frame,he declared authoritively.." aha!! This is a Picasso!" The Louvre tour guide politely informed de Gaulle.." pardon me Monsieur president but, that is a mirror.."

[@olivierpuyou3621]

Ah my friend, although I am French and admire General de Gaulle, I burst out laughing at this joke which I find excellent. Thank you for this laugh.

[@angelamagnus6615]

Che De Gaulle was an extremely persistent and hardworking student. Despite having mediocre ranking, he never gave up and kept trying to pass every exam. This explains why he is such a natural leader. If WW2 had not broken out, he would probably be somewhere in the hierarchy of army command, getting nowhere.

[@jonathan2847]

He was disliked by British and American military leadership. They setup fake meetings so he could posture and attempt to command them. He is just some fictional superhero the French use to hide their embarrassment.

[@rolandbihot7944]

En 1939 il était au ministère de la guerre

[@adamgrybauskas4212]

Simon Can you Do Chiang Kai-shek You can Call it The generalissimo also thank you for Doing De Gaulle

[@BHuang92]

He's a prominent figure in Chinese history as well as very controversial. Choosing between him and Mao Zedong is like choosing between a rock and a hard place.

[@mrvngaming]

@@BHuang92 why not both?

[@biteme9486]

It’s ironic, because the China that exists today is much closer to what Chiang wanted for the country then what Mao wanted

[@mrvngaming]

@@biteme9486 Chiang: *laughs from his grave*

[@UltramanII]

​@@biteme9486 At one point, Chiang was actually the highest ranked Chinese representative of the Comintern(the international organization of communism), and his KMT army received a lot of weapons and aid from the Soviets. On the other hand, the Chinese communist party was seen as kind of a rogue factor by the Soviets because of ideology differences(such as on the subject of peasants) and political interests.

[@patrickkobolt3069]

Just so you know...I have shaken the hand of a man, who has shaken the hand of a man, who has shaken the hand of a man who has shaken the hand of Charles de Gaulle. I'm just sayin' heh heh

[@Biographics]

Me too. Statistically.

[@charlsalash]

Six degrees of separation.

[@alanjohnson6398]

I have to say that, while it is true that DeGaulle believed himself to be the 'smartest one in the room', its probably because he was. His ability to immediately and incisively understand and describe the character of any man he met is amazing. His comment on Petain was brilliant: 'He (Petain) led a life that was successively banal, then glorious and then deplorable, but never mediocre.' was just genius. Ditto his description of Stalin. He gets my vote as one of the most successful (not to say lovable) political leaders of the 20th Century, along with Adenauer and Franco.

[@jonathan2847]

British and American military leadership ignored him and where annoyed by him. They setup fake meetings where he could posture and hand out commands that would be ignored. Really France just needed a fictional superhero to hide their national embarrassment, you could replace him with any other man.

[@sydhenderson6753]

I also notice that he had good instincts most of the time. Should have let Algeria go earlier but there were a lot of French settlers there.

[@alanjohnson6398]

@sydhenderson6753 He likewise warned JFK , I believe in 1962, that America's becoming involved in Vietnam would produce a 'tragedy '. How right he was there...again.

[@tonyhawk94]

Sometimes, one's name is its destiny, when your name is "De gaulle" (from the Gauls), it was obvious that he'd have a great destiny.

[@vizzini3323]

Gaulism became the name of his political ideology. Pretty dope name with a double meaning

[@tonyhawk94]

@Peony Magenta I wouldn't say that but it's another debate haha

[@elkingoh4543]

vercingetorix approved that

[@karlp8484]

Using acid to eat through the controls of a transport plane (making it look like a mechanical malfunction) was a favourite tactic used by the British SOE to bump off undesirables. Another French commander in North Africa was dispatched thusly. De Gaul was a lucky lucky guy.

[@syedshazli874]

I'm from India. I admire De Gaulle for his leadership and standing up for his motherland. You may criticize him for his heavy handedness but when you lead in any capacity, you have to take tough decisions.

[@MarcMagma]

I love history. The story of one man can sometimes be so interesting as a good TV show, in some cases even better.

[@Triskaan]

Okay, I'm French and have no care at all for how Simon pronounces de Gaulle's name... but man, that Pétain is distracting. :)

[@thelucky1]

Yeah i hope they don't do any thing like this on Pétain any time soon

[@jameslegrand848]

@8534964 I FART IN YOUR GENERAL DIRECTION.

