Louis-Eugène Cavaignac
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Louis-Eugène Cavaignac (; 15 October 1802 – 28 October 1857) was a French general and politician who served as head of the executive power of
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
between June and December 1848, during the
French Second Republic The French Second Republic ( or ), officially the French Republic (), was the second republican government of France. It existed from 1848 until its dissolution in 1852. Following the final defeat of Napoleon, Napoleon Bonaparte at the Battle ...
. Born in Paris to a prominent family, Cavaignac was educated for a military career. Shortly after returning from service in the Morea expedition he took part in the
July Revolution The French Revolution of 1830, also known as the July Revolution (), Second French Revolution, or ("Three Glorious ays), was a second French Revolution after French Revolution, the first of 1789–99. It led to the overthrow of King Cha ...
, and in 1832 was sent to Algeria, at the start of the French invasion, where he served with distinction for the next 16 years. He started his political career following the French Revolution of 1848 and the establishment of the Second Republic, being elected member of 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 ...
, and soon became one of the leaders of the Moderate Republicans. As
Minister of War A ministry of defence or defense (see American and British English spelling differences#-ce.2C -se, spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and Mi ...
in the French provisional government, Cavaignac was tasked with putting down the June Days uprising, a revolt by Parisian workers against the National Assembly, and for this was temporarily given emergency powers. After suppressing the insurrection he renounced his dictatorial powers, and was subsequently confirmed by the National Assembly as the provisional "Chief of the Executive Power" of France, governing for nearly six months until the 1848 presidential election, in which he ran but lost to Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte. He continued to serve as a representative in the National Assembly until its dissolution by the president during the 1851 coup d'état, and afterwards retired into private life.


Family and early life

Cavaignac was born in
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
on 15 October 1802, the second and last child of Jean-Baptiste Cavaignac (1762–1829) and Julie-Marie Olivier de Corancez (1780–1849), who were married in 1797. His elder brother was the republican activist and journalist Éléonore-Louis Godefroi Cavaignac. At the time of his birth, his father was the mayor of Saint-Sauveur, and previously during the French Revolution had been a
Jacobin The Society of the Friends of the Constitution (), renamed the Society of the Jacobins, Friends of Freedom and Equality () after 1792 and commonly known as the Jacobin Club () or simply the Jacobins (; ), was the most influential political cl ...
member of the
National Convention The National Convention () was the constituent assembly of the Kingdom of France for one day and the French First Republic for its first three years during the French Revolution, following the two-year National Constituent Assembly and the ...
, where he voted for the
execution of Louis XVI Louis XVI, former Bourbon King of France since the Proclamation of the abolition of the monarchy, abolition of the monarchy, was publicly executed on 21 January 1793 during the French Revolution at the ''Place de la Révolution'' in Paris. At Tr ...
. His mother was the member of a wealthy family, prominent in the liberal intellectual circles of Paris, being the daughter of Guillaume Olivier de Corancez, founder of the '' Journal de Paris'' and a friend of
Jean-Jacques Rousseau Jean-Jacques Rousseau (, ; ; 28 June 1712 – 2 July 1778) was a Republic of Geneva, Genevan philosopher (''philosophes, philosophe''), writer, and composer. His political philosophy influenced the progress of the Age of Enlightenment through ...
. Through his mother, Cavaignac was a great-grandson of the Genevan '' encyclopédiste'' Jean Romilly. He and his brother were raised in accordance with the principles established in Rousseau's '' Emile, or On Education''. Cavaignac entered the
École Polytechnique (, ; also known as Polytechnique or l'X ) is a ''grande école'' located in Palaiseau, France. It specializes in science and engineering and is a founding member of the Polytechnic Institute of Paris. The school was founded in 1794 by mat ...
in 1820, then two years left to continue his studies in
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. Having finished his military education, he joined the Royal Army as a sub-lieutenant of the 2nd regiment of
military engineers Military engineering is loosely defined as the art, science, and practice of designing and building military works and maintaining lines of military transport and military communications. Military engineers are also responsible for logistics be ...
. Promoted to lieutenant in 1826, he served between 1828 and 1829 in the Morea expedition, the French intervention in the
Greek War of Independence The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution or the Greek Revolution of 1821, was a successful war of independence by Greek revolutionaries against the Ottoman Empire between 1821 and 1829. In 1826, the Greeks were assisted ...
. In 1830, upon the outbreak of the
July Revolution The French Revolution of 1830, also known as the July Revolution (), Second French Revolution, or ("Three Glorious ays), was a second French Revolution after French Revolution, the first of 1789–99. It led to the overthrow of King Cha ...
, Cavaignac, who was stationed in
Arras Arras ( , ; ; historical ) is the prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department, which forms part of the region of Hauts-de-France; before the reorganization of 2014 it was in Nord-Pas-de-Calais. The historic centre of the Artois region, with a ...
, became one of the first officers to join the revolt against the Bourbon monarchy. He was then promoted to captain in October 1830, under the new
July Monarchy The July Monarchy (), officially the ''Kingdom of France'' (), was a liberalism, liberal constitutional monarchy in France under , starting on 9 August 1830, after the revolutionary victory of the July Revolution of 1830, and ending 26 Februar ...
.


