Begin to free yourself at once by doing all that is possible with the means you have, and as you proceed in this spirit the way will open for you to do more.

Lebrun remains Minister of Liberated Regions. However he did not always make the most effective decisions concerning military issues (though he did heed the advice of the more experienced generals). Wilson however resisted the French claim so firmly that Clemenceau accused him of being ‘pro German’.

Clemenceau served as the Prime Minister of France from 1906 to 1909 and again from 1917 to 1920. A leader of the Radical Party he played a central role in politics after 1870.