Olivier Guichard, fervent Gaullist, dies

PARIS, Jan 21 (AFP) – Olivier Guichard, who died at his Paris home on Tuesday at the age of 83, was the man who did more than anyone else to keep the legacy of his mentor, General de Gaulle, alive.

Guichard, who held many ministerial posts in successive Gaullist governments, was a loyal and faithful servant to his political master, having stood by him in the lean years of post-war France.

After the triumph of helping liberate France from the Nazi occupation, de Gaulle found himself in the political wilderness from 1946 until his accession to power in 1958 but Guichard never wavered in his support.

He was rewarded with the post of key advisor to the general once he became president and was later prime minister Georges Pompidou’s right-hand man, going on to serve as a minister, reponsible at various times for industry, education, housing and tourism.

Born near Bordeaux on July 27, 1920, Guichard studied law and went on to take a diploma in political science.

He won the Croix de Guerre for his wartime service before teaming up with de Gaulle and in later years was mayor of the Atlantic resort of La Baule, in his Loire-Atlantique constituency, for 24 years from 1971 to 1995.

Guichard was the author of a book on de Gaulle, “Mon General”, which won the prestigious Prix des Ambassadeurs in 1980, a decade after the general’s death.

Subject: France news