Military career

In 1831, Cavaignac was removed from active duty in consequence of his declared
republicanism Republicanism is a political ideology that encompasses a range of ideas from civic virtue, political participation, harms of corruption, positives of mixed constitution, rule of law, and others. Historically, it emphasizes the idea of self ...
, after he responded negatively to his colonel when questioned if he would obey orders to fight an eventual republican insurrection. He was recalled in 1832 and deployed with the Army of Africa, to serve in the invasion of Algeria. In the first years of the campaign he saw action at
Oran Oran () is a major coastal city located in the northwest of Algeria. It is considered the second most important city of Algeria, after the capital, Algiers, because of its population and commercial, industrial and cultural importance. It is w ...
(1833), Mascara (1834) and
Tlemcen Tlemcen (; ) is the second-largest city in northwestern Algeria after Oran and is the capital of Tlemcen Province. The city has developed leather, carpet, and textile industries, which it exports through the port of Rachgoun. It had a population of ...
(1836), which earned him praise from his commanding officer, Thomas Bugeaud, who described Cavaignac as "an instructed officer", whose "high capabilities" made him "ready for great things". In April 1837 he was given command of a battalion of '' zouaves'', and later won special distinction in his fifteen months' command of the exposed garrison of Tlemcen, a command for which he was selected by Marshal Clauzel, and in the defence of Cherchell in 1840. In his biography of Cavaignac, Hippolyte Castille remarked that "those who had known general Cavaignac in the battlefield knew what intelligence and energy he deployed in action". Almost every step of his promotion was gained on the field of battle. He was promoted to lieutenant-colonel in June 1840, to
colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...
in August 1841, and to '' maréchal de camp'' in 1844, the latter on the request of Henri d'Orléans, Duke of Aumale himself, son of King Louis Philippe. As he rose through the ranks in Algeria, Cavaignac's correspondence with the republicans in France became increasingly rare. In the last years of the July Monarchy, Cavaignac was appointed governor of the province of Oran, replacing general Lamoricière.


Early political career

Following the February 1848 Revolution and the creation of the
Republic A republic, based on the Latin phrase ''res publica'' ('public affair' or 'people's affair'), is a State (polity), state in which Power (social and political), political power rests with the public (people), typically through their Representat ...
, Cavaignac was promoted to general of division and was appointed Governor General of Algeria by the French provisional government, succeeding the Duke of Aumale. On 20 March he was offered the office of
Minister of War A ministry of defence or defense (see American and British English spelling differences#-ce.2C -se, spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and Mi ...
, but refused it in a letter addressed to the provisional government from
Algiers Algiers is the capital city of Algeria as well as the capital of the Algiers Province; it extends over many Communes of Algeria, communes without having its own separate governing body. With 2,988,145 residents in 2008Census 14 April 2008: Offi ...
, on 27 March. About a month later, Cavaignac returned to France to take his seat as a representative of Lot to the constituent
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 ...
, after being the most voted in that department on the 1848 legislative election. Cavaignac arrived in Paris on 17 May 1848, and on the same day accepted from the Executive Commission the Ministry of War he had previously refused. At the National Assembly he sat among the Moderate Republicans, and there, at the 10 June session, he engaged in a debate with the Bonapartist deputy Georges-Charles de Heeckeren d'Anthès, which started a lasting antagonism between the general and Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte.


