Guy Jacques Joseph Petit (23 November 1905 – 31 October 1988) was a French lawyer, journalist and politician who was a deputy in the

French Fourth Republic The French Fourth Republic (french: Quatrième république française) was the Republicanism, republican government of France from 27 October 1946 to 4 October 1958, governed by the fourth republican constitution. It was in many ways a revival of ...

from 1946 to 1958. He was Minister of Commerce in 1953. He was a senator in the

French Fifth Republic The Fifth Republic (french: Cinquième République) is France's current republic, republican system of government. It was established on 4 October 1958 by Charles de Gaulle under the Constitution of France, Constitution of the Fifth Republic.. ...

from 1959 to 1983. He was also the mayor of

Biarritz Biarritz ( , , , ; Basque also ; oc, Biàrritz ) is a city on the Bay of Biscay, on the Atlantic coast in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in the French Basque Country in southwestern France. It is located from the border with Spain. ...

for many years, and did much to promote tourism in that town and the surrounding region.

Early years

Guy Petit was born on 23 November 1905 in

, Basses-Pyrénées. When he was fourteen his father was elected mayor of Biarritz. Petit received his secondary education in

Bayonne Bayonne (; eu, Baiona ; oc, label= Gascon, Baiona ; es, Bayona) is a city in Southwestern France near the Spanish border. It is a commune and one of two subprefectures in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department, in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine re ...

, then studied law. He became an attorney, first in Bayonne and then in Paris. He joined the right-wing

French Social Party , logo = French Social Party emblem.svg , leader1_title = President , leader1_name = François de La Rocque , foundation = , dissolution = , predecessor = Croix-de-Feu , headquarters = Rue de Milan, P ...

(Parti Social Français, PSF) led by Colonel

François de La Rocque François de La Rocque (; 6 October 1885 – 28 April 1946) was the leader of the French right-wing league the Croix de Feu from 1930 to 1936 before he formed the more moderate nationalist French Social Party (1936–1940), which has been d ...

in the

Basque country Basque Country may refer to: * Basque Country (autonomous community), as used in Spain ( es, País Vasco, link=no), also called , an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain (shown in pink on the map) * French Basque Country o ...

, and was vice president and then head of propaganda of the party. Petit was mobilized in September 1939 at the start of

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 discharged due to illness in January 1940, but voluntarily reenlisted on 5 June 1940. During the German occupation of France he joined the

French Resistance The French Resistance (french: La Résistance) was a collection of organisations that fought the German occupation of France during World War II, Nazi occupation of France and the Collaborationism, collaborationist Vichy France, Vichy régim ...

. When the Gestapo made inquiries about him in March 1943 he went underground and joined the

French Forces of the Interior The French Forces of the Interior (french: Forces françaises de l'Intérieur) were French resistance fighters in the later stages of World War II. Charles de Gaulle used it as a formal name for the resistance fighters. The change in designation ...

Political career

Petit was elected mayor of Biarritz in April 1945, and held this office until March 1977. He was active in journalism throughout the

. He was political director of the daily ''Nouvelle gazette'' of Biarritz, and wrote regularly for ''Sud-Ouest'', ''Le Nouveau Journal'' and ''L'Eclair des Pyrénées''. On 2 June 1946 he was elected to the second constituent assembly at the head of the Republican and Social Entente list. He opposed the second draft constitution which was chosen by the assembly and ratified by plebiscite on 13 October 1946. He ran for election to the national assembly in November 1946 and was easily reelected. He ran in the parliamentary elections of 17 June 1951 as second on the Republican Union list and was elected. Petit was secretary of state to the President of the council from 14 March 1952 to 8 January 1953 in the cabinet of

Antoine Pinay Antoine Pinay (; 30 December 1891 – 13 December 1994) was a French conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of France from 1952 to 1953. Life Antoine Pinay was born on 30 December 1891 in Saint-Symphorien-sur-Coise. He was a child ...

. He was secretary of state for Agriculture from 9 January 1953 to 11 February 1953 in the cabinet of

René Mayer René Mayer (; 4 May 189513 December 1972) was a French Radical politician of the Fourth Republic who served briefly as Prime Minister during 1953. Mayer was born and died in Paris. He led the Mayer Authority from 1955 to 1958. He was France ...

. He was

Minister of Commerce A Commerce minister (sometimes business minister, industry minister, trade minister or international trade minister) is a position in many governments that is responsible for regulating external trade and promoting economic growth (commercial polic ...

from 11 February 1953 to 28 June 1953 in the Mayer cabinet. Petit was reelected on 2 January 1956 at the head of the list of the Union of Independents and Peasants. He was defeated in the legislative elections of November 1958. Petit was elected to the Senate for Basses-Pyrénées in the elections of April 1959, and was reelected in 1965 and 1974. During this period the department was renamed

Pyrénées-Atlantiques Pyrénées-Atlantiques (; Gascon Occitan: ''Pirenèus Atlantics''; eu, Pirinio Atlantiarrak or ) is a department in the southwest corner of France and of the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. Named after the Pyrenees mountain range and the Atlanti ...

. He worked to develop the tourist industry in France, in his department, and in the upscale resort of Biarritz, where he was mayor until 1977. He favored measures to make it easier to open hotels, to consolidate natural sites and to restrict outdoor advertising near listed buildings. Under his leadership the municipality renovated the

Hôtel du Palais The Hôtel du Palais is a hotel beside the Atlantic beach in the resort town of Biarritz, on the Côte Basque in the French department of Pyrénées-Atlantiques. It was originally built for the Empress Eugénie around 1855 as a summer villa. It w ...

, one of the finest luxury hotels in France. Petit was a member of the general council of the department from 1966 to 1979, representing Biarritz, and chaired the council during his first term. He retired from politics in October 1983. Guy Petit died on 31 October 1988 in

Notes

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Petit, Guy 1905 births 1988 deaths People from Biarritz Politicians from Nouvelle-Aquitaine French Social Party politicians National Centre of Independents and Peasants politicians French Ministers of Commerce Members of the Constituent Assembly of France (1946) Deputies of the 1st National Assembly of the French Fourth Republic Deputies of the 2nd National Assembly of the French Fourth Republic Deputies of the 3rd National Assembly of the French Fourth Republic French Senators of the Fifth Republic Senators of Pyrénées-Atlantiques