[@ayoangie7099]

:)

[@kyokushinman913]

Petain doesn't care, he is dead.

[@pauleohl]

Google translate pronounces Pétain as PEE-tah. Is that right?

[@HorrorUberAlles]

It is said that a Frenchman commits Seppuku By Baguette every time someone mispronounces "croissant". You'll be alright, Simon :) Ignaz Semmelweis Biographics, please!!

[@worldofdoom995]

also if crepes are mispronounced.

[@maxheadrom3088]

Semmelweis is a wonderful choice! I learned about him on a BBC documentary that was broadcasted in Brazil by the public TV Cultura in the 80s. The guy is a giant and probably the first one to use statistics in medicine.

[@puppetmasterey]

What did I just read?

[@jameslegrand848]

We often like to forget our baking power suicide attack on the panzer tanks. We took a lot of krouts with us.

[@shebbs1]

Vlad, not critcising your claim, but a baguette seems to be a poor choice for a weapon. Then again, a Frenchman might well surrender before plunging that crusty goodness into his cheese-filled innards, so perhaps it is irrelevant.

[@theloremaster1]

could you cover Gustav Mannerheim of Finland? :D. thanks for the great content!

[@albinlindberg876]

Controversial ...

[@aaropajari7058]

@@albinlindberg876 How?

[@JD-od6jh]

Yes!! Manmerheim was a very interesting person and the perculiar situation Finland had been in during those years made things even more difficult for him as a leader. Torn between constant war with Russia and the threat of Germany. He played both sides masterfully all with the nation's intent at heart. As a kid, reading about Mannerheim I never understood wether he was a classical 'good guy or bad guy'. I was super naive only thinking of things as black and white. While Finland's participation during that time was the definition of being in a grey area.

[@karsonwhatley3347]

You almost lost it at “The Great Asparagus”. I died.

[@janoriegam]

Could you do Oda Nobunaga?

[@gregoryturner9530]

yes! I second this!

[@terryts2]

Janoriegam I third this notion

[@idorkurogami7535]

They should Hideyoshi too

[@darkesinger]

Yes, please!

[@theguybehindyou694]

I recommend checking out videos on his bodyguard Yasuke. It's an amazing story.

[@filipeamaral216]

Nice video, but on the invasion of Normandy it was Leclerc's 2nd Armoured Division to come ashore. General de Lattre de Tassigny's 5th Armoured Division would come ashore in Provence, south of France. Leclerc was also the first in Paris.

[@corsehaigazia]

oui c'est vrai qu'on ne parle pas de Leclerc dans la vidéo dommage

[@tobinhargreaves4415]

Yeah, Charles had to pull quite a few strings to make sure that French soldiers were the first in Paris

[@brianbrady4496]

Exactly. But degaul had no problem taking the credit...

[@Kenxclout]

I mean if he loved France so much why didn’t he marry it

[@wrestlingisfakebutthetitti1687]

I am Married to the wall.

[@Zaltan-sb4lm]

@@wrestlingisfakebutthetitti1687 Build the wall and crime will fall! ;)

[@tommarch.4493]

Ken Fulton, an amrican have marry the Eiffeil Tower, so it's maybe posible

[@DannyBoy32]

@@Zaltan-sb4lm it wont

[@artman7780]

How do you get the heat rising to consummate the marriage? 😉 Ooh la la!

[@fyr3st0rm35]

I can just imagine a 6 foot something guy trying to pass as a nurse... no wonder it didn't work.

[@physicsdecosmos3049]

A great man! In January 1964, France was the first among the Western powers to open diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China. I don't know why, but as a Chinese, I would say he is a politician with foresight and intelligence.

[@lepetitchat123]

He hated commies. He was a hypocrite. As a Hong Konger, I disapproved of what he did with scummy PRC China.

[@stephenreeds3632]

He would have done it to get one over France's "allies". Everything he did was for the glory of France and himself.

[@johngreally9599]

All he did, quietly, he did for Bernadette his daughter, sheltering her from the outrage that war was, and choosing a modest village funeral and burial similar to hers, the burial next to her. He doted on her and Alsace-Lorraine. It is not the first, nor will it be the last time, France owes its rally to the sweetest passionate prayers of a most innocent girl or woman. And the defiance and courage of an autistic leader.

