Lucien Rebatet
Encyclopedia
Lucien Rebatet was a French
author, journalist and intellectual, an exponent of fascism
and virulent antisemite.
, Loire
. From 1923 to 1927 he studied at the Sorbonne
after which he became an insurance agent. It is only in 1929 that he began his career as a writer, becoming a music and film critic (the latter under the pseudonym François Vinneuil) for the far right
integralist
Action Française
newspaper. In 1932 Rebatet became a contributor to the right-wing newspaper Je suis partout
for which he wrote for until the Allied
liberation in 1944. In 1938 Rebatet became head of information for Action Française and worked closely with the movement's founder, Charles Maurras
.
Long before the outbreak of war between France and Nazi Germany
, Rebatet expressed sympathy for National Socialism
, notably in his articles for Je suis partout in which he accused Jews
of wanting a war to topple Adolf Hitler
’s régime. In 1940, Rebatet was drafted into the French Army
and, although he served, he openly hoped for a "short and disastrous war for France".
. He quickly left this post as well as Action Française to join Jacques Doriot
's newspaper Cri Du Peuple, and to continue his writings for Je suis partout.
In 1942, Rebatet published a lengthy pamphlet
entitled Les Décombres ("The Ruins"), in which he traced the forces he believed to have lead France to its fall. He firmly accused Third Republic politicians and its military leadership, as well as French Jews - whom Rebatet claimed to be the prime cause of France's political and military woes. Les Décombres is the clearest expression of Rebatet's fascism, as well as his most virulently antisemitic work. The same year, Rebatet began writing Les Deux Etendards ("The Two Standards"), his first novel.
In August 1944, Rebatet fled France for Germany, travelling to Sigmaringen
(place of refuge for Vichy authorities as well as the more famous French writer, Céline
). It was in Sigmaringen that Rebatet completed Les Deux Etendards, which would be published in 1952 by Gallimard. Rebatet was arrested in Austria
in 1945.
, which was commuted to forced labor
the next year. Rebatet was released from prison in 1952. In 1953, he returned to journalism, becoming the director of the literary section of Dimanche Matin. In 1954, Gallimard published Rebatet's second novel, Les Epis Mûrs ("The Ripe Grains"). His final work was a history of music which he began writing in 1965 - published by Laffont in 1969.
Although Rebatet continued to proclaim his adherence to fascism until his death, his antisemitism became less pronounced after the war.
Despite his controversial biography, there are those, such as George Steiner
, who claim that Lucien Rebatet was a great writer and that Les Deux Etendards in particular deserves to be considered an important novel in French literary history.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
author, journalist and intellectual, an exponent of fascism
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
and virulent antisemite.
Early life
As a young man, he was educated in Saint-ChamondSaint-Chamond
Saint-Chamond is a commune in the Loire department in the Rhône-Alpes region in central France.-Overview:It is situated 13 km east of the city of Saint-Étienne and approximately 45 km southwest of Lyon...
, Loire
Loire
Loire is an administrative department in the east-central part of France occupying the River Loire's upper reaches.-History:Loire was created in 1793 when after just 3½ years the young Rhône-et-Loire department was split into two. This was a response to counter-Revolutionary activities in Lyon...
. From 1923 to 1927 he studied at the Sorbonne
University of Paris
The University of Paris was a university located in Paris, France and one of the earliest to be established in Europe. It was founded in the mid 12th century, and officially recognized as a university probably between 1160 and 1250...
after which he became an insurance agent. It is only in 1929 that he began his career as a writer, becoming a music and film critic (the latter under the pseudonym François Vinneuil) for the far right
Far right
Far-right, extreme right, hard right, radical right, and ultra-right are terms used to discuss the qualitative or quantitative position a group or person occupies within right-wing politics. Far-right politics may involve anti-immigration and anti-integration stances towards groups that are...
integralist
Integralism
Integralism, or Integral nationalism, is an ideology according to which a nation is an organic unity. Integralism defends social differentiation and hierarchy with co-operation between social classes, transcending conflict between social and economic groups...
Action Française
Action Française
The Action Française , founded in 1898, is a French Monarchist counter-revolutionary movement and periodical founded by Maurice Pujo and Henri Vaugeois and whose principal ideologist was Charles Maurras...
newspaper. In 1932 Rebatet became a contributor to the right-wing newspaper Je suis partout
Je suis partout
Je suis partout was a French newspaper founded by Jean Fayard, first published on 29 November 1930. It was placed under the direction of Pierre Gaxotte until 1939...
for which he wrote for until the Allied
Allies of World War II
The Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...
liberation in 1944. In 1938 Rebatet became head of information for Action Française and worked closely with the movement's founder, Charles Maurras
Charles Maurras
Charles-Marie-Photius Maurras was a French author, poet, and critic. He was a leader and principal thinker of Action Française, a political movement that was monarchist, anti-parliamentarist, and counter-revolutionary. Maurras' ideas greatly influenced National Catholicism and "nationalisme...
