Henri Brisson

Biography

His/her father was acknowledged. After good studies with the college of Bourges, it granted its Paris. Still student, it bound friendship with outgoing professors for refusal of oath to the Empire, like Frederic Morin, Jules Barni, Eugene Despois and Ribert. In 19 years, in 1854, it took part with those in the foundation, the Latin Quarter, of the Future , re-examined weekly of the letters, with the collaboration of Eugene Pelletan and Catalan. The newspaper the Future was removed shortly after by judgment. Brisson published for example articles there on Marnix of Holy-Aldegonde and the Revolutions of Italy of Edgard Quinet like the Reformers in XVIe century of Victor Chauffour.

In 1856-57, he collaborated in the Italian sheet Ragione , newspaper of philosophy religious, political and social, founded with Turin by Ausonio Franchi. In the row of the collaborators of Ragione , appeared Charles Renouvier, Louis de Potter, Edgar Quinet and Louis Blanc. Brisson published Lettres there on the literary and philosophical movement French . He also collaborated in the philosophical and religious Review with Emile Littré, Renouvier, Amédée Guillemin, Elisee Reclus and Charles Fauvety.

In 1859, with Frederic Morin and some other friends, it contributed to the creation of the Progrès of Lyon , liberal newspaper, very hostile with the Empire. It inserted a heading Parisian Correspondance there , that the prefect of the Rhone, at the end of little time, ordered to make cease. From 1861 to 1865, Brisson collaborated in the Phare of the Loire , giving to it of many political articles, like some literary criticisms, like its great article on the History of the countryside of 1815 of Edgard Quinet, and the text of conferences which it made in Paris in April 1864 on lampoonists, such Paul-Louis Courier and Claude Tillier.

It went to spend the winter in Egypt, and it made appear in the literary Reform a series of letters entitled At the edge of the Nile , mixing charms descriptive and philosophical thought. It also published in the literary Revue of the month of Lille an article on the booklets which had just made appear Ernest Renan and Charles Lemonnier. Lastly, on May 30th, 1864, it entered to the Temps , founded and directed by Auguste Nefftzer, and it collaborated in it until 1869.

From the political point of view, Brisson was very small number of those which, before Sadowa, announced the danger that the ambition of the Prussia made run to France. At that time, in 1866, almost all the writers of the democratic Republican party decided for Prussia against the Austria. In the month of May 1869, Brisson left Time to enter to the National Future , directed with more strength by Alphonse Peyrat. It remained there until the war of 1870.

From the philosophical point of view, Brisson founded with Alexandre Massol Independent Morals . The first number appeared on Sunday, August 6, 1865. This weekly newspaper was used as body with a philosophical movement which left the maconnic cabins and the purpose of which was to oppose human morals, progressive, with theological and ascetic morals. From 1865 to 1867, Brisson published there, in addition to its articles of current polemic, many philosophical and literary articles. This publication had a success sufficient so that the Père Hyacinthe, which preached then with Notre-Dame, devoted his conferences of the Avent 1865-1866, to fight the doctrines of the Independent Morale .

As from this period, its political commitment, expresses already since many years, intensified. February 1st, 1866, it entered to the Review National and foreign , rested by the editor Gervais Charpentier, re-examined liberal and arts person where collaborated Edouard Laboulaye, Pierre Lanfrey, Eugene Despois, etc Brisson published various articles against Prussia there and, it was him which was charged with the political chronicle when the National Review became weekly. It multiplied its political articles in the Almanac of the Co-operation (for example Tyranny at the village or let us not forget the policy ) and in the Century , prefaced the work England and its institutions , and, in 1868, took part in the foundation of the Review political and literary with Gambetta, Challemel-Lacour, Allain-Targé, Clément Laurier, etc It wrote articles on Dufaure, on New France , work of Prévost-Paradol, which defends the parliamentary government there, on the Révolution, on wages of the worships, on the Subscription Baudin. This last article was worth to him to pass to the court. Being lawyer, it was only defended, but was condemned. These were the lawsuit and this judgment which definitively launched it in the militant policy.

Candidate for Paris with the elections complementary to 1869, it had greatest success in the political meetings. Named after September 4th assistant to the Mayor of Paris, it gave its resignation the shortly after on October 31st, at the same time as Etienne Arago and Charles Floquet.

Candidate of extreme-left, it was elected with the National Assembly representing of the Seine on February 8th, 1871. Whereas it had not approved the Commune, it was the first to propose an amnesty for condemned (the September 13rd, 1871), but its proposal was disallowed with the voices. Partisan convinced of obligatory primary education, it was firmly anticlerical. Member of the group of the Republican Union, he became the president about it. He was also president of the Committee on Budgets in 1879, president of the House of Commons on November 3rd, 1881 - to replace Gambetta - until March 1885, where he became president of the Council after the resignation of Jules Ferry. But he resigned when, after the general elections of this year, he obtained only to accuracy a majority at the time of the vote of appropriations for the forwarding of the Tonkin.

In 1885,1894 and 1895, he was candidate with the presidential election, where he failed of little his last attempt.

Always public figure in sight, it took a dominating share in the denunciation of the scandal of Panama and was one of the candidates of which one thought more for the presidency after the assassination of the president Carnot in 1894. He became again president of the Room of December 1894 to 1898. In June of the following year it formed a government when the country was violently agitated by the Affaire Dreyfus; its firmness and its honesty increased the respect of the public at its place, but a hazardous vote reversed its ministry in October. As chief of the radicals, it actively supported the ministries Waldeck-Rousseau and Combes, particularly with regard to the laws on the religious orders and the separation of the Church and the State. In May 1906 he was elected president of the House of Commons by 500 votes out of 581.

He occupied twice the functions of President of the Council of the ministers:

of the April 6th 1885 with the December 29th 1885: to see Government Henri Brisson (1)
succédant with Jules Ferry (2 {{E}} government), and being in its turn replaced by Charles de Freycinet (3 {{E}} government),
of the June 28th 1898 with the October 26th 1898: to see Government Henri Brisson (2)
succédant with Jules Méline (government Méline), and being in its turn replaced by Charles Dupuy (4 {{E}} government).

Note: the completion dates of government indicated on English Wikipedia can be false (on certain pages). They correspond each time to the Passation of the capacities between the former president of the Council, resigner but dispatching the go concern, and the new president of the Council have just been nommé.

Quotations and anecdotes

Although sometimes questioned, the intervention of the brother Freemason Henri Brisson, in June 1899, with the platform of the National Assembly is remained famous and was the subject of multiple illustrations: top of the platform, it takes a not very ordinary posture, it crosses the fingers, palms forwards, tightens the arms above its head, reverses its body behind (a sign pertaining to the rank of master mason) and launches “to me the children of the widow! ”. This cry, says one, would have made it possible to rejoin the deputies freemasons present and to save the ministry Waldeck-Rousseau.
“Keep you to want to make large! How much those which were tested there made France smaller”.

Sources

Angelo de Gubernatis, international Dictionary of the writers of the day (1891)

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