Léonel de Moustier
Encyclopedia
Marquis Léonel de Moustier (5 April 1882, Paris
– 10 May 1945) was a French
businessman and politician.
Léonel Marie Ghislain Alfred de Moustier, son of Marquis Pierre de Moustier, was born in Paris
. His father represented Doubs
in the Chamber of Deputies
and in the Senate. His grandfather was a diplomat under the Second Empire
, and his great-grandfather was a member of the Chamber of Peers.
De Moustier served in the French Army
during the First World War and received the Croix de guerre 1914-1918
and the Légion d'Honneur
. He was mayor of Cubry
as his father had been before him and in 1928 again followed his father, this time to represent Doubs in the Chamber of Deputies, sitting with the Republican Federation
. While principally interested in economic and social affairs, he was later an opponent of any appeasement
of Nazi Germany
and called for increased military preparedness.
On the outbreak of the Second World War, he returned to service with the French Army, then aged 57. After the signing of the armistice with Germany in June 1940, he was one of the 80
who voted against the grant of special powers to Philippe Pétain
and the creation of the Vichy régime
. Moustier described the armistice as treason and Pétain as a traitor and was associated with the French Resistance
. He was a district leader in the Organisation de Résistance de l'Armée
, and provided assistance to the United Kingdom
's Secret Intelligence Service
.
He was arrested by the Gestapo
on 23 August 1943 and imprisoned first at Besançon
and then at Compiègne
, and was deported to Neuengamme concentration camp in the summer of 1944. He died there shortly after the camp was liberated. He was posthumously made a member of the Ordre de la Libération
.
His son Roland de Moustier (1909–2001) was also a politician.
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...
– 10 May 1945) was a French
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...
businessman and politician.
Léonel Marie Ghislain Alfred de Moustier, son of Marquis Pierre de Moustier, was born in 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...
. His father represented Doubs
Doubs
Doubs is a department the Franche-Comté region of eastern France named after the Doubs River.-History:As early as the 13th century, inhabitants of the northern two-thirds of Doubs spoke the Franc-Comtois language, a dialect of Langue d'Oïl. Residents of the southern third of Doubs spoke a dialect...
in the Chamber of Deputies
Chamber of Deputies of France
Chamber of Deputies was the name given to several parliamentary bodies in France in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries:* 1814–1848 during the Bourbon Restoration and the July Monarchy, the Chamber of Deputies was the Lower chamber of the French Parliament, elected by census suffrage.*...
and in the Senate. His grandfather was a diplomat under 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:...
, and his great-grandfather was a member of the Chamber of Peers.
De Moustier served in 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...
during the First World War and received the Croix de guerre 1914-1918
Croix de guerre 1914-1918 (France)
The Croix de guerre 1914–1918 is a French military decoration.-Creation:Soon after the outbreak of World War I, French military officials felt that a new military award had to be created...
and the Légion d'Honneur
Légion d'honneur
The Legion of Honour, or in full the National Order of the Legion of Honour is a French order established by Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul of the Consulat which succeeded to the First Republic, on 19 May 1802...
. He was mayor of Cubry
Cubry
Cubry is a commune in the Doubs department in the Franche-Comté region in eastern France.-Population:...
as his father had been before him and in 1928 again followed his father, this time to represent Doubs in the Chamber of Deputies, sitting with the Republican Federation
Republican Federation
The Republican Federation was the largest conservative party during the French Third Republic, gathering together the liberal Orleanists rallied to the Republic. Founded in November 1903, it rivalized with the more secular and centrist Alliance démocratique...
. While principally interested in economic and social affairs, he was later an opponent of any appeasement
Appeasement
The term appeasement is commonly understood to refer to a diplomatic policy aimed at avoiding war by making concessions to another power. Historian Paul Kennedy defines it as "the policy of settling international quarrels by admitting and satisfying grievances through rational negotiation and...
of 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...
and called for increased military preparedness.
On the outbreak of the Second World War, he returned to service with the French Army, then aged 57. After the signing of the armistice with Germany in June 1940, he was one of the 80
The Vichy 80
The Vichy 80 were a group of elected French parliamentarians who, on 10 July 1940, voted against the constitutional change that dissolved the Third Republic and established an authoritarian regime known as Vichy France....
who voted against the grant of special powers to Philippe Pétain
Philippe Pétain
Henri Philippe Benoni Omer Joseph Pétain , generally known as Philippe Pétain or Marshal Pétain , was a French general who reached the distinction of Marshal of France, and was later Chief of State of Vichy France , from 1940 to 1944...
and the creation of the Vichy régime
Vichy 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...
. Moustier described the armistice as treason and Pétain as a traitor and was associated with the French Resistance
French Resistance
The French Resistance is the name used to denote the collection of French resistance movements that fought against the Nazi German occupation of France and against the collaborationist Vichy régime during World War II...
. He was a district leader in the Organisation de Résistance de l'Armée
Organisation de résistance de l'armée
The Organisation de résistance de l'armée, O.R.A. was a French paramilitary resistance organisation during the Second World War...
, and provided assistance to the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
's Secret Intelligence Service
Secret Intelligence Service
The Secret Intelligence Service is responsible for supplying the British Government with foreign intelligence. Alongside the internal Security Service , the Government Communications Headquarters and the Defence Intelligence , it operates under the formal direction of the Joint Intelligence...
.
He was arrested by the Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
on 23 August 1943 and imprisoned first at Besançon
Besançon
Besançon , is the capital and principal city of the Franche-Comté region in eastern France. It had a population of about 237,000 inhabitants in the metropolitan area in 2008...
and then at Compiègne
Compiègne
Compiègne is a city in northern France. It is designated municipally as a commune within the département of Oise.The city is located along the Oise River...
, and was deported to Neuengamme concentration camp in the summer of 1944. He died there shortly after the camp was liberated. He was posthumously made a member of the Ordre de la Libération
Ordre de la Libération
The Ordre de la Libération is a French Order awarded to heroes of the Liberation of France during World War II. It is an exceptional honor, the second highest after the Légion d’Honneur and only a small number of people and military units have received it, exclusively for deeds accomplished...
.
His son Roland de Moustier (1909–2001) was also a politician.