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Georges Benjamin Clemenceau (, also , ; 28 September 1841 – 24 November 1929) was a French statesman who served as
Prime Minister of France The prime minister of France (french: link=no, Premier ministre français), officially the prime minister of the French Republic, is the head of government of the French Republic and the leader of the Council of Ministers. The prime minister i ...
from 1906 to 1909 and again from 1917 until 1920. A key figure of the
Independent Radicals The Independent Radicals (french: Radicaux indépendants) were a centrist or conservative-liberal political current during the French Third Republic. It was slightly to the right of the more famous Radical-Socialist Party, and shared much of it ...
, he was a strong advocate of
separation of church and state The separation of church and state is a philosophical and jurisprudential concept for defining political distance in the relationship between religious organizations and the state. Conceptually, the term refers to the creation of a secular s ...
, amnesty of the Communards exiled to
New Caledonia ) , anthem = "" , image_map = New Caledonia on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of New Caledonia , map_caption = Location of New Caledonia , mapsize = 290px , subdivision_type = Sovereign st ...
, as well as opposition to colonisation. Clemenceau, a physician turned journalist, played a central role in the politics of the Third Republic, most notably successfully leading France through the end of the
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
. After about 1,400,000 French soldiers were killed between the German invasion and
Armistice An armistice is a formal agreement of warring parties to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, as it may constitute only a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace. It is derived from the ...
, he demanded a total victory over the
German Empire The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...
. Clemenceau stood for reparations, a transfer of colonies, strict rules to prevent a rearming process, as well as the restitution of Alsace–Lorraine, which had been annexed to Germany in 1871. He achieved these goals through the
Treaty of Versailles The Treaty of Versailles (french: Traité de Versailles; german: Versailler Vertrag, ) was the most important of the peace treaties of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June 1 ...
signed at the Paris Peace Conference (1919–1920). Nicknamed ''Père la Victoire'' ("Father of Victory") or ''Le Tigre'' ("The Tiger"), he continued his harsh position against Germany in the 1920s, although not quite so much as President
Raymond Poincaré Raymond Nicolas Landry Poincaré (, ; 20 August 1860 – 15 October 1934) was a French statesman who served as President of France from 1913 to 1920, and three times as Prime Minister of France. Trained in law, Poincaré was elected deputy in ...
or former Supreme Allied Commander Ferdinand Foch, who thought the treaty was too lenient on Germany, famously stating: "This is not peace. It is an armistice for twenty years." Clemenceau obtained mutual defence treaties with the United Kingdom and the United States, to unite against a possible future German aggression, but these never took effect.


Early years

Clemenceau was a native of
Vendée Vendée (; br, Vande) is a department in the Pays de la Loire region in Western France, on the Atlantic coast. In 2019, it had a population of 685,442.
, born in Mouilleron-en-Pareds. During the period of the
French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...
, Vendée had been a hotbed of monarchist sympathies. The department was remote from Paris, rural, and poor. His mother, Sophie Eucharie Gautreau (1817–1903), was of
Huguenot The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Be ...
descent. His father, Benjamin Clemenceau (1810–1897), came from a long line of physicians, but lived off his lands and investments and did not practice medicine. Benjamin was a political activist; he was arrested and briefly held in 1851 and again in 1858. He instilled in his son a love of learning, devotion to radical politics, and a hatred of
Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
. The lawyer Albert Clemenceau (1861–1955) was his brother. His mother was a devout Protestant; his father was an
atheist Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...
and insisted that his children should have no religious education. Clemenceau was interested in religious issues. He was a lifelong
atheist Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...
with a sound knowledge of the
Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus ...
. He became a leader of anti-clerical or "Radical" forces that battled against the Catholic Church in France and the Catholics in politics. He stopped short of the more extreme attacks. His position was that if church and state were kept rigidly separated, he would not support oppressive measures designed to further weaken the Catholic Church. After his studies in the Lycée in
Nantes Nantes (, , ; Gallo: or ; ) is a city in Loire-Atlantique on the Loire, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the sixth largest in France, with a population of 314,138 in Nantes proper and a metropolitan area of nearly 1 million inhabita ...
, Clemenceau received his French baccalaureate of letters in 1858. He went to Paris to study medicine and eventually graduated with the completion of his thesis "''De la génération des éléments anatomiques''" in 1865.


Political activism and American experience

In Paris, the young Clemenceau became a political activist and writer. In December 1861, he and some friends co-founded a weekly newsletter, ''Le Travail''. On 23 February 1862, he was arrested by the imperial police for having placed posters summoning a demonstration. He spent 77 days in the Mazas Prison. Around the same time, Clemenceau also visited the old French revolutionary Auguste Blanqui and another Republican activist, Auguste Scheurer-Kestner, in jail, further deepening his hatred of the
Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was the first President of France (as Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte) from 1848 to 1852 and the last monarch of France as Emperor of the French from 1852 to 1870. A neph ...
regime and advancing his fervent
republicanism Republicanism is a political ideology centered on citizenship in a state organized as a republic. Historically, it emphasises the idea of self-rule and ranges from the rule of a representative minority or oligarchy to popular sovereignty. ...
. He was graduated as a doctor of medicine on 13 May 1865, founded several literary magazines, and wrote many articles, most of which attacked the imperial regime of
Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was the first President of France (as Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte) from 1848 to 1852 and the last monarch of France as Emperor of the French from 1852 to 1870. A neph ...
. After a failed love affair, Clemenceau left France for the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
as the imperial agents began cracking down on dissidents and sending most of them to the ''bagne de Cayennes'' (
Devil's Island The penal colony of Cayenne (French: ''Bagne de Cayenne''), commonly known as Devil's Island (''Île du Diable''), was a French penal colony that operated for 100 years, from 1852 to 1952, and officially closed in 1953 in the Salvation Island ...
Penal System) in
French Guiana French Guiana ( or ; french: link=no, Guyane ; gcr, label= French Guianese Creole, Lagwiyann ) is an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France on the northern Atlantic coast of South America in the Guianas ...
. Clemenceau worked in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
during the years 1865–1869, following the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and t ...
. He maintained a medical practice, but spent much of his time on political journalism for a Parisian newspaper, ''Le Temps''. He taught French in
Great Barrington, Massachusetts Great Barrington is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 7,172 at the 2020 census. Both a summer resort and home to Ski Butternut, ...
, and also taught and rode horseback at a private girls' school in
Stamford, Connecticut Stamford () is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut, outside of Manhattan. It is Connecticut's second-most populous city, behind Bridgeport. With a population of 135,470, Stamford passed Hartford and New Haven in population as of the 202 ...
, where he would meet his future wife. During this time, he joined French exile clubs in New York that were opposing the imperial regime. As part of his journalistic activity, Clemenceau covered the country's recovery following the
Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polici ...
, the workings of American democracy, and the racial questions related to the end of
slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...
. From his time in America, he retained a strong faith in American democratic ideals as opposed to France's imperial regime, as well as a sense of political compromise that later would become a hallmark of his political career.


Marriage and family

On 23 June 1869, he married Mary Eliza Plummer (1849–1922), in New York City. She had attended the school where he taught horseback riding and was one of his students. She was the daughter of Harriet A. Taylor and William Kelly Plummer. Following their marriage, the Clemenceaus moved to France. They had three children together, Madeleine (born in 1870), Thérèse (1872) and Michel (1873). Although Clemenceau had many mistresses, when his wife took a tutor of their children as her lover, Clemenceau had her put in jail for two weeks and then sent her back to the United States on a steamer in third class. The marriage ended in a contentious divorce in 1891. He obtained custody of their children. He then had his wife stripped of French nationality.


Beginning of the Third Republic

Clemenceau had returned to Paris after the French defeat at the
Battle of Sedan The Battle of Sedan was fought during the Franco-Prussian War from 1 to 2 September 1870. Resulting in the capture of Emperor Napoleon III and over a hundred thousand troops, it effectively decided the war in favour of Prussia and its allies, ...
in 1870 during the Franco-Prussian War and the fall of the
Second French Empire The Second French Empire (; officially the French Empire, ), was the 18-year Imperial Bonapartist regime of Napoleon III from 14 January 1852 to 27 October 1870, between the Second and the Third Republic of France. Historians in the 1930s ...
. After returning to medical practice as a physician in Vendée, he was appointed mayor of the
18th arrondissement of Paris The 18th arrondissement of Paris (''XVIIIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, this arrondissement is referred to as ''dix-huitième''. The arrondissement, known as Butte-Montmartr ...
, including
Montmartre Montmartre ( , ) is a large hill in Paris's northern 18th arrondissement. It is high and gives its name to the surrounding district, part of the Right Bank. The historic district established by the City of Paris in 1995 is bordered by Rue Ca ...
, and he also was elected to the
National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the r ...
for the 18th arrondissement. When the
Paris Commune The Paris Commune (french: Commune de Paris, ) was a revolutionary government that seized power in Paris, the capital of France, from 18 March to 28 May 1871. During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71, the French National Guard had defende ...
seized power in March 1871, he tried unsuccessfully to find a compromise between the more radical leaders of the Commune and the more conservative French government. The Commune declared that he had no legal authority to be mayor and seized the city hall of the 18th arrondissement. He ran for election to the Paris Commune council, but received fewer than eight hundred votes and took no part in its governance. He was in
Bordeaux Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectu ...
when the commune was suppressed by the French Army in May 1871. After the fall of the commune, he was elected to the Paris municipal council on 23 July 1871 for the Clignancourt quarter and retained his seat until 1876. He first held the offices of secretary and vice-president, then he became president in 1875.


