Henri François Julien Claude, viscount Davignon (3 December 1854 – 12 March 1916) was a Belgian politician who served as
Minister of Foreign Affairs
A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between cou ...
(1907–1916).
Born in
Saint-Josse-ten-Noode
Saint-Josse-ten-Noode () or Sint-Joost-ten-Node (), often simply called Saint-Josse or Sint-Joost, is one of the 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. Located in the north-eastern part of the region, it is bordered by the Ci ...
, Davignon was a member of the
Catholic Party. He was first elected to the Belgian Senate in 1898. In 1900 he was elected to the
Chamber of Representatives of which he remained a member until his death. In 1907 he became Minister of Foreign Affairs in the government led by
Jules de Trooz
Jules Henri Ghislain Marie, Baron de Trooz (21 February 1857 – 31 December 1907) was a Belgian Catholic Party politician.
De Trooz was born in Leuven, and had studied philosophy before entering politics. He represented Leuven in the Belgian C ...
(1907), a post he kept in the following governments of
Frans Schollaert
François (Frans) Victor Marie Ghislain Schollaert (19 August 1851 – 29 June 1917) was a Belgian Catholic Party politician.
Born in Wilsele, Schollaert trained as a lawyer and practiced in Leuven. He served as head of the Flemish farme ...
(1907–1911) and
Charles de Broqueville
Charles Marie Pierre Albert, 1st Count de Broqueville (4 December 1860 – 5 September 1940) was the prime minister of Belgium, serving during World War I.
Before 1914
Charles de Broqueville was born into an old noble family with its roots in F ...
(1911–1916). In this function at the start of the First World War he received the German ultimatum, demanding free passage through Belgium.
In January 1916 Davignon left the Foreign Office and became Minister without portfolio until his death in
Nice
Nice ( , ; Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative c ...
on 12 March 1916. The day before his death he was ennobled a hereditary viscount in the Belgian nobility.
His grandson,
Étienne
Étienne, a French analog of Stephen or Steven, is a masculine given name. An archaic variant of the name, prevalent up to the mid-17th century, is Estienne.
Étienne, Etienne, Ettiene or Ettienne may refer to:
People
Scientists and inventors
...
, served as vice-president of the European Commission.
References
* P. Nothomb, "Julien Davignon", ''Le Correspondant'', Paris, 23 June 1916.
* J. M. Jadot, "Henri Davignon, ministre des Affaires Etrangères", ''Biographie coloniale belge'', vol. IV, 1955.
* Paul Van Molle, ''Het Belgisch Parlement, 1894-1972'', Antwerp, 1972.
* Barbara Tuchman, ''The Guns of August'', Presidio Press, USA, 2004,
External links
Julien Davignoni
ODIS - Online Database for Intermediary Structures
{{DEFAULTSORT:Davignon, Julien
1854 births
1916 deaths
Belgian people of World War I
Catholic Party (Belgium) politicians
Foreign ministers of Belgium
Members of the Chamber of Representatives (Belgium)
People from Saint-Josse-ten-Noode