Free France
Forces Françaises Libres de la Libération | |
|---|---|
.svg) Flag of Free France | |
 Free France in Light Green Puppet Dahomey in Gray TAG = FFA | |
| Capital | Abdijan |
| Ruling Party | 
Comité Français de Libération Nationale |
| Head of State | Charles de Gaulle |
| Head of Government | Jacques Chaban-Delmas |
| Sphere |  No Sphere |
| Foreign Alignment | Non-Aligned |
| GDP | $0.43B |
| Credit Rating |  Good |
| Market Type |  Dirigisme |
Free France, officially the Free French Liberation Forces, is a country in West Africa. It is the last remnants of Charles de Gaulle's Free French government-in-exile, which fought the Germans during World War II in the hopes of liberating France from the German yoke. Unfortunately, the German victory in the war severely blunted the odds of liberating La Metropole. Things have not gone in their favour post-war, either, as they have since lost control of the majority of their colonial holdings to local independence movements and revolts.
Now, the only African territory the Free French have left is the Ivory Coast, which grants Free France borders with Mali, Sokoto and Mossiland to the north, Ghana to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the south and Liberia and Guinea to the west. They also hold control of the Kerguelen Islands in the southern Indian Ocean, where they will be exiled if they are defeated in the West African War. The Ivory Coast is, in fact, also not a great place to have been left stranded, as the German Luftwaffe terror bombings still run through the country and devastates any semblance of infrastructure and economy.
History[edit | edit source]
The Free French Liberation Forces were established in 1940 following the 1940 Franco-German Armistice that ended French involvement in the Second World War on behalf of the Allies. Mainland France was placed under the rule of Philippe Petain and his French State, with the northern half of the country placed under temporary German military occupation.
Thankfully for the Allies, not all Frenchmen accepted this armistice, and amongst them, was General Charles de Gaulle who rallied those anti-Nazi French to establish the Free French Liberation Forces, a military organisation dedicated to one day freeing La Metropole from the Nazi yoke.
Despite the fiery speech of 18th July 1940, many French soldiers that managed to escape decided to be repatriated back to Petain's Vichy state. Many didn't feel keen to join either, owing their loyalty to the remnants of the French government in the south.
Throughout World War II, the Free French did all they could to oppose the Nazis, mainly organising the remains of the French armed forces, fighting the Italians in East Africa and helping the resistance in the homeland - all whilst waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike. However that moment never arrived.
The Italians in East Africa proved much more difficult to defeat than anticipated as their viceroy was able to use the terrain of the region to wage a guerilla campaign that tied down Allied forces. And then in 1943 Germany launched their invasion of Britain, Operation Sea Lion, which forced the British to recall their troops from Africa to defend their homeland and allowed the Italians to overrun Egypt and reclaim East Africa.
Following the British surrender in 1945, the United States relocated their focus to the Pacific, leaving Free France alone to fight the Germans and Italians in Africa. Thankfully for them the Axis powers saw no need to overextend to crush them and so they were spared an invasion, but with Britain out of the war, their hopes of liberating La Metropole were effectively rendered dead in the water.
Following the end of the war the United States ceased to recognise Free France as the legitimate government of France, which only hurt their political standing further. As a further insult, the Luftwaffe began a terror bombing campaign over West Africa, using their bombers to raze anything larger than a house to the ground. This forced the Free French to go underground, or into the forests.
The combination of these bombings and the rise of African discontent against colonialism proved too much for Free France, and throughout the 1950s they would gradually lose control of their West African territory, as colony after colony rose up against the French colonial government and their garrisons, eventually left with only the Ivory Coast and Kerguelen remaining in their grasp.
By 1962, Free France is in a pitiful state, yet a shadow that refuses to die. It is mainly fueled by de Gaulle's conviction that one day he will return to mainland France as a hero, reclaiming the Metropole as he said he would 22 years ago, but even his generals are having a hard time believing him anymore...
