Portrait of Paul Magès "the Professor" in the Ramatuelle newspaper (1989)

In this document

This is a portrait article published in the Ramatuelle section of a regional daily newspaper in the south of France, dated "Thursday 29 June 1989" p. 1. The title refers to him as "the Professor" and evokes the description "Savior of De Gaulle?", taken from the newspaper Auto Plus of 19 April 1989 p. 1.

Life in Ramatuelle

The article presents Paul Magès retired in Pampelonne, surrounded by his wife, "holder of the gold medal of the French family" p. 1. He is described as a re-elected municipal councillor who became deputy mayor, in charge of "major works" and "sanitation problems" p. 1. He is also presented as an administrator of the club La Fleur de l'âge ramatuelloise p. 1.

Physical portrait and career at Citroën

The text describes him as "small and thin," with "grey eyes," endowed with a "great power of concentration" p. 1. A former student of the Arts et Métiers in Marseille, he became a draftsman and then an engineer at Citroën, working successively on braking, suspension, and then hydraulics p. 1.

The hydropneumatic suspension

The article describes a "Traction" equipped with height correction by "an electrical switch placed in each of the suspension arms," acting on an electromagnet and a hydraulic distributor p. 1. This system is presented as a precursor, later applied to braking, steering, and the gearbox, then to the DS, described as the "car of the Fifth Republic" p. 1.

The Petit-Clamart attack

The newspaper claims that Mr. Magès's system "saved General de Gaulle" during the "Petit-Clamart attack," the DS having been "controlled at over 100 km/h" despite two flat tires p. 1.

Distinctions

The article mentions that Paul Magès is "already a holder of the Order of Merit" and suggests that he "would deserve" the Legion of Honour p. 1.

Context

Historically, the DS, unveiled on 6 October 1955, is indeed associated with the hydropneumatic suspension developed by Citroën teams, of which Paul Magès was one of the key engineers — he had drawn up the plans as early as 17 February 1944 (Plans for hydropneumatic suspension with differential interaction) and conducted the first tests on a 2 CV in 1946 (Notebook of the first 2 CV tests). The Petit-Clamart attack against General de Gaulle took place on 22 August 1962; the resistance of the presidential DS despite damaged tires is an episode widely reported by the automotive press, popularizing the image of the "car that saved de Gaulle." This portrait is explained by Paul Magès's retirement in Ramatuelle after leaving Citroën in September 1974 (Photographs of Paul Magès's retirement) : he became a municipal councillor there in 1977 and then 2nd deputy mayor in 1983 (List of members of the Ramatuelle municipal council), and is nicknamed "the Professor" there (Portrait of Paul Magès in Ramatuelle, illustrated press article). These elements, external to the document, allow us to contextualize the admiration expressed by the local article.

Archivist's perspective

This portrait, with its warm and local tone, testifies to the late notoriety of Paul Magès in his retirement commune, where his past as a Citroën engineer coexists with his municipal commitment. It seems that the article relies largely on the media legend already constructed by Auto Plus a few months earlier p. 1, rather than on an in-depth original interview.

This document clearly illustrates how Magès's technical invention — hydraulic height correction — was popularized and associated, in the collective imagination, with a significant political episode rather than its actual technical complexity.