[@AuxaneST]

His daughter with Down syndrome's name was Anne not Bernadette (that would be President Chirac's wife name)... There is a Anne de Gaulle Foundation to support families with children with Down.

[@generalsherman2157]

Since you just covered De Gualle you should do Phillipe Petain next. Would be interesting to see him here since you talked a little bit about him already. The title could be "The Hero of Verdun"

[@cyruscheng499]

What’s your soldier loadout

[@michaeldougfir9807]

If I may suggest, I would like to see you speak of Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe. And Ian Smith, last president of Rhodesia. Thanks for telling us about the world's tallest Frog.

[@bebased1785]

Cool frog

[@thebritishpatriot7806]

Ian Smith was never president of Rhodesia, he however was Prime Minister from Independence till Rhodesia fall to Mugabe.

[@eryximaque6310]

Great video. For your information , De Gaulle was suffering from the Marfan Syndrom (see below) and died from it (aorta aneurysm) . "People with Marfan syndrome are usually tall and thin with disproportionately long arms, legs, fingers and toes. The damage caused by Marfan syndrome can be mild or severe. If your aorta - the large blood vessel that carries blood from your heart to the rest of your body - is affected, the condition can become life-threatening".

[@bashildy]

Thanks for making this! One of my requests from an earlier video.

[@birdofhermes3506]

"Yet his rather caustic, cold nature repelled more than his impressive appearance attracted." I feel that 💀💀

[@zepher_blackstoc2366]

How did the assassins miss him. He's a bloody giant.

[@patgalvez4563]

some people are just hard to kill.....

[@rebelusa6585]

I think those assassins were bad shooter, lol

[@benoitguillou3146]

They got blinded by his brilliance

[@olivierpuyou3621]

As every time in its very long history, providence or God or chance has always created exceptional men and women to save France.

[@Roz-y2d]

@@olivierpuyou3621🤣😂😅 From his cosy house in the land of his country’s natural enemy.

[@TheLightningCruiser]

I have a few ideas/wishes for you: - George Washington - Alexander Hamilton - Abraham Lincoln -John F. Kennedy - Jim Lovell (Commander of Apollo 13) - Neil Armstrong - Freddie Mercury - Nikits Krushchev - Sergeij Korolev (Head of the Soviet Space Programm) - Mjr. Richard "Dick" Winters (Officer in the Airborne in WW2) - Michail Kalashnikow (Designer of the AK-47) - Dick Cheney ( as comparison to the movie Vice) - Carlos Hathcock (Marine Sniper in Vietnam) - Michael Schumacher (the most successfull F1 Driver of all times) - Niki Lauda (F1 Driver, especially known from the movie Rush, he just turned 70) - Oscar Schindler - Tom Hanks ('cause who doesn't love him) I could go on forever. Perhaps there is someone in this list you are interested in making a video about. Eitherway i'm still going to watch every single video! Thank you guys, you are incredible!

[@buttonmoons]

I don't know why you've suddenly started uploading a Biographics a day - but I love it. Did someone say Johnny Cash and Malcolm X?

[@jimmywayne983]

a video on each channel each day = Cash

[@buttonmoons]

jimmy wayne very good 👏

[@flamixflame2685]

@@jimmywayne983 it also means more content for us

[@ignitionfrn2223]

1:20 - Chapter 1 - Early life 3:40 - Chapter 2 - A model soldier 5:30 - Chapter 3 - La grande asperge 7:20 - Chapter 4 - WWI 8:50 - Chapter 5 - The inter war years 11:45 - Mid roll ads 13:00 - Chapter 6 - France falls 16:50 - Chapter 7 - Reclaiming France 20:15 - Chapter 8 - The new france 20:45 - Chapter 9 - The algerian crisis 22:00 - Chapter 10 - End of the line

[@NCR-National-Reclamation-Gov]

Thx

[@velouris76]

Great as always, though think a bit more detail could have been done on the Algerian crisis. Also, I’m surprised there was no mention of the student riots of 1968: I can remember doing this in French a History, and it was probably only time in his life that De Gaulle almost panicked.

[@billtheslink4541]

My favorite part of the story is when Simone said, "He arrived at her ass."