Chamber of Deputies

In 1876, Clemenceau stood for the
Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourbon R ...
(which replaced the National Assembly in 1875) and was elected for the 18th arrondissement. He joined the far left and his energy and mordant eloquence speedily made him the leader of the radical section. In 1877, after the Crisis of 16 May 1877, he was one of the republican majority who denounced the ministry of the
Duc de Broglie The House of Broglie (, also ; french: Maison de Broglie, or ) is a French noble family, originally Piedmontese, who migrated to France in the year 1643. History () was the name of an old Piedmontese noble family, from which were descended ...
. Clemenceau led resistance to the anti-republican policy of which the incident of 16 May was a manifestation. In 1879, his demand for the indictment of the Broglie ministry brought him prominence.Watson, ''Georges Clemenceau: A Political Biography'' (1976). From 1876 to 1880, Clemenceau was one of the main defenders of the general amnesty of thousands of Communards, members of the revolutionary government of the 1871
Paris Commune The Paris Commune (french: Commune de Paris, ) was a revolutionary government that seized power in Paris, the capital of France, from 18 March to 28 May 1871. During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71, the French National Guard had defende ...
who had been deported to
New Caledonia ) , anthem = "" , image_map = New Caledonia on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of New Caledonia , map_caption = Location of New Caledonia , mapsize = 290px , subdivision_type = Sovereign st ...
. Along with other radicals and figures such as poet and then-Senator
Victor Hugo Victor-Marie Hugo (; 26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French Romantic writer and politician. During a literary career that spanned more than sixty years, he wrote in a variety of genres and forms. He is considered to be one of the great ...
, as well as a growing number of republicans, he supported several unsuccessful proposals. Finally a general amnesty was adopted on 11 July 1880. The "reconciliation" envisaged by Clemenceau could begin, as the remaining deported Communards returned to France, including his friend Louise Michel. In 1880, Clemenceau started his newspaper, ''La Justice'', which became the principal organ of Parisian Radicalism. From this time, throughout the presidency of Jules Grévy (1879–1887), he became widely known as a political critic and destroyer of ministries (''le Tombeur de ministères'') who avoided taking office himself. Leading the far left in the Chamber of Deputies, he was an active opponent of the
colonial policy Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 a ...
of Prime Minister Jules Ferry, which he opposed on moral grounds and also as a form of diversion from the more important goal of " Revenge against Germany" for the annexation of
Alsace Alsace (, ; ; Low Alemannic German/ gsw-FR, Elsàss ; german: Elsass ; la, Alsatia) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in eastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine next to Germany and Switzerland. In 2020, it had ...
and Lorraine after the Franco-Prussian War. In 1885, his criticism of the conduct of the
Sino-French War The Sino-French War (, french: Guerre franco-chinoise, vi, Chiến tranh Pháp-Thanh), also known as the Tonkin War and Tonquin War, was a limited conflict fought from August 1884 to April 1885. There was no declaration of war. The Chinese arm ...
contributed strongly to the fall of the Ferry cabinet that year. During the French legislative elections of 1885, he advocated a strong radical programme and was returned both for his old seat in Paris and for the Var, district of
Draguignan Draguignan (; oc, Draguinhan) is a commune in the Var department in the administrative region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (formerly Provence), southeastern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department and self-proclaimed "capital of A ...
. He chose to represent the latter in the Chamber of Deputies. Refusing to form a ministry to replace the one he had overthrown, he supported the right in keeping Prime Minister Charles de Freycinet in power in 1886 and was responsible for the inclusion of
Georges Ernest Boulanger Georges Ernest Jean-Marie Boulanger (29 April 1837 – 30 September 1891), nicknamed Général Revanche ("General Revenge"), was a French general and politician. An enormously popular public figure during the second decade of the Third Repub ...
in the Freycinet cabinet as war minister. When General Boulanger revealed himself as an ambitious pretender, Clemenceau withdrew his support and became a vigorous opponent of the heterogeneous Boulangist movement, although the radical press continued to patronize the general. By his exposure of the Wilson scandal, and by his personal plain speaking, Clemenceau contributed largely to the resignation of Jules Grévy from the presidency of France in 1887. He had declined Grévy's request to form a cabinet upon the downfall of the cabinet of Maurice Rouvier by advising his followers not to vote for Charles Floquet, Jules Ferry, nor Charles de Freycinet, Clemenceau was primarily responsible for the election of an "outsider",
Marie François Sadi Carnot Marie François Sadi Carnot (; 11 August 1837 – 25 June 1894) was a French statesman, who served as the President of France from 1887 until his assassination in 1894. Early life Marie François Sadi Carnot was the son of the statesman Hippo ...
, as president. The split in the Radical Party over
Boulangism Georges Ernest Jean-Marie Boulanger (29 April 1837 – 30 September 1891), nicknamed Général Revanche ("General Revenge"), was a French general and politician. An enormously popular public figure during the second decade of the Third Repub ...
weakened his hand and its collapse meant that moderate republicans did not need his help. A further misfortune occurred in the Panama affair, as Clemenceau's relations with the businessman and politician Cornelius Herz led to his being included in the general suspicion. In response to accusations of corruption levelled by the nationalist politician
Paul Déroulède Paul Déroulède (2 September 1846 – 30 January 1914) was a French author and politician, one of the founders of the nationalist League of Patriots. Early life Déroulède was born in Paris. He was published first as a poet in the magazine '' ...
, Clemenceau fought a duel with him on 23 December 1892. Six shots were discharged, but neither participant was injured. Clemenceau remained the leading spokesman for French radicalism, but his hostility to the Franco-Russian Alliance so increased his unpopularity that in the French legislative elections of 1893, he was defeated for his seat in the Chamber of Deputies after having held it continuously since 1876.


Dreyfus Affair

For nearly a decade after his 1893 defeat, Clemenceau confined his political activities to journalism. His career was further clouded by the long-drawn-out
Dreyfus case The Dreyfus affair (french: affaire Dreyfus, ) was a political scandal that divided the French Third Republic from 1894 until its resolution in 1906. "L'Affaire", as it is known in French, has come to symbolise modern injustice in the Francop ...
, in which he took an active part as a supporter of
Émile Zola Émile Édouard Charles Antoine Zola (, also , ; 2 April 184029 September 1902) was a French novelist, journalist, playwright, the best-known practitioner of the literary school of naturalism, and an important contributor to the development of ...
and an opponent of the anti-Semitic and nationalist campaigns. In all, during the affair Clemenceau published 665 articles defending Dreyfus. On 13 January 1898, Clemenceau published Émile Zola's '' J'Accuse...!'' on the front page of the Paris daily newspaper, ''
L'Aurore ''L’Aurore'' (; ) was a literary, liberal, and socialist newspaper published in Paris, France, from 1897 to 1914. Its most famous headline was Émile Zola's '' J'Accuse...!'' leading into his article on the Dreyfus Affair. The newspaper w ...
'', of which he was owner and editor. He decided to run the controversial article that would become a famous part of the
Dreyfus Affair The Dreyfus affair (french: affaire Dreyfus, ) was a political scandal that divided the French Third Republic from 1894 until its resolution in 1906. "L'Affaire", as it is known in French, has come to symbolise modern injustice in the Francop ...
in the form of an open letter to
Félix Faure Félix François Faure (; 30 January 1841 – 16 February 1899) was the President of France from 1895 until his death in 1899. A native of Paris, he worked as a tanner in his younger years. Faure became a member of the Chamber of Deputies for ...
, the president of France. In 1900, he withdrew from ''La Justice'' to found a weekly review, ''Le Bloc'', to which he practically was the sole contributor. The publication of ''Le Bloc'' lasted until 15 March 1902. On 6 April 1902, he was elected senator for the Var district of
Draguignan Draguignan (; oc, Draguinhan) is a commune in the Var department in the administrative region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (formerly Provence), southeastern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department and self-proclaimed "capital of A ...
, although he had previously called for the suppression of the French
Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
, as he considered it a strong-house of conservatism. He served as the senator for Draguignan until 1920. Clemenceau sat with the
Independent Radicals The Independent Radicals (french: Radicaux indépendants) were a centrist or conservative-liberal political current during the French Third Republic. It was slightly to the right of the more famous Radical-Socialist Party, and shared much of it ...
in the Senate and moderated his positions, although he still vigorously supported the Radical-Socialist ministry of Prime Minister
Émile Combes Émile Justin Louis Combes (; 6 September 183525 May 1921) was a French statesman and freemason who led the Bloc des gauches's cabinet from June 1902 to January 1905. Career Émile Combes was born in Roquecourbe, Tarn. He studied for the pri ...
, who spearheaded the
anti-clericalist Anti-clericalism is opposition to religious authority, typically in social or political matters. Historical anti-clericalism has mainly been opposed to the influence of Roman Catholicism. Anti-clericalism is related to secularism, which seeks to ...
republican struggle. In June 1903, he undertook the direction of ''L'Aurore'', the journal that he had founded. In it, he led the campaign to revisit the Dreyfus affair and to create a separation of church and state in France. The latter was implemented by the
1905 French law on the Separation of the Churches and the State The 1905 French law on the Separation of the Churches and State (French: ) was passed by the Chamber of Deputies on 9 December 1905. Enacted during the Third Republic, it established state secularism in France. France was then governed by the '' ...
.


