Editing Charles de Gaulle (section)

=== Early 1920s: Poland and staff college ===
[[File:Charles de Gaulle en Pologne.jpg|thumb|left|De Gaulle during the mission to Poland, c. 1920]]
After the armistice, de Gaulle served with the staff of the [[French Military Mission to Poland]] as an instructor of Poland's infantry during its [[Polish-Soviet War|war with communist Russia]] (1919–1921). He distinguished himself in operations near the [[Zbrucz|River Zbrucz]], with the rank of major in the Polish army, and won Poland's highest military decoration, the [[Virtuti Militari]].<ref name="Fenby-2010" />{{RP|71–74}}
[[File:Charles de Gaulle vers 1922-1924.jpg|thumb|right|De Gaulle at the [[École supérieure de guerre]], between 1922 and 1924]]

De Gaulle returned to France, where he became a lecturer in military history at Saint-Cyr.<ref>Lacouture 1991, p. 64</ref> He studied at the ''[[École de Guerre]]'' (staff college) from November 1922 to October 1924. Here he clashed with his instructor Colonel Moyrand by arguing for tactics based on circumstances rather than doctrine, and after an exercise in which he had played the role of commander, he refused to answer a question about supplies, replying ''"de minimis non curat [[praetor]]"'' (roughly: "a leader does not concern himself with trivia") before ordering the responsible officer to answer Moyrand. 

He obtained respectable, but not outstanding grades on many of his assessments. Moyrand wrote in his final report that he was "an intelligent, cultured and serious-minded officer; has brilliance and talent" but criticised him for not deriving as much benefit from the course as he should have, and for his arrogance: his "excessive self-confidence", his harsh dismissal of the views of others "and his attitude of a King in exile". Having entered 33rd out of 129, he graduated in 52nd place, with a grade of ''assez bien'' ("good enough"). He was posted to [[Mainz]] to help supervise supplies of food and equipment for the [[Occupation of the Rhineland|French Army of Occupation]].<ref>Lacouture 1991, pp. 66–71, 213–5</ref><ref name="Fenby-2010" />{{RP|82}}
De Gaulle's book ''La Discorde chez l'ennemi'' had appeared in March 1924. In March 1925 he published an essay on the use of tactics according to circumstances, a deliberate defiance of Moyrand.<ref>Lacouture 1991, pp. 71–2</ref>