[@pengator4699]

Just correcting one of your statement a little bit: metropolitan France was mostly against Algerian independence and was hoping for De Gaulle to stay strong against the revolutionary forces. Despite that, De Gaulle chose to give independence to Algeria (it might not have been out of good will, but it was lucidity). Also thank you very much for this amazing video. Your researches on De Gaulle's early life were really interesting considering this isn't something you get to learn in French schools. I have to say I found this video amazingly accurate compared to other history channels that often misunderstand French history. This was très bien.

[@eryximaque6310]

Independance was given to Algeria after a referendum done both in France and in Algeria .And most of the French from the metropole ( i.e. mainland France) voted for the independance of Algeria.

[@annikachristensen4323]

8:25 The guards: That's one tall nurse... hold on... STOP!!!!

[@danielstoop6215]

So much videos, so little time to watch them ALL

[@anoriolkoyt]

The fact that he refused to learn the language of their natural enemy shows how extreme Patriotism is completely mad. It is of upmost pragmatism to learn the language of your enemy ....

[@Sea-zu4bj]

He was nuts

[@basedkaiser5352]

He was based. I frequently talk broken English as an expression of my contempt for the English language.

[@djquinn11]

French arrogance

[@strasbourgeois1]

@@djquinn11 Arrogance?

[@Freedmoon44]

Pfft as if most british would learn french themselves despite being the french being their natural ennemy

[@erictaylor5462]

"The Great Asparagus" is an absolutely fantastic nick name! I had to back up the video to see what I missed I was laughing so hard. Does anyone else find the word "asparagus" to be rather funny?

[@olivierpuyou3621]

You know it's not an exceptional nickname, I had a sweetheart who was 1.80 meters tall and very thin with milky skin. And although much prettier than Charles, his nickname was the same.🤣🤣

[@BumMcFluff]

8:34 He was caught dressed as a nurse, and then claimed he was trying to escape.

[@XxpauldadudexX]

After the war his wife caught him and several young officers in their bed, wearing nurses uniforms, administering butt injections and cleaning each others wieners orally, which Charles explained to her, after yelling "You styewpid wumann", was an old army custom that soldiers did to re-enact their war time activity and in remembrance of the old happy, *gay,* joli days xP

[@Roz-y2d]

🤣😂😅

[@MentoringGrowingLeaders]

Thank you for doing these, Simon. You are very enjoyable to listen to and they are so informative and interesting for me. Best wishes in 2020 for everything in your life. I listen from Cambodia. 😊🇰🇭

[@matthewmckenna248]

Could you cover Otto Skorzney?

[@mmlas8683]

Gipsy Danger Who was that?

[@sneedler4661]

@@mmlas8683 He was the best kommando Germany had during WW2. He rescued Mussolini with a hand glider and lead operation Greif, which was German Kommandos posing as allied soldiers to acquire intelligence and sabotage their supply chain. After the war, he trained Israeli snipers and then Egyptian forces, and also was body guard to Juan Peron. So a total badass

[@TheLightningCruiser]

@@sneedler4661 well the "rescue" of mussolini was more or less staged, as the guards didn't resist at all. Skorzeny made himself into a herofigure he never was

[@MyTv-]

The fiction writer, who falsified his achievements! Good idea that balloon is ready for popping!

[@Cityinlead]

M Mlasovic a real life Bond villain

[@michealohaodha9351]

Could you add Carl Gustav Mannerheim to the 'to do list'? A very influential person who lived through some extraordinary times.

[@tsvetankunchev4477]

So, there was one french general who had an idea how ti fight a war, but nobody gave him the power to do so

[@Heisenberg882]

There were several very capable generals who fought under free france

[@benoitguillou3146]

There are a LOT of capable French people in all disciplines ..but to succeed under the global hegemony of Murica you gotta be on the payroll of the anglo saxons in one form or another ...And the anglos particularly like to finance incompetents by preference

[@michealohaodha9351]

Just to point out Jean is the French masculine form of 'John'. Charles' mothers name was 'Jeanne' or Joan, pronounced quite similar to 'Jean' but very different (and Feminine) in its meaning!

