iMusée de l'Armée (Les Invalides)Invalides
De Gaulle avant de Gaulle
Charles de Gaulle's early military and literary career, 1909 to 1940, before his famous June 1940 appeal, told through letters, manuscripts, photographs and personal objects.
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Preview: written before the show opened
Of the 55 documents and objects in this show, 18 were bought by the State at auction, in the "De Gaulle" sales of 2024 and the "Reynaud" sales of 2025. Beside them sit museum objects, photographs, books and papers lent by private owners. The Archives diplomatiques, the Bibliothèque nationale de France and the Service historique de la Défense show some of their loans to the public for the first time.
It starts in 1909 and stops at the Appeal of 18 June 1940, following de Gaulle as a soldier in both wars, a writer, a military theorist and an observer of politicians. Letters to his parents and his wife are on show, and so is a leather colonel's jacket from 1935. Your last message to your mum was a 40-second WhatsApp voice note.
It is in the East Wing of the Historial Charles de Gaulle, open 10:00 to 18:00. Entry is a regular museum ticket, €17, which is the only ticket needed.
Editor's pick
Charles de Gaulle from 1909 to 1940, the officer and writer before the June 1940 appeal, told through letters, manuscripts, photographs and personal objects.
Look for
Letters to his parents and his wife
Handwritten family correspondence from the years before the Appeal of 18 June 1940.
The 1935 colonel's jacket
A leather jacket from the year de Gaulle held the rank of colonel.
Good for
- Nerding Out
- Rainy Days
Also at Musée de l'Armée (Les Invalides)
On now nearby
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Image credits
9
- De Gaulle avant de GaulleCourtesy of Musée de l'Armée (Les Invalides)
- Mes chers amis. Le dessin dans les collections d'artistes français au XIXe siècleGustave Doré, Portrait de la fille du graveur Pierre Edmond Hédouin, c. 1877. Musée d'Art et d'Histoire Pissarro, Pontoise, inv. D.899.10.1
- Cézanne and UsCourtesy of Grand Palais
- Transparency© Romain Moretto / EPPDCSI
- Musée de l'Armée (Les Invalides)xiquinhosilva from Cacau / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0
- Musée RodinDalbera / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0
- Fondation CustodiaMOSSOT / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Grand PalaisȘtefan Jurcă / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0
- Petit Palais - Musée des Beaux-Arts de la Ville de ParisThesupermat / Wikimedia Commons, Public domain