Pierre Nothomb

Pierre, Baron Nothomb (28 March 1887 – 29 December 1966) was a Belgian writer and right-wing politician. He was well known for his varied and voluminous output of prose and poetry. His works included poetry, essays, novels, biographies marked by their passionate tone, imagination, religious sentiment and attention to the detail.

In the period between the two world wars, Nothomb also came to prominence as the co-founder of several reactionary and near-fascist nationalist movements. In the post-war era Nothomb continued to be active in politics, albeit as an advocate of an ever closer Europe.

Early life

A baron, Nothomb was born in Tournai into one of Belgium's leading families and was a descendant of Jean-Baptiste Nothomb. Nothomb studied at the Catholic University of Leuven from which he graduated with his doctorate in politics in 1910.Philip Rees, ''Biographical Dictionary of the Extreme Right Since 1890'', Simon & Schuster, 1990, p. 280 By the age of 20 he was a regular author for Catholic journals. During World War I Nothomb worked as a propaganda writer for the Belgian government, producing such works as ''Les Barbares et la Belgique'', ''La Belgique martyre'', ''Le Roi Albert'' and ''Villes meurtries de Belgique''.

Politics

Initially eschewing the ''Action Française'' tendency that was influencing Belgian Catholic thinking at the time Nothomb and his political ally Pierre Daye instead looked towards a republican nationalism. He set up the Great Belgium Movement during the war and this re-emerged after 1918 as the ''Comité de politique nationale''. This movement made no secret of its desire to see Belgium annex both Luxembourg and Dutch Limburg. Initially associated with the Catholic Party his journal ''Renaissance nationale'' became critical of the direction of this party and in 1924 he formed the rightist ''Action Nationale'' as a more Maurrasian alternative. These groups were associated with anti-Semitism and have been seen as early fascist movements. He expressed some enthusiasm for corporatism, although by this time he had also become a staunch monarchist alongside this. Nothomb now came to recognise Enrico Corradini as his ideological model.

For a time he became associated with Paul Hoornaert but they split in 1927 when Nothomb returned to the Catholic Party. However, during the time of their alliance Nothomb had at his disposal the ''Jeunesses Nationales'', a 3000 strong youth movement that took part in street fights with Belgium's socialist and communist youth groups. Such was the notoriety of this group that Nothomb was given the nickname ''Napoleon de la Marmaille'' or "Napoleon of the brats".

Still associated with the Catholic Party by 1931 Nothomb had joined ''L'Authorité'', a highly reactionary non-party group. He would later write the occasional article for Rexist journals but did not commit to this group and also maintained good relations with ''Verdinaso'' leader Joris Van Severen.

In June 1936 the Provincial Council of Luxembourg province nominated Nothomb to the Belgian Senate. Barring a brief absence in 1939 Nothomb served in this body until 1966. He transferred to the Arlon seat in 1949, by which time he had joined the Christian Social Party. As a post-war Senator he continued to advocate the expansion of Belgium's borders but became convinced that the most realistic method of achieving this would be through a wider programme of European integration which he publicly endorsed.

Writing

Throughout his life Nothomb was prolific as both a poet and a novelist. In his poetic works Nothomb was noted for his mystic symbolism, and his most celebrated works include ''L'Arc-en-ciel'' (1909), ''Marisabelle'' (1920), ''Ans de grâce'' (1958), ''Élégie du solstice'' (1959) and ''L'Été d'octobre'' (1963). As a novelist his two historical works ''Risquons-tout'' (1926) and ''Les Dragons de Latour'' (1934) are amongst his most well-known. Other poetic and fictional works were inspired by the Bible, notably ''Vie d'Adam'' (1929), ''L'Égrégore'' (1945) and ''Le Roi David'' (1960). He also dabbled in science fiction, as evidenced by his 1922 novel ''La Rédemption de Mars'' concerning two astronauts visiting Mars. A further series of novels, such as ''Le Sens du pays'' (1930), ''La Ligne de faîte'' (1945) and ''Curieux Personnages'' (1942) focused on his love of the Ardennes.

Family

He was the father of Charles-Ferdinand Nothomb, who eulogised him in Parliament. He was also the father of writer Paul Nothomb, the grandfather of diplomat Patrick Nothomb and politician François Roelants du Vivier and the great-grandfather of novelist Amélie Nothomb.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nothomb, Pierre
1887 births
1966 deaths
Politicians from Tournai
Belgian essayists
Catholic Party (Belgium) politicians
Christian Social Party (Belgium, defunct) politicians
20th-century Belgian politicians
Members of the Senate (Belgium)
Catholic University of Leuven (1834–1968) alumni
Belgian male poets
Belgian male novelists
20th-century Belgian poets
20th-century Belgian novelists
Belgian biographers
20th-century essayists
Members of the Académie royale de langue et de littérature françaises de Belgique
20th-century Belgian male writers
Writers from Tournai
Male biographers