France 1919-1940

Personalities

France 1919-1940

Poincare: The general elections of 1919 saw Poincare's right-wing coalition "Bloc National" win massive majorities. Poincare conducted negotiations with decisiveness and determination, exemplified by his diplomacy in the face of new German threats from 1912-1913. He is sometimes criticized for being a revanchist, for he held an uncompromising attitude against Germany, for he believed that contemporary Europe was headed inevitably towards war. His only fear was that France would be isolated as it had been in 1870, and so desired strong alliances for security. He infused the position of presidency with new vitality and held national unity throughout World War I (1914-1918). Poincare would return to the senate after his term ran out and was chairman of the reparations committee. He was again elected as Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and in January 1923, ordered French troops to occupy the Ruhr valley because of late payments from Germany, representative of his strong stance with Germany. After losing the following elections, he was called, once again, to be Prime Minister in 1926 and is accredited with the stabilization of the franc and successful economic policies. He resigned in 1929 due to health.

Aristide Briand: After drafting the law forcing the separation of Church and State in 1906, Briand would break with the Socialists due to his conviction that Socialists should cooperate with Radicals in all matters of reform, as well as other moderate tendencies. He served numerous premierships starting in 1909. From 1917-1920, Briand spent little time with public affairs, except for his outspoken support of the League of Nations. He became premier again in January 1921, but was forced to resign, due to his failures in foreign policy, in January 1922. In April 1925, Briand would hold the post of foreign minister for 14 consecutive governments, four of which he headed. During this period, Briand achieved the Pact of Locarno with Stresemann of Germany and Chamberlain of Britain, which sought to normalize relations between Germany and its former enemies. Also, 1928 saw the creation of the Kellogg-Briand Pact, signed by 60 nations, which agreed to outlaw war as a method of foreign policy. In 1930, Briand advocated a federal union of Europe. He retired in 1932.

Edouard Herriot: An eloquent, persuasive orator, Herriot was a lifelong of the radical party. Herriot his political and administrative ability in World War I supply and transport issues. Herriot led the Cartel des Gauches, the left-wing coalition formed to fight the elections of May 1924, and its electoral triumph allowed Herriot to construct his own ministry in June 1924. Under Herriot�s leadership, France accepted the Dawes Plan and withdrew troops from the Ruhr valley. After his ministry fell due to financial policies, he joined the Poincare as cabinet as minister of education. Herriot became premier again in 1932, but his ministry fell six months later when the France as Chamber of Deputies refused to pay the December installment of debt to the United States. After stints as vice-premier, Herriot was elected president of the Chamber of Deputies, which he held until 1940 when he abstained from the first vote in the new Vichy government.

Paul Painleve: Painleve is generally not considered a particularly brilliant politician, but will always be known for his early interests in aviation and his landmark work in mathematics and differential equations. After serving as minister of education, minister of invention, and minister of war in preceding governments, he formed his own ministry in September 1917 and agreed to the formation of the Supreme Allied Council at Versailles. Painleve was succeeded as Prime Minister by Clemenceau. He was another founding member of the Cartel des Gauches. He served as war minister in the governments of Poincare and Briand, and as air minister from 1930-1932.

Leon Blum: First coming into prominence as a Republican Dreyfusard, his admiration of Jaures eventually led to his joining of the Socialist Party in 1904. Blum's first task was to reconstruct the Socialist Party after the split in 1920. In 1924, he supported the Cartel des Gauches. After the right-wing demonstrations of 1934 in Paris, Blum worked for solidarity between Socialists, Radicals and all other opposed to fascism. In 1932, he developed a Socialist program of pacifism, nationalization of French industry and measure countering unemployment. This led the Popular Front coalition of the Left, which won a large majority in the Chamber in May 1936. He became the first Jewish premier of France in June. His government introduced, among other things, the 40-hour workweek and collective bargaining for workers. Though national defense was built up, his policy of nonintervention in the Spanish Civil War was criticized as appeasement. Blum�s plans to establish state control of private industry and finance made French business leaders angry, and they refused to cooperate with the government. This caused sections of the right wing to adopt the slogan, "Better Hitler than Blum." In June 1937, Blum resigned after the conservative majority refused to give him emergency decree powers to solve financial problems. Blum was brought to trial in Riom after the establishment of the Vichy government, but his defense was so well done that his trial was suspended indefinitely. He was freed from a German concentration camp in 1945, and he retired in 1947.

Edouard Daladier: Daladier was first elected to the Chamber of Deputies in 1919. After serving as different ministers in 1925-33, he formed a government in 1933 which only lasted a few months, and a second government which lasted four weeks. He continued to take on different ministerial positions as he led his Radical Party into the Popular Front coalition along with the Socialists and Communists. He joined Britain's Chamberlain in signing the Munich Pact to avoid war, and was one of the defendants in the trial at Riom. He attempted to escape to set up a free French government in Morocco, but was captured by command from Vichy. He retired from politics in 1958.

Pierre Laval: Pierre Laval, a lawyer, was a member of the Socialist Party from 1903 and on. He left the Socialist party in 1920 after defeat in elections. He became deputy in 1914, lost in 1919. After different cabinet positions, he became premier in 1931. Laval was known for acting over the heads of his ministers. After losing in 1932, he acted as several more types of ministers. He became premier again in 1935. He wanted a strong Franco-Italian rapprochement as a method of achieving a stable Europe, but this fell apart over the Ethiopian crisis of 1936. Laval refused to devalue the franc. Feeling that German victory was imminent, Laval persuaded the government to accept an armistice so that there would be a legal government in France. After announcing that he wanted a German victory, he fled to Spain at the end of the War. After returning to France, he attempted to defend himself but faced a hostile court. He was executed, after attempting to poison himself, on October 15, 1945.

Paul Reynaud: As premier in June 1940, Reynaud attempted, unsuccessfully, to prevent German occupation of France. He was almost along in calling for French resistance to Nazis Germany and combined air-tank warfare, as recommended by Charles de Gaulle. He protested appeasement and supported austerity measures during 1938-1940 designed to put the country on a war footing. Unwilling to accept an armistice, he resigned on June 16. He was held in captivity for the duration of World War II.