DE GAULLE (Charles, General). - Lot 43

DE GAULLE (Charles, General). Typescript letter with autograph signature, addressed to General Koenig, Commander-in-Chief of the French Occupation Zone in Germany, Paris, October 29, 1945. Handwritten note "Confidential". 6 1/2 pages. Very interesting letter on post-war geopolitical management and administration of the French Occupation Zone. "My dear General, The London Conference has resulted in a failure which there is nothing to suggest can be rectified for some time to come. On the other hand, the British, American and Soviet governments have not decided to adopt the bases of settlement we have proposed for the questions of the left bank of the Rhine, the joint administration of the Ruhr and the neutralization of the course of the Rhine. The same governments, for different if not opposing motives, persist in advocating the formation of a central German administration, which can only lead to renewed hopes in a new Reich and friction between the Allies. Finally, it is clear that the British are trying to make the German masses believe in a spontaneous will to be friendly, and to combat the tendency towards local autonomy which they describe as separatist. Under these conditions, we must actively pursue our own policy in our zone and achieve the first results. We are, moreover, driven to do so by the need to ensure the present and future survival of the populations for whom we are responsible, particularly on the left bank of the Rhine. In the incoherence of the inter-allied system, these populations can only find recourse in ourselves. There are many signs that they understand this. The attitude taken by a personality of Adenauer's stature is characteristic in this respect. From an economic point of view, certain measures seem to me to be urgently necessary. For example, the rail network in our zone of occupation, at least on the left bank of the Rhine, must now be attached to the Société Nationale des Chemins de fer français, in terms of management and operation. Taking direct charge of the Saar Mines by our Mining Department, and perhaps creating a common operating system for these mines and those of Saar-et-Moselle, are the only practical solutions imaginable. Other measures, concerning supplies, coinage, customs and reconstruction, and aimed at combining local services with our French services, must be envisaged immediately, otherwise we will soon end up with the irremediable ruin of the territories we have taken under our responsibility. It is all too clear that, with the exception of Ruhr coal, these territories have nothing to expect from the Russian, American or British zones of occupation, and can do nothing for them. On the contrary, our country, whose economic recovery has largely begun and which is their immediate neighbor, will be in a better position every day to involve them in its reborn prosperity. From a demographic point of view, we alone can offer an outlet and probably a permanent settlement for the surplus population of the Rhine territories. The need for our reconstruction and the development of our industry oblige us to provide for the employment and, no doubt, the gradual assimilation of a large number of foreigners. As of now, you could propose a start that the Ministries of Labor and Reconstruction are willing to support. In this connection, I would like to draw your attention to the recent ordinance adopted by the Government on the status of foreigners in France. From a political point of view, it is essential to give administrations in our area a rigorously local character, particularly as regards the origin of administrators. This applies to the Palatinate, Hesse-Nassau, the Rhineland Province and the Pays de Bade, each of these territories being dealt with separately. We must not, under any circumstances, retain the Prussian and Bavarian framework of the old administration, on the pretext of momentary convenience. I would ask you to bring to the next German Affairs Committee all the necessary proposals and clarifications concerning these various measures, as well as any others you may think useful to consider in the same vein. Yours sincerely C. de Gaulle. C. de Gaulle. (handwritten correction to "Adenauer") Provenance: General Pierre Koenig, Marshal of France and Companion of the Liberation, then by descent.