Ask the Scholar
Document scope · 1 page
Scholar
Ask about this object, its catalog metadata, its source description, or the page inventory.
For page-specific OCR and visual context, open one of the page chats.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
207522862
label
Memorandum from Secretary of State Edward Stettinius Jr. to President Harry S. Truman
core
doc
dtoType
document
citationUrl
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
207522862
contentType
document
title
Memorandum from Secretary of State Edward Stettinius Jr. to President Harry S. Truman
citationUrl
collections
President's Secretary's Files (Truman Administration)
Subject Files
thumbnailUrl
largeImageUrl
imageCount
1
hasImages
yes
source
import
hasTranscription
no
Source extras
naId
207522862
levelOfDescription
item
productionDates
day
19
logicalDate
1945-04-19
month
4
year
1945
recordType
description
ocrSource
nara-archive
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
ae8792ea4db8b81d
ocrText
DEPARTMENT OF STATE
WASHINGTON
April 19, 1945
MEMORANDOM FOR THE PRESIDENT
Subject: Georges Bidault, Foreign Minister of France.
M. Bidault was born in 1899. Before the war he was
a well known Catholic journalist, writer and history pro-
fessor. He has been opposed to Fascism ever since the
emergence of Fascist organizations in France and other
European countries. He volunteered in the present war,
was captured and released in July 1941. Subsequently
he edited a clandestine newspaper in France and became
prominent in the Resistance movement. He ultimately
became President of the National Council of Resistance
and held that post at the time of liberation. His excel-
lent record in the Resistance was responsible for his
being given the post of Foreign Minister in September 1944.
He is a member of the Christian Democrat Party.
Our Ambassador to France, Mr. Caffery, has enjoyed
very cordial personal relations with Bidault. The latter
has been extremely helpful and cooperative in getting
things done that we wanted done, especially things in
which SHAEF was interested. He is an intelligent man,
with considerable cultural background, but no experience
whatever in government affairs. He is very nationalistic;
he is not pro any other country; is afraid of Russia, de-
tests the Germans; is skeptical about England and uncertain
about the United States. However, for practical reasons he
wishes to cooperate with us. He is an opportunist, under-
stands de Gaulle very well and is in awe of him.
He is believed to have favored acceptance by France
of the invitation to act as a sponsor for the conference
at San Francisco but was overruled. He is also believed
to have wanted de Gaulle to accept President Roosevelt's
invitation to meet him at Algiers but here again he was
overruled.
ARGHIVES "MATIONAL AND
RECORDS
SERVICE