Loi Marthe Richard (Marthe Richard Law) of April 13, 1946 abolished the regime of regulated prostitution in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

that had been in force since 1804. It required the closure of brothels ("maisons de tolérance"). The law bears the name of

Marthe Richard Marthe Richard, née ''Betenfeld'' (15 August 1889, in Blâmont – 9 February 1982,) was a French politician and spy. She worked towards the closing of brothels in France in 1946. Early life In Nancy, France, Nancy, she became an apprentice ...

, who was a municipal councillor of

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

but not a parliamentary representative.

Build up to the law

On December 13, 1945, Marthe Richard, elected councillor of the

4th arrondissement of Paris The 4th arrondissement of Paris (''IVe arrondissement'') is one of the twenty arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, this arrondissement is referred to as ''quatrième''. Along with the 1st, 2nd and 3rd arrondissement ...

, presented to the ''Conseil municipal de Paris'' a proposal for the closure of

brothels. In her speech, she does not attack prostitutes as much as society, responsible in her view, of "organised and patent

debauchery Debauchery may refer to: * Corruption *Libertinism *Lust * Binge drinking * Currency debasement *Debauchery (band), a German death metal band See also *''Sodom, or the Quintessence of Debauchery'', a 1684 closet drama. *LGBT rights in Kuwait ...

" and

organized crime Organized crime (or organised crime) is a category of transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally th ...

, which benefits from regulated prostitution. She also reminds the council that prostitution was complicit with the

German occupation German-occupied Europe refers to the sovereign countries of Europe which were wholly or partly occupied and civil-occupied (including puppet governments) by the military forces and the government of Nazi Germany at various times between 1939 an ...

during

WW2 World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. The proposal was voted and on December 20, 1945, the police prefect, Charles Luizet, was authorised to close, without notice, the houses of prostitution in the

Department of the Seine Seine was the former department of France encompassing Paris and its immediate suburbs. It is the only enclaved department of France at that time. Its prefecture was Paris and its INSEE number was 75. The Seine department was disbanded in 1968 ...

within 3 months (by March 15, 1946 at the latest). Encouraged by this success, Marthe Richard started a press campaign for a vote on a law generalising these measures to all France. It is supported by the " Ligue pour le relèvement de la moralité publique" (League of Social and Moral Action) and by the Minister of Public Health and Population, Robert Prigent. On April 9, 1946, MP Marcel Roclore presented the report of the Committee on the Family, Population and Public Health, and concluded that the closure of brothels was necessary. The deputy Pierre Dominjon, member of the Ligue pour le relèvement de la moralité publique, tabled a proposal for a law which was voted on April 13, 1946 in the Chamber of Deputies. The closure of brothels takes effect from November 6, 1946. Withdrawing the administrative authorizations without compensation marked the end of legalisation and the start of a policy of abolitionism.

Consequences

After the adoption of the law, Marthe Richard ensured that article 5, which ended keeping national files on prostitution, in which she was still recorded, was enacted. These police records were replaced by a health and social file for prostitutes (law of April 24, 1946) in order to prevent prostitutes with a STI trying to evade the treatment of their disease. This law was little applied and was repealed on July 28, 1960, the date of French ratification of the United Nations Convention of December 2, 1949 for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others. (France's late ratification of the convention was due to the existence of brothels in its colonial empire). Approximately 1,400 establishments were closed, including 195 in Paris (177 official establishments): the best known were

Le Chabanais Le Chabanais was one of the best known and most luxurious brothels in Paris, operating near the Louvre at 12 rue Chabanais from 1878 until 1946, when brothels were outlawed in France. It was founded by the Irish-born Madame Kelly, who was close ...

Le Sphinx Le Sphinx was a ''maison close'' ( brothel) in Paris in the 1930s and 1940s. Along with the "Le Chabanais" and "One-Two-Two" it was considered one of the most luxurious and famous Parisian brothels. It was the first luxury brothel and opened on t ...

La Fleur blanche La Fleur blanche was a famous ''maison close'' ( brothel) in the city of Paris, located at 6 rue des Moulins in the 1st Arrondissement. The property was also known as ''rue des Moulins'' and was famous for its torture room. History The buildi ...

One-Two-Two The One-Two-Two was one of the most luxurious and illustrious brothels of Paris in the 1930s and 1940s. The name was taken from the address, 122 Rue de Provence, 8th arrondissement of Paris. The numbers were translated into English to ensure ...

but also the maisons d’abattage (“slaughterhouses”) such as Le Fourcy and the Lanterne Verte. This law caused smiles at the Brigade Mondaine of the 3rd floor of 36, quai des Orfèvres since it emanated from Marthe Richard, who was herself a prostitute until around 1915, when she wanted to make a clean sweep of her past. The police do not like the law because it risks depriving it of one of its sources of information (from the prostitutes). Prostitution was still a legal activity, only its organization, exploitation ( procuring), its visible manifestations and offense of soliciting are prohibited by law, however the police continue to tolerate bawdy houses. Many brothel owners turned themselves into owners of clandestine inns concentrated around French and American military barracks as well as in major cities. Whilst the law provided for the collection of prostitutes in "reception and outplacement centers", many continued their activities clandestinely. Critics of French prostitution policy, such as Mouvement du Nid, question how effective this was, its implementation, and whether it really closed the "maisons". For instance, they point to the presence of military brothels in

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till 1960.

References

Bibliography

* Natacha Henry,
Marthe Richard, l'aventurière des maisons closes
', La Librairie Vuibert, 2016 *

Alphonse Boudard Alphonse Boudard (17 December 1925 – 14 January 2000) was a French novelist and playwright. He won the 1977 Prix Renaudot for ''Les Combattants du petit bonheur''. Boudard's 1995 novel ''Dying childhood '' was awarded and recognised by the ...

, ''La fermeture : 13 avril 1946, la fin des maisons closes'', Robert Laffont, 1986 {{Prostitution in France, state=collapsed Prostitution law in France