De Gaulle refused to repudiate the army’s force while denying dictatorial intent

Evidence

The choice of the place, the famous terrace of the 18th Brumaire, so steeped in associations of Napoleonic coups d’états, seemed a curious one. De Gaulle was embarrassed, not having thought of the historical association, while Pflimlin was frankly disturbed by it. His misgivings were not allayed by de Gaulle’s continued refusal to repudiate the use of force by the Algiers leaders, and notably the takeover of Corsica. As he had insisted at every private and public meeting since 13 May, he repeated that, at his age, he had no desire to become either a Napoleon I or Napoleon III. “You know very well”, he assured Pflimlin, “that I will never return to power brought in by force. I will not be the man of an insurrection. Never will I accept a military dictatorship, never, never.” — Horne, Alistair, A Savage War of Peace- Algeria 1954-1962, 898 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

“But they will, Delouvrier,” de Gaulle replied impatiently, “the military will obey. When a soldier gets mixed up in politics he only commits stupidities [conneries]. Look at Dreyfus. Their job is to fight on the ground.” — Horne, Alistair, A Savage War of Peace- Algeria 1954-1962, 1082 (#expands, via linked claim)

By waiting, de Gaulle had come back vested, first of all, in an acceptable degree of legitimacy; and secondly, he had not come back as the army’s man. If it were not for these two factors, it can be doubted whether the Algerian war could have ended without civil war in France. — Horne, Alistair, A Savage War of Peace- Algeria 1954-1962, 911 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: De Gaulle let subordinates voice hard-line positions he would later disavow.; De Gaulle refused to return to power by force, rejecting Napolonic dictatorial paths. — Horne, Alistair, A Savage War of Peace- Algeria 1954-1962, 898; De Gaulle dismissed the threat of military revolt, invoking the Dreyfus precedent — Horne, Alistair, A Savage War of Peace- Algeria 1954-1962, 1082 (+2 more)

Related

• De Gaulle refused to return to power by force, rejecting Napolonic dictatorial paths. (similarity 0.95)
• De Gaulle let subordinates voice hard-line positions he would later disavow. (similarity 0.89)
• De Gaulle’s ambiguity to the army was deliberate deception for its own good. (similarity 0.87)
• De Gaulle dismissed the threat of military revolt, invoking the Dreyfus precedent (similarity 0.86)
• De Gaulle’s mystical self-assurance blinded him to the F.L.N.’s political character. (similarity 0.84)
• De Gaulle was willing to shed blood to preserve the state (similarity 0.84)
• De Gaulle took power in June 1958 offering no Algerian solution. (similarity 0.84)
• De Gaulle’s delayed return secured legitimacy and independence from the army (similarity 0.83)
• De Gaulle’s conciliatory gestures angered the army while winning no concessions from the F.L.N. (similarity 0.83)
• De Gaulle’s intransigent refusal to yield to the riots proved strategically correct (similarity 0.83)
• De Gaulle may have countenanced a military takeover as a fallback. (similarity 0.82)
• Algeria’s top army commander publicly pledged to disobey de Gaulle (similarity 0.82)
• Challe’s loyalty to the republic collapsed only when de Gaulle shifted toward Algerian self-determination (similarity 0.82)
• De Gaulle demanded total replacement of the Fourth Republic as his price for returning. (similarity 0.82)
• Dissident colonels threatened to replace de Gaulle with Challe. (similarity 0.82)

Broader Connections

• De Gaulle refused to return to power by force, rejecting Napolonic dictatorial paths. #corroborates (0.60) — Horne, Alistair, A Savage War of Peace- Algeria 1954-1962, 898
• De Gaulle dismissed the threat of military revolt, invoking the Dreyfus precedent #expands (0.50) — Horne, Alistair, A Savage War of Peace- Algeria 1954-1962, 1082
• De Gaulle’s delayed return secured legitimacy and independence from the army #corroborates (0.50) — Horne, Alistair, A Savage War of Peace- Algeria 1954-1962, 911
• De Gaulle’s conciliatory gestures angered the army while winning no concessions from the F.L.N. #corroborates (0.40) — Horne, Alistair, A Savage War of Peace- Algeria 1954-1962, 1030