Office of the Historian

Hopkins Papers: Telegram

The British Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (Eden) to Prime Minister Churchill 1

most secret
[London,] January 4, 1942.

Taut 376. Following for Prime Minister from Foreign Secretary.

Your telegram Grey 210 (of 3rd January: St. Pierre and Miquelon).2

I assume that under this formula the islands will be regarded as independent and entitled to choose their own regime, pending their restoration to whatever government is established in France after the war, subject only to demilitarisation and control over certain installations which will be exercised by the three governments.

2.
I am not however clear about what the position will be if local inhabitants, in “full exercise of their rights of domestic self-government” decide to ask General de Gaulle to appoint a Governor and elect to be under authority of national committee. In these circumstances I assume the three governments would not oppose the declared wish of the inhabitants.
3.
I expect the greatest difficulty in getting General de Gaulle to agree to withdraw his forces under proposition formulated.
He will no doubt say the preservation of French sovereignty is a fundamental point for him and that national committee would lose all justification for its existence if it consented to removal of islands from its direction. Nevertheless, provided that the Canadian Government agreed to it, I am of course, prepared to make the attempt.
4.
It had appeared to us from Halifax’s telegram number 19 (of January 2nd)3 that if de Gaulle is adamant about withdrawal his forces Mr. Hull would not insist. Is this still the position?
5.
I would however suggest following amendments and additions:
(a)
At end of paragraph 1 we should say “All 3 Governments” instead of “British Government”?
(b)
To forestall criticism both from Vichy and General de Gaulle that we intend to keep the islands, it would be well to make clear that French sovereignty remains. To meet this point I would suggest in first sentence paragraph 2 after words “Have agreed that” the following might be inserted:
“While islands are French and will remain French”.
(c)
In third sentence paragraph 2 after words “Domestic self-government” would it not be well to insert “Under a Governor of their own choosing”?
6.
I assume that Vichy will not be consulted about this formula.4
7.
It is essential that nothing should be said to Press until agreement has been reached between all 3 Governments and General de Gaulle whom I shall not approach until I know terms of formula agreed upon by both the United States and Canadian Governments with yourselves.
8.
After completion [:] immediately following telegram5 will show you the lines on which I was thinking before your telegram arrived.

Please let Halifax have a copy.

  1. The source text is marked “copy no. 1”.↩
  2. Not found in American files. The telegram presumably transmitted the text of the revised draft communiqué of January 3, 1942.↩
  3. Not found in American files.↩
  4. Hull presented the gist of the formula to the Vichy Government on January 3, but the latter in effect rejected it on January 5. See Foreign Relations, 1942, vol. ii, pp. 657–660.↩
  5. Infra. ↩