Anatole de Monzie (22 November 1876,

Bazas Bazas (; oc-gsc, Vasats) is a commune in the Gironde department in southwestern France. Geography Bazas stands on a narrow promontory above the Beuve valley 60 km/37 mi southeast of Bordeaux and 40 km/25 mi southwest of ...

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– 11 January 1947,

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) was a French

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, encyclopaedist (''

Encyclopédie française The ''Encyclopédie française'' was a French encyclopedia designed by Anatole de Monzie and Lucien Febvre. It appeared between 1935 and 1966. Volumes *I. L'Outillage mental. Pensée, langage, mathématique. *II. La physique. *III. Le Ciel et la ...

''), political figure and scholar. His father was a tax collector in

where Anatole – a name he disliked from an early age – was born in 1876. A nurse mishap resulted in an accident where the infant Anatole lost the proper use of his leg and he remained crippled for the rest of his life. He never married but had several relationships. A brilliant mind, he studied in

Agen The communes of France, commune of Agen (, ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Lot-et-Garonne Departments of France, department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France. It lies on the river Garonne southeast of Bordeaux. ...

before attending the Collège Stanislas, a famous

Roman Catholic school Catholic schools are pre-primary, primary and secondary educational institutions administered under the aegis or in association with the Catholic Church. , the Catholic Church operates the world's largest religious, non-governmental school syst ...

in Paris, where he became friend with writer to be Henry de Jouvenel and Roman Catholic activist Marc Sangnier.

Career

He studied law and started to practice but finally chose politics. He was chef de cabinet of education minister Joseph Chautemps in 1902. At about the same time, he started a career as a local politician in the

Lot Lot or LOT or The Lot or ''similar'' may refer to: Common meanings Areas * Land lot, an area of land * Parking lot, for automobiles *Backlot, in movie production Sets of items *Lot number, in batch production *Lot, a set of goods for sale togethe ...

, a forlorn and backwater, yet charming, department in the south west of France. Successively, and very often simultaneously, he became counsellor, general, mayor of Cahors (the local prefecture), deputy and senator. Soon commanding a huge following among the local voters, pleased by his culture, his easy access to government and proficiency in handing out public sector jobs, he made of the Lot a lifelong stronghold. Member of a small centrist faction, called ''Républicains Socialistes'', he soon cut a fine figure in the Chambre des Députés because of its abilities and its central positioning. His thriving ministerial career started in 1913 when he was appointed ''sous-secrétaire d'État à la marine marchande''. From 1918 to 1940, he occupied numerous positions in all sorts of governments and was appointed minister eighteen times. As a finance minister, he is remembered for recommending to cut the budget in 1925. He was deeply involved in diplomatic affairs, starting a campaign for a renewal of the relations with the

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followed, in 1922, by a plea for the acknowledgment of the

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. From 1924 to 1927, he headed the Russian Affairs Commission and as such dealt with some of the prominent Russian figures of that time. He started discussing the reimbursement of the Russian loans but, after the return to power of

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in 1926, the negotiation failed. In 1925, he also served briefly as Minister of Education and Fine Arts. He is credited for introducing philosophy in the high school curriculum, perhaps a reflect of his masonic affiliation. He also banned the teaching of local dialects or languages in school – for instance, declaring in 1927 that "''for the linguistic unity of France, the Breton language must disappear''". During a new stint as Minister of Education in the government of Édouard Herriot in 1932, the name of the department was changed to ''Éducation nationale'', a name it has kept hitherto. His policy generally promoted a free and neutral education system. Minister of ''Travaux publics'' in 1938, he was confronted to a great dockers strike, which enhanced the

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distrust for his person. Between 1938 and 1940, he led several diplomatic missions. During that time of international tensions, Anatole's position was a matter of controversy. A stalwart pacifist, he was indeed actively promoting a Latin alliance between France and

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who would mediate between

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and the Allies. He voted to assent governmental powers to

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in 1940. Being a friend of

Otto Abetz Heinrich Otto Abetz (26 March 1903 – 5 May 1958) was the German ambassador to Vichy France during the Second World War and a convicted war criminal. In July 1949 he was sentenced to twenty years' hard labour by a Paris military tribunal, he was ...

