Instruction of essay

· This assignment is based on two resources:

1. The introduction of the textbook Sixty Million Frenchmen Can’t Be Wrong

2. Module 1 online reading(France and the U.S. see below)

          Write a paragraph beginning with the sentence: ” The person  I am most interested in learning           more about in the history of Franco-American relations is …because….”

         Be sure to say something about the period of history as well as about the personality of the          individual and events associated with him/her.

          NOTE:  The person does not have to be mentioned in the online reading. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

France and the U.S.

  Module 1: France and the U.S.

Statue of Liberty and Eiffel Tower, Paris, France

Overview

In this Module we outline the history of French-American relations from the 18th century to the present, a story which has witnessed revolutions, world wars, terrorist attacks, and most recently disagreements about climate change. While the friendship between the two countries has seen its ups and downs, our histories are intertwined and linked through similar global concerns and shared values based on democracy, liberty, and equality.

Key terms and concepts: French-American friendship, Age of Enlightenment, French philosophes, Marquis de La Fayette, Louisiana Purchase, Statue of Liberty

 

Objectives for this section:

After completing the following reading, see if you are able to do these things:

· Describe French-American American relations during the Age of Enlightenment (18th century). · Identify the Marquis de La Fayette and explain his role in the history of French-American relations. · Explain how the U.S. acquired the Louisiana Territories and the Statue of Liberty from France during the 19th century. · Name two important French leaders of the 20th century and briefly describe their roles in shaping France in the 20th century. · Analyze French-American relations since the dawn of the 21st century.

· France and the U.S.

· Sources

· Quick check

 

France and the U.S. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

France and the United States have a history that goes back many generations to what Europeans call the Age of Enlightenment.  It was to 18th-century France that Benjamin Franklin and other American statesmen turned in 1776 for inspiration and support in penning the Declaration of Independence from English oppression.  French philosophes like Voltaire, Diderot, and Montesquieu [i] had drafted a democratic ideal in their writings to which France aspired and to which its citizens were drawn.[ii] They saw America as a haven from tyranny and fanaticism which would serve as a model of democracy and instruct those who govern to use their authority legitimately.

When war was declared, many French volunteers fought with the Americans in favor of what they considered a noble cause. The most famous of these was the  Marquis de La Fayette (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. , who fought alongside George Washington. There was, however, a darker and more practical side to the French involvement in North America.  The French were intent on beating back the British, pursuing them on the high seas in retaliation for the humiliating losses in Canada and the blockades of supplies between colonies elsewhere in the world.  These were some of the circumstances that prevailed during the Seven Years’ War (1754-1763), known to North Americans as the French and Indian War. It was in this spirit that the French King  Louis XVI (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.  signed an alliance with the American colonies in 1778 against the English King George III and contributed generously to the financing of the war effort, depleting the already dangerously diminished royal coffers and helping to bring about the French Revolution in 1789. In spite of this support, French disdain for the British foundation of this newly established Republic of the United States ran deep.  As Guy Serman noted in an article in France-Amérique, the future French minister of Foreign Affairs Tallyrand, who was taking refuge in Philadelphia from from the Terror that followed the deaths of the royals, wrote that the French were in fact wrong in supporting the Americans who, after all, were in reality English!  [iv]

At the turn of the 19th century, President Thomas Jefferson persuaded Napoleon Bonaparte to sell the  Louisiana Territory (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. , which doubled the size of the U.S. and put an end to any further English imperialism on the lower American continent. Towards the end of the century, in 1885, France gave America its most lasting symbol of freedom, the  Statue of Liberty (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.  [iii], which was offered as a tribute to the bond of friendship between the two nations.

In the 20th century, Americans  fought with the French in two world wars.  The first, known in America as World War I, is called The Great War, or the War of 1914-1918 in France.  Americans under the leadership of General  John Pershing (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.  arrived in France to push back the Germans from their territory.  Americans serving under Pershing were made aware that they were repaying a debt to the French when Colonel  Charles E. Stanton (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. , an aide to their commander, remarked: “La Fayette, we are here!”

During World War II, American troops entered the war after the attack on Pearl Harbor December 7, 1941.  By this time, France had been overrun by the Nazis and was occupied, its government at Vichy headed by a collaborationist regime under the leadership of Marshal  Philippe Pétain (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. . Meanwhile, the Free French were conducting an underground resistance movement from London led by General  Charles De Gaulle (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. . On June 6, 1944, the Allied forces under the command of General Dwight D. Eisenhower landed on the beaches of Normandy in Northern France, which marked the beginning of the Liberation of Europe, culminating in the end of the war in 1945.

