From the appeal of June 18, 1940 to his departure from power in 1969, a dive into nearly three decades of the public, but also private, life of Charles de Gaulle.

Relive 20th century history through the portrait of a statesman as he faces the test of power. French General and President Charles de Gaulle: The private story of the man who shaped a nation he loved. It is 1940. General Charles de Gaulle sees the leadership of his beloved country giving in under the pressure of the invading Nazis. But this is no option for him - he cannot gamble with the lives of his beloved wife Yvonne, his children, especially sweet innocent Anne. This is the moment he decides to go a different route. Together with British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, he plans to fight. And out of this, a friendship is born that will last long into the future - when de Gaulle will have led Free France to victory against the Nazis. Everyone knows Charles de Gaulle: General of the Resistance, who refused to give in to defeat; politician, visionary, liberator, peacemaker, strategist, builder of a nation in shambles. But no-one really knows the man behind the hero. Until now.