June Days uprising

On 23 June, the Executive Commission put Cavaignac in charge of suppressing an armed workers' insurrection in eastern Paris, which would become known as the June Days. By 24 June, the insurgents posed such a threat that the National Assembly gave Cavaignac dictatorial powers, and disbanded the Executive Committee. Cavaignac viewed the insurrection as a military issue above all else, and thus relied on the regular army with assistance from the
National Guard National guard is the name used by a wide variety of current and historical uniformed organizations in different countries. The original National Guard was formed during the French Revolution around a cadre of defectors from the French Guards. ...
, and did not hesitate to use cannons to break through
barricade Barricade (from the French ''barrique'' - 'barrel') is any object or structure that creates a barrier or obstacle to control, block passage or force the flow of traffic in the desired direction. Adopted as a military term, a barricade denotes ...
s. When his troops advanced in three strong columns every inch of ground was disputed, and government troops were frequently repulsed, requiring reinforcement by fresh regiments, until he forced his way to the Place de la Bastille and crushed the insurrection at its headquarters. By 26 June the uprising had been put down. In the view of Cavaignac and other Moderate Republicans in government, the young Republic had just been saved. He had suppressed the revolt with strong determination, but took time in preparing to attack. At the time Alphonse de Lamartine even suspected Cavaignac of having deliberately chosen to delay the government's response, allowing the early protests on 23 June to grow, so that his ultimate victory over the insurgents would be more decisive.


