Camille Pelletan
Encyclopedia
Charles Camille Pelletan (28 June 1846 – 1915) was a French politician and journalist, Minister of Marine in Emile Combes
' Bloc des gauches
(Left-Wing Blocks) cabinet from 1902 to 1905. He was part of the left-wing of the Republican, Radical and Radical-Socialist Party, created in 1902.
, the son of Eugène Pelletan
(1813-1884), a writer of some distinction and a noted opponent of the Second Empire
.
Camille Pelletan was educated in Paris, passed as licentiate in laws, and studied at the École Nationale des Chartes
where he was qualified as an "archiviste paléographe". At the age of twenty he became an active journalist
, and a bitter critic of the Imperial Government. After the war of 1870-71
he took a leading place among the Radicals, as an opponent of the "Opportunist Republicans
" who continued the policy of Léon Gambetta
. In 1880 he became editor of Justice, and worked with success to bring about a revision of the sentences passed on the Communards
. In 1881 he was elected
a deputy for the Xe arrondissement
of Paris, and in 1885
for the Bouches-du-Rhône
département, being reelected in 1889
, 1893
and 1898
; and he was repeatedly chosen as reporter to the various bureaus.
During the Dreyfus Affair
he fought vigorously on behalf of the Republican government and when the coalition known as the Bloc des gauches
(Left-Wings Block) was formed he took his place as a Radical leader, becoming a member of the Republican, Radical and Radical-Socialist Party at its creation in 1902, and taking place at its left-wing.
He was nominated as Minister of Marine in the Bloc des gauches cabinet of Émile Combes
(June 1902 to January 1905), but his administration was severely criticized, notably by Jean Marie Antoine de Lanessan
and other naval experts. During the great sailors strike at Marseille
in 1904 he showed pronounced sympathy with the socialistic aims and methods of the strikers, and a strong feeling was aroused that his Radical sympathies tended to a serious weakening of the navy and to destruction of discipline. A somewhat violent controversy resulted, in the course of which Pelletan's indiscreet speeches did him no good; and he became a common subject for ill-natured caricatures.
On the fall of the Combes ministry he became less prominent in French politics. A deputy again for the Bouches du Rhône (until 1912), he voted on 3 July 1905 the 1905 French law on the Separation of the Churches and the State. From 1912 to 1915 he was a senator
elected in the Bouches du Rhône electoral district.
Camille Pelletan's name was given to the Parti radical-socialiste Camille Pelletan, a left-wing off-shoot of the Republican, Radical and Radical-Socialist Party created after the 6 February 1934 crisis
by Gabriel Cudenet, who opposed the participation of several Radicals to the conservative cabinet of Gaston Doumergue
, which had replaced the fallen Cartel des gauches
(Left-Wings Cartel).
The Pelletan's family tree
includes 11 parliamentaries, among whom are Georges Bonnet
and Michel Debré
.
Émile Combes
Émile Combes was a French statesman who led the Bloc des gauches's cabinet from June 1902 – January 1905.-Biography:Émile Combes was born in Roquecourbe, Tarn. He studied for the priesthood, but abandoned the idea before ordination. His anti-clericalism would later lead him into becoming a...
' Bloc des gauches
Bloc des gauches
The Bloc des gauches , aka Bloc républicain was a coalition of Republican political forces created during the French Third Republic in 1899 to contest the 1902 legislative elections...
(Left-Wing Blocks) cabinet from 1902 to 1905. He was part of the left-wing of the Republican, Radical and Radical-Socialist Party, created in 1902.
Biography
Pelletan was born in ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, the son of Eugène Pelletan
Eugène Pelletan
Pierre Clément Eugène Pelletan was a French writer, journalist and politician.Born in Royan, Charente-Maritime, Eugène Pelletan was an associate of Lamartine, but refused an appointment to the office in the foreign affairs ministry. He was elected deputy in 1863 and joined the opposition to the...
(1813-1884), a writer of some distinction and a noted opponent of the Second Empire
Second French Empire
The Second French Empire or French Empire was the Imperial Bonapartist regime of Napoleon III from 1852 to 1870, between the Second Republic and the Third Republic, in France.-Rule of Napoleon III:...
.
Camille Pelletan was educated in Paris, passed as licentiate in laws, and studied at the École Nationale des Chartes
École Nationale des Chartes
The École Nationale des Chartes is a grand établissement, an elite French university-level educational institution based in Paris. It provides education and training for archivists and librarians and forms part of the University of Paris.-History:...
where he was qualified as an "archiviste paléographe". At the age of twenty he became an active journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
, and a bitter critic of the Imperial Government. After the war of 1870-71
Franco-Prussian War
The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia. Prussia was aided by the North German Confederation, of which it was a member, and the South German states of Baden, Württemberg and...
he took a leading place among the Radicals, as an opponent of the "Opportunist Republicans
Opportunist Republicans
The Opportunist Republicans , also known as the Moderates , were a faction of French Republicans who believed, after the proclamation of the Third Republic in 1870, that the regime could only be consolidated by successive phases...
" who continued the policy of Léon Gambetta
Léon Gambetta
Léon Gambetta was a French statesman prominent after the Franco-Prussian War.-Youth and education:He is said to have inherited his vigour and eloquence from his father, a Genovese grocer who had married a Frenchwoman named Massabie. At the age of fifteen, Gambetta lost the sight of his right eye...
. In 1880 he became editor of Justice, and worked with success to bring about a revision of the sentences passed on the Communards
Communards
The Communards were members and supporters of the short-lived 1871 Paris Commune formed in the wake of the Franco-Prussian War and France's defeat....
