Georges Marchais
Encyclopedia
Georges René Louis Marchais (7 June 1920, La Hoguette
in Calvados
- 16 November 1997, Paris
) was the head of the French Communist Party
(PCF) from 1972 to 1994, and a candidate in the French presidential elections of 1981
- in which he managed to garner only 15.34% of the vote, which was considered at the time a major setback for the party.
, he appears to have enrolled in Nazi Germany
to work in the Messerschmitt
aircraft manufacturing plant, as he left for Germany before the establishment of the STO system, by which French workers were compelled to work in German plants.
In 1946, he became secretary of the metalworkers' trade union
in Issy-les-Moulineaux
, and advanced in the Confédération générale du travail
in his commune from 1951, becoming secretary of the Seine
Metallurgical Workers' Union Federation from 1953 to 1956.
, and in 1959 a full member of it and of the Politburo
. From 1961, he was the secretary in charge of the organization, and participated to the strengthening of Maurice Thorez
's leadership, which was covertly disputed by some membres of the Politburo
(Laurent Casanova
and Marcel Servin). In reaction to the riots of May 1968, Marchais showed his contempt for Daniel Cohn-Bendit
by calling him a German anarchist
.
He was promoted junior General Secretary
in 1970. He co-signed the Common Programme with the Socialist Party
(PS) and the Movement of Left Radicals
(MRG) in June 1972. From 1973 to 1997, he was deputy of Val de Marne département, in Southern Paris suburb.
In December 1972, he became General Secretary, following Waldeck Rochet
's retirement. At the beginning of his mandate, the PCF scored around 20% in the elections. But in mid-1970s, it lost its place of "first left-wing party" to François Mitterrand
's Socialist Party. At the beginning, he supported reforms in his party, which participated to Eurocommunism
with the Italian Communist Party
of Enrico Berlinguer
and the Spanish Communist Party
of Santiago Carillo and renounced the notion of a dictatorship of the proletariat
(22nd congress, 1976). At first, he faced with the reproaches of Soviet leaders. Then, faced with electoral growing of the PS at the expense of his party, he imposed a re-alignment on the Soviet Union
at the end of the 1970s. The left-wing parties failed to update their Common Programme and lost the 1978 legislative election
, even though they were leading in the polls. Outside and inside the party, he was accused of being responsible for this defeat. One year later, he supported the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan
(1979), judged the Communist governments "fairly positive", and criticized the "right-wing drift" of the Socialist Party. In the 1981 presidential election
, he came fourth in the first round, with 15% of votes, thereafter endorsing Mitterrand, who won the second round. He negotiated the entry of four PCF's politician in the cabinet of Prime Minister Pierre Mauroy
In 1984, after President Mitterrand renounced the left's Common Programme and the electoral sanction in the European Parliament election
(only 11% of votes) the PCF's ministers resigned from the cabinet. An electoral decline ensued and Marchais faced internal dissent from figures such as Pierre Juquin
, Claude Poperen and Charles Fiterman
. Indeed, some party members, notably among the local elects, accused him to lead a suicidal strategy. He let André Lajoinie
, leader of the Communist group in the French National Assembly
, represented the party in the 1988 presidential election
. He was reserved about perestroika
. Unlike the Italian Communists
, he refused to change the name of the French Party after the collapse of the Soviet bloc.
In 1994, at the 28th Congress of the PCF, he ceded his place as General Secretary to Robert Hue
, although he maintained his titular role as a member of the Politburo - now significantly renamed the National Office. The same year, he became President of the PCF Comité pour la défense des libertés et droits de l'homme en France et dans le monde ("Committee for the Defense of Human Liberties and Rights in France and Throughout the World"). He criticised the renovation of the party under his successor. He died in 1997.
. He is particularly remembered for an outburst
to journalist Jean-Pierre Elkabbach
, although he never actually said this. It was said by Pierre Douglas imitating him to Thierry Le Luron
who was imitating Raymond Barre
During his TV performances, he had an aggressive and humorous tone with the journalists and his opponents. They stayed in the memory of the French audience.
For instance, questioned by Elkabbach and Alain Duhamel
about his economic propositions, he answered: "you are privileged, you hold many jobs and make good salaries (in TV, radio, papers...), probably you are concerned by my proposition for a wealth tax, I understand why you don't want the change!"
La Hoguette
-Personalities:La Hoguette was the birthplace of Georges Marchais , head of the French Communist Party.-External links:* La Hoguette...
in Calvados
Calvados
The French department of Calvados is part of the region of Basse-Normandie in Normandy. It takes its name from a cluster of rocks off the English Channel coast...