Chief of the Executive Power

After defeating the insurrection, Cavaignac presented himself before the National Assembly and announced his intention to renounce the dictatorial powers delegated to him, which he did on 28 June. The parliament therefore confirmed him in power as Chief of the Executive Power (''Chef du pouvoir exécutif''). As a committed Republican, Cavaignac strove as
head of state A head of state is the public persona of a sovereign state.#Foakes, Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representative of its international persona." The name given to the office of head of sta ...
of France to secure the democratic institutions recently achieved with the February Revolution, and selected the members of his cabinet accordingly. Many government ministers were also connected to the newspaper '' Le National'', the press of the Moderate Republican majority of the National Assembly. In his early government, Cavaignac imposed control over political clubs and suppressed the left-wing press, which he deemed responsible for inciting the armed insurrection of June. He temporarily prohibited the publication of eleven newspapers, including ''Le Père Duchêne'', named after the 1790s radical publication. He would later, in August, indefinitely ban ''Le Père Duchêne'' along with three other journals for being "instruments of civil war and not of liberty". As previously decided by the National Assembly before the June Days, Cavaignac closed down the national workshops in July. Direct relief was provided by the government to supplant the national workshops, and large-scale
public works Public works are a broad category of infrastructure projects, financed and procured by a government body for recreational, employment, and health and safety uses in the greater community. They include public buildings ( municipal buildings, ...
were undertaken in order to reduce unemployment. Cavaignac's government gave support to producers' and workers' cooperatives, sponsored legislation on maximum working hours for adult factory workers, and promoted the modernization of the French
postal system The mail or post is a system for physically transporting postcards, letters, and parcels. A postal service can be private or public, though many governments place restrictions on private systems. Since the mid-19th century, national postal sy ...
. During this period, with the Chief of the Executive's support, a democratic
constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these pri ...
was prepared by the National Assembly. Unemployment relief was provided while various steps were taken to boost economic recovery and create jobs. According to one study, “Cavaignac’s interest in the workers was attested by the numerous proposals offered by his government in their favor, and by the large number of documents concerning social and economic problems that he preserved in his papers.” Cavaignac supported, for instance, a proposal for government-administered and compulsory sickness and old-age insurance for workers. He believed this was necessary due to industry not providing sufficient salaries to allow for adequate savings. His social insurance plan was, however, defeated. Measures were taken to improve conditions for workers within the Interior Ministry, while government aid to producers’ cooperatives was implemented. Maximum hours legislation for male factory workers was successfully sponsored by the government. Other labor reforms introduced earlier in 1848, such as the abolition of the “marchandage,” were preserved. The Cavaignac Government also introduced other labor reforms, such as sickness and accident insurance for workers on public works projects. Under this reform, the state paid medical treatment and provided disability payments to injured workers or their survivors. An order was also issued (applying to regulations for state contracts) providing for the wages of workers to be guaranteed in case of an employer’s bankruptcy. Important reforms in public assistance were carried out, while the government also extended a previous labor reform under which workers were given equal representation with employers in the labor courts. Relief was also provided to unemployed people in Paris, at the daily rate of thirty-five centimes per person. In foreign policy, during a year marked by the Spring of Nations revolutions through much of Europe, Cavaignac essentially maintained the stance previously adopted by the provisional government, of asserting sympathy towards the national movements, specially those in
Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
,
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and
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, but avoided direct involvement. The worry about internal security and the complex situation abroad prompted a policy of neutrality. The chief concern for his government was the Italian War of Independence, being waged against the
Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire, officially known as the Empire of Austria, was a Multinational state, multinational European Great Powers, great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the Habsburg monarchy, realms of the Habsburgs. Duri ...
by Piedmont-Sardinia in
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. After the Austrian victory in late July at the Battle of Custoza, Cavaignac organized an army to support Piedmont-Sardinia, but in the absence of a request did not intervene. In contradiction, he also organized, and later cancelled, in November an expeditionary force to rescue
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, who had fled from a republican revolution in Rome.


Presidential election

On 8 October, the National Assembly voted to submit the election of a President of the Republic to popular suffrage. As election day approached, increasing evidence suggested that it would most likely be a contest between Cavaignac and Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte. Both leading candidates attempted to gain the support of the conservative Party of Order. With that goal, Cavaignac in October introduced two Orleanists into his cabinet ( Vivien and Dufaure) when chance appeared for a ministerial reform, and even indirectly approached
Adolphe Thiers Marie Joseph Louis Adolphe Thiers ( ; ; 15 April 17973 September 1877) was a French statesman and historian who served as President of France from 1871 to 1873. He was the second elected president and the first of the Third French Republic. Thi ...
, leader of the party, with a proposal for the vice-presidency in his government. Thiers however considered Cavaignac too left-leaning, and the general would not commit himself to the conservatives as much as they wanted him to. He instead preferred Louis-Napoléon, who, according to Thiers, "seems to dissociate himself more from the reds and socialists than does General Cavaignac". After much internal debate, the Party of Order decided, on 5 November, not to give their endorsement to any candidate. In this situation Cavaignac's supporters had hoped that the party would put forward their own candidate, therefore splitting the popular vote and increasing Cavaignac's chances of victory, for in the case of no absolute majority the final decision would be taken by the Assembly, where Cavaignac was backed by the majority. The absence of a third candidate worked for the advantage of Louis-Napoléon, who was the evident favorite of the popular classes. Cavaignac nevertheless was supported by most of the French press, including liberal newspapers such as '' Le Siècle'' and the '' Journal des débats'', which could lead to his potential victory as campaigning was mainly carried out by the press. Voting took place on 10 and 11 December. As the first results to come in already suggested an imminent victory for Louis-Napoléon, Cavaignac was reportedly urged by his adviser Colonel Charras to carry out a self coup to remain in power, but he refused. To Charras' argument that giving power to Louis-Napoléon would compromise the Republic, Cavaignac responded, "it is possible that it will succumb, but it will rise again". Louis-Napoléon won the election with an absolute majority of 74% of the votes cast, with Cavaignac coming in second place with 19.5%. The only four departments not to give the winner a majority of votes were won by Cavaignac; these were in
Brittany Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...
(
Finistère Finistère (, ; ) is a Departments of France, department of France in the extreme west of Brittany. Its prefecture is Quimper and its largest city is Brest, France, Brest. In 2019, it had a population of 915,090.Morbihan) and
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( Bouches-du-Rhône and Var). On 20 December a peaceful transfer of power took place in the chamber of the National Assembly. In a brief farewell speech, Cavaignac thanked the parliament for “its confidence and its kindness toward me" and presented the resignation of himself and his cabinet, then proceeded to return to his seat as a member of the Assembly. Armand Marrast, president of the parliament, subsequently proclaimed Louis-Napoléon as President of the Republic.


