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GENERAL CHARLES DE GAULLE
During a meeting with General de Gaulle at the Élysée palace, Daniel
Johnson, Quebec's premier at the time, officially invited the French President
to visit him in Montreal during Expo 67.
De Gaulle initially turned down the invitation, but later changed his
mind and decided to make the trip.
For reasons of protocol, French President de Gaulle decided to cross the
Atlantic on board the cruiser Colbert. On July 24, 1967, in Montreal,
the second largest French-speaking city in the world, de Gaulle gave a
rousing speech to an enthusiastic crowd filled with the spirit of the
Quiet Revolution. It was during that speech that he made his famous statement,
"Vive le Québec libre!" from the balcony of Montreal's City Hall. A declaration
which sent shockwaves across the country and even around the world. The
following day, he headed to Expo to celebrate the national day of the
France pavilion.
 Several
thousand people came to cheer for him during the official ceremony at
Place des Nations. De Gaulle then visited many of the pavilions, including
those of Canada, Quebec, Great Britain, the United States, Belgium, the
Netherlands and Italy, as well as Africa Place. In fact, he made official
visits to more pavilions than any other head of state. The day ended with
a dinner at the French pavilion, where he was joined by Premier Daniel
Johnson, Mayor Jean Drapeau, Cardinal Paul-Émile Léger and Commissioner
Pierre Dupuy.
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