[@maximef4036]

Added to the fact that Jeanne is the french name of Joan of Arc ^^

[@idrisnewton4552]

"I'm not gonna read them" he's a role model lol I love this guy and his posh English accent lol

[@oberstul1941]

He seems the perfect example to illustrate GOT's Tywin famous quote: Whoever needs to say "I'm the king", it's not the true king.

[@berdre2605]

He was pretty successful in being president tho, and only left out of free will and not because he got dumped

[@maximef4036]

It is funny because the allies couldn't understand why 5-stars french generals (Catroux, De Lattre de Tassigny) were obeying to him without the least protest whereas he had only 2 ^^

[@youtube-handle-are-a-joke]

The images from 1943 Algiers, you can see a Renault Dauphine with a first production date of 1956 and a bunch of Renault 4cv introduced in 1947... And the picture used for the may 1945 armistice is actually the one from 1940.

[@tomasalexander3174]

Great vid man I’ve got an idea for the next vid if you want to hear how about Leonid Brezhnev

[@em1osmurf]

ike, kruschov, churchill, and degaulle. names of national heroes from my youth. hugely impacting history for me. good vid.

[@joeloera1669]

My grandmother is French we have class looks and balls Germany as the third Reich dous not exist but France is still France free and proud

[@roryrubin593]

Can we have a short biographic episode of Simon Whistler please? It will be a lovely change of pace to have Simon present on a more informal manner just for one episode. Perhaps a short story about Simon's founding of the channel(s), why he went into You Tube etc.

[@ezananefso2530]

Snake remember what De Gaulle said: "The graveyards are full of indispensable men."

[@g00dbyemisterA]

Kind of important fact. When they wanted to do the march through Paris, it was to be led by the French, for symbolism, however the majority of the resistance movements and Free French Army was black African, and De Gaulle wanted the French leading battalion to be white, so much so that he drafted in Spaniards to march essentially posing as Frenchmen in order to keep that battalion white. It is important to acknowledge this as there is a perception that World War 2 was white when the US army wasn't all white and it wasn't Great Britain and France in that war, it was the British and French empires, and the 2 million Indians who fought for the British Empire in World War 2 constituted the biggest volunteer force army ever.

[@berdre2605]

Another important fact is that it was the americans who pressured him to take out the non-europeans out of the military divisions to fit their own segregationist ideas. It was not de Gaulle who inisisted on it, but it was a condition set by the americans for him to have his parade

[@g00dbyemisterA]

@JWGR the majority of the resistance movement in France during occupation were people of colour, communists, Jews etc. because for the most part, they stood to lose more than the average French person, there is a habit of history to paint lines starkly, as I mention in the original comment, we often talked of Britain and France but never talk about the fact they were empires, empires that did horrible things in the various places they occupied. The notion of mostly white casualties ignores a lot of factors, for example in 1943 there was a famine in India that was seen as manmade, a diversion of resources because the Bengali people were seen as less worthy of rations than some guy in, say Birmingham who got a ration book whereas those in Bengal had resources that were harvested in their country taken away to "protect the mothership". Using wikipedia's numbers for both figures, the estimated death toll for the UK (both combatants and non combatants) throughout the entire war was 450,900 (this includes crown colonies), the estimated death toll of the famine of 1943 was anywhere from 2.1 - 3 million. By no means am I saying dont study the history of de Gaulle, but actually contextualise it properly and say that a great deal of Le Resistance greatly opposed Charles De Gaulle in many ways (namely the communists) Also, the majority of deaths shouldn't count for anything, if I desired I could point out that China suffered the second most number of casualties in the war, Japan shows that fascism and imperialism aren't white ideas either. It is also a bad view of history, I think, to only view war in terms of leadership, under that definition, India is a white nation (because those who were in charge were white). Also, another member of le Resistance? Cajun Americans who were hidden in the civilian population, and they wouldn't be white, which says a lot that if you want to supplant people into France, they didn't have to be white, which tells you what the ethnic makeup of that country was, ie. not white (as many people assume it to be)

[@g00dbyemisterA]

@Zaki Youssef I dont see how the difference between civilian and combatant should create a difference, deaths of war are deaths of war, by the bullet or by hunger. Also, I agree, the Soviet Union did face more casualties than anyone, yet the history we tend to learn about is focused on the UK, France and the US, rather than the British Empire (including places such as India and Singapore), the French Empire, including French Indo China and Algeria. This can be read in many ways, the notion of writing history to focus on white people downplays the contribution of others and can create societal attitudes of white supremacy (many people who believe in white supremacy cite a greatness that only comes from Europe as a reason white people are superior), it doesnt necessarily have to go to out and out racism but even just a pervading view that everything in the world that is good is due to white people (the same is true of the attitude people have towards men, the notion of male inventors giving us everything feeds into the notion of science being more suited to men, which is a self fulfilling prophecy when it becomes overarching societal attitude). My main point is, learn the full history, biographics is rather good for trying to look at many figures from many nations which is good, but only goes skin deep, for the sake of universality and dealing with the entirety of a life.

