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| Charles de Gualle, 1890- 1970 |
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| Philippe Pétain, 1856-1951 |
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| The Free French! |
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| Pétain's personal standard |
General Charles de Gualle was a member of the French cabinet when the Germans invaded the country in 1940. He was in England when the French government capitulated to Germany. The French President of the Council, Paul Reynaud, resigned when his cabinet did not support his proposal to from a government in exile to fight the Germans. Phillipe Pétain, his successor, signed an armistice with Germany, forming Vichy France, a puppet government of Germany. Pétain cooperated with the German empire.
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Pétain shaking hands with Hitler
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Charles de Gualle meanwhile formed the Free French Forces, which cooperated with the Allies in the fight against Hitler. The Free French even fought Vichy French forces in North Africa as the Allies overthrew the Vichy colonies. After France was liberated, De Gualle became the country's new leader. Pétain was sentenced to death for treason, but de Gualle commuted his sentence to life imprisonment, partly because of Pétain's age (89 at the time) and partly because Pétain had been a national hero in World War One.
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