Josée Laval, Countess de Chambrun (born Josette Pierrette Laval; – 9 January 1992) was an important figure of the régime de Vichy. She was the daughter of

Pierre Laval Pierre Jean Marie Laval (; 28 June 1883 – 15 October 1945) was a French politician. He served as Prime Minister of France three times: 1931–1932 and 1935–1936 during the Third Republic (France), Third Republic, and 1942–1944 during Vich ...

and the spouse of Count René de Chambrun.

Biography

Family

She was born as Josette Pierrette Laval in Paris, the only daughter of

(1883–1945) and Jeanne Claussat (1888–1959), daughter of the Radical-Socialist mayor of Châteldon (1881–1891) Joseph Claussat (1846–1910) and sister of the député and mayor of Châteldon (1908–1925) Joseph Claussat (1874–1925). During her childhood, she developed a great admiration towards her father.

Marriage and World War II

On 19 August 1935 in the basilica Sainte-Clotilde in Paris Josée Laval married

Count Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

René de Chambrun, an aristocrat and direct descendant of the American Revolutionary War hero, the

Marquis de Lafayette Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier de La Fayette, Marquis de La Fayette (; 6 September 1757 – 20 May 1834), known in the United States as Lafayette (), was a French military officer and politician who volunteered to join the Conti ...

. The groom was the son of Aldebert de Chambrun and Clara Eleanor Longworth, and thus a relative of Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt. Among the witnesses were General John J. Pershing and

Alice Roosevelt Longworth Alice Lee Roosevelt Longworth (February 12, 1884 – February 20, 1980) was an American writer and socialite. She was the eldest child of U.S. president Theodore Roosevelt and his only child with his first wife, Alice Hathaway Lee Roosevelt. Lo ...

(who was married to Nicholas Longworth, René's maternal uncle). The newlyweds became friends with such fashionable celebrities as Louise de Vilmorin, Marie-Laure de Noailles, Florence Gould, André Fraigneau,

Coco Chanel Gabrielle Bonheur "Coco" Chanel ( , ; 19 August 1883 – 10 January 1971) was a French fashion designer and Businessperson, businesswoman. The founder and namesake of the Chanel brand, she was credited in the post-World War I era with populari ...

, Stanislas and Armand de La Rochefoucauld and Henri Sauguet. During the

war War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...

, Josée Laval used her father

's important position in the Vichy French government to lead a life of luxury and sophistication, dividing her time between Paris and the family castle of Châteldon, while her husband, as an envoy from the Vichy government, would be able for some time to persuade

Franklin Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...

that

Vichy France Vichy France (; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was a French rump state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II, established as a result of the French capitulation after the Battle of France, ...

would remain friendly to the United States. Josée maintained a literary salon frequented by collaborationists Xavier Vallat, René Bousquet, Marquis

Fernand de Brinon Fernand de Brinon, Marquis de Brinon (; 26 August 1885 – 15 April 1947) was a French lawyer and journalist who was one of the architects of French collaboration with the Nazism, Nazis during World War II. He claimed to have had five private tal ...

and Otto Abetz. After the Liberation, they took refuge in the outskirts of Paris and tried vainly to obtain a quick release for her father and clear his reputation; but they could not prevent his execution on 15 October 1945 in the Fresnes Prison. Marked by this ordeal, Josée preferred to forget the war.

Last years

In 1955, Josée undertook with her husband the renovation of the

Château de la Grange-Bléneau A château (, ; plural: châteaux) is a manor house, or palace, or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking reg ...

, the last residence of the

marquis de La Fayette Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier de La Fayette, Marquis de La Fayette (; 6 September 1757 – 20 May 1834), known in the United States as Lafayette (), was a French military officer and politician who volunteered to join the Conti ...

. In the course of the work, the many archives that were unearthed led to the creation of the Fondation Josée-et-René-de-Chambrun, which was recognized as being of public utility on 19 October 1959. In addition to the conservation of the

and the château de Châteldon, the foundation militates for the rehabilitation of

. In 2017, the foundation will lend works and souvenirs of La Fayette to the exhibition ''La Fayette La traversée d'une vie'' at the Musée Hèbre in Rochefort-sur-Mer ( 17). Josée Laval,

Countess Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

of Chambrun, died in January 1992, at the age of 80. She is buried in the

Montparnasse Cemetery Montparnasse Cemetery () is a cemetery in the Montparnasse quarter of Paris, in the city's 14th arrondissement of Paris, 14th arrondissement. The cemetery is roughly 47 acres and is the second largest cemetery in Paris. The cemetery has over 35,00 ...

in Paris.

Posterity

A television documentary entitled ''Les Carnets de Josée Laval'' is devoted to her in 2018 describes especially her life during the Occupation. The critic from the newspaper ''

Le Monde (; ) is a mass media in France, French daily afternoon list of newspapers in France, newspaper. It is the main publication of Le Monde Group and reported an average print circulation, circulation of 480,000 copies per issue in 2022, including ...

'' wrote in this regard: : 'Each time we read n excerpt from her notebooks an immense feeling of shame invades us, so much so that the denial of Nazi horrors agitates this past that does not pass'.

Alexandre Jardin Alexandre Jardin (; born 14 April 1965) is a French writer, film director and winner of the Prix Femina The Prix Femina is a French List of literary awards, literary prize awarded each year by an exclusively female jury. The prize, which was ...

(born in 1965), who knew her as a child, also evokes her in ''Des gens très bien'' (2011), where

Paul Morand Paul Morand (13 March 1888 – 24 July 1976) was a French author whose short stories and novellas were lauded for their style, wit and descriptive power. His most productive literary period was the interwar period of the 1920s and 1930s. He was m ...

also appears.

Bibliography

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Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Laval, Josée 1911 births 1992 deaths 20th-century French people French countesses French collaborators with Nazi Germany Pierre Laval Children of prime ministers of France