- 16 November 1997, Paris
Paris
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...
) was the head of the French Communist Party
French Communist Party
The French Communist Party is a political party in France which advocates the principles of communism.Although its electoral support has declined in recent decades, the PCF retains a large membership, behind only that of the Union for a Popular Movement , and considerable influence in French...
(PCF) from 1972 to 1994, and a candidate in the French presidential elections of 1981
French presidential election, 1981
The French presidential election of 1981 took place on 10 May 1981, giving the presidency of France to François Mitterrand, the first Socialist president of the Fifth Republic....
- in which he managed to garner only 15.34% of the vote, which was considered at the time a major setback for the party.
Early life
Born into a Roman Catholic family, he became a mechanic, just before the beginning of WWII, with the Société Nationale d'Étude et de Construction de Moteurs d'Aviation. After the fall of FranceBattle of France
In the Second World War, the Battle of France was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries, beginning on 10 May 1940, which ended the Phoney War. The battle consisted of two main operations. In the first, Fall Gelb , German armoured units pushed through the Ardennes, to cut off and...
, he appears to have enrolled in Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
to work in the Messerschmitt
Messerschmitt
Messerschmitt AG was a famous German aircraft manufacturing corporation named for its chief designer, Willy Messerschmitt, and known primarily for its World War II fighter aircraft, notably the Bf 109 and Me 262...
aircraft manufacturing plant, as he left for Germany before the establishment of the STO system, by which French workers were compelled to work in German plants.
In 1946, he became secretary of the metalworkers' trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
in Issy-les-Moulineaux
Issy-les-Moulineaux
Issy-les-Moulineaux is a commune in the southwestern suburban area of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. On 1 January 2003, Issy-les-Moulineaux became part of the Communauté d'agglomération Arc de Seine along with the other communes of Chaville, Meudon, Vanves and Ville-d'Avray...
, and advanced in the Confédération générale du travail
Confédération générale du travail
The General Confederation of Labour is a national trade union center, the first of the five major French confederations of trade unions.It is the largest in terms of votes , and second largest in terms of membership numbers.Its membership decreased to 650,000 members in 1995-96 The General...
in his commune from 1951, becoming secretary of the Seine
Seine (département)
Seine was a département of France encompassing Paris and its immediate suburbs. Its préfecture was Paris and its official number was 75. The Seine département was abolished in 1968 and its territory divided among four new départements....
Metallurgical Workers' Union Federation from 1953 to 1956.
Political career
He entered the Party in 1947. In 1956, he was appointed a member of the extended Central CommitteeCentral Committee
Central Committee was the common designation of a standing administrative body of communist parties, analogous to a board of directors, whether ruling or non-ruling in the twentieth century and of the surviving, mostly Trotskyist, states in the early twenty first. In such party organizations the...
, and in 1959 a full member of it and of the Politburo
Politburo
Politburo , literally "Political Bureau [of the Central Committee]," is the executive committee for a number of communist political parties.-Marxist-Leninist states:...
. From 1961, he was the secretary in charge of the organization, and participated to the strengthening of Maurice Thorez
Maurice Thorez
thumb|A Soviet stamp depicting Maurice Thorez.Maurice Thorez was a French politician and longtime leader of the French Communist Party from 1930 until his death. He also served as vice premier of France from 1946 to 1947....
's leadership, which was covertly disputed by some membres of the Politburo
Politburo
Politburo , literally "Political Bureau [of the Central Committee]," is the executive committee for a number of communist political parties.-Marxist-Leninist states:...
(Laurent Casanova
Laurent Casanova
Laurent Casanova was a French politician. Born 9 October 1906 at Souk Ahras, Algeria, he died 20 March 1972 in Paris.-Political career:Of Corsican origins, Casanova studied law at university in Paris. He became secretary of the Communist cell there, and he entered the underground apparatus of the...
and Marcel Servin). In reaction to the riots of May 1968, Marchais showed his contempt for Daniel Cohn-Bendit
Daniel Cohn-Bendit
Daniel Marc Cohn-Bendit is a Franco-German politician, active in both countries. He was a student leader during the unrest of May 1968 in France and he was also known during that time as Dany le Rouge...
by calling him a German anarchist
Anarchism
Anarchism is generally defined as the political philosophy which holds the state to be undesirable, unnecessary, and harmful, or alternatively as opposing authority in the conduct of human relations...
.
He was promoted junior General Secretary
General Secretary
The office of general secretary is staffed by the chief officer of:*The General Secretariat for Macedonia and Thrace, a government agency for the Greek regions of Macedonia and Thrace...
in 1970. He co-signed the Common Programme with the Socialist Party
Socialist Party (France)
The Socialist Party is a social-democratic political party in France and the largest party of the French centre-left. It is one of the two major contemporary political parties in France, along with the center-right Union for a Popular Movement...