Cabinet and office of Prime Minister

In March 1906, the ministry of Maurice Rouvier fell as a result of civil disturbances provoked by the implementation of the law on the separation of church and state and the victory of radicals in the French legislative elections of 1906. The new government of
Ferdinand Sarrien Jean Marie Ferdinand Sarrien (; (15 October 1840 – 28 November 1915) was a French politician of the Third Republic. He was born in Bourbon-Lancy, Saône-et-Loire and died in Paris. He headed a cabinet supported by the ''Bloc des gauches'' (L ...
appointed Clemenceau as minister of the interior in the cabinet. On a domestic level, Clemenceau reformed the
French police Law enforcement in France has a long history dating back to AD 570 when night watch systems were commonplace.Dammer, H. R. and Albanese, J. S. (2014). ''Comparative Criminal Justice Systems'' (5th ed.). Wadesworth Cengage learning: Belmont, C ...
forces and ordered repressive policies toward the workers movement. He supported the formation of scientific police by
Alphonse Bertillon Alphonse Bertillon (; 22 April 1853 – 13 February 1914) was a French police officer and biometrics researcher who applied the anthropological technique of anthropometry to law enforcement creating an identification system based on physical me ...
and founded the ''Brigades mobiles'' (French for "mobile squads") led by
Célestin Hennion Célestin Hennion CVO (8 September 1862 – 14 March 1915) was a French police officer who rose to head the Prefecture of Police (french: Préfecture de Police). He was responsible for the reorganisation of the Préfecture and the introducti ...
. These squads were nicknamed ''Brigades du Tigre'' ("The Tiger's Brigades") after Clemenceau, who was nicknamed "The Tiger". The miners strike in the
Pas de Calais The Strait of Dover or Dover Strait (french: Pas de Calais - ''Strait of Calais''), is the strait at the narrowest part of the English Channel, marking the boundary between the Channel and the North Sea, separating Great Britain from continent ...
after the Courrières mine disaster, which resulted in the death of more than one thousand persons, threatened widespread disorder on 1 May 1906. Clemenceau ordered the military against the strikers and repressed the wine growers strike in the Languedoc-Roussillon. His actions alienated the
French Section of the Workers' International The French Section of the Workers' International (french: Section française de l'Internationale ouvrière, SFIO) was a political party in France that was founded in 1905 and succeeded in 1969 by the modern-day Socialist Party. The SFIO was foun ...
(SFIO) socialist party, from which he definitively broke in his notable reply in the Chamber of Deputies to Jean Jaurès, leader of the SFIO, in June 1906. Clemenceau's speech positioned him as the strong man of the day in French politics; when the Sarrien ministry resigned in October, Clemenceau became premier. After a proposal by the deputy Paul Dussaussoy for limited women's suffrage in local elections, Clemenceau published a pamphlet in 1907 in which he declared that if women were given the vote France would return to the
Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
. As the
revolt of the Languedoc winegrowers The Revolt of the Languedoc winegrowers was a mass movement in 1907 in Languedoc and the Pyrénées-Orientales of France that was repressed by the government of Georges Clemenceau. It was caused by a serious crisis in winemaking at the start of ...
developed Clemenceau at first dismissed the complaints, then sent in troops to keep the peace in June 1907. During 1907 and 1908, he led the development of a new '' Entente cordiale'' with Britain, which gave France a successful role in European politics. Difficulties with Germany and criticism by the Socialist party in connection with the handling of the First Moroccan Crisis in 1905–06 were settled at the
Algeciras Conference The Algeciras Conference of 1906 took place in Algeciras, Spain, and lasted from 16 January to 7 April. The purpose of the conference was to find a solution to the First Moroccan Crisis of 1905 between France and Germany, which arose as German ...
. Clemenceau was defeated on 20 July 1909 in a discussion in the Chamber of Deputies on the state of the navy, in which bitter words he exchanged with Théophile Delcassé, the former president of the Council whose downfall Clemenceau had aided. Refusing to respond to Delcassé's technical questions, Clemenceau resigned after his proposal for the order of the day vote was rejected. He was succeeded as premier by Aristide Briand, with a reconstructed cabinet. Between 1909 and 1912, Clemenceau dedicated his time to travel, conferences, and the treatment of his illness. He went to South America in 1910, traveling to
Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
,
Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...
, and
Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest ...
(where he went as far as Santa Ana (Tucuman) in northwest Argentina). There, he was amazed by the influence of French culture and of the
French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...
on local elites. He published the first issue of the ''Journal du Var'' on 10 April 1910. Three years later, on 6 May 1913, he founded ''L'Homme libre'' ("The Free Man") newspaper in Paris, for which he wrote a daily editorial. In these media, Clemenceau focused increasingly on foreign policy and condemned the
anti-militarism Antimilitarism (also spelt anti-militarism) is a doctrine that opposes war, relying heavily on a critical theory of imperialism and was an explicit goal of the First and Second International. Whereas pacifism is the doctrine that disputes (especia ...
of the Socialists.


First World War

At the outbreak of
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
in
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
in August 1914, Clemenceau's newspaper was one of the first to be censored by the government. It was suspended from 29 September 1914 to 7 October. In response, Clemenceau changed the newspaper's name to ''L'Homme enchaîné'' ("The Chained Man") and criticized the government for its lack of transparency and its ineffectiveness, while defending the patriotic '' union sacrée'' against the
German Empire The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...
. In spite of the censorship imposed by the French government on Clemenceau's journalism at the beginning of World War I, he still wielded considerable political influence. As soon as the war started, Clemenceau advised Interior Minister Malvy to invoke Carnet B, a list of known and suspected subversives who were supposed to be arrested upon mobilisation, in order to prevent the collapse of popular support for a war effort. The Prefect of Police gave the same advice, but the government did not follow it. In the end, 80% of the 2,501 people listed on Carnet B as subversives volunteered for service. In autumn 1914, Clemenceau declined to join the government of national unity as justice minister. He suggested transportation of T. G. Masaryk's Czechoslovak Legion from Russia to France s. c. "North trip" (by North sea) as first (the first realization 15 October 1917 from Archangelsk). He was a vehement critic of the wartime French government, asserting that it was not doing enough to win the war. His stance was driven by a will to regain the province of Alsace-Lorraine, a view shared by public opinion. The autumn of 1917 saw the disastrous Italian defeat at the Battle of Caporetto, the Bolshevik seizure of power in Russia, and rumours that former Prime Minister Joseph Caillaux and Interior Minister Louis Malvy might have engaged in treason. Prime Minister
Paul Painlevé Paul Painlevé (; 5 December 1863 – 29 October 1933) was a French mathematician and statesman. He served twice as Prime Minister of the Third Republic: 12 September – 13 November 1917 and 17 April – 22 November 1925. His entry into politic ...
was inclined to open negotiations with Germany. Clemenceau argued that even German restitution of Alsace-Lorraine and the liberation of Belgium would not be enough to justify France abandoning her allies. This forced Alexandre Ribot and Aristide Briand (both the previous two prime ministers, of whom the latter was by far the more powerful politician who had been approached by a German diplomat) to agree in public that there would be no separate peace. For many years, Clemenceau was blamed for having blocked a possible compromise peace, but it is now clear from examination of German documents that Germany had no serious intention of handing over Alsace-Lorraine. The prominence of his opposition made him the best known critic and the last man standing when the others had failed. ''"Messieurs, les Allemands sont toujours à Noyon"'' (Gentlemen, the Germans are still at Noyon) wrote Clemenceau's paper endlessly.


Second term as prime minister

In November 1917, at one of the darkest hours for the French war effort in World War I, Clemenceau was appointed to the prime ministership. Unlike his predecessors, he discouraged internal disagreement and called for peace among the senior politicians.


