military
Liberation of Paris — De Gaulle's Triumphal Entry
Following the D-Day landings in Normandy (June 6, 1944) and the breakout at Falaise, Free French forces under General Leclerc and the Resistance liberate Paris after a week of street fighting. Hitler's order to burn Paris is disobeyed by German commander Dietrich von Choltitz. Charles de Gaulle leads a triumphal march down the Champs-Élysées on August 26, asserting France's sovereignty and continuity.
Sources
- T1 Service historique de la Défense – Libération de Paris archives Official western
- T3 Antony Beevor & Artemis Cooper, Paris After the Liberation Institutional western