, Darquier de Pellepoix and Fernand de Brinon, he was nonetheless an object of hatred for many among the

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. He was forced to resign from his mayorship in 1942. Indicted by the ''Comité national des écrivains'' (National Writers' Committee) in 1945, he died in Paris two years later. Anatole de Monzie was a scholar and something of a writer. His intellectual legacy numbers the publication of the

from 1935 on. He was also connected to various French writers and intellectuals of the time, including

Colette Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette (; 28 January 1873 – 3 August 1954), known mononymously as Colette, was a French author and woman of letters. She was also a mime, actress, and journalist. Colette is best known in the English-speaking world for her ...

Roland Dorgelès Roland Dorgelès (; 15 June 1885 – 18 March 1973) was a French novelist and a member of the Académie Goncourt. Born in Amiens, Somme, under the name Roland Lecavelé (he adopted the pen name Dorgelès to commemorate visits to the spa town of ...

Lucien Febvre Lucien Paul Victor Febvre (, ; 22 July 1878 – 11 September 1956) was a French historian best known for the role he played in establishing the Annales School of history. He was the initial editor of the ''Encyclopédie française'' together wit ...

and Pierre Benoit, whom he introduced to the Lot, especially the little town of

Saint-Céré Saint-Céré (; Languedocien: ''Sant Seren'') is a commune in the Lot department, southern France. Its population is 3,414 (2019). The commune includes within its borders the castle of Saint-Laurent-les-Tours, where the artist Jean Lurçat li ...

, where the writer wrote several of his works. Despite his achievements, however, his legacy will be forever tainted by his genocidal opposition to Breton culture.

Works of Anatole de Monzie

*''Les Réformes scolaires'', Paris, Stock, 1905 *''Aux confins de la politique'', Paris, Grasset, 1913 *''Si resucitara !'', Paris, Alcan, 1915 (sur les relations Franco-espagnoles) *''Rome sans Canossa, ou la diplomatie de la présence'', Paris, Albin Michel, 1918 *''L'entrée au forum : vingt ans avant'', Paris, Albin Michel, 1920 *''La Mort de Julie'', Paris, Auguste Blaizot, 1922 *''Du Kremlin au Luxembourg'', Paris, Delpuech, 1924 *''Les Contes de Saint-Céré'', Paris, Gallimard, 1929 *''Grandeur et servitude judiciaires'', Paris, Kra, 1931 *''Petit manuel de la Russie nouvelle'', Paris, Firmin-Didot, 1931 *''Livre d'oraisons'', Paris, Excelsior, 1934 *''Les Veuves abusives'', Paris, Grasset, 1937 *''Ci-devant'', Paris, Flammarion, 1941 *''Pétition pour l'histoire'', Paris, Flammarion, 1942 *''Mémoires de la tribune'', Paris, Correa, 1943 *''La Saison des juges'', Paris, Flammarion, 1943 *''Le Conservatoire du peuple'', Paris, Société d'Édition d'enseignement supérieur, 1948

References

*Guillaume Lagane, ''Anatole de Monzie et les élections de 1936'', Mémoire de

Sciences Po Paris , motto_lang = fr , mottoeng = Roots of the Future , type = Public research university''Grande école'' , established = , founder = Émile Boutmy , accreditation ...

, 1992 {{DEFAULTSORT:Monzie, Anatole De 1876 births 1947 deaths People from Gironde Politicians from Nouvelle-Aquitaine Republican-Socialist Party politicians French Socialist Party (1919) politicians Socialist Republican Union politicians Transport ministers of France French Ministers of National Education French Ministers of Finance Members of the 9th Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic Members of the 10th Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic Members of the 11th Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic French Senators of the Third Republic Senators of Lot (department) Members of the 14th Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic Members of the 15th Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic Members of the 16th Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic Collège Stanislas de Paris alumni