.
Long before the outbreak of war between France and 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...
, Rebatet expressed sympathy for National Socialism
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
, notably in his articles for Je suis partout in which he accused Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
of wanting a war to topple Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
’s régime. In 1940, Rebatet was drafted into the French Army
French Army
The French Army, officially the Armée de Terre , is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces.As of 2010, the army employs 123,100 regulars, 18,350 part-time reservists and 7,700 Legionnaires. All soldiers are professionals, following the suspension of conscription, voted in...
and, although he served, he openly hoped for a "short and disastrous war for France".
Collaboration
After the fall of France, he became a radio reporter for the Vichy governmentVichy France
Vichy France, Vichy Regime, or Vichy Government, are common terms used to describe the government of France that collaborated with the Axis powers from July 1940 to August 1944. This government succeeded the Third Republic and preceded the Provisional Government of the French Republic...
. He quickly left this post as well as Action Française to join Jacques Doriot
Jacques Doriot
Jacques Doriot was a French politician prior to and during World War II. He began as a Communist but then turned Fascist.-Early life and politics:...
's newspaper Cri Du Peuple, and to continue his writings for Je suis partout.
In 1942, Rebatet published a lengthy pamphlet
Pamphlet
A pamphlet is an unbound booklet . It may consist of a single sheet of paper that is printed on both sides and folded in half, in thirds, or in fourths , or it may consist of a few pages that are folded in half and saddle stapled at the crease to make a simple book...
entitled Les Décombres ("The Ruins"), in which he traced the forces he believed to have lead France to its fall. He firmly accused Third Republic politicians and its military leadership, as well as French Jews - whom Rebatet claimed to be the prime cause of France's political and military woes. Les Décombres is the clearest expression of Rebatet's fascism, as well as his most virulently antisemitic work. The same year, Rebatet began writing Les Deux Etendards ("The Two Standards"), his first novel.
In August 1944, Rebatet fled France for Germany, travelling to Sigmaringen
Sigmaringen
Sigmaringen is a town in southern Germany, in the state of Baden-Württemberg. Situated on the upper Danube, it is the capital of the Sigmaringen district....
(place of refuge for Vichy authorities as well as the more famous French writer, Céline
Louis-Ferdinand Céline
Louis-Ferdinand Céline was the pen name of French writer and physician Louis-Ferdinand Destouches . Céline was chosen after his grandmother's first name. He is considered one of the most influential writers of the twentieth century, developing a new style of writing that modernized both French and...
). It was in Sigmaringen that Rebatet completed Les Deux Etendards, which would be published in 1952 by Gallimard. Rebatet was arrested in Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
in 1945.
After the war
He was sent back to France and, in 1946, received a death sentenceDeath Sentence
Death Sentence is a short story by the American science-fiction writer Isaac Asimov. It was first published in the November 1943 issue of Astounding Science Fiction and reprinted in the 1972 collection The Early Asimov.-Plot summary:...
, which was commuted to forced labor
Penal labour
Penal labour is a form of unfree labour in which prisoners perform work, typically manual labour. The work may be light or hard, depending on the context. Forms of sentence which involve penal labour include penal servitude and imprisonment with hard labour...
the next year. Rebatet was released from prison in 1952. In 1953, he returned to journalism, becoming the director of the literary section of Dimanche Matin. In 1954, Gallimard published Rebatet's second novel, Les Epis Mûrs ("The Ripe Grains"). His final work was a history of music which he began writing in 1965 - published by Laffont in 1969.
Although Rebatet continued to proclaim his adherence to fascism until his death, his antisemitism became less pronounced after the war.
Despite his controversial biography, there are those, such as George Steiner
George Steiner
Francis George Steiner, FBA , is an influential European-born American literary critic, essayist, philosopher, novelist, translator, and educator. He has written extensively about the relationship between language, literature and society, and the impact of the Holocaust...
, who claim that Lucien Rebatet was a great writer and that Les Deux Etendards in particular deserves to be considered an important novel in French literary history.
Cultural references
- Rebatet is depicted in Jonathan LittellJonathan LittellJonathan Littell is a bilingual writer living in Barcelona. He grew up in France and United States and is a dual citizen of both countries. After acquiring his bachelor degree he worked for a humanitarian organisation for nine years, leaving his job in 2001 in order to concentrate on writing...
's historical novelHistorical novelAccording to Encyclopædia Britannica, a historical novel is-Development:An early example of historical prose fiction is Luó Guànzhōng's 14th century Romance of the Three Kingdoms, which covers one of the most important periods of Chinese history and left a lasting impact on Chinese culture.The...
Les BienveillantesLes BienveillantesThe Kindly Ones is a historical novel written in French by American-born author Jonathan Littell. The 900-page book became a bestseller in France and was widely discussed in newspapers, magazines, academic journals, books and seminars...
, where he is a friend of the main character Maximilian Aue.