" (, 'Long live free Quebec!') was a phrase in a speech delivered by French President Charles de Gaulle in Montreal, Quebec on July 24, 1967, during an official visit to Canada for the Expo 67 world's fair. While giving an address to a large crowd from a balcony at Montreal City Hall, he uttered ("Long live Montreal, Long live Quebec!") and then added, followed by loud applause, ("Long live free Quebec!") with particular emphasis on the word . The phrase, a slogan used by Quebecers who favoured Quebec sovereignty, was seen as giving his support to the movement. The speech caused a diplomatic incident with the Government of Canada and was condemned by Canadian Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson, saying that "Canadians do not need to be liberated". In France, though many were sympathetic to the cause of Quebec nationalism, De Gaulle's speech was criticized as a breach of protocol. Background Even before his arrival, the Canadian federal government had been concerned about President de Gaulle's visit. Earlier that year, the French government had not sent a high-level representative to the funeral service for Governor General Georges Vanier. This attracted notice in Canada, as Vanier and his wife, Pauline, had been personal friends of de Gaulle since 1940, when the latter was in exile in London, England. In April, de Gaulle did not attend the 50th anniversary ceremonies commemorating the Canadian victory at Vimy Ridge. So worried was the Pearson government about potential interference of France in domestic affairs that Secretary of State for External Affairs, Paul Martin, was dispatched to visit de Gaulle in Paris to mend the two countries' relationship. The Montreal Gazette speculated, 45 years after the incident, that de Gaulle was still annoyed over a perceived slight from World War II-era Canadian Prime Minister Mackenzie King's slow recognition of the new French government in late summer 1944. In the spring of 1966, as part of the Expo 67 diplomatic protocols, de Gaulle and all world leaders whose countries had an exhibit at the fair were invited to visit Canada during the spring and summer of 1967. A few months later, de Gaulle was also sent a separate invitation to visit Quebec by Quebec premier Daniel Johnson. De Gaulle, as a visiting head of state, should have arrived in the Canadian capital of Ottawa, as would be conventional protocol. Instead, he took the time to sail