The Contested Legacy

Fifty years after his death, de Gaulle remains France's most referenced political figure. Every president invokes him. Every crisis produces calls for "Gaullist" solutions. Yet what Gaullism means remains fiercely contested, appropriated by incompatible causes.

The Right's De Gaulle

For the traditional right, de Gaulle embodies authority, tradition, and grandeur. They emphasize his military background, Catholic faith, and defense of hierarchy. This de Gaulle saved France from communism, restored order after May 1968, and maintained French greatness against foreign encroachment.

Marine Le Pen's National Rally claims this heritage, presenting itself as defending Gaullist sovereignty against European integration and immigration. They quote de Gaulle's skepticism about Muslim integration, his defense of French identity, his resistance to supranational authority. That de Gaulle also granted Algerian independence and promoted European cooperation is conveniently forgotten.

The mainstream right emphasizes different aspects: strong institutions, economic modernization, international influence. They celebrate the technocratic de Gaulle who built nuclear power, promoted champions nationaux, and made France competitive. This selective reading ignores his skepticism about capitalism and concern for social justice.

The Left's De Gaulle

The left's relationship with de Gaulle is more complex. Historically his opponents, they now invoke selective aspects of his legacy. Jean-Luc Mélenchon's France Insoumise claims the resistant de Gaulle who defied established powers and the social de Gaulle who nationalized industries and created welfare systems.

This reading emphasizes de Gaulle's "third way" between capitalism and communism, his critique of American hegemony, his opening to the developing world. They quote his warnings about money's power and his vision of "participation" between capital and labor. That he also suppressed strikes and concentrated executive power is minimized.

Even moderate socialists now praise Gaullist institutions they once denounced. The strong presidency enables reform. National independence permits distinctive policies. State intervention allows market correction. The conversion is incomplete—they still criticize the "republican monarchy"—but pragmatic acceptance has replaced ideological rejection.

The European Paradox

De Gaulle's European legacy is particularly contested. Sovereignists quote his rejection of supranationality, veto of British membership, and vision of "Europe of nations." They present him as the prophet who foresaw European integration's threat to national independence.

But pro-Europeans claim him too. They emphasize his reconciliation with Germany, promotion of European cooperation, and understanding that France needed Europe to balance superpowers. His vision of European independence from America resonates with contemporary advocates of European strategic autonomy.

The truth is paradoxical. De Gaulle simultaneously advanced and limited European integration. He made the Common Market work while rejecting political union. He promoted European independence while maintaining French sovereignty. His contradictions became Europe's contradictions, unresolved fifty years later.

The Colonial Reckoning

De Gaulle's colonial legacy faces increasing scrutiny. The traditional narrative—enlightened decolonizer who peacefully granted independence—confronts uncomfortable truths. The Algerian War's brutality, abandonment of the harkis, and neocolonial Françafrique system complicate heroic simplification.

Former colonies view de Gaulle ambivalently. Some praise his recognition of independence movements and personal relationships with African leaders. Others condemn continued French interference and economic exploitation. The CFA franc, military interventions, and corrupt networks trace directly to Gaullist arrangements.

Within France, colonial memory divides communities. Pieds-noirs feel betrayed by Algerian independence. Harkis remember abandonment and massacre. Immigrants from former colonies experience discrimination in the country that once colonized their homelands. De Gaulle's promise of Franco-African community rings hollow to those excluded from French community.

Gender and Social Progress

Feminists particularly contest de Gaulle's legacy. He granted women voting rights but maintained patriarchal assumptions. His governments included no women ministers. His vision of women as mothers first, citizens second, shaped policies that encouraged traditional roles while granting formal equality.

The Gaullist welfare state simultaneously liberated and constrained women. Family allowances enabled mothers to stay home. Free education opened professional opportunities. But glass ceilings remained unbroken, workplace discrimination unchallenged. De Gaulle's France modernized economically while preserving social hierarchies.

Contemporary #MeToo movements highlight these contradictions. The general who embodied masculine authority created structures that perpetuated male dominance. The republican equality he proclaimed coexisted with systematic inequality. Young French feminists see in de Gaulle everything they seek to overcome.