Eugène Dieudonné (1884–1944) was a French

anarchist Anarchism is a political philosophy and Political movement, movement that seeks to abolish all institutions that perpetuate authority, coercion, or Social hierarchy, hierarchy, primarily targeting the state (polity), state and capitalism. A ...

and illegalist. He was a frequent visitor of the headquarters of ''

L'Anarchie ''L'Anarchie'' (, ''anarchy'') was a French individualist anarchist journal based in Paris and established in April 1905 by Albert Libertad. Along with Libertad, contributors to the journal included Émile Armand, André Lorulot, Émilie Lamo ...

'' and accused of being a member of the

Bonnot Gang The Bonnot Gang (''La Bande à Bonnot''), or The Tragic Bandits (''Les Bandes Tragiques''), was a French criminal anarchist group that operated in France and Belgium during the late ''Belle Époque'' from 1911 to 1912. Composed of individuals wh ...

. Despite

Jules Bonnot Jules Joseph Bonnot (14 October 1876 – 28 April 1912) was a French soldier, Illegalism, illegalist anarchist, bank robber, and murderer. He is notorious for his role in the French anarchist band "The Bonnot Gang" that committed many crimes in ...

and

Octave Garnier Octave Garnier (25 December 1889 – 14 May 1912) was a French anarchist and founding member of the infamous Bonnot Gang. Life Born in Fontainebleau, Seine-et-Marne to Élie Germain Garnier, a laborer, and Françoise Anastasie Desmurs, on Chris ...

exonerating him, he was accused and convicted of participating in the robbery of a

Société Générale Société Générale S.A. (), colloquially known in English-speaking countries as SocGen (), is a French multinational universal bank and financial services company founded in 1864. It is registered in downtown Paris and headquartered nearby i ...

branch in Paris in 1912. Initially sentenced to death, his sentence was commuted to forced labor for life and he was sent to

French Guiana French Guiana, or Guyane in French, is an Overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of France located on the northern coast of South America in the Guianas and the West Indies. Bordered by Suriname to the west ...

, whence he was able to flee to Brazil in 1926. Journalists

Albert Londres Albert Londres (1 November 1884 – 16 May 1932) was a French journalist and writer. One of the inventors of investigative journalism, Londres not only reported news but created it, and reported it from a personal perspective. He criticized abu ...

and secured his pardon and he returned to France where he spent the rest of his life as a furniture manufacturer.

Life

Eugène Dieudonné was born 1 May 1884 in Nancy, to a widow with three other young children, and was raised in the Stanislas orphanage. From the age of 16 he worked as a

joiner Joinery is a part of woodworking that involves joining pieces of wood, engineered lumber, or synthetic substitutes (such as laminate), to produce more complex items. Some woodworking joints employ mechanical fasteners, bindings, or adhesives, ...

. He was active in the local anarchist scene. In 1907, he married

Louise Kaiser Louise Kaiser (Medemblik, 15 October 1891 – Bussum, 2 April 1973) was a Dutch phonetician and linguist and the first female lecturer at the University of Amsterdam and became known for her research into the phonetic and physical-anthropological ...

, and in 1909 the couple moved to Paris with their son, Pierre. There, he was a frequent visitor of the headquarters of ''

''. He was arrested on 27 February 1912, accused of being involved in the

's robbery of the

. Dieudonné denied the accusation, and a letter by

, an anarchist member of the Bonnot Gang, written while Garnier was on the run, exonerated him, but on 3 February 1913 the jury nonetheless found Dieudonné guilty, and he was sentenced to death.

Raymond Callemin The Bonnot Gang (''La Bande à Bonnot''), or The Tragic Bandits (''Les Bandes Tragiques''), was a French criminal anarchist group that operated in France and Belgium during the late ''Belle Époque'' from 1911 to 1912. Composed of individuals wh ...