1917: return to power

Clemenceau governed from the Ministry of War on
Rue Saint-Dominique The Rue Saint-Dominique is a street in the 7th arrondissement of Paris. It was formerly known as Chemin de la Longue Raye (1355), Chemin des Treilles (1433), Chemin Herbu (des Moulins à Vent) (1523), Chemin de l'Oseraie (1527), Chemin du Port ( ...
. Almost his first act as prime minister was to relieve General
Maurice Sarrail Maurice Paul Emmanuel Sarrail (6 April 1856 – 23 March 1929) was a French general of the First World War. Sarrail's openly socialist political connections made him a rarity amongst the Catholics, conservatives and monarchists who dominated t ...
from his command of the Salonika front. This was the main topic of discussion at the first meeting of the war committee on 6 December, at which Clemenceau stated, "Sarrail cannot remain there". The reason for Sarrail's dismissal was his links with the socialist politicians Joseph Caillaux and Louis Malvy (at that time suspected of treasonable contacts with the Germans) Churchill later wrote that Clemenceau "looked like a wild animal pacing to and fro behind bars" in front of "an assembly which would have done anything to avoid putting him there, but, having put him there, felt they must obey". When Clemenceau became prime minister in 1917 victory seemed to be elusive. There was little activity on the
western front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers * Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a maj ...
because it was believed that there should be limited attacks until the American support arrived. At this time, Italy was on the defensive, Russia virtually had stopped fighting – and it was believed (correctly –
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk (also known as the Treaty of Brest in Russia) was a separate peace treaty signed on 3 March 1918 between Russia and the Central Powers ( Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, and the Ottoman Empire), that ended Russi ...
) that they would be making a separate peace with Germany. At home, the government had to deal with increasing demonstrations against the war, a scarcity of resources, and air raids that were causing huge physical damage to Paris as well as undermining the morale of its citizens. It also was believed that many politicians secretly wanted peace. It was a challenging situation for Clemenceau; after years of criticizing other men during the war, he suddenly found himself in a position of supreme power. He was isolated politically, however. He did not have close links with any parliamentary leaders (especially after he had antagonized them so relentlessly during the course of the war) and so, had to rely on himself and his own circle of friends. Clemenceau's assumption of power meant little to the men in the trenches at first. They thought of him as "just another politician", and the monthly assessment of troop morale found that only a minority found comfort in his appointment. Slowly, however, as time passed, the confidence he inspired in a few, began to grow throughout all the fighting men. They were encouraged by his many visits to the trenches. This confidence began to spread from the trenches to the home front and it was said, "We believed in Clemenceau rather in the way that our ancestors believed in Joan of Arc." After years of criticism against the French army for its conservatism and Catholicism, Clemenceau would need help to get along with the military leaders to achieve a sound strategic plan. He nominated General Henri Mordacq to be his military chief of staff. Mordacq helped to inspire trust and mutual respect from the army to the government which proved essential to the final victory. Clemenceau also was well received by the media, because they felt that France was in need of strong leadership. It was widely recognized that throughout the war he was never discouraged and never stopped believing that France could achieve total victory. There were skeptics, however, who believed that Clemenceau, like other war-time leaders, would have a short time in office. It was said, "Like everyone else ... Clemenceau will not last long—only long enough to clean up he war"


1918: crackdown

As the military situation worsened in early 1918, Clemenceau continued to support the policy of total war – "We present ourselves before you with the single thought of total war" – and the policy of "la guerre jusqu'au bout" (war until the end). His speech of 8 March advocating this policy was so effective that it left a vivid impression on
Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...
, who would make similar speeches upon becoming British prime minister in 1940. Clemenceau's war policy encompassed the promise of victory with justice, loyalty to the fighting men, and immediate and severe punishment of crimes against France. Joseph Caillaux, a former French prime minister, disagreed with Clemenceau's policies. He wanted to surrender to Germany and negotiate a peace, thus Clemenceau viewed Caillaux as a threat to national security. Unlike previous ministers, Clemenceau moved against Caillaux publicly. As a result, a parliamentary committee decided that Caillaux would be arrested and imprisoned for three years. Clemenceau believed, in the words of
Jean Ybarnégaray Michel Albert Jean Joseph Ybarnégaray (; 16 October 1883 – 25 April 1956) was a French Basque politician and founder of the International Federation of Basque Pelota. Jean Ybarnegaray was born in Uhart-Cize, Department of Pyrénées-Atlan ...
, that Caillaux's crime "was not to have believed in victory ndto have gambled on his nation's defeat". The arrest of Caillaux and others raised the issue of Clemenceau's harshness, who in turn argued that the only powers he assumed were those necessary for winning the war. The many trials and arrests aroused great public excitement. These trials, far from making the public fear the government, inspired confidence, as the public felt that for the first time in the war, action was being taken and they were being firmly governed. The claims that Clemenceau's "firm government" was a dictatorship found little support. Clemenceau was still held accountable to the people and media. He relaxed censorship on political views as he believed that newspapers had the right to criticize political figures: "The right to insult members of the government is inviolable." In 1918, Clemenceau thought that France should adopt
Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...
's Fourteen Points, mainly because of its point that called for the return of Alsace-Lorraine to France. This meant that victory would fulfil the war aim that was crucial for the French public. Clemenceau was sceptical about some other points, however, including those concerning the
League of Nations The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference th ...
, as he believed that the latter could succeed only in a utopian society. As war minister, Clemenceau was also in close contact with his generals, but he did not always make the most effective decisions concerning military issues (although he did heed the advice of the more experienced generals). As well as talking strategy with the generals, he also went to the trenches to see the poilus, the French infantrymen. He would speak to them and assure them that their government was looking after them. The poilus had great respect for Clemenceau and his disregard for danger, as he often visited soldiers only yards away from German front lines. The government was worried about the visits of Clemenceau to the front lines, as most of the time he was risking his own life by insulting and threatening the German soldiers in person directly from the trenches. These visits, his speech, and his verbal threats directly to the enemy impressed the soldiers and contributed to Clemenceau's title "Père la Victoire" (Father of Victory).


1918: German spring offensive

On 21 March 1918, the Germans began their great spring offensive. The allies were caught off guard and a gap was created in the British and French lines that risked handing over access to Paris to the Germans. This defeat cemented Clemenceau's belief, and that of the other allies, that a coordinated, unified command was the best option. It was decided that Ferdinand Foch would be appointed as " generalissimo". The German line continued to advance and Clemenceau believed that the fall of Paris could not be ruled out. Public opinions arose that if "the Tiger", as well as, Foch and Philippe Pétain stayed in power for even another week, France would be lost and that a government headed by Aristide Briand would be beneficial to France, because he would make peace with Germany on advantageous terms. Clemenceau adamantly opposed these opinions and he gave an inspirational speech in the Chamber of Deputies; the chamber subsequently voted their confidence in him by 377 votes to 110.


1918: allied counter-offensive and armistice

As the allied counter-offensives began to push the Germans back, it became clear that the Germans could no longer win the war. Although they still occupied vast amounts of French territory, they did not have sufficient resources and manpower to continue their attack. As countries allied to Germany began to ask for an armistice, it was obvious that Germany would soon follow. On 11 November 1918, an armistice with Germany was signed. Clemenceau was embraced in the streets and attracted many admiring crowds. He was viewed by the French public as a strong, energetic, positive leader who was key to the allied victory of 1918.


Paris Peace Conference

To settle the international political issues left over from the conclusion of World War I, it was decided that a peace conference would be held in Paris, France. Famously, the
Treaty of Versailles The Treaty of Versailles (french: Traité de Versailles; german: Versailler Vertrag, ) was the most important of the peace treaties of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June 1 ...
between Germany and the Allied Powers to conclude the conflict was signed in the
Palace of Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, u ...
, but the deliberations on which it was based were conducted in Paris, hence the name given to the meeting of the victorious heads of state that produced the treaties signed with the defeated powers: the Paris Peace Conference of 1919. On 13 December 1918, United States president
Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...
received an enthusiastic welcome in France. His Fourteen Points and the concept of a
League of Nations The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference th ...
had made a big impact on the war-weary French. At their first meeting, Clemenceau realized that Wilson was a man of principle and conscience. The powers agreed that since the conference was being held in France, Clemenceau would be the most appropriate president. Also, he spoke both English and French, the official languages of the conference. Clemenceau had an unassailable position of full control of the French delegation. Parliament gave him a vote of confidence on 30 December 1918, by a vote of 398 to 93. The rules of the conference allowed France five plenipotentiaries. They became Clemenceau and four others who were his pawns. He excluded all military men, especially Foch. He excluded the president of France, Raymond Poincaré, keeping him in the dark on the progress of negotiations. He excluded all parliamentary deputies, saying he would negotiate the treaty and it would be parliament's duty to vote it up or down, after it was finished. The progress at the conference was much slower than anticipated and decisions were being tabled constantly. It was this slow pace that induced Clemenceau to give an interview showing his irritation to an American journalist. He said he believed that Germany had won the war industrially and commercially as its factories were intact and soon its debts would be overcome through "manipulation". In a short time, he believed, the German economy would once again be much stronger than the French. France's leverage was jeopardized repeatedly by Clemenceau's mistrust of Wilson and
David Lloyd George David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor, (17 January 1863 – 26 March 1945) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1916 to 1922. He was a Liberal Party (United Kingdom), Liberal Party politician from Wales, known for lea ...
, as well as his intense dislike of President Poincaré. When negotiations reached a stalemate, Clemenceau had a habit of shouting at the other heads of state and storming out of the room rather than participating in further discussion.