Later career

Cavaignac continued to serve as a representative in the National Assembly for the remainder of the Second Republic. Reelected for Lot but also for
Seine The Seine ( , ) is a river in northern France. Its drainage basin is in the Paris Basin (a geological relative lowland) covering most of northern France. It rises at Source-Seine, northwest of Dijon in northeastern France in the Langres plat ...
in the May 1849 election, he chose to continue to represent Lot and took his seat with the Moderate Republicans on the left. Cavaignac mostly voted with the opposition; he voted against the military expedition sent by the president to suppress the revolutionary
Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( ) was the era of Ancient Rome, classical Roman civilisation beginning with Overthrow of the Roman monarchy, the overthrow of the Roman Kingdom (traditionally dated to 509 BC) and ending in 27 BC with the establis ...
, and opposed the law of 31 May 1850, which restricted universal male suffrage, and an 1851 proposal to revise the constitution. The anti-suffrage law of 31 May was approved, and revoking it was used as a pretext by Louis-Napoléon for his coup d'état of 2 December 1851, in which he seized dictatorial powers and dissolved the National Assembly. In the early hours of 2 December, Cavaignac was arrested by the police at his house in 9th ''arrondissement'' of Paris, at the same time as other members of the opposition. First imprisoned in Mazas Prison and later transferred to the Château de Ham, he was soon released on 29 December to marry '' Mademoiselle'' Odier, a young woman from the Odier banking family, as they were engaged at the time of Cavaignac's arrest. He retired from the army after his marriage, and the couple's son, Jacques Marie Eugène Godefroy Cavaignac, was born in May 1852. Under the French Empire of Louis-Napoléon (now emperor Napoleon III) which replaced the Republic, he was elected to the Corps législatif, on the 1852 and 1857 elections. On both occasions, however, Cavaignac refused to take the oath of allegiance to the Empire and was therefore barred from taking his seat. In 1855, Cavaignac bought the ''
Château 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 re ...
d'Ourne'' in Flée, Sarthe. He died at the estate on 28 October 1857, aged 55. His funeral was held in Paris and had as pallbearers his former colleagues Michel Goudchaux, Joseph Guinard, Jules Bastide, and a worker named Bayard. He was buried next to his brother Godefroi in the Montmartre Cemetery, in Paris.


See also

* Cabinet of General Cavaignac *
French Algeria French Algeria ( until 1839, then afterwards; unofficially ; ), also known as Colonial Algeria, was the period of History of Algeria, Algerian history when the country was a colony and later an integral part of France. French rule lasted until ...


Notes


References

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cavaignac, Louis Eugene 1802 births 1857 deaths 19th-century heads of state of France Politicians from Paris Moderate Republicans (France) Ministers of war of France Members of the 1848 Constituent Assembly Members of the National Legislative Assembly of the French Second Republic Members of the 1st Corps législatif of the Second French Empire Members of the 2nd Corps législatif of the Second French Empire École Polytechnique alumni Governors general of Algeria French generals Burials at Montmartre Cemetery French people of the Greek War of Independence Military personnel from Paris Commanders of the Legion of Honour