The Last Great Frenchman

This authoritative biography of General De Gaulle presents the essential facts of his life whilst introducing material of a more personal nature.

This is the biography of General Charles de Gaulle (1890-1970), President of the Fifth Republic of France. A product of Northern French provincial society of the 19th century - austere, catholic and nationalist - de Gaulle was, according to Williams, the last great Frenchman. Whatever the arguments concerning de Gaulle's legacy, in his single-minded devotion to his country, and in his skill and strength in pushing it, there would have been no France if there had been no de Gaulle.

Chevalier wrote a very selective and successful memoir, but this book is a probing biography of the man, looking closely at the shrewd, obsessive and complex man behind the caricature French image. As the uncontested king of showbusiness for most of the 20th century, he was already a rising star before World War I. This biography looks at his career as well as the women who played an important part in his life - from the great music hall star, Mistinguett, to Marlene Dietrich and Kay Francis. Chevalier died in 1967, aged 85.

This biography of the former president of France describes his life and career fighting for the country that he loved, in the trenches of World War I, against the Nazi threat in World War II and during a decolonization war in Algeria. Original. 10,000 first printing.

Based on the experiences of a real French spy, Jack Beaumont’s first-hand knowledge and experiences make this thriller plausible and frightening as you’re plunged into the very real world of terror, espionage, and danger. Alec de Payns is an undercover operative in the ultra-elusive French Y Division of the DGSE, a foreign intelligence service equivalent to the CIA or MI6. Code named Aguilar, de Payns is one of the division’s most accomplished agents working to neutralize international threats on a daily basis while simultaneously trying to balance his home life as a husband and father. When a routine mission to infiltrate a dangerous terrorist group unexpectedly goes belly up, Alec is faced with the unthinkable: that he may have been betrayed by someone in his close-knit team—and they may be trying to pin the blame on Alec himself. Back in Paris, Alec is assigned to investigate a secretive biological weapons facility in Pakistan which the DGSE believes to be producing a newly weaponized strain of bacteria, intended for release in France. As Alec works to uncover the facility’s secrets, he must also fight to clear his name and discover who the mole is before it’s too late. It’s not just his reputation that’s at stake—it’s the lives of his wife, two young children, and the entire population of Paris.

"Sixty Million Frenchmen does its job marvelously well. After reading it, you may still think the French are arrogant, aloof, and high-handed, but you will know why." --Wall Street Journal