Remember the name Philippe Leclerc de Hauteclocque? He adopted the pseudonym Leclerc to protect his family in France. Standing before the Général Leclerc Statue we honor a man of courage. This statue commemorates a key figure in France’s liberation during World War II.
Leclerc was born in 1902. He was a member of an old noble family. Leclerc was a brilliant officer. By 1934 he became a captain. In 1938 he was first in his class at the École de Guerre. His time in Morocco revealed his independent spirit.
Hearing de Gaulle’s call, Leclerc joined him in London. De Gaulle entrusted him with rallying Cameroon. Leclerc then brought Gabon under Free French control. As military commander of Chad, he launched raids into Libya. He captured Koufra in 1941. Later he linked up with Montgomery’s British 8th Army in Tripoli.
In August 1943 Leclerc was tasked with forming the 2nd DB. This division was created in Morocco. After training in England, Leclerc landed in Normandy on August 1, 1944. His mission was to liberate France.
Leclerc liberated Alençon and helped clear the Falaise pocket. De Gaulle told Leclerc his division would liberate Paris. Leclerc moved ahead. Finally he received orders to advance on Paris. Leclerc and his division forced the enemy to surrender with help from the FFI.
Leclerc was only 42. He achieved a vital military and political victory. Paris was spared major destruction. De Gaulle arrived in Montparnasse after Von Choltitz surrendered. Leclerc had ensured De Gaulle’s position as leader of France.
After Paris, Leclerc liberated Strasbourg in November 1944. He fulfilled the Koufra oath. Leclerc’s campaign ended at Hitler’s Eagle’s Nest in Berchtesgaden in May 1945.
Leclerc represented France at Japan’s surrender in September 1945. He re-established French control in Indochina. Becoming inspector of armed forces in North Africa, he advocated for liberal reforms. Leclerc died in a plane crash in Morocco in 1947.
In 1952 Leclerc was posthumously made a Marshal of France. Monuments and place names keep his memory alive. The Général Leclerc Statue stands as a tribute to his pivotal role in liberating Paris. The statue is located at Porte d’Orléans in Paris. It stands on a pedestal made of stainless steel. Bronze plaques list the names of 1,800 soldiers of the 2nd DB. They died for France’s liberation from Normandy to Berchtesgaden.
The memorial was first inaugurated August 25, 1969. It was renovated in 1997 by architect Sylvain Dubuisson. The renovation commemorated the 50th anniversary of Leclerc’s death. The stainless steel base is five meters high. The stainless steel masts reach twenty meters. This statue is more than just metal and stone. It embodies courage, leadership, and the unwavering pursuit of freedom.