Maison Natale Charles de Gaulle

The Maison Natale Charles de Gaulle (Birthplace of Charles de Gaulle) is the preserved home in which former French President Charles de Gaulle was born on November 22, 1890. The home of de Gaulle’s grandparents, it was a place to which he returned on vacation and for family reunions during his childhood.

Today, the building operates as a museum on the childhood of Charles de Gaulle and on the de Gaulle family. Collections feature original furniture as well as a number of items belonging to the family, including a sabre from the École Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr belonging to de Gaulle’s son Phillipe, a portrait of de Gaulle’s maternal grandfather Jules Émile Maillot, and the young de Gaulle’s original cradle and baptismal robe.       

The building is owned and maintained by the Fondation Charles de Gaulle, and has been operated as a museum open to visitors since 1983; from 2014 onwards, it has been administered by the Départment du Nord alongside other municipal museums. It maintains its mission “to present the childhood and the genesis of ‘the most illustrious of the French’.” In 2019, the museum was closed for renovations: the house was extensively repaired and restored to resemble its appearance in the 1890s, the time of de Gaulle’s childhood. Today, the building holds added historical significance for the region as both de Gaulle’s birthplace and an example of late-nineteenth century interior design.