Paul Thellier (29 October 1899 – 29 August 1944) was a French politician who was Minister of Agriculture for a few months in 1936 and again in 1940.

Life

Paul Thellier was born on 29 October 1899 in Tangry, Pas-de-Calais. He became a lawyer in 1921 joined the Bar of

Lille Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Pref ...

. He ran for election to the legislature in 1932 for the 8th district of Lille, but was defeated by the Socialist candidate. He ran successfully in a by-election on 28 January 1934 in the district of Saint-Pol, and was reelected in the 1936 general elections. He sat with the Independent Republican group. He spoke several times in favor of interventionist agricultural policies. On 24 January 1936 Thellier was appointed

Minister of Agriculture An agriculture ministry (also called an) agriculture department, agriculture board, agriculture council, or agriculture agency, or ministry of rural development) is a ministry charged with agriculture. The ministry is often headed by a minister ...

in the cabinet of

Albert Sarraut Albert-Pierre Sarraut (; 28 July 1872 – 26 November 1962) was a French Radical politician, twice Prime Minister during the Third Republic. Biography Sarraut was born on 28 July 1872 in Bordeaux, Gironde, France. On 14 March 1907 Sarraut ...

, and defended protectionist policies. He left office on 4 June 1936 when the

Popular Front A popular front is "any coalition of working-class and middle-class parties", including liberal and social democratic ones, "united for the defense of democratic forms" against "a presumed Fascist assault". More generally, it is "a coalition ...

government came to power. During

World War II 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 opposin ...

(1939-45) he was appointed Minister of Agriculture in the cabinet of

Paul Reynaud Paul Reynaud (; 15 October 1878 – 21 September 1966) was a French politician and lawyer prominent in the interwar period, noted for his stances on economic liberalism and militant opposition to Germany. Reynaud opposed the Munich Agreement of ...

. On 10 July 1940 he voted for the constitutional change that gave full powers to Marshal

Philippe Pétain Henri Philippe Benoni Omer Pétain (24 April 1856 – 23 July 1951), commonly known as Philippe Pétain (, ) or Marshal Pétain (french: Maréchal Pétain), was a French general who attained the position of Marshal of France at the end of Worl ...

. During the German occupation of France he worked as an advocate. On 28 August 1944 Thellier was arrested in Lille by agents of the "brigade des anges", a network created by the German army to learn about the composition of the allied armies. He was wounded in the chest while trying to escape. His doctor was taking him to the hospital when they were intercepted in

Roubaix Roubaix ( or ; nl, Robaais; vls, Roboais) is a city in northern France, located in the Lille metropolitan area on the Belgian border. It is a historically mono-industrial commune in the Nord department, which grew rapidly in the 19th century ...

and the doctor was forced out of the car. Theillier's corpse was found the next day in a burned car near Templeuve by the Belgian police. On 10 October 1944 the Military Court of Lille sentenced three of the men responsible for his murder to death and the fourth to forced labor for life.

Notes

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Thellier, Paul 1899 births 1944 deaths People from Pas-de-Calais Politicians from Hauts-de-France Democratic Republican Alliance politicians French Ministers of Agriculture Members of the 15th Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic Members of the 16th Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic French people executed by Nazi Germany