[@fcalvaresi]

AlexisErudite this is not true, the majority of people in the French resistance were not people of colours, communists and Jews. It was only true for the communists after 1941 when they entered resistance in large numbers. Yes there were also Jews and people of colour in the Resistance but the vast majority were white Europeans, from all sides of the political spectrum (even far-right resistance movements happened). The civilian population was overwhelmingly white in 1940s France, it does not even make sense in term of demographics to say that « people of color and Jews were the majority ».

[@CamoflaugeDinosaue]

This is pure postmodern propaganda, sorry to say. Many of the free French troops were from their overseas colonies, however very few of them were black Africans. There were some, which of course revisionist historians take and blow out of proportion for their virtue signalling agenda. No, the vast majority of free France fighters were native French. Sad that so many people died fighting against rabidly racist dictators, only so that people 80 years later would make up racist claims because the supply for racism doesn't meet the demagogic demands.

[@robertcolbourne386]

When asked which was hardest cross he had to bear in WW2 , Winston Churchill said the Cross of Lorraine. While this could mean a few things i have always took it to mean he had to deal with de Gaulle lol. Whether this quote is true I'm not sure but it sounds right lol

[@ethanramos4441]

Can you do the famous Irish Revolutionary Michael Collins?

[@Paul_Verbruggen24601]

The front man of genesis?

[@hhoch9503]

HappyandAtheist they have done terrorists before. It’s not like it’s out of the question.

[@blackacidgaming5672]

@HappyandAtheist When you misspell freedom fighter

[@fionafiona1146]

@HappyandAtheist Because understand terrorists contributes to terrorism prevention (like avenues to political participation and social upward mobility).

[@georgelabe-assimo4365]

Original IRA of the 1920=/=Provos

[@AdaL0906]

We also have to remember about desert war, where French Army fought hard and humiliated German and Italian armies in the invasion of Libya and battle of Bir-Hakeim. We often more talk about Great-Britain resistance against Germany in WW2 while without our best ally France, UK would has fallen in 1940 without battle of Dunkirk and the British Empire in 1942 without battle of Bur-Hakeim. And I even do not talk about Leclerc division and so many other epics of Fighting French Army in WW2, such an exemple 🪖🇫🇷

[@BoytardBill]

I prefer 'le grande asperge' for De Gaulle, 'The Great Asparagus'. It suits him, lol. Have a great day!

[@peterrraklliproductions2020]

“Long live De Gaulle!” “Who?” “De Gaulle. The one who scarpered. The one with the big hooter.” -Rene Artois

[@Roz-y2d]

🤣😂😅

[@mariaerdgzn]

I need to know about this guy before I land at his airport

[@justanotherjezebeI]

No mention of the indo- chinese war and the fact that it was the root cause of the Vietnam war, nor the fact that he threatened to make France a communist nation over colonial rights? That seems like something you shouldn't leave out of his biography...

[@clementl.9566]

You're right you can even add Quebec and the treaty of Luxemburg

[@101jir]

True, although I think the idea that he was a jerk in a general sense was abundantly clear.

[@L1b3rta]

And no word about that he wasn't a vegetarian. The monster!

[@rhysflynn7435]

Simon I'd love if you'd do micheal Collins (the revolutionary). Ps. I love your videos and can't wait to watch this one

[@andyford3179]

Greatest Irishman to ever grace the earth.

[@REzado63]

Rock that Frenchman baby!

[@stinkystonerharvey2774]

ah yes man of culture

[@brianoreilly3001]

This Guy is AWESOME The Great FRENCHMAN of both World Wars and modern France

[@maximef4036]

We have one every century. He was definitly the one of XXth, and the greatest since Joan of Arc :)

[@Pillzpop]

Interesting choice not to say anything about de Gaulle's "Vive le Québec libre!" speech in Montreal and the utter craziness that followed it.