Attempted assassination

On 19 February 1919, as Clemenceau was leaving his apartment, a man fired several shots at the car. Clemenceau's assailant, anarchist Émile Cottin, was nearly lynched. Clemenceau's assistant found him pale, but conscious. "They shot me in the back", Clemenceau told him. "They didn't even dare to attack me from the front." One bullet hit Clemenceau between the ribs, just missing his vital organs. Too dangerous to remove, the bullet remained with him for the rest of his life. Clemenceau often joked about the "assassin's" bad marksmanship – "We have just won the most terrible war in history, yet here is a Frenchman who misses his target six out of seven times at point-blank range. Of course this fellow must be punished for the careless use of a dangerous weapon and for poor marksmanship. I suggest that he be locked up for eight years, with intensive training in a shooting gallery."


Rhineland and the Saar

When Clemenceau returned to the Council of Ten on 1 March, he found that little had changed. One issue that had not changed at all was the long-running dispute over France's eastern frontier and control of the German
Rhineland The Rhineland (german: Rheinland; french: Rhénanie; nl, Rijnland; ksh, Rhingland; Latinised name: ''Rhenania'') is a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine, chiefly its middle section. Term Historically, the Rhinelands ...
. Clemenceau believed that Germany's possession of this territory left France without a natural frontier in the east and thus, was vulnerable to invasion. The British ambassador reported in December 1918 on Clemenceau's views on the future of the Rhineland: "He said that the Rhine was a natural boundary of Gaul and Germany and that it ought to be made the German boundary now, the territory between the Rhine and the French frontier being made into an Independent State whose neutrality should be guaranteed by the great powers." Finally, the issue was resolved when Lloyd George and Woodrow Wilson guaranteed immediate military assistance if Germany attacked without provocation. It also was decided that the allies would occupy the territory for fifteen years, and that Germany could never rearm the area. Lloyd George insisted on a clause allowing for the early withdrawal of allied troops if the Germans fulfilled the treaty; Clemenceau inserted Article 429 into the treaty that permitted allied occupation beyond the fifteen years if adequate guarantees for allied security against unprovoked aggression were not met. This was in case the U.S. Senate refused to ratify the Treaty of Guarantee, thereby making null and void the British guarantee as well, since that was dependent on the Americans being part of it. This is, in fact, what did occur. Article 429 ensured that a refusal of the U.S. Senate to ratify the treaties of guarantee would not weaken them. President Poincaré and Marshal Ferdinand Foch both pressed repeatedly for an autonomous Rhineland state. Foch thought the Treaty of Versailles was too lenient on Germany, stating "This is not peace. It is an armistice for twenty years." At a cabinet meeting on 25 April Foch spoke against the deal Clemenceau had brokered and pushed for a separate Rhineland. On 28 April Poincaré sent Clemenceau a long letter detailing why he thought allied occupation should continue until Germany had paid all her reparations. Clemenceau replied that the alliance with America and Britain was of more value than an isolated France that held onto the Rhineland: "In fifteen years I will be dead, but if you do me the honour of visiting my tomb, you will be able to say that the Germans have not fulfilled all the clauses of the treaty, and that we are still on the Rhine." Clemenceau said to Lloyd George in June, "We need a barrier behind which, in the years to come, our people can work in security to rebuild its ruins. The barrier is the Rhine. I must take national feelings into account. That does not mean that I am afraid of losing office. I am quite indifferent on that point. But I will not, by giving up the occupation, do something which will break the willpower of our people." Later, he said to Jean Martel, "The policy of Foch and Poincaré was bad in principle. It was a policy no Frenchman, no republican Frenchman could accept for a moment, except in the hope of obtaining other guarantees, other advantages. We leave that sort of thing to Bismarck." There was increasing discontent among Clemenceau, Lloyd George, and Woodrow Wilson about slow progress and information leaks surrounding the Council of Ten. They began to meet in a smaller group, called the Council of Four, Vittorio Orlando of Italy being the fourth, although less weighty, member. This offered greater privacy and security and increased the efficiency of the decision-making process. Another major issue that the Council of Four discussed was the future of the German
Saar Saar or SAAR has several meanings: People Given name * Saar Boubacar (born 1951), Senegalese professional football player * Saar Ganor, Israeli archaeologist * Saar Klein (born 1967), American film editor Surname * Ain Saar (born 1968), E ...
region. Clemenceau believed that France was entitled to the region and its coal mines after Germany deliberately damaged the coal mines in northern France. Wilson, however, resisted the French claim so firmly that Clemenceau accused him of being "pro-German". Lloyd George came to a compromise; the coal mines were given to France and the territory placed under French administration for 15 years, after which a vote would determine whether the region would rejoin Germany. Although Clemenceau had little knowledge of the defunct Austrian-Hungarian empire, he supported the causes of its smaller ethnic groups and his adamant stance led to the stringent terms in the
Treaty of Trianon The Treaty of Trianon (french: Traité de Trianon, hu, Trianoni békeszerződés, it, Trattato del Trianon) was prepared at the Paris Peace Conference and was signed in the Grand Trianon château in Versailles on 4 June 1920. It forma ...
that dismantled Hungary. Rather than recognizing territories of the Austrian-Hungarian empire solely within the principles of self-determination, Clemenceau sought to weaken Hungary, just as Germany was, and to remove the threat of such a large power within Central Europe. The entire Czechoslovakian state was seen a potential buffer from Communism and this encompassed majority Hungarian territories.


Reparations

Clemenceau was not experienced in the fields of economics or finance, and as
John Maynard Keynes John Maynard Keynes, 1st Baron Keynes, ( ; 5 June 1883 – 21 April 1946), was an English economist whose ideas fundamentally changed the theory and practice of macroeconomics and the economic policies of governments. Originally trained in ...
pointed out, "he did not trouble his head to understand either the Indemnity or rance'soverwhelming financial difficulties", but he was under strong public and parliamentary pressure to make Germany's
reparations Reparation(s) may refer to: Christianity * Restitution (theology), the Christian doctrine calling for reparation * Acts of reparation, prayers for repairing the damages of sin History *War reparations **World War I reparations, made from ...
bill as large as possible. Generally, it was agreed that Germany should not pay more than it could afford, but the estimates of what it could afford varied greatly. Figures ranged between £2,000 million and £20,000 million. Clemenceau realised that any compromise would anger both the French and British citizens and that the only option was to establish a reparations commission that would examine Germany's capacity for reparations. This meant that the French government was not directly involved in the issue of reparations.


Defence of the treaty

The
Treaty of Versailles The Treaty of Versailles (french: Traité de Versailles; german: Versailler Vertrag, ) was the most important of the peace treaties of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June 1 ...
was signed on 28 June 1919. Clemenceau now had to defend the treaty against critics who viewed the compromises he had negotiated as inadequate for French national interests. The French Parliament debated the treaty and
Louis Barthou Jean Louis Barthou (; 25 August 1862 – 9 October 1934) was a French politician of the Third Republic who served as Prime Minister of France for eight months in 1913. In social policy, his time as prime minister saw the introduction (in Jul ...
on 24 September claimed that the U.S. Senate would not vote for the Treaty of Guarantee or the
Treaty of Versailles The Treaty of Versailles (french: Traité de Versailles; german: Versailler Vertrag, ) was the most important of the peace treaties of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June 1 ...
and therefore, it would have been wiser to have the
Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , source ...
as a frontier. Clemenceau replied that he was sure the Senate would ratify both and that he had inserted Article 429 into the treaty, providing for "new arrangements concerning the Rhine". This interpretation of Article 429 was disputed by Barthou. Clemenceau's main speech on the treaty was delivered on 25 September. He said that he knew the treaty was not perfect, but that the war had been fought by a coalition and therefore, the treaty would express the lowest common denominator of those involved. He claimed criticisms of the details of the treaty were misleading; that critics should look at the treaty as a whole and see how they could benefit from it:
The treaty, with all its complex clauses, will only be worth what you are worth; it will be what you make it ... What you are going to vote to-day is not even a beginning, it is a beginning of a beginning. The ideas it contains will grow and bear fruit. You have won the power to impose them on a defeated Germany. We are told that she will revive. All the more reason not to show her that we fear her ... M. Marin went to the heart of the question, when he turned to us and said in despairing tones, "You have reduced us to a policy of vigilance." Yes, M. Marin, do you think that one could make a treaty which would do away with the need for vigilance among the nations of Europe who only yesterday were pouring out their blood in battle? Life is a perpetual struggle in war, as in peace ... That struggle cannot be avoided. Yes, we must have vigilance, we must have a great deal of vigilance. I cannot say for how many years, perhaps I should say for how many centuries, the crisis which has begun will continue. Yes, this treaty will bring us burdens, troubles, miseries, difficulties, and that will continue for long years.
The Chamber of Deputies ratified the treaty by 372 votes to 53, with the Senate voting unanimously for its ratification. On 11 October Clemenceau gave his last parliamentary speech, addressed to the Senate. He said that any attempt to partition Germany would be self-defeating and that France must find a way of living with sixty million Germans. He also said that the bourgeoisie, like the aristocracy before them in the ''ancien régime'', had failed as a ruling class. It was now the turn of the working class to rule. He advocated national unity and a demographic revolution: "The treaty does not state that France will have many children, but it is the first thing that should have been written there. For if France does not have large families, it will be in vain that you put all the finest clauses in the treaty, that you take away all the Germans guns, France will be lost because there will be no more French".


