Jean d'Azémar de Fabrègues (; 8 January 1906 – 23 November 1983) was a French Catholic intellectual and journalist. He was a "traditional" Catholic, rejecting the materialism of both liberal democracy and the totalitarian regimes of the right and the left.

Early years (1906–39)

Jean d'Azémar de Fabrègues was born on 8 January 1906 in Paris. His parents were Raymond d'Azémar de Fabrègues (1865–1944) and Marie Louise Dufour. He attended the Sorbonne but did not complete his studies. He obtained a Bachelor's degree and a diploma of graduate studies in philosophy, and became a university teacher in 1930. He married Monique Mignot. Fabrègues joined the right wing and royalist

Action Française ''Action Française'' (, AF; ) is a French far-right monarchist and nationalist political movement. The name was also given to a journal associated with the movement, '' L'Action Française'', sold by its own youth organization, the Camelot ...

and was the secretary of

Charles Maurras Charles-Marie-Photius Maurras (; ; 20 April 1868 – 16 November 1952) was a French author, politician, poet and critic. He was an organiser and principal philosopher of ''Action Française'', a political movement that was monarchist, corporatis ...

, but moved from there to a "traditionalist" catholicism. Fabrègues contributed to several right-leaning journals in the 1930s including ''La Gazette française'' of the Action Française (1924–30), ''Réaction'' (1930–32) ''Revue du Siècle'' (1933–34), ''Revue du XXe siècle'' (1934–35) and ''Combat'' (1936–39). ''Combat'' (Struggle) was an extreme right magazine that Fabrègues coedited with

Thierry Maulnier Thierry Maulnier (born Jacques Talagrand; 1 October 1909 – 9 January 1988) was a French journalist, essayist, dramatist, and literary critic who was born in Alès and died in Marnes-la-Coquette. He was married to theatre director Marcelle ...

, who was also disgusted by the decadence of the era. Fabrègues was given leave from teaching in 1937, and became director of the journal ''Civilization'' and of the éditions Masson collections of classics for schools from 1937 to 1939. In the 1930s Jean de Fabrègues was at the center of the Young Catholic Right, a group that lost direction when the Pope condemned the

. They followed the views of people such as

Jacques Maritain Jacques Maritain (; 18 November 1882 – 28 April 1973) was a French Catholic philosopher. Raised as a Protestant, he was agnostic before converting to Catholicism in 1906. An author of more than 60 books, he helped to revive Thomas Aqui ...

Georges Bernanos Louis Émile Clément Georges Bernanos (; 20 February 1888 – 5 July 1948) was a French author, and a soldier in World War I. A Catholic with monarchist leanings, he was critical of elitist thought and was opposed to what he identified as d ...

, Henri Massis,

Étienne Gilson Étienne Henri Gilson (; 13 June 1884 – 19 September 1978) was a French philosopher and historian of philosophy. A scholar of medieval philosophy, he originally specialised in the thought of Descartes; he also philosophized in the tradition ...

François Mauriac François Charles Mauriac (; ; 11 October 1885 – 1 September 1970) was a French novelist, dramatist, critic, poet, and journalist, a member of the'' Académie française'' (from 1933), and laureate of the 1952 Nobel Prize in Literature, Nobel Pr ...

and

Gabriel Marcel Gabriel Honoré Marcel (7 December 1889 – 8 October 1973) was a French philosopher, playwright, music critic and leading Christian existentialist. The author of over a dozen books and at least thirty plays, Marcel's work focused on the moder ...

. The 1930s nonconformists, as \ has called them, were opposed to the materialism of the liberals and the Marxists. They opposed both parliamentary democracy and the totalitarian communist, fascist and Nazi regimes.

World War II (1939–45)

After the defeat of France in 1940 Fabrègues and others including Jean Daujat, Jean Guitton, Henri Guitton, Gustave Thibon and

François Perroux François Perroux (December 19, 1903 – June 2, 1987) was a French economist. He was named Professor at the Collège de France, after having taught at the University of Lyon (1928–1937) and the University of Paris (1935–1955). He founded th ...

supported the Vichy regime's National Revolution, which they hoped would introduce a Christian social order. The German occupation and the evolution of the Vichy regime disappointed them without making them abandon their views. At the start of the German occupation of France Roland Laudenbach co-edited the literary review ''Prétexte'' with Jean Turlais and . ''Prétexte'' was replaced by ''Cahiers de la génération'' in 1941, and its team became the core of the ''Cahiers français'' published by the Vichy youth organization. The ''Cahiers français'' attracted nonconformists of the 1930s such as Louis Salleron, Jean de Fabrègues, René Vincent and

Pierre Andreu Pierre Andreu (12 July 1909 – 25 March 1987) was a French journalist, essayist, biographer, and poet. Life Pierre Andreu was born in 1909 in Carcassonne, Aude. As a student, he was interested in Charles Péguy, Pierre-Joseph Proudhon and Geor ...

