Félix Eugène Grat (12 November 1898 – 13 May 1940) was a French politician and historian. An independent candidate, he was elected in 1936 to represent

Mayenne Mayenne ( ) is a landlocked department in northwest France named after the river Mayenne. Mayenne is part of the administrative region of Pays de la Loire and is surrounded by the departments of Manche, Orne, Sarthe, Maine-et-Loire, and Il ...

in the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...

. He was killed in action during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in 1940.

Life

Born in the

2nd arrondissement of Paris The 2nd arrondissement of Paris (''IIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, this arrondissement is colloquially referred to as ''deuxième'' (second/the second). It is governed locall ...

in 1898, Grat graduated from the

Lycée Condorcet The Lycée Condorcet () is a secondary school in Paris, France, located at 8, rue du Havre, in the city's 9th arrondissement. Founded in 1803, it is one of the four oldest high schools in Paris and also one of the most prestigious. Since its inc ...

with a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

letters Letter, letters, or literature may refer to: Characters typeface * Letter (alphabet), a character representing one or more of the sounds used in speech or none in the case of a silent letter; any of the symbols of an alphabet * Letterform, the g ...

in 1917. Upon his graduation, he enlisted to fight in the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

and was awarded a ''

Croix de guerre The (, ''Cross of War'') is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was first awarded during World ...

'' for valiant service. After the war, he pursued a degree in law at the

École Nationale des Chartes The École Nationale des Chartes (; ) is a French ''grande école'' and a constituent college of Université PSL, specialising in the auxiliary sciences of history, historical sciences. It was founded in 1821, and was located initially at the A ...

and was appointed a member of the

French Academy in Rome The French Academy in Rome (, ) is an academy located in the Villa Medici, within the Villa Borghese, on the Pincio (Pincian Hill) in Rome, Italy. History The Academy was founded at the Palazzo Capranica in 1666 by Louis XIV under the dire ...

in 1923. Grat spent two years researching Latin texts in the Vatican and discovered several previously unknown works written by

Tacitus Publius Cornelius Tacitus, known simply as Tacitus ( , ; – ), was a Roman historian and politician. Tacitus is widely regarded as one of the greatest Roman historians by modern scholars. Tacitus’ two major historical works, ''Annals'' ( ...

. After returning to France in 1925, he became a lecturer at the

École pratique des hautes études The (), abbreviated EPHE, is a French postgraduate top level educational institution, a . EPHE is a constituent college of the Université PSL (together with ENS Ulm, Paris Dauphine or Ecole des Mines). The college is closely linked to É ...

and was appointed a professor of

palaeography Palaeography (American and British English spelling differences#ae and oe, UK) or paleography (American and British English spelling differences#ae and oe, US) (ultimately from , , 'old', and , , 'to write') is the study and academic disciplin ...

Sorbonne University Sorbonne University () is a public research university located in Paris, France. The institution's legacy reaches back to the Middle Ages in 1257 when Sorbonne College was established by Robert de Sorbon as a constituent college of the Unive ...

. From 1931, he taught the history of the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

in Nancy. In 1936, Grat was an independent candidate in the legislative elections in the department of Mayenne. His wife's family owned large amounts of land in the area, allowing him to become a political influence in the largely agriculture-focused region. Facing outgoing Deputy Joseph Boüessé, Grat was elected Deputy with of the vote. Sitting in the Assembly with members of the conservative

Republican Federation The Republican Federation (, FR) was the largest conservative party during the French Third Republic, gathering together the Progressive Republicans and the Orléanists rallied to the Republic. Founded in November 1903, the party competed with ...

party, he was concerned with agriculture, labor policies, and foreign affairs. He opposed the 1936 devaluation of the

franc The franc is any of various units of currency. One franc is typically divided into 100 centimes. The name is said to derive from the Latin inscription ''francorum rex'' (King of the Franks) used on early French coins and until the 18th century ...

and also conducted a mission in the

Levant The Levant ( ) is the subregion that borders the Eastern Mediterranean, Eastern Mediterranean sea to the west, and forms the core of West Asia and the political term, Middle East, ''Middle East''. In its narrowest sense, which is in use toda ...

while secretary of the

Foreign Affairs Committee Foreign Affairs Committee may refer to: * Canadian House of Commons Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development * Canadian Senate Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade * Foreign Affairs Committee of t ...

. While a politician, Grat also founded the Institute for Research and History of Texts, which focuses on researching ancient and medieval manuscripts. During the

, Grat re-enlisted in the

army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...

and served on the frontline, again being rewarded the ''

Croix de Guerre The (, ''Cross of War'') is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was first awarded during World ...

'' for his service. In early 1940, he presented his concerns about the army's lack of preparation for war in the National Assembly. On 13 May, three days after the beginning of the German invasion of France, Grat was killed in action near

Volmerange-les-Mines Volmerange-les-Mines (; German: ''Wollmeringen'' ; ; Lorraine Franconian: ''Wuelmeréngen''/''Wollmeréng'') is a Communes of France, commune in the region of Moselle (department), Moselle Departments of France, department in Grand Est in north ...

. He was temporarily buried in Fontoy. Grat was the first Deputy killed during the Second World War.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grat, Félix 1898 births 1940 deaths Members of the 16th Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic 20th-century French politicians Independent politicians in France 20th-century French historians Politicians from Paris Lycée Condorcet alumni École Nationale des Chartes alumni Academic staff of Paris-Sorbonne University French military personnel of World War I French Army officers French Army personnel killed in World War II Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1914–1918 (France) Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1939–1945 (France)