Domestic policies

Clemenceau's final tenure as prime minister witnessed the implementation of various reforms aimed at regulating the hours of labour. A general eight-hour day law passed in April 1919 amending the French Labour Code, and in June that year, existing legislation concerning the duration of the working day in the mining industry was amended by extending the eight-hour day to all classes of workers, "whether employed underground or on the surface". Under a previous law of December 1913, the eight-hour limit had only applied to workers employed underground. In August 1919, a similar limit was introduced for all those employed in French vessels. Another law passed in 1919 (which came into operation in October 1920) prohibited employment in bakeries between the hours of 10 P.M. and 4 A.M. A decree of May 1919 introduced the eight-hour day for workers on trams, railways, and in inland waterways, and a second of June 1919 extended this provision to the state railways. In April 1919, an enabling act was approved for an eight-hour day and a six-day work week, although farm workers were excluded from the act.


Presidential bid

In 1919, France adopted a new electoral system and the legislative election gave the National Bloc (a coalition of right-wing parties) a majority. Clemenceau only intervened once in the election campaign, delivering a speech on 4 November at Strasbourg, praising the manifesto and men of the National Bloc and he urged that the victory in the war needed to be safeguarded by vigilance. In private he was concerned at this huge swing to the right. His friend,
Georges Mandel Georges Mandel (5 June 1885 – 7 July 1944) was a French journalist, politician, and French Resistance leader. Early life Born Louis George Rothschild in Chatou, Yvelines, he was the son of a tailor and his wife. His family was Jewish, originally ...
, urged Clemenceau to stand for the presidency in the upcoming election and on 15 January 1920 he let Mandel announce that he would be prepared to serve if elected. However, Clemenceau did not intend to campaign for the post, instead he wished to be chosen by acclaim as a national symbol. The preliminary meeting of the republican caucus (a forerunner to the vote in the National Assembly) chose Paul Deschanel instead of Clemenceau by a vote of 408 to 389. In response, Clemenceau refused to be put forward for the vote in the National Assembly because he did not want to win by a small majority, but by a near-unanimous vote. Only then, he claimed, could he negotiate with confidence with the allies. In his last speech to the cabinet on 18 January he said, "We must show the world the extent of our victory, and we must take up the mentality and habits of a victorious people, which once more takes its place at the head of Europe. But all that will now be placed in jeopardy ... It will take less time and less thought to destroy the edifice so patiently and painfully erected than it took to complete it. Poor France. The mistakes have begun already."Watson, p. 387.


Last years

Clemenceau resigned as prime minister as soon as the presidential election was held (17 January 1920) and took no further part in politics. In private, he condemned the unilateral occupation by French troops of the German city of
Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , " Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on it ...
in 1920 and said if he had been in power, he would have persuaded the British to join it. He took a holiday in
Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning the North Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via a land bridg ...
and the
Sudan Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...
from February to April 1920, then embarked for the Far East in September, returning to France in March 1921. In June, he visited England and received an honorary degree from the
University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...
. He met
Lloyd George David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor, (17 January 1863 – 26 March 1945) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1916 to 1922. He was a Liberal Party politician from Wales, known for leading the United Kingdom during ...
and said to him that after the armistice he had become the enemy of France. Lloyd George replied, "Well, was not that always our traditional policy?" He was joking, but after reflection, Clemenceau took it seriously. After Lloyd George's fall from power in 1922 Clemenceau remarked, "As for France, it is a real enemy who disappears. Lloyd George did not hide it: at my last visit to London he cynically admitted it". In late 1922, Clemenceau gave a lecture tour in the major cities of the American northeast. He defended the policy of France, including war debts and reparations, and condemned
American isolationism United States non-interventionism primarily refers to the foreign policy that was eventually applied by the United States between the late 18th century and the first half of the 20th century whereby it sought to avoid alliances with other nation ...
. He was well received and attracted large audiences, but America's policy remained unchanged. On 9 August 1926, he wrote an open letter to the American President
Calvin Coolidge Calvin Coolidge (born John Calvin Coolidge Jr.; ; July 4, 1872January 5, 1933) was the 30th president of the United States from 1923 to 1929. Born in Vermont, Coolidge was a Republican lawyer from New England who climbed up the ladder of Ma ...
that argued against France paying all its war debts: "France is not for sale, even to her friends". This appeal went unheard. He condemned Poincaré's
occupation of the Ruhr The Occupation of the Ruhr (german: link=no, Ruhrbesetzung) was a period of military occupation of the Ruhr region of Germany by France and Belgium between 11 January 1923 and 25 August 1925. France and Belgium occupied the heavily industr ...
in 1923 as an undoing of the entente between France and Britain. He wrote two short biographies, one of the Greek orator
Demosthenes Demosthenes (; el, Δημοσθένης, translit=Dēmosthénēs; ; 384 – 12 October 322 BC) was a Greek statesman and orator in ancient Athens. His orations constitute a significant expression of contemporary Athenian intellectual pr ...
and one of the French painter
Claude Monet Oscar-Claude Monet (, , ; 14 November 1840 – 5 December 1926) was a French painter and founder of impressionist painting who is seen as a key precursor to modernism, especially in his attempts to paint nature as he perceived it. During ...
. He also penned a huge two-volume tome, covering philosophy, history, and science, entitled ''Au Soir de la Pensée''. Writing this occupied most of his time between 1923 and 1927. During his last months, he wrote his memoirs, despite declaring previously that he would not write them. He was spurred into doing so by the appearance of Marshal Foch's memoirs, which were highly critical of Clemenceau, mainly for his policy at the Paris Peace Conference. Clemenceau only had time to finish the first draft and it was published posthumously as
Grandeurs et miseres d'une victoire
' (
Grandeur and Misery of Victory
'). He was critical of Foch and also of his successors who had allowed the Versailles Treaty to be undermined in the face of Germany's revival. He burned all of his private letters. Clemenceau died on 24 November 1929 and was buried at Mouchamps.


Honours

* 1919: Member of the Royal Academy of Science, Letters and Fine Arts of Belgium


Clemenceau's first ministry, 25 October 1906 – 24 July 1909

*Georges Clemenceau – President of the Council and Minister of the Interior * Stéphen Pichon – Minister of Foreign Affairs * Georges Picquart – Minister of War * Joseph Caillaux – Minister of Finance * René Viviani – Minister of Labour and Social Security Provisions * Edmond Guyot-Dessaigne – Minister of Justice * Gaston Thomson – Minister of Marine * Aristide Briand – Minister of Public Instruction, Fine Arts, and Worship *
Joseph Ruau Joseph Ruau (5 June 1865 – 29 September 1923) was a French lawyer and radical politician. He was deputy for Haute-Garonne from 1897 to 1914, and was Minister of Agriculture from 24 February 1905 to 2 November 1910. He was known for promoting agr ...
– Minister of Agriculture * Raphaël Milliès-Lacroix – Minister of Colonies *
Louis Barthou Jean Louis Barthou (; 25 August 1862 – 9 October 1934) was a French politician of the Third Republic who served as Prime Minister of France for eight months in 1913. In social policy, his time as prime minister saw the introduction (in Jul ...
– Minister of Public Works, Posts, and Telegraphs *
Gaston Doumergue Pierre Paul Henri Gaston Doumergue (; 1 August 1863 in Aigues-Vives, Gard18 June 1937 in Aigues-Vives) was a French politician of the Third Republic. He served as President of France from 13 June 1924 to 13 June 1931. Biography Doumergue cam ...
– Minister of Commerce and Industry Changes *4 January 1908 – Aristide Briand succeeds Guyot-Dessaigne as Minister of Justice.
Gaston Doumergue Pierre Paul Henri Gaston Doumergue (; 1 August 1863 in Aigues-Vives, Gard18 June 1937 in Aigues-Vives) was a French politician of the Third Republic. He served as President of France from 13 June 1924 to 13 June 1931. Biography Doumergue cam ...
succeeds Briand as Minister of Public Instruction and Fine Arts. Briand remains Minister of Worship. Jean Cruppi succeeds Doumergue as Minister of Commerce and Industry. *22 October 1908 –
Alfred Picard Alfred Picard (21 March 1913 – 12 April 1945) was a German international Association football, footballer. Personal life Picard served as a ''leutnant'' (lieutenant) in the German Army (1935–1945), German Army during the Second World War a ...
succeeds Thomson as Minister of Marine.