(PS) and the Movement of Left Radicals
Left Radical Party
The Radical Party of the Left is a minor social-liberal, and in opposition to its common understanding of its name, a moderate centre-left political party in France advocating radicalism, secularism to its french extend known as laïcité, progressivism, pro-Europeanism, individual freedom and...
(MRG) in June 1972. From 1973 to 1997, he was deputy of Val de Marne département, in Southern Paris suburb.
In December 1972, he became General Secretary, following Waldeck Rochet
Waldeck Rochet
Waldeck Rochet was a French communist politician.-Early life and career:...
's retirement. At the beginning of his mandate, the PCF scored around 20% in the elections. But in mid-1970s, it lost its place of "first left-wing party" to François Mitterrand
François Mitterrand
François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand was the 21st President of the French Republic and ex officio Co-Prince of Andorra, serving from 1981 until 1995. He is the longest-serving President of France and, as leader of the Socialist Party, the only figure from the left so far elected President...
's Socialist Party. At the beginning, he supported reforms in his party, which participated to Eurocommunism
Eurocommunism
Eurocommunism was a trend in the 1970s and 1980s within various Western European communist parties to develop a theory and practice of social transformation that was more relevant in a Western European democracy and less aligned to the influence or control of the Communist Party of the Soviet...
with the Italian Communist Party
Italian Communist Party
The Italian Communist Party was a communist political party in Italy.The PCI was founded as Communist Party of Italy on 21 January 1921 in Livorno, by seceding from the Italian Socialist Party . Amadeo Bordiga and Antonio Gramsci led the split. Outlawed during the Fascist regime, the party played...
of Enrico Berlinguer
Enrico Berlinguer
Enrico Berlinguer was an Italian politician; he was national secretary of the Italian Communist Party from 1972 until his death.-Early career:...
and the Spanish Communist Party
Spanish Communist Party
Spanish Communist Party , was the first communist party in Spain, formed out of the Federación de Juventudes Socialistas . The founders of the party, that had belonged to leftwing within FJS, included Ramón Merino Gracia, Manuel Ugarte, Pedro Illescasm Luis Portela, Tiburicio Pico and Rito Estaban...
of Santiago Carillo and renounced the notion of a dictatorship of the proletariat
Dictatorship of the proletariat
In Marxist socio-political thought, the dictatorship of the proletariat refers to a socialist state in which the proletariat, or the working class, have control of political power. The term, coined by Joseph Weydemeyer, was adopted by the founders of Marxism, Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, in the...
(22nd congress, 1976). At first, he faced with the reproaches of Soviet leaders. Then, faced with electoral growing of the PS at the expense of his party, he imposed a re-alignment on the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
at the end of the 1970s. The left-wing parties failed to update their Common Programme and lost the 1978 legislative election
French legislative election, 1978
The French legislative elections took place on 12 March and 19 March 1978 to elect the 6th National Assembly of the Fifth Republic.On 2 April 1974 President Georges Pompidou died. The non-Gaullist center-right leader Valéry Giscard d'Estaing was elected to succeed him...
, even though they were leading in the polls. Outside and inside the party, he was accused of being responsible for this defeat. One year later, he supported the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
(1979), judged the Communist governments "fairly positive", and criticized the "right-wing drift" of the Socialist Party. In the 1981 presidential election
French presidential election, 1981
The French presidential election of 1981 took place on 10 May 1981, giving the presidency of France to François Mitterrand, the first Socialist president of the Fifth Republic....
, he came fourth in the first round, with 15% of votes, thereafter endorsing Mitterrand, who won the second round. He negotiated the entry of four PCF's politician in the cabinet of Prime Minister Pierre Mauroy
Pierre Mauroy
Pierre Mauroy is a French Socialist politician and former Prime Minister under François Mitterrand . Mauroy also served as Mayor of Lille from 1973 to 2001. Mauroy is currently emeritus mayor of Lille.-Biography:...
In 1984, after President Mitterrand renounced the left's Common Programme and the electoral sanction in the European Parliament election
European Parliament election, 1984 (France)
In 1984 the second direct elections to the European Parliament were held in France. Four parties were able to win seats: an alliance of the centre right Union for French Democracy and the Gaullist Rally for the Republic, the Socialist Party and the French Communist Party, and the Front National...
(only 11% of votes) the PCF's ministers resigned from the cabinet. An electoral decline ensued and Marchais faced internal dissent from figures such as Pierre Juquin
Pierre Juquin
Pierre Juquin is a French communist politician and trade unionist.-Early life and PCF politics:...
