The French president Charles de Gaulle made a series of state visits to South American countries between September 21 and October 16, 1964. During this trip of three weeks and 32,000 km, the longest made by Charles de Gaulle, he visited Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay and Brazil.
This trip was motivated by the French president's desire to turn the page on decolonization after the end of the Algerian War in 1962 and to continue his "policy of grandeur" by emphasizing cooperation, in particular by strengthening ties between France and Latin America. The operation was the subject of meticulous preparation by the Quai d'Orsay and the French embassies of the countries concerned. The trip was preceded by a visit to Mexico, from March 16 to 19, 1964, during which de Gaulle launched his famous "Marchemos la mano en la mano". De Gaulle, accompanied by a French delegation, transited from one country to another in a Caravelle. On two occasions, he also traveled aboard the cruiser Colbert.
The visit of the French head of state aroused real enthusiasm in the countries he passed through. The "man of June 18" was preceded by his aura as leader of Free France. He knew how to win the favor of crowds, particularly through his speeches in Spanish. However, several of the themes he developed in his speeches were not well received by certain powers in place, notably his criticism of the United States hyperpower. The results of the trip were ultimately mixed. In terms of communication, it was a great success but not followed by many concrete translations. Indeed, France remained a minor economic player in South America and the position of the United States in the region has not been shaken.
Context France historically enjoys significant prestige in South America. The great figures of the Spanish-American wars of independence, Bolívar (who attended the coronation of Napoleon at Notre-Dame de Paris in 1804), Sucre, Miranda, Artigas and San Martín were greatly influenced by the Lumières and the French Revolution. When World War II broke out, the South American elites experienced the French defeat as a real tragedy. Nearly 300 of the 400 support committees for Free France existing in the world were created in Latin America, under the leadership of Jacques Soustelle. Several intellectuals, Georges Bernanos, Roger Caillois and Jules Supervielle found refuge in this region of the world."Introduction de la première partie" in In the post-war period, the Latin Union, founded in 1954 and based in Paris, served to strengthen cultural ties, as did the (IHEAL) created in 1956. South American elites frequently come to complete their education in France; this is the case of Oscar Niemeyer, the architect of Brasília, or even of Belaunde Terry and Castelo Branco, respectively heads of state of Peru and Brazil, whom de Gaulle met during his diplomatic tour.
By 1964, France had essentially completed its decolonization, which improved its diplomatic position in Latin America where anticolonial sentiment was powerful. De Gaulle therefore intended to open a new era of cooperation, not only with the former French colonies, but throughout the world. It was with this in mind that he established, on January 27, 1964, the diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China. He said in a press conference, on January 31, 1964, its objectives in South America: "The enterprise goes beyond the African framework and constitutes in truth a world policy. By this means, France can move towards other countries which, in other continents, are more or less largely in the process of development, which attract us instinctively and naturally and which, wishing for their development a support which is lent to them according to our spirit and our manner, may wish to associate us directly with their progress and, reciprocally, take part in all that is French. [...] This is what we intend to discuss shortly with Mr. Lopez Mateos, President of Mexico, and later no doubt with the governments of the South American States on the occasion of the trips which I hope to have the honor of making there" The October 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis was still recent at the time of the French visit, and the anti-American sentiment was strong in South America. On the economic front, the United States launched the Alliance for Progress in 1961; an ambitious development aid program for Latin America.Isabelle Vagnoux, "Les tribulations du général de Gaulle en Amérique latine vues des États-Unis" in They also did not hesitate to intervene to support regimes that could help them in their strategy of containing communism. This is how they supported, in March 1964, the Brazilian military coup of Marshal Castelo Branco. While de Gaulle supported the North American allies during the missile crisis, he refused to cut diplomatic relations with Cuba or support the embargo of the island. In this context, he is appreciated in South America for his displayed independence from the Americans and is particularly popular in anti-American environments.
Mexican prelude
From March 16 to 19, 1964, de Gaulle visited Mexico at the invitation of Mexican President Adolfo Lopez Mateos. In advance of the visit, the French ambassador returned to Mexico three flags taken by Maximilian from Juárez's troops during the battles of San Lorenzo, San Pablo del Monte and Valparaíso in 1863-1864 during the Mexican Expedition. The trip was announced in a roundabout way on March 5 by ORTF in the program Bonne nuit les petits. Nounours announced his imminent departure for Mexico and said a few words in Spanish.
