Description
Memories of hope : The revival (1958-1962) - The effort (1962-...)
ORIGINAL EDITION, complete in two volumes, of Charle de Gaulle's memoirs of his time as President of the Republic (1959-1969).
One of 650 copies on Alfa, this one one of 50 hors-commerce, the last paper after 25 copies on Madagascar, 100 copies on Hollande and 430 copies on Lafuma pur fil. The 2 volumes are identically numbered "H. C. A".
PRECIOUS AUTOGRAPH SIGNED LETTER on the first volume to the British Prime Minister Edward Heath :
"For the Right Honourable Edward Heath,
Prime Minister of Great Britain,
as a token of high regard and cordial remembrance.
Ch. de Gaulle
A convinced Europhile who had taken part in the Normandy landings as a warrant officer, Edward (known as "Ted") Heath, No. 2 in the Foreign Office and Lord Privy Seal, was put in charge of negotiations in 1963 for the United Kingdom's entry into the European Economic Community. The task was a complex one: Heath had to satisfy the Six, the Commonwealth countries, EFTA and the United States. As soon as the talks began, De Gaulle called out to Heath: "What is the point of all this? Is it serious or just a game?"On 14 January 1963, the French President vetoed the entry into the EEC of ".England with this huge escort". It was a hard blow.
Two years later, Heath was elected leader of the Conservative Party. His Europhilia tended to damage his popularity: the Tories - like the general public - were rather sceptical. However, he remained true to his convictions. That same year, he was received at the Élysée Palace as leader of the opposition party. On this occasion, their relations seemed to have relaxed; Heath reports in his memoirs :
"At the end of our conversation, de Gaulle said to me: "If you become Prime Minister, you will be the man to bring Britain into the European Community". We kept in touch, and two days after his death I received a copy of his autobiography, with a warm dedication. It must have been one of the last documents he signed.
The Course of My Life (1998)
A compliment that proved prophetic: in 1970 (despite the predictions of the opinion polls), Ted Heath, leader of the Conservative Party, won the general election. It was during his term of office that, with Pompidou's support, the United Kingdom joined the EEC.
In an interview on the After Dark In 1989, when asked about the anti-European sentiment in the Conservative Party, Heath said:
The future of Britain lies in the European community, and our job is to be positive and constructive [...] That means that we accept what we did when we signed the treaty, which is that we work for an even closer European unity. It's going to happen whether we like it or not.
The referendum on 23 June 2016 will prove otherwise.
Copies with Memories of hope are uncommon; specimens of significant provenance have become rare.
