Jules Favre

Biography

He began his career as lawyer. At the time of the revolution of 1830, he declared himself republican openly and during political lawsuits he on the occasion to announce it. After the revolution of 1848 he was elected appointed of Lyon to the constituent Assembly, where he sat among the moderated republicans, voter against the Socialists. After Louis Napoleon had been elected President of the Republic, he was opposed to him and on December 2nd, 1851 he tested with Victor Hugo and others to organize the resistance armed in the streets with Paris. After the success of the coup d'etat, it was withdrawn from the policy and returned to its occupation of lawyer where it was distinguished by defending Felice Orsini, which had organized an attack against Napoleon III.

In 1858 he was elected appointed of Paris and was one from the “Five” which gave the starting signal for the republican opposition to the Empire. In 1863 he became the chief of the Republican party and made some speeches where he denounced the Guerre of Mexico and occupation of Rome. These speeches, eloquent, clear and incisive, were worth an armchair with the French Academy to him on May 2nd, 1867. He fought against the Expédition of Mexico and with Thiers he was opposed to the war against Prussia in 1870; with the news of the capitulation of Napoleon III in Sedan it required the dismissal of the emperor. In the government of National defense he became vice-president and Foreign Minister under the presidency of the Trochu General, in charge of the painful task to negotiate peace with victorious Germany. He appeared less skilful as diplomatic than he had been it as speaker and made several irrevocable blunders. Its famous declaration of September 6th, 1870, according to which one would not yield to Germany “not an inch of our territories, not a stone of our fortresses” was a piece of eloquence to which Bismarck retorted 19 by declaring in Favre that it would be necessary to yield Alsace and Lorraine like condition of peace.

The weakness of Favre was not to be able to rest on a regularly elected assembly which would have had capacities more legitimate than the government of National defense and it was opposed at the beginning of the government of besieged Paris. During peace negotiations, it had all to yield to Bismarck. It made provisions for the armistice of January 28th, 1871 without knowing the military situation and consulting the government of Bordeaux. By a serious inadvertency he neglected to inform Gambetta that the Armée with the East (80 000 men) had not been included/understood in the armistice and it was thus obliged to take refuge in neutral territory. It did not show any diplomatic competence during the negotiations of the Traité of Frankfurt and it was Bismarck which imposed all the conditions. From February 1871, member of the Government Thiers, it is one of the given adversaries of the Commune of Paris, from which it insults the members, causing the made indignant protest of the deputies of Paris. Discredited, it left the ministry, on August 2nd, 1871, but remained with the National Assembly like deputy of the Rhone. Elected official senator of the Rhone on January 30th, 1876 it continued to support the Republic against the right-wing opposition until his death.

Its work includes/understands many speech and addresses to the government: Freedom of the press (1849), Defense of F. Orsini (1866), Speech of reception to the French Academy (1868), Speech on interior freedom (1869). In the Government of National defense , 3 flights., 1871-1875, it explained its role in 1870-1871.

After her death its family published her speeches in 8 volumes.

Protestant of the liberal current , it will imply himself in the school secularity and his wife, born Caroline Velten, become widowed will direct a score of years the National university of young girls of Separate. She was the first director.

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