, Claude Poperen and Charles Fiterman
Charles Fiterman
Charles Fiterman is a French politician. He served as Minister of Transport from 1981 to 1984, under former President François Mitterand. He is a member of the French Communist Party.-References:...
. Indeed, some party members, notably among the local elects, accused him to lead a suicidal strategy. He let André Lajoinie
André Lajoinie
André Lajoinie is a French politician, and a member of the French Communist Party .He was a member of the French National Assembly for Allier from 1978 to 1993, then from 1997 to 2002, and was president of the Communist group in the Assembly from 1981 to 1993.A close collaborator of party leader...
, leader of the Communist group in the French National Assembly
French National Assembly
The French National Assembly is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of France under the Fifth Republic. The upper house is the Senate ....
, represented the party in the 1988 presidential election
French presidential election, 1988
Presidential elections were held in France on 24 April and 8 May 1988.In 1981, the Socialist Party leader, François Mitterrand, was elected President of France and the Left won the legislative election. However, in 1986, the Right regained a parliamentary majority. President Mitterrand was forced...
. He was reserved about perestroika
Perestroika
Perestroika was a political movement within the Communist Party of the Soviet Union during 1980s, widely associated with the Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev...
. Unlike the Italian Communists
Italian Communist Party
The Italian Communist Party was a communist political party in Italy.The PCI was founded as Communist Party of Italy on 21 January 1921 in Livorno, by seceding from the Italian Socialist Party . Amadeo Bordiga and Antonio Gramsci led the split. Outlawed during the Fascist regime, the party played...
, he refused to change the name of the French Party after the collapse of the Soviet bloc.
In 1994, at the 28th Congress of the PCF, he ceded his place as General Secretary to Robert Hue
Robert Hue
Robert Hue, in full Robert Georges Auguste Hue , is a French politician who was National Secretary of the French Communist Party from 1994 to 2001 and President of the PCF from 2001 to 2002...
, although he maintained his titular role as a member of the Politburo - now significantly renamed the National Office. The same year, he became President of the PCF Comité pour la défense des libertés et droits de l'homme en France et dans le monde ("Committee for the Defense of Human Liberties and Rights in France and Throughout the World"). He criticised the renovation of the party under his successor. He died in 1997.
Attitudes
Georges Marchais was a notable personality because of his mannerisms (Ct'un scandaaaale — "This is a scandal!") and brusque demeanor, often lambasted by comic Thierry Le LuronThierry Le Luron
Thierry Le Luron was a French impersonator and humorist.-External links:*...
. He is particularly remembered for an outburst
- Taisez-vous Elkabbach ("Shut up, Elkabbach!")
to journalist Jean-Pierre Elkabbach
Jean-Pierre Elkabbach
-Biography:Elkabbach was born in Oran in 1937, then the prefecture of the département Oran in French Algeria. He began his journalistic career in 1960 as a radio correspondent in Algiers, but having taken part in the strikes of May 1968 he was sidelined and sent to Toulouse. Elkabbach would later...
, although he never actually said this. It was said by Pierre Douglas imitating him to Thierry Le Luron
Thierry Le Luron
Thierry Le Luron was a French impersonator and humorist.-External links:*...
who was imitating Raymond Barre
Raymond Barre
Raymond Octave Joseph Barre was a French centre-right politician and economist. He was a Vice President of the European Commission and Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs under three Presidents and later served as Prime Minister under Valéry Giscard d'Estaing from 1976 until 1981...
During his TV performances, he had an aggressive and humorous tone with the journalists and his opponents. They stayed in the memory of the French audience.
For instance, questioned by Elkabbach and Alain Duhamel
Alain Duhamel
Alain Duhamel is a prominent French journalist and political commentator.In 1963, Duhamel started working at Le Monde. He started giving talks on Europe 1 from 1974...
about his economic propositions, he answered: "you are privileged, you hold many jobs and make good salaries (in TV, radio, papers...), probably you are concerned by my proposition for a wealth tax, I understand why you don't want the change!"
Works
- Les Communistes et les Paysans - "The Communists and Peasantry" (1972)
- Le défi démocratique - "The Challenge of Democracy" (1973)
- La politique du PCF - "PCF Policies" (1974)
- Communistes et/ou chrétiens - "Communists and/or Christians" (1977)
- Parlons franchement - "Let's Be Frank" (1977)
- Réponses - "Answers" (1977)
- L'espoir au présent - "Hope in the Present" (1980)
- Démocratie - "Democracy" (1990)