[@The_Republic_of_Ireland]

Simon would you ever consider doing a biography on Michael Collins?

[@coolguy1983]

Yes, a nice Irish leader. Parnell would be good also

[@philsoro491]

Padraig Pearse

[@The_Republic_of_Ireland]

@@coolguy1983 true lad. A true irish hero and one of the rare protestant men to fight for Ireland

[@MattanzaMafiaFedora]

Don't forget about Pearse, Connolly and TJ Clarke!

[@The_Republic_of_Ireland]

@@MattanzaMafiaFedora couldn't forget them if my memory was wiped

[@jean-michel8307]

You didnt talk about Vive le Québec libre... im surprised

[@MCMLXXXVICCXII]

His best asset must be the skill of survival. After all those failures and deaths of other men, he kept living and made it to the top as the "last guy" alive.

[@dmitrivlad8538]

Do Jenna Jameson! 💜

[@randymeeks946]

Love when you do french characters

[@clarashoe9504]

Thank you for the knowledge.

[@toxiicwarfare9698]

Hates the British... then begs for their help lmao

[@lordbrain8867]

It takes criminals to beat worse criminals

[@dgrmn12345]

He hated the Germans more, apparently.

[@artman7780]

Vive la France. Being snobby and surrendering is the French way.

[@lordbrain8867]

@@artman7780 bad history meme. France has won more wars than any other nation on earth

[@q9nine]

@@lordbrain8867 More wars in terms of just a straight number doesn't mean anything. Percentages is what you should be talking about. Looking at that, I'd put a quite a few countries ahead of France. Israel, ancient Rome, and the Mongol Empire come to mind...

[@ltf4068]

Good for you

[@benoitbvg2888]

Wow. I'm French and I didn't even know De Gaulle and Pétain had a "personal" history. Not really surprising, but maybe that's why in the end De Gaulle pardoned him and transformed his death sentence in a life imprisonment. Edit "Croix de Gueux" medal was involuntarily hilarious.

[@corsehaigazia]

soit t'as moins de 20ans soit tu t’intéresses pas à l'histoire

[@Argozification]

ché pas j'ai l'impression d'avoir appris ca au lycée

[@hv4329]

@@Argozification c'est au programe de 3ème

[@CAP198462]

Seeing this older version of the Simon Whistler AI really makes you realise how far we’ve come in creating lifelike humans.

[@simonluling6153]

Thanks for the videos! How about David Ben Gurion?

[@mugodasimon]

Isn't it ironic how Degaul's sworn enemy (Britain/England) helped France with the war effort and Mr Charles even made broadcasts on British radio.

[@CamoflaugeDinosaue]

They weren't sworn enemies. They were allies. De Gaulle had an inherent mistrust of the British, but there's a long way between that and enemies.

[@bulldogmadhav5762]

You should do Tito next

[@franciscomm7675]

your wish was granted

[@xPsychoBunny]

As a French person, I can't say that he was not one of the most important statesman of my country's history. BUT the cult of personality that was pretty much established in the post-war era, as well as his narrow-mindedness and reactionariness lost him the support of ythe younger generation born after WWII. A good example of someone who just should have stepped out of the country's political life much sooner than he did.

[@ghostbuddy3106]

Did you do Amerigo Vespucci yet? If not, please do... :o

[@LeePenn2492]

His relation who got a good hiding at Agincourt 1415 was that another famous french defeat by the English /British.

[@LeePenn2492]

@@druisteen in other words he got snot kicked out of him

[@johnzeszutko5661]

With a "friend" like de Gaulle you will never need to have another enemy.

[@tictac2therevenge291]

cry about it

[@arson1tez]

e

[@fautlsavoirhein]

Cry

[@jonathanborjesson2883]

Your introduction was bloody briliant!

[@Je-suis-pauvre]

Great video! but nothing on the 5th republic constitution??? that was one of this main legacies

[@hendrikharms3258]

When high ranking nazis were starting to flee , De Gaules received a letter from a very top one of them, proposing to trade Charles’s brother who was a Nazi’s prisoner, with Help to join Argentina. De Gaules took the letter and stamped it “case closed”

[@ilhamionur]

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk?