De Gaulle arrived in Mexico on March 16 aboard his Boeing 707 via Pointe-à-Pitre, with a short stopover in Mérida before arriving in Mexico City aboard his Caravelle."L'itinéraire du chef de l'Etat", Le Monde, March 15-16, 1964. He made a point of presenting himself to the Mexican authorities in a French aircraft, a gesture he repeated on all his trips to South America. In preparation for the event, two huge portraits of the Presidents were placed on the building, and the Central Workers' Union trucked in 250,000 workers to form an 8 km hedge from the airport to the center of the capital. Planes dropped thousands of leaflets over the Mexican capital, inviting the population to take part in the event. De Gaulle addressed the 300,000 Mexicans gathered on the Zócalo in Spanish from the balcony of the National Palace - the only foreign leader ever to do so. He concluded his speech with a phrase that has gone down in history: "He aquí, pues, lo que el pueblo francés propone al pueblo mexicano: marchemos la mano en la mano." "So here's what the French people are proposing to the Mexican people: Let's walk hand in hand!"The speech did not elicit an enthusiastic response at the time. On the other hand, his visit to the University of Mexico on March 18 provoked a furore among the public; crowds were so large his car could not continue, and he was "literally carried by clusters of students shouting his name".
Preparations
The trip to South America was meticulously prepared in advance by the Élysée protocol department and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. On June 3, 1964, de Gaulle called a meeting of his Foreign Minister Couve de Murville, the Quai d'Orsay Chief of Protocol, Étienne Burin des Roziers, Secretary General of the Élysée Palace, and the ten French ambassadors of the countries he would be visiting. The aim is to outline the forthcoming trip and coordinate liaison between the various embassies. The task was difficult, as many parameters had to be reconciled: the length of visits to each country, transport, protocol, security, accommodation, choice of interpreters and Yvonne de Gaulle's specific program. Particular attention was paid to climate and altitude. It was decided to opt for the month of September to avoid extreme heat. To avoid high altitude differentials, de Gaulle was scheduled to fly from Bogotá (2,640 m) to Quito (2,850 m) and then on to Cochabamba (2,570 m) in Bolivia. Because it was too high, Bolivia's capital, La Paz (3,600 m), was dropped from the schedule. In fact, de Gaulle passed through Lima, the Peruvian capital at sea level, before heading for Bolivia.
Diplomat Gilbert Pérol, Director of Protocol and Press Office, made a scouting trip in June-July 1964. He provided de Gaulle with a preparatory dossier of over 1,000 pages, a 100-page binder for each country. Each member of the various governments was the subject of a biography. The schedule for the visit was defined down to the minute, along with details of protocol. To help prepare the President's speeches, diplomatic posts in South America send Foreign Affairs lists of quotations from Latin American figures. Particular attention is also paid to ensuring that these speeches were translated by a native speaker of the country where they were to be delivered, rather than by a Quai d'Orsay interpreter.
Presidential suite and material aspects of the trip
De Gaulle insisted on arriving in the countries he visited aboard French aircraft. And so, while he crossed the Atlantic in a long-haul Boeing 707, he transited via Pointe-à-Pitre in Guadeloupe so as to arrive in South America in his presidential Caravelle. This twin-engine short- and medium-haul aircraft, produced by the French company Sud-Aviation, was specially fitted out for the trip. An emergency Caravelle, containing luggage and spare parts, followed the first. De Gaulle also sailed aboard the cruiser Colbert between Arica and Valparaiso in Chile, then from the Uruguayan capital Montevideo to Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. As the ship was legally considered French territory, the President could sign laws and decrees there.René Besnault, "Périple de l'Amérique du Sud d'un 'Edecan'", Espoir, no 114, 1998
De Gaulle traveled with his wife, Yvonne. The presidential suite comprises 37 people, several of whom are in charge of protocol, including two aides-de-camp and two interpreters. Four bodyguards providing close protection for the President were also on board, as was his personal physician. As the President had undergone prostate surgery between his trips to Mexico and South America, his state of health was closely monitored. Vice-Admiral , the President's chief of staff, accompanied him, as did , his chief of staff, who made the trip from Caracas to Argentina, while Étienne Burin des Roziers, Secretary General of the Presidency, relayed him from Buenos Aires to Paris. Maurice Couve de Murville, Minister of Foreign Affairs, was the only member of the government to accompany de Gaulle. For his trip to America, de Gaulle surrounded himself exclusively with military and senior civil servants. No intellectuals or businessmen accompanied him.