Clemenceau's second ministry, 16 November 1917 – 20 January 1920

*Georges Clemenceau – President of the Council and Minister of War * Stéphen Pichon – Minister of Foreign Affairs *
Louis Loucheur Louis Loucheur (12 August 1872 in Roubaix, Nord – 22 November 1931 in Paris) was a French politician in the Third Republic, at first a member of the conservative Republican Federation, then of the Democratic Republican Alliance and of the Ind ...
– Minister of Armaments and War Manufacturing *
Jules Pams Jules Pams (14 August 1852 – 12 May 1930) was a French politician who was a deputy from 1893 to 1904, then a senator from 1904 to 1930. He was Minister of Agriculture from 1911 to 1913 and Minister of the Interior from 1917 to 1920. In 1913 he w ...
– Minister of the Interior * Louis Lucien Klotz – Minister of Finance * Pierre Colliard – Minister of Labour and Social Security Provisions * Louis Nail – Minister of Justice *
Georges Leygues Georges Leygues (; 29 October 1856 – 2 September 1933) was a French politician of the Third Republic. During his time as Minister of Marine he worked with the navy's chief of staff Henri Salaun in unsuccessful attempts to gain naval re-arm ...
– Minister of Marine *
Louis Lafferre Louis Lafferre (10 May 1861 – 28 February 1929) was a French politician. He belonged to the Radical Party. Lafferre was born in Pau, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, and began his political career as a local councillor in Narbonne. He was a member of ...
– Minister of Public Instruction and Fine Arts * Victor Boret – Minister of Agriculture and Supply * Henry Simon – Minister of Colonies * Albert Claveille – Minister of Public Works and Transport * Étienne Clémentel – Minister of Commerce, Industry, Maritime Transports, Merchant Marine, Posts, and Telegraphs *
Charles Jonnart Charles Célestin Auguste Jonnart (27 December 1857 – 30 December 1927) was a French politician. Early years Born into a bourgeois family in Fléchin, Pas-de-Calais, Charles Jonnart was educated at Saint-Omer, then in Paris. Interested in the ...
– Minister of Liberated Regions and Blockade Changes *23 November 1917 – Albert Lebrun succeeds Jonnart as Minister of Liberated Regions and Blockade *26 November 1918 –
Louis Loucheur Louis Loucheur (12 August 1872 in Roubaix, Nord – 22 November 1931 in Paris) was a French politician in the Third Republic, at first a member of the conservative Republican Federation, then of the Democratic Republican Alliance and of the Ind ...
becomes Minister of Industrial Reconstitution, his office of Minister of Armaments and War Manufacturing is abolished *24 December 1918 – The office of Minister of Blockade is abolished, Lebrun remains Minister of Liberated Regions *5 May 1919 – Albert Claveille succeeds Clémentel as Minister of Merchant Marine, he remains Minister of Public Works and Transport, while Clémentel remains Minister of Commerce, Industry, Posts, and Telegraphs *20 July 1919 –
Joseph Noulens Joseph Noulens (29 March 1864 – 9 September 1944) was a French politician and diplomat. Noulens became a member of the Chamber of Deputies in 1903 and served as Minister of War from 1913 to 1914 and then as Minister of Finance from 1914 to 19 ...
succeeds Boret as Minister of Agriculture and Supply *6 November 1919 –
André Tardieu André Pierre Gabriel Amédée Tardieu (; 22 September 1876 – 15 September 1945) was three times Prime Minister of France (3 November 1929 – 17 February 1930; 2 March – 4 December 1930; 20 February – 10 May 1932) and a dominant figure of ...
succeeds Lebrun as Minister of Liberated Regions *27 November 1919 – Léon Bérard succeeds Lafferre as Minister of Public Instruction and Fine Arts, Louis Dubois succeeds Clémentel as Minister of Commerce, Industry, Posts, and Telegraphs *2 December 1919 –
Paul Jourdain Paul Léon Jourdain (28 October 1878 – 26 March 1948) was a French industrialist and politician who was a deputy from 1919 to 1927 and a senator from 1927 to 1944. He was Minister of Labor in 1919–21 and for a brief period in 1924. He was Min ...
succeeds Colliard as Minister of Labour and Social Security Provisions


Personal life

Clemenceau was a long-time friend and supporter of the impressionist painter
Claude Monet Oscar-Claude Monet (, , ; 14 November 1840 – 5 December 1926) was a French painter and founder of impressionist painting who is seen as a key precursor to modernism, especially in his attempts to paint nature as he perceived it. During ...
. He was instrumental in persuading Monet to have a cataract operation in 1923. For more than a decade, Clemenceau encouraged Monet to complete his donation to the French state of the large '' Les Nymphéas'' (Water Lilies) paintings that now are on display in the Paris
Musée de l'Orangerie The Musée de l'Orangerie ( en, Orangery Museum) is an art gallery of impressionist and post-impressionist paintings located in the west corner of the Tuileries Garden next to the Place de la Concorde in Paris. The museum is most famous as th ...
. They are housed in specially constructed oval galleries that opened to the public in 1927. Having fought a dozen
duel A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two people, with matched weapons, in accordance with agreed-upon rules. During the 17th and 18th centuries (and earlier), duels were mostly single combats fought with swords (the rapier and ...
s against political opponents, Clemenceau knew the importance of exercise and practised
fencing Fencing is a group of three related combat sports. The three disciplines in modern fencing are the foil, the épée, and the sabre (also ''saber''); winning points are made through the weapon's contact with an opponent. A fourth discipline, ...
every morning even when he was an old man. Clemenceau was an
atheist Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...
. He took an interest in Japanese art, especially Japanese ceramics. He collected approximately 3,000 small incense containers (''kōgō'' 香合), which are now in museums. The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts held a special exhibition of his collection in 1978.


Namesakes

* James Douglas, Jr. bought an apartment in Paris for his friend Clemenceau in 1926 to use as a retirement home. This building later became the
Musée Clemenceau The Musée Clemenceau is a house museum located in the 16th arrondissement at 8, rue Benjamin Franklin, Paris, France. It is open in the afternoons of Tuesday through Saturday, except in August; an admission fee is charged. The closest métro stat ...
. * Clemenceau, Arizona, U.S. was named in honor of Clemenceau by his friend James Douglas, Jr. in 1917 *
Mount Clemenceau Mount Clemenceau is the fourth highest mountain in the Park Ranges of the Canadian Rockies. The peak was originally named "Pyramid" in 1892 by Arthur Coleman. The mountain was renamed by the Interprovincial Boundary Survey in 1919 to its presen ...
(3,658m) in the
Canadian Rockies The Canadian Rockies (french: Rocheuses canadiennes) or Canadian Rocky Mountains, comprising both the Alberta Rockies and the British Columbian Rockies, is the Canadian segment of the North American Rocky Mountains. It is the easternmost part ...
was named after Clemenceau in 1919. * A ''Richelieu''-class battleship, laid down in January 1939 and destroyed by Allied bombing in 1944, was to be named after Clemenceau. * The French aircraft carrier ''Clemenceau'' was named after Clemenceau. * Champs-Élysées – Clemenceau is a station on lines 1 and 13 of the Paris Métro in the 8th arrondissement. The stations platforms and access tunnels lie beneath Avenue des Champs-Élysées and Place Clemenceau. * The Cuban Romeo y Julieta cigar brand once produced a size named the Clemenceau in his honour, and the Dominican-made variety still does. * A character named "George Clemenceau" portrayed by Cyril Cusack appears in the 1993 '' The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles'' episode ''Paris, May 1919''. * One of
Beirut Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...
's streets is named in honour of Clemenceau. See Rue Clémenceau * Similarly, there is a street named Clemenceau in a southeastern suburb of
Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple- ...
,
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...
(Verdun). * Clemenceau's famous line "War is too important to be left to the generals" is quoted by the character Gen. Jack Ripper in
Stanley Kubrick Stanley Kubrick (; July 26, 1928 – March 7, 1999) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and photographer. Widely considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, his films, almost all of which are adaptations of nove ...
's 1964 film ''
Dr. Strangelove ''Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb'', known simply and more commonly as ''Dr. Strangelove'', is a 1964 black comedy film that satirizes the Cold War fears of a nuclear conflict between the Soviet Union and ...
''. * It is also quoted in the 1994 episode "Mind Set" of '' Exosquad'', but the writers use
Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord (, ; 2 February 1754 – 17 May 1838), 1st Prince of Benevento, then Prince of Talleyrand, was a French clergyman, politician and leading diplomat. After studying theology, he became Agent-General of the ...
as the source. * One of Singapore's streets is named in honour of Clemenceau. See Clemenceau Avenue. Clemenceau was on an eastern tour in the 1920s, when he visited Singapore, and was invited to witness the foundation stone laying of a cenotaph. At that visit, he had the honour to mark the foundation of Clemenceau Avenue. The Clemenceau Bridge (1920s) was a crossing over the Singapore River. * A street in the centre of
Belgrade Belgrade ( , ;, ; names in other languages) is the capital and largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and the crossroads of the Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. Nearly 1,166,763 mi ...
is named after him. * A street in the centre of Bucharest is named after him. * * A street in the centre of
Antibes Antibes (, also , ; oc, label= Provençal, Antíbol) is a coastal city in the Alpes-Maritimes department of southeastern France, on the Côte d'Azur between Cannes and Nice. The town of Juan-les-Pins is in the commune of Antibes and the Sop ...
is named after him.