[@theguybehindyou694]

*Sniff* Smells like Armenians.

[@12jswilson]

Türkçe biliyorsun?

[@CV_CA]

17:49 He could not go to Notre Dame now, it is closed.

[@andreborges73]

Every European citizen who survived the two world wars should have earned a silver medal of honor XD. JUST FOR BEING ALIVE XD.

[@fullmetalalchemist9126]

What does XD mean

[@paillettecnc]

So, no mention about the 5th Republic, almost nothing on Algeria and '68, nothing on the rapprochement Franco-Allemand and so much more!

[@MarielaQue]

I cant believe Simon mispronounced x, y, z! 😀😀😀😀 Too much ginger beer 🍺

[@shebbs1]

Mispronounced "lieutenant " too.

[@shebbs1]

Just so long as it was "zed", not the ghastly American "zee", which sounds odd coming from a Brit.

[@chawaphiri1196]

I'm African. Infact De Gaulle's involvement in Algeria doesn't make me see him as a hero but rather a racist. Just goes to show a hero here a villain there.

[@mrsupremegascon]

Without De Gaulle, you guys would still be colonies

[@theelvensong4328]

We need more men like Charles de Gaulle in this world. 🇫🇷

[@leowilly29]

Comparing him to trump is an insult beyong anything acceptable. De Gaulle is a war hero, the savior of France. Nothing in common with trump.

[@theelvensong4328]

@@leowilly29 I did not mean to insult you. Obviously, Trump has no military experience, he was a businessman. De Gaulle stepped up to the challenge of his generation and saved France during WW2 and beyond, while many Americans, including me, felt Trump stepped up to the current challenge of this generation and saved America. Both wanted to make their countries great and both held conservative views (Gaullism). Both recognized the threat of the left. We need more men like Charles de Gaulle and Donald Trump in this world.

[@leowilly29]

@@theelvensong4328 I see your point. I understand That's your point of view but I have to disagree. As you can see I the video, since his childhood, his core preoccupation was France. Unlike Trump who has a lot of personnal business, De Gaulle only wanted the greatness of France. In the darkest hour he didn't waver. And I don't see Trump do that. I perceive Trump as a man sold to the lobbies of industry, corrupt and only interested in personnal gain. Perhaps he will prove me wrong, I hope for the sake of the USA but for now he has accomplished nothing deserving to be compare with De Gaulle.

[@theelvensong4328]

@@leowilly29 Thank you and I hope that Trump will continue to do more for America and the world. I do agree that De Gaulle’s legacy for his country will probably be greater than Trump’s since he dedicated more of his life. I do want to say that Trump ran for president outside of the political establishment, as an outsider, and he promised to make America great and drain the swamp. I felt, by his actions so far, such as what he did with the Iran nuclear deal, meeting with the N. Korean leader, border security, fair trade deals, protecting Israel, firm stance against socialism, among others, that he also cares about his country and peace in the world. Most of the mainstream media is biased against him because they are left-wing. BTW, I changed my comment since I feel it is controversial. Wish you the best.

[@honklinhonkman8345]

These trump haters are gonna eat that crow hard watch ur boy Pm go down hard its gonna be great -Q

[@meljenkins1016]

He kicked the US forces out of France in 1966. I was in the US Air Force stationed in Germany from 1978-1981. One of my colleagues who I was stationed with in Germany told me that he was in an air base in France in 1966 and they got the word that Charles de Gaulle wanted to kick NATO out of France. He told me that they took all the necessary equipment and items out of their work center building and dumped them in Germany when they crossed the border. As an act of faith to show their love for Charles de Gaulle, he told me that they went back to their empty work center building in France and smashed every window in the building before heading back to Germany.

[@chagui5253]

soo... you make a video about De Gaulle where you are suppose make is biography but you almost don't talk about his presidency 1958-1969 and the foundation of the Vth republic... OK

[@paillettecnc]

Yes, it struck me too. And barely mentions Algeria and oversimplify it, not even mentionning '68! Yup, that seems complete.

[@corsehaigazia]

Si on devait faire la vie de De Gaulle ça prendrait autant temps que de faire la vie de Napoléon c'est à dire plus de 10 heures mais c'est vrai la cinquième république n'est pas mentionnée