, and followers of

such as Raoul Girardet,

Antoine Blondin Antoine Blondin (; 11 April 1922 – 7 June 1991) was a French writer. He belonged to the literary group called the '' Hussards''. He was also a sports columnist in ''L'Équipe''. Blondin also wrote under the name Tenorio. Biography Blondin w ...

and Jean Turlais. Fabrègues was director of the Lyon-based weekly ''Demain'' from 1942 to 1944.

Later career (1945–83)

Fabrègues was appointed editor in chief of the weekly ''La France catholique'' in 1945. In March 1957 Fabrègues became director of ''France catholique'', replacing Jean Le Cour Grandmaison (1883–1974). He was director of this journal until 1970. Jean de Fabrègues died in a car crash on 23 November 1983 at the age of 77. He was a knight of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

Works

Fabrègues was the author of many books. * ''La Cité Antique'', Union des corporations françaises, 1927 * ''L'erreur communiste'', Union des corporations françaises, 1929 * ''Raison de craindre, raison d'espérer'', Le Portulan, ???? * Le problème du mal dans la littérature contemporaine, in ''Le Mal est parmi nous'', ouvrage collectif, Plon, 1948 * Les catholiques et la révolution de 1848, in ''L'esprit de 1848'', ouvrage collectif, Bader Dufour, 1948 * ''Avec notre temps, oui, mais pour le sauver'', Alsatia, 1951 * ''La tyrannie ou la paix'',

Calmann-Lévy Calmann-Lévy is a French publishing house founded in 1836 by Michel Lévy as Michel Lévy frères. His brother Kalmus Calmann Lévy joined in 1844. After Michel's death in 1875, the firm was renamed ''Calmann Lévy''.Jean-Marie Vianney John Vianney (born Jean-Marie Vianney and later Jean-Marie-Baptiste Vianney; 8 May 1786 – 4 August 1859) was a Catholic Church in France, French Catholic priest often referred to as the ''Curé d'Ars'' ("the parish priest of Ars"). He is known ...

, Curé d'Ars'', Amiot Dumont, 1956 * ''La révolution ou la foi'', Desclée, 1957 * ''Le mariage chrétien'', Fayard, 1958 * ''La femme pauvre de

Léon Bloy Léon Bloy (; 11 July 1846 – 3 November 1917) was a French Catholic novelist, essayist, pamphleteer (or lampoonist), and satirist, known additionally for his eventual (and passionate) defense of Catholicism and for his influence within Frenc ...

'', Club du livre du mois, 1957 * ''La conversion d'Edith Stein, patronne de l'existentialisme'', Wësmael-Charlier, 1963 * '' Bernanos tel qu'il était'', Mame, 1963 * ''Le sillon de Marc Sangnier'', Perrin, 1964 * Chrétiens de droite ou de gauche, Dialogue entre Jean de Fabrègues et Jacques Madaule, Beauchesnes, 1966 * ''

et son

Action française ''Action Française'' (, AF; ) is a French far-right monarchist and nationalist political movement. The name was also given to a journal associated with the movement, '' L'Action Française'', sold by its own youth organization, the Camelot ...

'', Perrin, 1966 * ''Christianisme et civilisation'', Gigord, 1966 * ''L'église, esclave ou espoir du monde ?'', Aubier-Montaigne, 1971 * ''Mauriac'', Plon, 1971 * ''L'apôtre du siècle désespéré,

Jean-Marie Vianney John Vianney (born Jean-Marie Vianney and later Jean-Marie-Baptiste Vianney; 8 May 1786 – 4 August 1859) was a Catholic Church in France, French Catholic priest often referred to as the ''Curé d'Ars'' ("the parish priest of Ars"). He is known ...

, Curé d'Ars'', ré-édition France catholique, 2010

Notes

Sources

* * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fabregues, Jean de 1906 births 1983 deaths 20th-century French journalists French collaborators with Nazi Germany People affiliated with Action Française People of Vichy France Road incident deaths in France Non-conformists of the 1930s