Why did a French military court sentence Charles de Gaulle to death in absentia in 1940?

On August 2, 1940, a French military court sentenced Charles de Gaulle to death in absentia, along with the deprivation of his military rank and the confiscation of his property.1

This sentence was a direct response to his refusal to accept the armistice sought by the government of Marshal Philippe Pétain with Nazi Germany. After the Reynaud government was replaced by Pétain’s administration, which intended to seek peace with the Germans, de Gaulle left for London. On June 18, 1940, he broadcast an appeal to his compatriots to continue the war under his leadership, effectively positioning himself as a rebel against the new French regime.12