, convicted of the same crime, declared that he and Garnier were the only people culpable, which led to the President commuting Dieudonné's sentence to forced labour in perpetuity. First deported to the penal colony in

Guiana The Guianas, also spelled Guyanas or Guayanas, are a geographical region in north-eastern South America. Strictly, the term refers to the three Guianas: Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana, formerly British, Dutch, and French Guiana respectiv ...

, then to

Cayenne Cayenne (; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and capital city of French Guiana, an overseas region and Overseas department, department of France located in South America. The city stands on a former island at the mouth of the Caye ...

, Dieudonné attempted escape several times, and was finally successful in December 1926. A few months later, he was arrested and detained in Belem do Para in Brazil. Back in France, there were campaigns for his release initiated by his wife, his lawyer, and journalists

and . He was released from his sentence on 29 August 1927, and returned to France, where he worked in

Faubourg Saint-Antoine The Faubourg Saint-Antoine () was one of the traditional suburbs of Paris, France. It grew up to the east of the Bastille around the abbey of Saint-Antoine-des-Champs, and ran along the Rue du Faubourg Saint-Antoine. Location The Faubourg Sain ...

. Owing to his experience in prison, Dieudonné no longer advocated for illegalism. Anarchists from ''Libertaire'', in particular Louis Loréal, accused him of abandoning the anarchist cause. Dieudonné appeared (as himself) in a theatrical performance by

. He was friends with

Jean Vigo Jean Vigo (; 26 April 1905 – 5 October 1934) was a French film director who helped establish poetic realism in film in the 1930s. His work influenced French New Wave cinema of the late 1950s and early 1960s. Biography Vigo was born to Emi ...

, and did carpentry work for his films. Vigo intended to create a film, ''Evadé du bagne'', about Dieudonné's prison experiences;

Gaby Morlay Gaby Morlay (born Blanche Pauline Fumoleau; 8 June 1893 – 4 July 1964) was a film actress from France.

would have starred alongside Dieudonné. Vigo died before the film was made. Dieudonné died in the hospital in

Eaubonne Eaubonne () is a commune in the Val-d'Oise department, in the northern outer suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. Population Twin towns It is twinned with Matlock, Derbyshire, England; Budenheim, Germany and ...

on 21 August 1944.

Works

In 1930, Dieudonné published ''La Vie des Forçats'' ("The life of those condemned to forced labour") with

éditions Gallimard Éditions Gallimard (), formerly Éditions de la Nouvelle Revue Française (1911–1919) and Librairie Gallimard (1919–1961), is one of the leading French book publishers. In 2003, it and its subsidiaries published 1,418 titles. Founded by G ...

. A new edition, illustrated by , was published in 2014. He also narrated a 1931 documentary film on the experience of life in a penal colony, ''Autour d'une évasion.'' File:Eugene.Dieudonne.jpg, alt=A mugshot of Dieudonné after his arrest, Dieudonné's mugshot 1912 File:Deportação de Deboe e Dieudonné.png, Deportation of Eugène Dieudonné and

Jean de Boë Jean Adelin De Boë (March 20, 1889 in Anderlecht (Brussels) – January 2, 1974 in Watermael-Boitsfort (Brussels)) was a typographer and anarchist. References External links 1889 births 1974 deaths Typographers and type designers Bel ...

to the on

Devil's Island The penal colony of Cayenne ( French: ''Bagne de Cayenne''), commonly known as Devil's Island (''Île du Diable''), was a French penal colony that operated for 100 years, from 1852 to 1952, and officially closed in 1953, in the Salvation Islan ...

References

External links

Radio France: L'affaire Eugène Dieudonné ou la fabrication d'un événement médiatique
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dieudonne, Eugene French anarchists 1884 births 1944 deaths People from Nancy, France French carpenters French documentary filmmakers People deported from France French prisoners sentenced to death French escapees French prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment Penal labourers People deported to French Guiana

Life

Works

Further reading

References

External links