Charles de Gaulle was the man seen by many French people to have been their true leader in WWII. He attained the rank of brigadier general and led the Free French Forces (composed of French soldiers in Britain) and a government in exile against France's pro-German Vichy government. Despite his initial defeat, de Gaulle insisted France be treated as a great power by the other Allies. In 1944, de Gaulle was officially recognized as the head of the French government.

France

Charles de Gaulle