France has not forgotten its debt to the Allied forces.  In 1994 and again in 2004, the French government organized ceremonies to honor the American and British forces who fought and died heroically in this effort.  Over the last 60+ years, surviving Americans who served and their families have traveled regularly to visit the St. James Cemetery at Omaha Beach where almost 10,000 American soldiers gave their lives.

After World War II, France and other devastated European countries were able to rebuild through funds provided by the U.S.- financed Marshall Plan.  As France reeled from one unstable government to another under the Fourth Republic following De Gaulle’s resignation in 1946, the economy did rather well but pressures from French colonies grew.  When De Gaulle was recalled to preside over the State in 1958, he drafted a new constitution and founded the Fifth Republic, granting broad powers to the president and premier while restricting the power of the assembly.  With De Gaulle, France appeared more prominently anti-American or at least independent as an ally. Since De Gaulle envisioned France as the leader of a United Europe, his position might more accurately be interpreted as pro-France rather than anti-American. He proved this by showing solidarity with President John Kennedy during confrontations with the Soviet Union in Berlin in 1961 and during the Bay of Pigs in Cuba in 1962.

Franco-American relations on both sides of the Atlantic have run warm and cool in the press according the latest political issue. From “freedom fries” to the arrest of former IMF president and at the time the leading Socialist party candidate for the 2012 presidential election Dominique Strauss-Kahn in New York City on sexual assault charges in May 2011 [v], the relationship between France and America has been characterized by L’Express magazine as un amour de vache or tough love [v].  In certain U.S. political circles such as the Tea Party, the French are detested because of their socialist tendencies, while they are admired in others for supporting the American position on “the red line” in Syria and coming to the defense of allies in various parts of the world.

Despite vicissitudes and periods when the two nations stand at odds, France and the U.S. retain a strong basis of friendship whose roots are nurtured by similar ideals of freedom, equality, and of humanitarian values. Never in history have these shared values been more prominent in defining the French-American friendship. than in the 21st century as the world becomes more polarized and Western values are challenged by radical factions that have launched terrorist attacks striking at the heart of free enterprise and freedom of expression. On September 11, 2001, the world witnessed Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaeda’ attack on the World Trade Center in New York, killing nearly 3000 people. Acts of terror have spread around the globe, and free nations are being put to the test to control radicalization of disenchanted youth attracted to Islamist extremist organizations whose intent is to disrupt the economy and destroy societies that do not share their beliefs. On January 7, 2015, the headquarters of Charlie Hebdo, a satirical Parisian weekly publication known for its incisive cartoonists, was stormed by two radicalized Frenchmen of Algerian heritage, resulting the execution of the editor and France’s most  celebrated cartoonists along with the security guard who was gunned down as the suspects fled. The next day, another police officer was killed in the south of Paris, an event that was at first thought to be unrelated as police conducted a massive manhunt for the perpetrators of the murders at Charlie Hebdo. Two days later on a national day or morning, two brothers who had been identified as primary suspects, were tracked to a small village near Charles de Gaulle Airport where they were holding a hostage in a printing shop. As a French swat team killed the brothers and freed their hostage, another attack. was underway on the east side of Paris where another terrorist entered a Jewish Kosher market.  He too was killed by the police but not without the deaths of 4 of his hostages.  In all, 17 people died – three terrorists twelve journalists, and two police officers. On Sunday, January 11, over a million people took to the streets of Paris to express their unity, and this shared intellectual heritage projects a vision of democracy that is fundamental to French and American societies. It is that vision which impels us to seek mutual understanding so that our well-learned lessons can provide the best models for those countries striving towards democracy.

With each passing day, we have seen more terror attacks around the globe, including the one in San Bernardino, California, on December 2, 2015, in which 14 people were killed and 22 others were seriously injured. The world is also confronted with the unfolding tragedy in Syria, over the past six years 5 million Syrians have fled to other countries as refugees and more than 6 million have been displaced within the country. In many cases, children caught up in this crisis have fared the worst, losing family members or friends to the violence, suffering physical and psychological trauma, or falling behind in school.

In the U.S., the 2016, presidential election divided Americans along ideological and political lines in ways we could not have imagined, just as the French 2017 presidential race is doing in France. For all nations, North Korea’s nuclear potential and Russia’s interference in democratic processes continue to destabilize international politics and threaten the planet..The famous quote “May you live in interesting times”  may be a blessing or a curse.  These  are indeed times of danger and uncertainty; but they are also times that challenge us to find better solutions than war and a new way forward towards that elusive goal of world peace..