Paul-Armand Challemel-Lacour
Encyclopedia
Paul-Armand Challemel-Lacour (19 May 1827 – 26 October 1896) was a French statesman.
in the Manche
département of northwestern France. After passing through the École Normale Supérieure
he became professor of philosophy
successively at Pau and at Limoges
. The coup d'état
of 1851 by Napoleon III
caused his expulsion from France for his republican opinions. He travelled on the continent, gave conferences in Belgium and in 1856 settled down as professor of French literature at the Federal Polytechnic Institute Zurich, today the ETH Zurich
. The amnesty of 1859 enabled him to return to France, but a projected course of lectures on history and art was immediately suppressed. He now supported himself by his pen, and became a regular contributor to the reviews.
On the fall of the Second French Empire
in September 1870 the government of national defence appointed him prefect of the Rhône
département, in which capacity he had to suppress the Communist rising at Lyon
. Resigning his post on the 5 February 1871, he was in January 1872 elected to the National Assembly
, and in 1876 to the Senate
. He sat at first on the Extreme Left
; but his philosophic and critical temperament was not in harmony with the recklessness of French radicalism, and his attitude towards political questions underwent a steady modification, till the close of his life saw him the foremost representative of moderate republicanism.
During Léon Gambetta
's lifetime, however, Challemel-Lacour was one of his warmest supporters, and he was for a time editor of Gambetta's organ, the République française. In 1879 he was appointed French ambassador at Bern, and in 1880 was transferred to London; but he lacked the temperament of a successful diplomat. He resigned in 1882, and in February 1883 became minister of foreign affairs
in the Jules Ferry
cabinet, but retired in November of the same year.
In 1890 he was elected vice-president of the Senate, and in 1893 succeeded Jules Ferry as its president, a position he held from 27 March, 1893 to 16 January, 1896. His clear and reasoned eloquence placed him at the head of contemporary French orators. In 1893 he also became a member of the Académie française
. He distinguished himself by the vigour with which he upheld the Senate against the encroachments of the chamber, but in 1896 failing health forced him to resign, and he died in Paris.
's Geschichte der Philosophie (1861); La Philosophie individualiste: étude sur Guillaume de Humboldt (1864); and an edition of the works of Madame d'Epinay
(1869).
In 1897 appeared Joseph Reinach
's edition of the Œuvres oratoires de Challemel-Lacour.
Biography
He was born in AvranchesAvranches
Avranches is a commune in the Manche department in the Basse-Normandie region in north-western France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department. The inhabitants are called Avranchinais.-History:...
in the Manche
Manche
Manche is a French department in Normandy named after La Manche , which is the French name for the English Channel.- History :Manche is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790...
département of northwestern France. After passing through the École Normale Supérieure
École Normale Supérieure
The École normale supérieure is one of the most prestigious French grandes écoles...
he became professor of philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
successively at Pau and at Limoges
Limoges
Limoges |Limousin]] dialect of Occitan) is a city and commune, the capital of the Haute-Vienne department and the administrative capital of the Limousin région in west-central France....
. The coup d'état
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
of 1851 by Napoleon III
Napoleon III of France
Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte was the President of the French Second Republic and as Napoleon III, the ruler of the Second French Empire. He was the nephew and heir of Napoleon I, christened as Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte...
caused his expulsion from France for his republican opinions. He travelled on the continent, gave conferences in Belgium and in 1856 settled down as professor of French literature at the Federal Polytechnic Institute Zurich, today the ETH Zurich
ETH Zurich
The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich or ETH Zürich is an engineering, science, technology, mathematics and management university in the City of Zurich, Switzerland....
. The amnesty of 1859 enabled him to return to France, but a projected course of lectures on history and art was immediately suppressed. He now supported himself by his pen, and became a regular contributor to the reviews.
On the fall of the Second French 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:...
in September 1870 the government of national defence appointed him prefect of the Rhône
Rhône (département)
Rhône is a French department located in the central Eastern region of Rhône-Alpes. It is named after the Rhône River.- History :The Rhône department was created on August 12, 1793 when the former département of Rhône-et-Loire was split into two departments: Rhône and Loire.Originally, the eastern...
département, in which capacity he had to suppress the Communist rising at Lyon
Lyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
. Resigning his post on the 5 February 1871, he was in January 1872 elected to the 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 ....
, and in 1876 to the Senate
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...
. He sat at first on the Extreme Left
Left-wing politics
In politics, Left, left-wing and leftist generally refer to support for social change to create a more egalitarian society...
; but his philosophic and critical temperament was not in harmony with the recklessness of French radicalism, and his attitude towards political questions underwent a steady modification, till the close of his life saw him the foremost representative of moderate republicanism.
During 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...
's lifetime, however, Challemel-Lacour was one of his warmest supporters, and he was for a time editor of Gambetta's organ, the République française. In 1879 he was appointed French ambassador at Bern, and in 1880 was transferred to London; but he lacked the temperament of a successful diplomat. He resigned in 1882, and in February 1883 became minister of foreign affairs
Minister of Foreign Affairs (France)
Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs ), is France's foreign affairs ministry, with the headquarters located on the Quai d'Orsay in Paris close to the National Assembly of France. The Minister of Foreign and European Affairs in the government of France is the cabinet minister responsible for...
in the Jules Ferry
Jules Ferry
Jules François Camille Ferry was a French statesman and republican. He was a promoter of laicism and colonial expansion.- Early life :Born in Saint-Dié, in the Vosges département, France, he studied law, and was called to the bar at Paris in 1854, but soon went into politics, contributing to...
cabinet, but retired in November of the same year.
In 1890 he was elected vice-president of the Senate, and in 1893 succeeded Jules Ferry as its president, a position he held from 27 March, 1893 to 16 January, 1896. His clear and reasoned eloquence placed him at the head of contemporary French orators. In 1893 he also became a member of the Académie française
Académie française
L'Académie française , also called the French Academy, is the pre-eminent French learned body on matters pertaining to the French language. The Académie was officially established in 1635 by Cardinal Richelieu, the chief minister to King Louis XIII. Suppressed in 1793 during the French Revolution,...
. He distinguished himself by the vigour with which he upheld the Senate against the encroachments of the chamber, but in 1896 failing health forced him to resign, and he died in Paris.
Works
He published a translation of A Heinrich RitterHeinrich Ritter
Heinrich Ritter was a German philosopher.He was born at Zerbst, and studied philosophy and theology at Göttingen and Berlin until 1815. In 1824 he became extraordinary professor of philosophy at Berlin, later transferring to Kiel, where he occupied the chair of philosophy from 1833 to 1837...
's Geschichte der Philosophie (1861); La Philosophie individualiste: étude sur Guillaume de Humboldt (1864); and an edition of the works of Madame d'Epinay
Louise d'Epinay
Louise Florence Pétronille Tardieu d'Esclavelles d'Épinay was a French writer, a saloniste and woman of fashion, known on account of her liaisons with Friedrich Melchior, Baron von Grimm, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who gives malicious reports of her in his Confessions...
(1869).
In 1897 appeared Joseph Reinach
Joseph Reinach
Joseph Reinach was a French author and politician.He was born in Paris. His two brothers Salomon and Theodore would become well known in the field of archaeology. After studying at the Lycée Condorcet he was called to the bar in 1887...
's edition of the Œuvres oratoires de Challemel-Lacour.