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Anatole de Monzie (French pronunciation:[anatɔldəmɔ̃zi]; 22 November 1876,Bazas,Gironde – 11 January 1947,Paris) was a Frenchadministrator, encyclopaedist (Encyclopédie française),political figure and scholar. His father was a tax collector inBazas,Gironde where Anatole – a name he disliked from an early age – was born in 1876. A nurse mishap resulted in an accident where the infant Anatole lost the proper use of his leg and he remained crippled for the rest of his life. He never married but had several relationships. A brilliant mind, he studied inAgen before attending theCollège Stanislas, a famousRoman Catholic school in Paris, where he became friend with writer to beHenry de Jouvenel and Roman Catholic activistMarc Sangnier.
He studied law and started to practice but finally chose politics. He waschef de cabinet of education ministerJoseph Chautemps in 1902. At about the same time, he started a career as a local politician in theLot, a forlorn and backwater, yet charming, department in the south west of France. Successively, and very often simultaneously, he became counsellor, general, mayor ofCahors (the local prefecture), deputy and senator. Soon commanding a huge following among the local voters, pleased by his culture, his easy access to government and proficiency in handing out public sector jobs, he made of the Lot a lifelong stronghold.
Member of a small centrist faction, calledRépublicains Socialistes, he soon cut a fine figure in the Chambre des Députés because of its abilities and its central positioning. His thriving ministerial career started in 1913 when he was appointedsous-secrétaire d'État à la marine marchande. From 1918 to 1940, he occupied numerous positions in all sorts of governments and was appointed minister eighteen times.
As afinance minister, he is remembered for recommending to cut the budget in 1925. He was deeply involved in diplomatic affairs, starting a campaign for a renewal of the relations with theHoly See followed, in 1922, by a plea for the acknowledgment of theSoviet Union.From 1924 to 1927, he headed the Russian Affairs Commission and as such dealt with some of the prominent Russian figures of that time. He started discussing the reimbursement of the Russian loans but, after the return to power ofPoincaré in 1926, the negotiation failed.
In 1925, he also served briefly asMinister of Education and Fine Arts. He is credited for introducing philosophy in the high school curriculum, perhaps a reflect of hismasonic affiliation. He also banned the teaching oflocal dialects or languages in school – for instance, declaring in 1927 that "for the linguistic unity of France, the Breton language must disappear".[1][2] During a new stint as Minister of Education in the government ofÉdouard Herriot in 1932, the name of the department was changed toÉducation nationale, a name it has kept hitherto. His policy generally promoted a free and neutral education system.
Minister ofTravaux publics in 1938, he was confronted to a great dockers strike, which enhanced theLeft distrust for his person. Between 1938 and 1940, he led several diplomatic missions. During that time of international tensions, Anatole's position was a matter of controversy. A stalwart pacifist, he was indeed actively promoting a Latin alliance between France andItaly who would mediate betweenHitler and the Allies.
On 10 July 1940, he voted in favour of granting the cabinet presided by MarshalPhilippe Pétain authority to draw up a new constitution, thereby effectively ending theFrench Third Republic and establishingVichy France. Being a friend ofOtto Abetz,Darquier de Pellepoix andFernand de Brinon, he was nonetheless an object of hatred for many among theVichy regime. He was forced to resign from his mayorship in 1942. Indicted by theComité national des écrivains (National Writers' Committee) in 1945, he died in Paris two years later.
Anatole de Monzie was a scholar and something of a writer. His intellectual legacy numbers the publication of theEncyclopédie française from 1935 on. He was also connected to various French writers and intellectuals of the time, includingColette,Roland Dorgelès,Lucien Febvre andPierre Benoit, whom he introduced to the Lot, especially the little town ofSaint-Céré, where the writer wrote several of his works. Despite his achievements, however, his legacy will be forever tainted by his opposition to Breton culture.
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| Preceded by | Minister of Justice 1925 | Succeeded by |
