Edward Spears
Videos
Major-General Sir Edward Louis Spears, 1st Baronet, was a British Army officer and politician. He served as a liaison officer between British and French forces during both World Wars. From 1917 to 192
Sir Edward Louis Spears in court uniform c. 21 May 1942
Old War Office Building in London. It was here that Spears worked with French counterparts developing a joint Anglo-French codebook.
Field Marshal French in Paris
When Winston Churchill (seen here with Admiral 'Jackie' Fisher) lost his post as First Lord of the Admiralty after the failure of the Gallipoli campaign, he served on the western front. Spears escorted him during his first visit and they became friends – a relationship that would see Spears appointed WSC's special representative to de Gaulle and the Free French in the Second World War.
The Anglo-French Supreme War Council was established to oversee joint military strategy at the start of the Second World War. Most of its deliberations took place during the period of the Phoney War,
Chateau du Muguet, in Breteau near Briare
The Préfecture at Tours – scene of crisis talks.