. In 1881 he was elected
French legislative election, 1881
The 1881 general election was held on 21 August and 4 September 1881. This election marked the collapse of the right compared to the 1877 election. 70.55% of eligible voters participated.-Parliamentary Groups:- Sources :*...
a deputy for the Xe arrondissement
Xe arrondissement
The 10th arrondissement of Paris is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France.Situated on the right bank of the River Seine, the arrondissement contains two of Paris's six main railway stations: the Gare du Nord and the Gare de l'Est...
of Paris, and in 1885
French legislative election, 1885
-Parliamentary Groups:- Sources :*...
for the Bouches-du-Rhône
Bouches-du-Rhône
Bouches-du-Rhône is a department in the south of France named after the mouth of the Rhône River. It is the most populous department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Its INSEE and postal code is 13.-History of the department:...
département, being reelected in 1889
French legislative election, 1889
The 1889 general election was held on 22 September and 6 October 1889.-Parliamentary Groups:- Sources :*...
, 1893
French legislative election, 1893
The 1893 general election was held on 20 August and 3 September 1893.-Parliamentary Groups:- Sources :*...
and 1898
French legislative election, 1898
The 1898 general election was held on 8 and 22 May 1898.-Popular Vote:-Parliamentary Groups:- Sources :*...
; and he was repeatedly chosen as reporter to the various bureaus.
During the Dreyfus Affair
Dreyfus Affair
The Dreyfus affair was a political scandal that divided France in the 1890s and the early 1900s. It involved the conviction for treason in November 1894 of Captain Alfred Dreyfus, a young French artillery officer of Alsatian Jewish descent...
he fought vigorously on behalf of the Republican government and when the coalition known as the Bloc des gauches
Bloc des gauches
The Bloc des gauches , aka Bloc républicain was a coalition of Republican political forces created during the French Third Republic in 1899 to contest the 1902 legislative elections...
(Left-Wings Block) was formed he took his place as a Radical leader, becoming a member of the Republican, Radical and Radical-Socialist Party at its creation in 1902, and taking place at its left-wing.
He was nominated as Minister of Marine in the Bloc des gauches cabinet of Émile Combes
Émile Combes
Émile Combes was a French statesman who led the Bloc des gauches's cabinet from June 1902 – January 1905.-Biography:Émile Combes was born in Roquecourbe, Tarn. He studied for the priesthood, but abandoned the idea before ordination. His anti-clericalism would later lead him into becoming a...
(June 1902 to January 1905), but his administration was severely criticized, notably by Jean Marie Antoine de Lanessan
Jean Marie Antoine de Lanessan
Jean Marie Antoine de Lanessan was a French statesman and naturalist.-Biography:De Lanessan was born in Saint-André-de-Cubzac in the Gironde department of France and entered the French Navy in 1862, serving on the East African and Cochin-China stations in the medical department until the...
and other naval experts. During the great sailors strike at Marseille
Marseille
Marseille , known in antiquity as Massalia , is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of...
in 1904 he showed pronounced sympathy with the socialistic aims and methods of the strikers, and a strong feeling was aroused that his Radical sympathies tended to a serious weakening of the navy and to destruction of discipline. A somewhat violent controversy resulted, in the course of which Pelletan's indiscreet speeches did him no good; and he became a common subject for ill-natured caricatures.
On the fall of the Combes ministry he became less prominent in French politics. A deputy again for the Bouches du Rhône (until 1912), he voted on 3 July 1905 the 1905 French law on the Separation of the Churches and the State. From 1912 to 1915 he was a senator
French Senate
The Senate is the upper house of the Parliament of France, presided over by a president.The Senate enjoys less prominence than the lower house, the directly elected National Assembly; debates in the Senate tend to be less tense and generally enjoy less media coverage.-History:France's first...
elected in the Bouches du Rhône electoral district.
Camille Pelletan's name was given to the Parti radical-socialiste Camille Pelletan, a left-wing off-shoot of the Republican, Radical and Radical-Socialist Party created after the 6 February 1934 crisis
6 February 1934 crisis
The 6 February 1934 crisis refers to an anti-parliamentarist street demonstration in Paris organized by far-right leagues that culminated in a riot on the Place de la Concorde, near the seat of the French National Assembly...
by Gabriel Cudenet, who opposed the participation of several Radicals to the conservative cabinet of Gaston Doumergue
Gaston Doumergue
Pierre-Paul-Henri-Gaston Doumergue was a French politician of the Third Republic.Doumergue came from a Protestant family. Beginning as a Radical, he turned more towards the political right in his old age. He served as Prime Minister from 9 December 1913 to 2 June 1914...
, which had replaced the fallen Cartel des gauches
Cartel des Gauches
The Cartel des gauches was the name of the governmental alliance between the Radical-Socialist Party and the socialist French Section of the Workers' International after World War I , which lasted until the end of the Popular Front . The Cartel des gauches twice won general elections, in 1924 and...
(Left-Wings Cartel).
The Pelletan's family tree
Family tree
A family tree, or pedigree chart, is a chart representing family relationships in a conventional tree structure. The more detailed family trees used in medicine, genealogy, and social work are known as genograms.-Family tree representations:...
includes 11 parliamentaries, among whom are Georges Bonnet
Georges Bonnet
Not to be confused with the French Socialist Georges MonnetGeorges-Étienne Bonnet was a French politician and leading figure in the Radical-Socialist Party.- Early career :...
and Michel Debré
Michel Debré
Michel Jean-Pierre Debré was a French Gaullist politician. He is considered the "father" of the current Constitution of France, and was the first Prime Minister of the Fifth Republic...
.