Jacques Stern (14 April 1882 – 21 December 1949) was a wealthy French banker, politician and a member of the Stern banking family. He was Minister of Merchant Marine in 1933 and Minister of the Colonies in 1936. While in exile in the United States 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 opposing ...

(1939–45) he wrote a passionate defense of France's colonial mission.

Early years (1882–1914)

Jacques Stern was born on 14 April 1882 in Paris. He was a banker, owner of a racing stable, and one of the wealthiest members of Paris society in the period before

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

(1914–18). He was president of the Southern Railway Company (Compagnie des chemins de fer du Sud de la France). His wife was Simone de Leusse.

Political career (1914–40)

Stern was interested in a political career, and assisted the cabinet of

Léon Bourgeois Léon Victor Auguste Bourgeois (; 21 May 185129 September 1925) was a French statesman. His ideas influenced the Radical Party regarding a wide range of issues. He promoted progressive taxation such as progressive income taxes and social insuran ...

. He was elected to the general council of the

Basses-Alpes Alpes-de-Haute-Provence or sometimes abbreviated as AHP (; oc, Aups d'Auta Provença; ) is a department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of France, bordering Alpes-Maritimes and Italy to the east, Var to the south, Vaucluse to the wes ...

department. Stern ran for election to the legislature in April–May 1914 for the

Castellane Castellane (; Provençal: ''Castelana'') is a commune in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department in southeastern France. With about 1,600 inhabitants, Castellane has the distinction of being the least-populated sub-prefecture of France. Its in ...

district, and was elected in the second round. He replaced François Deloncle. He was a deputy for this district of Basses-Alpes from 10 May 1914 to 7 December 1919, sitting with the Radical Left. He sat on various committees, and was mainly interested in issues of finance and communications. He ran for reelection in 1919 and 1924 but was defeated both times. In 1928 Stern ran on the Left Republican list for the

Digne Digne-les-Bains (; Occitan: ''Dinha dei Banhs''), or simply and historically Digne (''Dinha'' in the classical norm or ''Digno'' in the Mistralian norm), is the prefecture of the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department in the Provence-Alpes-Cô ...

district and was elected in the first round. He was deputy for this district of Basses-Alpes from 22 April 1928 to 31 May 1932, sitting with the Left Republicans. He was in turn a member of the committees of the Army (1928), of Foreign Affairs (1929) and of the Navy (1931). He was under-secretary of state for the Navy from 23 December 1930 to 27 June 1931. Stern was reelected deputy for

from 8 April 1932 to 31 May 1936. He was Minister of the Merchant Marine from 26 October 1933 to 26 November 1933. He was Minister of the Colonies from 24 January 1936 to 4 June 1936. He was defeated in the 1936 elections.

Exile (1940–49)

After the outbreak of

(1939–45), Stern escaped from France with his family. After getting their visas from Aristides de Sousa Mendes, the Portuguese consul in Bordeaux, the family fled to Portugal. They settled in

Estoril Estoril () is a town in the Municipality of Cascais, Portugal, on the Portuguese Riviera. It is a tourist destination, with luxury hotels, beaches, and the Casino Estoril. It has been home to numerous royal families and celebrities, and has h ...

, at both the Hotel do Parque and the Hotel Atlântico, between 8 August and 1 September 1940. A few days later, on 4 September, they left Portugal aboard the ''S.S. Excambion'' headed for New York City, arriving on 13 September.Ellis Island Passenger Registration Records. Stern took refuge in the United States. He found a position at

Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ...

. While there he wrote a book that defended France's colonial history (''Les colonies françaises, passé et avenir'' (1943), in which he asserted that France's role had always been to free the peoples from despotic rule and raise them to a higher level of civilization. According to Stern, Stern want to bind together the 40 million Frenchmen in Europe and the 60 million White and "Colored" Frenchmen overseas by transforming the colonial people into Frenchmen. Stern said that there was no racial discrimination in the colonies, and the unknown soldier under the Arc de Triomphe might even be a colored Frenchman. He wrote that "The gratitude and loyalty of the children of France's empire would never fail her, not even after her defeat." Jacques Stern died in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

on 21 December 1949.

Publications

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Notes

Sources

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Stern, Jacques 1882 births 1949 deaths Politicians from Paris Jewish French politicians Independent Radical politicians Democratic Republican Alliance politicians French Ministers of Merchant Marine French Ministers of the Colonies Members of the 11th Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic Members of the 14th Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic Members of the 15th Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic Stern family (banking)