French has played a central role in Congolese education since its independence in 1960. Its dominant position at the postcolonial school is subject to controversy on the national and international level. However, the way that pupils themselves have experienced the role of French at school has not been researched so far. This paper investigates the way that pupils from an elitist school in Congo-Kinshasa remember their experiences with the French language at school between the 1960s and 1990s. Looking into memories about French at school not only contributes to classroom history but also adds insight into the role of language as a crystallising focal point of the paradoxes of post-colonial education. The core of this research is based on an analysis of 23 oral history interviews with former pupils who attended the same elitist school in one of the largest Congolese cities during different periods ranging over the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. The interviews are complemented by an analysis of textbooks used in French lessons during the same time period. The interviews illustrate that the pupils experienced the French language as an integral part of the schooling system.