Chapter Thirteen: The Lost Four Years

“When General de Gaulle came to Damascus back then, he also promised,” General Delagon nodded. When de Gaulle sought support in Damascus, he barely discussed military matters with then-Lieutenant Colonel Delagon; their talks were mainly about the postwar period, including the issue of purging traitors.

But even so, that was in the past. France had since been liberated. If, as Coman suggested, the purge of collaborators were to be intensified, there could be problems—de Gaulle himself might even withdraw his support.

“So our operations must be quicker and fiercer, to purge those unworthy of their positions,” Coman sensed General Delagon’s concerns—the window for purging traitors was very brief.

As for how much support de Gaulle could offer, Coman recalled that de Gaulle’s first presidency was short-lived, mainly because the Fourth French Republic was a parliamentary system.

The parliamentary system of the Fourth Republic was a forerunner of political fragmentation that many later parliamentary states would experience.

As a revolutionary cradle and institutional pioneer, France had stumbled through various political pitfalls first. The government turnover in the Fourth Republic was as rapid as that of Japan or Italy.

De Gaulle tried to transform the parliamentary system into a presidential one but became mired in factional disputes and eventually resigned in protest.

If Coman made good use of de Gaulle’s brief presidency, it would be more than enough.

Back then, General Delagon had no troops and was under threat from General Giro; de Gaulle’s robust support was now calling for a return favor. Only by purging with groups unentangled with mainland interests could the purge movement proceed without interference.

France had not only stumbled through institutional pitfalls but also various theoretical ones; it was the first modern nation to believe in Malthusian population theory.

While the European powers competed for colonies worldwide, France’s population growth was slow. During the reign of the Sun King, France was the largest population nation in Europe, including Imperial Russia.

France was also the only country at the time with a population over twenty million, but it was later surpassed by Imperial Russia, Britain, Germany, and Austria-Hungary. The Napoleonic era was France’s last flare; after Napoleon, France’s population growth stagnated. With the same technological level, the side with the larger population held the advantage.

“Before I return to the mainland, could Father discuss with General de Gaulle the idea of annexing Sardinia?” Coman brought up the old matter while walking with General Delagon.

“You know the chances are slim; why bother?” General Delagon was no prodigy but had enough military experience to understand France’s awareness of Sardinia’s importance. Surely, Britain and France saw it too.

“It’s to provoke the Anglo-Americans to oppose us—we should keep a distance from these two allies,” Coman replied indifferently. “After World War I, these two sided against us to prevent weakening Germany. Their opposition this time is expected. The more people who see through these English-speaking countries’ true nature, the better for France. Concrete actions will follow.”

“If you have ideas, just say them,” General Delagon knew his son was no ordinary thinker; their conversations were different from typical father-son talks.

“Let’s start relocating the Sardinian population now,” Coman said bluntly. “Father acts first; I’ll watch for domestic reactions. If pressured by the Anglo-Americans, I believe General de Gaulle will come forward to explain. This will be a test of the two countries—they owe France after World War I.”

General Delagon bore no qualms. Italy was said to be spared from purging, but its quick alignment couldn’t change the fact it was part of the Axis.

Even if the Sardinian annexation failed, the move itself wouldn’t provoke retaliation.

“Then begin by tallying the island’s residents and relocating them.” At this moment, General Delagon proved the Allied generals’ reputation for good communication was well deserved, though they didn’t know Coman was even easier to talk to.

“Start with the young women; they should be the first group to control.”

Seeing General Delagon’s expression demanding explanation, Coman gave his reasoning: “Population must be categorized—children, labor force, and elderly. The labor force holds the greatest value. The elderly have neither labor nor reproductive value; their costs outweigh benefits.”

“Children are an investment in the future, so that’s a given. The labor force is the most valuable group currently, and within it, men and women differ. Objectively, men under thirty pursue women; if we control the women of the same age group, men will naturally cooperate.”

Coman didn’t mention that such measures might foster hatred, but given Italy and the Axis’s inevitable defeat, no serious consequences were expected.

General Delagon thought Coman’s words weren’t entirely unreasonable. Yet, in his experience, no country had tackled gender relations in this way; it sounded rather shameless, prompting a wry smile: “Why does that sound so shameless?”

“That’s because you’ve never met me; if you had, you’d know I’d be shameless enough,” Coman replied calmly. “Control the women, and dealing with young men becomes much easier.”

Coman’s shameless self-praise left General Delagon helpless. Before he could respond, Coman continued, “We also need talent, which counts as population. Then there’s industrial technology. France endured four years of war after the mainland’s fall. War accelerates technological innovation, but France missed those years. The upside is minimal population loss; the downside is restarting academic and technological advancements from scratch. We objectively need talent and technology, and when advancing against Germany and Italy, we must seize their talents. I believe America has similar plans.”

Indeed, America had Operation Paperclip—a secret program to recruit German scientists, engineers, and technical experts to acquire advanced technology in rocketry, aviation, chemical weapons, and medicine, while preventing these talents from falling into Soviet hands.

But Coman’s goal differed. He aimed to restore France’s interrupted academic and technological research, not to find a single specialized team but to elevate French education overall. Recruiting Italian or German university professors to teach in French secondary schools—wouldn’t that be excellent?

“Some classical literature and philosophy professors,” General Delagon considered. That would indeed benefit France.

“Forget the humanities; we need talent in science and engineering,” Coman sneered. To put it in a phrase from Showa-era Japan: recruit the humanities first, let them die first.