Screen portrayals

Clemenceau was played by: *Leonard Shephard in '' Dreyfus'' (1931) * Grant Mitchell in ''
The Life of Emile Zola ''The Life of Emile Zola'' is a 1937 American biographical film about the 19th-century French author Émile Zola starring Paul Muni and directed by William Dieterle. It premiered at the Los Angeles Carthay Circle Theatre to great critical and ...
'' (1937) *Alberto Morin in ''
Tennessee Johnson ''Tennessee Johnson'' is a 1942 American film about Andrew Johnson, the 17th president of the United States, released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was directed by William Dieterle and written by Milton Gunzburg, Alvin Meyers, John Balderston, and We ...
'' (1942) *
Marcel Dalio Marcel Dalio (born Marcel Benoit Blauschild; 23 November 1899 in Paris – 18 November 1983) was a French movie actor. He had major roles in two films directed by Jean Renoir, '' La Grande Illusion'' (1937) and '' The Rules of the Game'' (1939) ...
in ''
Wilson Wilson may refer to: People *Wilson (name) ** List of people with given name Wilson ** List of people with surname Wilson * Wilson (footballer, 1927–1998), Brazilian manager and defender * Wilson (footballer, born 1984), full name Wilson R ...
'' (1944) *
Gnat Yura Hnat Petrovych Yura ( uk, Гнат Петрович Юра, ; also Gnat Yura; – January 18, 1966) was a Soviet and Ukrainian director, actor of theatre and film, pedagogue. He directed two films, and appeared on screen six times during the ...
in ''
The Unforgettable Year 1919 ''The Unforgettable Year 1919'' (russian: Незабываемый 1919 год, Nezabyvaemyy 1919 god) is a 1951 Soviet historical drama film directed by Mikheil Chiaureli. Plot May 1919. The city of Petrograd, the Bolsheviks' stronghold in Russ ...
'' (1951) * Peter Illing in '' I Accuse!'' (1958) * John Bennett in '' Fall of Eagles'' (1974) * Michael Anthony in '' The Life and Times of David Lloyd George'' (1981) * Arnold Diamond in '' A Dangerous Man: Lawrence After Arabia'' (1992) * Brian Cox in ''The Nature Vacations of Fantastic World of the Adventure'' (2016) *Gérard Chaillou in ''
An Officer and a Spy ''An Officer and a Spy'' is a 2013 historical fiction thriller by the English writer and journalist Robert Harris. It tells the true story of the French officer Georges Picquart from 1896 to 1906, as he struggles to expose the truth about the ...
'' (2019) * André Dussolier in '' The Tiger and the president'' (2022)


See also

* Interwar France *
International relations (1919–1939) International relations (1919–1939) covers the main interactions shaping world history in this era, known as the Interwar Period, with emphasis on diplomacy and economic relations. The coverage here follows the diplomatic history of World War I ...
* List of covers of ''Time'' magazine – 4 January 1926


Notes


References


Sources and further reading

* * * * Dallas, Gregor. '' At the Heart of a Tiger: Clemenceau and His World 1841–1929'' (1993); emphasis on political milieu * * Duval-Stalla, Alexandre, "Claude Monet - Georges Clemenceau : une histoire, deux cacactères", (Paris : Folio, 2013) * * Gottfried, Ted. ''Georges Clemenceau'' (1987
online
* Greenhalgh, Elizabeth, " David Lloyd George, Georges Clemenceau, and the 1918 Manpower Crisis", ''Historical Journal'' (2007) 50#2 pp. 397–421 * Greenhalgh, Elizabeth. "Marshal Ferdinand Foch versus Georges Clemenceau in 1919", ''War in History'' 24.4 (2017): 458-497
online
* Hanks, Robert K. "Georges Clemenceau and the English", ''Historical Journal'' 45.1 (2002): 53-77. * Holt, E., ''The Tiger: The Life of Georges Clemenceau 1841–1929'', (London : Hamilton, 1976) * Jackson, Peter. "Great Britain in French Policy Conceptions at the Paris Peace Conference, 1919", ''Diplomacy & Statecraft'' 30.2 (2019): 358-39
online
* Jackson, J. Hampden. ''Clemenceau and the Third Republic'' (1962
online edition
* Jackson, Peter. "A Tran-Atlantic Condominium of Democratic Power: the grand design for a post-war order at the heart of French policy at the Paris Peace Conference", ''Journal of Military and Strategic Studies'' 16.2 (2015
online
* King, Jere Clemens. ''Foch versus Clemenceau'' (Harvard UP, 1960), in 1918-1919
online
* Lentin, Antony. "‘Une aberration inexplicable’? Clemenceau and the abortive Anglo‐French guarantee treaty of 1919", ''Diplomacy and Statecraft'' 8.2 (1997): 31-49. * McDougall, Walter A. ''France's Rhineland Diplomacy, 1914–1924: The Last Bid for a Balance of Power in Europe'' (Princeton UP, 1978) * MacMillan, Margaret. ''Peacemakers: The Paris Conference of 1919 and Its Attempt to End War'' (2001) * McAuliffe, Mary. '' Dawn of the Belle Epoque: The Paris of Monet, Zola, Bernhardt, Eiffel, Debussy, Clemenceau, and Their Friends'' (2011)
excerpt and text search
* Martet, Jean. ''Clemenceau: the events of his life as told by himself'' (1930
online
* * Newhall, David S. ''Clemenceau: A Life at War'' (1991) * * Roberts, John. "Clemenceau: The Politician" ''History Today'' (Sep 1956) 6#9 pp 581–591 * Soutou, Georges-Henri. "The French Peacemakers and Their Home Front", in Manfred F. Boemeke, Gerald D. Feldman and Elisabeth Glaser, eds, ''The Treaty of Versailles: A Reassessment 75 Years On'' (1998), pp. 167–88. * Stevenson, David. "French war aims and the American challenge, 1914–1918", ''Historical Journal'' 22.4 (1979): 877-894. * * * Watson, D. R. "The Making of French Foreign Policy during the First Clemenceau Ministry, 1906-1909", ''English Historical Review'' (1971) 86#341 pp. 774–78
in JSTOR
* Watson, David R. ''Georges Clemenceau: France: Makers of the Modern World'' (2009), 176p
excerpt and text search
* Watson, David R. ''Georges Clemenceau: A Political Biography'' (1976
online edition
* Watson, David R. "Clemenceau's Contacts with England", ''Diplomacy and Statecraft'' 17.4 (2006): 715-730.


Primary sources

* Clemenceau, Georges
"De la génération des éléments anatomiques" (1865)

''South America To Day'' by Georges Clemenceau at archive.org. In English.

''The strongest (Les plus fort)'' by Georges Clemenceau at archive.org

''The surprises of life '' by Georges Clemenceau at archive.org

''At the foot of Sinai'' by Georges Clemenceau at archive.org


External links




''Encyclopædia Britannica'', Georges Clemenceau
* * *
''Clemenceau, the Man and His Time'' by Henry Mayers Hyndman at archive.org

Clemenceau's cartoons


* Vincent Laniol
Clemenceau, Georges
in

* Fabienne Bock
Governments, Parliaments and Parties (France)
in

* Stéphane Tison
War Aims and War Aims Discussion (France)
in

* , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Clemenceau, Georges 1841 births 1929 deaths People from Vendée French atheists Politicians from Pays de la Loire Republican Union (France) politicians Radical Party (France) politicians Prime Ministers of France French interior ministers French Ministers of War Members of the National Assembly (1871) Members of the 1st Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic Members of the 2nd Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic Members of the 3rd Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic Members of the 4th Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic Members of the 5th Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic French Senators of the Third Republic Senators of Var (department) People associated with the Dreyfus affair French people of World War I Members of the Académie Française Members of the Royal Academy of Belgium Recipients of the Order of the White Eagle (Poland)