To mark the 90e To mark the IHEDN’s anniversary, this summer we are publishing a selection of speeches delivered to students between the 1930s and the 1970s by intellectual and historical figures such as John F. Kennedy, Raymond Aron, Fernand Braudel and Léopold Sédar Senghor… This four-part series will explore the history of the Institute, the fundamentals of strategy, French society and what is now known as the «Global South».
Vice-Admiral Raoul Castex, inaugural address, 15 October 1936
Defence Historical Service, reference GR 2N 279
As its title suggests, this speech was the very first to be delivered to the Institute’s students at the start of its very first national session. Vice-Admiral Raoul Castex (1878–1968), the first director and a leading military theorist, welcomed the students by looking back on the founding of what was then known as the Collège des hautes études de défense nationale (CHEDN).
It is «no easy task» to «set up such a body from scratch in a very short space of time – within two months, to be precise – without any precedent of this kind» in France – he will go on to describe the case of the’Imperial Defence College British, founded in 1927. He then explains the very concept of national defence, whose various components «influence one another», and delves into history to discuss strategic concepts such as total war.
He concludes by describing the ethos he intends to instil in this new college: «Here there will prevail a very broad approach – one which I consider highly fruitful – characterised by free inquiry and independent discussion.»
General Charles Mast, opening address, 29 November 1948
French National Archives, reference number 20100024/7
Following the Second World War, the CHEDN was re-established in late 1948 under its definitive name, the Institute of Higher National Defence Studies. Its new director, General Charles Mast (1889–1977), distinguished himself in particular during the preparations for the Allied landings in North Africa in 1942, before becoming France’s Resident-General in Tunisia until 1947.
In his speech, he warns his audience that the IHEDN «is not some sort of super war college designed to introduce a select group of civilian figures to military strategy»:
«The aim of our Institute is quite different. It is to prepare civilian or military figures for their duties should they be called upon, either in peacetime or in the event of a conflict, to take up an important post either amongst members of the government or within the national defence staff, or within the country’s economic governing bodies (whether in the nationalised or private sector).»
He then goes on to describe the organisation of the curriculum – the precursor to the current five major subjects of the national examination – the work of the committees, and the secrecy surrounding certain projects. Before concluding: «Such training is no less relevant in a peacetime economy than in a wartime one.»
President of the Republic Charles de Gaulle, opening address, 3 November 1959
French National Archives, reference number 20100024/30
Charles de Gaulle (1890–1970) makes no mention of this in his speech, but he had already been associated with the IHEDN for almost thirty years when he addressed the national session in his capacity as President of the Republic in late 1959. Indeed, it was Battalion Commander de Gaulle who, in a letter dated 20 April 1931 to Marshal Pétain, had foreshadowed the ’new educational order« which was realised five years later with the creation of the CHEDN. Promoted to lieutenant-colonel, he would in fact be one of its first speakers, on 22 October 1936.
This connection was to endure throughout his tenure as head of state, as he addressed the IHEDN’s students almost every year until his resignation in 1969. On 3 November 1959, at the École Militaire, he also addressed the officers from the three war colleges and the Centre for Advanced Military Studies (CHEM), but it was the director of the IHEDN, the Inspector-General of Finance Jean Essig, whom he mentioned first.
His conclusion reads like a poetic definition of the concept of national defence, worthy of a Head of State: «There is no military talent or genius that has not served a broader political purpose. There is no great glory of a statesman that has not been enhanced by the splendour of national defence.»
President of the United States John Fitzgerald Kennedy, welcoming address, 25 March 1963
French National Archives, reference number 20100024/45
When he received the IHEDN delegates at the White House, President John Fitzgerald Kennedy (1917–1963) was infinitely courteous towards his guests, who were embarking on a study mission in his country. Seated opposite him, alongside the Director of the IHEDN, General Fernand Gambiez, was the French Ambassador to Washington, Hervé Alphand, a pillar of Franco-American relations who had held the post for nearly ten years, right in the midst of the Cold War.
«Your brothers-in-arms in the US Armed Forces look forward to giving you a warm welcome at all the bases you visit,» said the US President, who tragically passed away eight months later:
«I believe you will find that the American people regard the alliance with France as fundamental to our security, and that we consider close cooperation between France and the United States to be essential.»
Given the wording and the context of the time, his conclusion does indeed highlight the strength of the bond between the two countries: «You are the representatives of a warrior and distinguished race which has proven its military capabilities for a thousand years. We welcome you to this country as allies and friends who are fighting shoulder to shoulder with us for the freedom of the West in these troubled times.»
The next instalment in our series «The Pen and the Shield» will be published next week: «The School of Strategy».
The IHEDN would like to thank the Archives Mission within the Prime Minister’s Office and the Defence Historical Service for facilitating access to these lectures.
