Category Archives: de Gaulle

Poster – “18 June 1968 De Gaulle = Petain” (around 18 June 1968 – Atelier Arts Décoratifs)

20 Wednesday Jun 2018

Posted by in de Gaulle, Ecole des Arts Décoratifs, June 17-23 1968, Poster

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“18 June 1968 De Gaulle = Petain”

(around 18 June 1968 – Atelier Arts Décoratifs

Black screen-print on newspaper

13 x 85cm

This equation of de Gaulle to the reviled capitulator Petain (head of the Vichy government after the German victory in France in WW2) is particularly pointed. The date referred to is the anniversary of de Gaulle’s famous 1940 call for French Resistance to the occupying forces.

Documented in:

Gasquet p114; Artcurial #500; Camard #147b

Online Resources:
Zurich

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Poster – “Appeal of 18 June 1968” (18 June 1968 – Committee for Free Information)

18 Monday Jun 2018

Posted by in de Gaulle, June 17-23 1968, Poster

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“Appeal of 18 June 1968

To all Frenchmen

France has lost a battle !
But France has not lost the war !

The union and political mandarins may have capitulated, giving way to panic, forgetting honour, delivering the people into bondage. Yet nothing is lost !

Nothing is lost, because our struggle is a permanent struggle. In the whole world, immense forces have not yet swung into operation. Some day these forces will crush the enemy. On that day, we will have won our dignity.

That is why all Frenchmen, wherever they may be, must unite in action, in risk and in hope.

The spirit is in mortal danger.
Let us all fight to save it.

Long live the Rage !
The Revolution”

Dark blue offset-print

30 x 40cm

This has become one of my favourite posters from May 68. It is an incredibly clever détournement of De Gaulle’s wartime Appeal of the same date in 1940, with slight changes (underlined above) making it completely relevant to the revolutionary situation of 1968.

Here is the original:

Documented in:
Gasquet p. 19 ; Beaubourg #39 ; Beauty #B401 ; Mesa p109 ; Chartres #156 ; Peters #250; Camard #147a; Murs #158

Online Resources:
ENSBA #12885

Poster – “He’s Still the Chienlit!” (June 16 – Atelier Populaire)

16 Saturday Jun 2018

Posted by in Atelier Populaire, de Gaulle, June 10-16 1968, Poster

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“He’s still the Chienlit!”

(June 16 – Atelier Populaire)

Green screen-print on newsprint

53 x 84.5cm

This poster refers to de Gaulle’s infamous speech of 19 May where he used the phrase “La réforme oui, la chienlit non!”. Taken on face value the phrase means “Reform yes, chaos no!”. But de Gaulle also intended a scatological pun here, where “chienlit” is “chie-en-lit” – shit-in-the-bed.

The phrase in important enough to have its own article on wikipedia which explains the allusions.

Documented in:
Gasquet p.89; Les Affiches #106; Peters #221 ; Beauty #56b ; Beaubourg #48; Mesa p109 ; Chartres #93

Online Resources:
ENSBA # 10524
BNF

Cartoon/Tract – “The Pain in the Arse General Reads” (after 19 May 1968)

19 Saturday May 2018

Posted by in Cartoon, de Gaulle, May 20-26 1968, Tract

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“The Pain in the Arse General Reads”

“No matter how lofty is one’s place, he always sits on his bottom” – Montaigne

Cartoon in pencil – signed YB

21 x 32.5cm

I received this original cartoon in a selection of tracts which also included a few photocopies of it, implying that it was used as a tract at the time.

The cartoon refers to de Gaulle’s infamous speech of 19 May where he used the phrase “La réforme oui, la chienlit non!”. Taken on face value the phrase means “Reform yes, chaos no!”. But de Gaulle also intended a scatological pun here, where “chienlit” is “chie-en-lit” – shit-in-the-bed.

The phrase in important enough to have its own article on wikipedia which explains the allusions.

This cartoon piles the puns on to breaking point. The title takes “chienlit” as “chiant lit”. So here the General reads (“lit”) – with “chiant” describing him as boring, annoying or most likely “a pain in the arse”.

The drawing leaves little to the imagination – showing the general “chie” (shitting) while “lit” (reading) the “Gazette de la Chienlit”.

Finally the quote from Montaigne underscores the meaning once more.

Tract – “After De Gaulle’s Speech (31 May 1968 – PCF)

23 Tuesday Aug 2016

Posted by in de Gaulle, May 27-June 2 1968, PCF, Tract, Uncategorized

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After De Gaulle’s Speech

DECLARATION OF THE
FRENCH COMMUNIST PARTY

With Workers on strike for their demands, with students and teachers in a struggle for a democratic University, with millions of the French people wanting a change of policy, de Gaulle responded with a veritable declaration of war.

 in his opposion to the workers, De Gaulle first takes on the Communist Party which has always defended the interests of the working class, inseparable from those of the nation.

 This attack against the Communist Party is designed to mask the wish of General de Gaulle to impose its own dictatorship. In reality, the working class and its organizations have shown remarkable composure; they have developed the fight for their claims and theit mass political struggle taking care to avoid any kind of provocation. This is true in both the factories, occupied by millions of strikers, and in the impressive street demonstrations organized by the C.G.T. and other unions, supported by the Communist Party.

 Scorning all workers, both blue- and white-collar, the head of State did not judge it worth saying a word about their claims.

 However, the first condition for settling the huge conflict caused by the harmful policies of a State at the service of corporations, is to uphold the legitimate demands of the workers. This is the unanimous demand of the unions. It is also that of the French Communist Party.

  De Gaulle announced his intention to call new elections. The French Communist Party has not been waiting for this speech to demand that the people be given their say as soon as possible.

 The Party will go to this compaign explaining its program of social progress and peace and it’s policy of the democratic unity of all forces. It now calls upon the millions of Frenchmen and Frenchwomen for their trust, to defeat the Gaullist government; and to establish a true democracy that serves the interests of workers.

 It calls on workers, to join strongly with the democratic forces, to develop their unity in the interests of the people and France.

The Political Bureau
of the French Communist Party
May 30, 1968.