Théophile Delcassé | |
|---|---|
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| Minister of Foreign Affairs | |
| In office 28 June 1898 – 6 June 1905 | |
| President | Félix Faure Émile Loubet |
| Prime Minister | Henri Brisson Charles Dupuy Pierre Waldeck-Rousseau Émile Combes Maurice Rouvier |
| Preceded by | Gabriel Hanotaux |
| Succeeded by | Maurice Rouvier |
| In office 26 August 1914 – 13 October 1915 | |
| President | Raymond Poincaré |
| Prime Minister | René Viviani |
| Preceded by | Gaston Doumergue |
| Succeeded by | René Viviani |
| Minister of War | |
| In office 9 June 1914 – 13 June 1914 | |
| President | Raymond Poincaré |
| Prime Minister | Alexandre Ribot |
| Preceded by | Joseph Noulens |
| Succeeded by | Adolphe Messimy |
| Minister of Marine | |
| In office 2 March 1911 – 21 January 1913 | |
| President | Armand Fallières |
| Prime Minister | Ernest Monis Joseph Caillaux Raymond Poincaré |
| Preceded by | Auguste Boué de Lapeyrère |
| Succeeded by | Pierre Baudin |
| Minister of Colonies | |
| In office 30 May 1894 – 26 January 1895 | |
| President | Sadi Carnot Jean Casimir-Périer Félix Faure |
| Prime Minister | Charles Dupuy |
| Preceded by | Ernest Boulanger |
| Succeeded by | Émile Chautemps |
| Under-secretary of state for Colonies | |
| In office 18 January 1893 – 25 November 1893 | |
| President | Sadi Carnot |
| Prime Minister | Alexandre Ribot Charles Dupuy |
| Preceded by | Émile Jamais |
| Succeeded by | Maurice Lebon |
| Membre of theChamber of deputies | |
| In office 12 November 1889 – 7 December 1919 | |
| Preceded by | Charles Sans-Leroy |
| Succeeded by | Roger Lafagette |
| Parliamentary group | Radical Left |
| Constituency | Ariège |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1852-03-01)1 March 1852 |
| Died | 22 February 1923(1923-02-22) (aged 70) |
| Political party | Radical |
Théophile Delcassé (French:[teɔfildɛlkase]; 1 March 1852 – 22 February 1923) was a French politician who served as foreign minister from 1898 to 1905. He is best known for his hatred ofGermany and efforts to secure alliances withRussia and theUnited Kingdom that became theEntente Cordiale. He belonged to theRadical Party and was a protege ofLéon Gambetta.
Delcassé was born on 1 March 1852, atPamiers, in theAriège département. He wrote articles on foreign affairs for theRépublique Française andLe Temps, and in 1888 was electedconseiller général of his nativedépartement, standing as "un disciple fidèle deLéon Gambetta". In the following year he entered the chamber as deputy forFoix.[1]
Delcassé was appointed under-secretary for the colonies in the secondRibot cabinet (January to April 1893), and retained his post in theDupuy cabinet till its fall in December 1893. During this period he would push strongly for the independence of the undersecretariat, beginning with the demand that it be transferred out of the backrooms of the Ministry of the Navy, to a separate building in thePavillon de Flore - this physical separation helped ensure it would become relatively free from naval control. Drawing upon the previous work ofFaure andEtienne, he would also campaign vigorously for the establishment of a separate ministry devoted to the matter, with Faure likening his force of personality and resistance to ministerial control to that ofJulius Caeser. Backed up by the resignation of the following undersecretaryMaurice Lebon, he was able to speak forcefully in favor of the establishment of a Ministry, and it was largely owing to his efforts that the French colonial office was made a separate department with a minister at its head thanks to a passing of a bill by 260 votes to 239. To this office he was appointed, in the second Dupuy cabinet (May 1894 to January 1895).[2]
He gave a great impetus to French colonial enterprise, especially in West Africa, where he organized the newly acquired colony ofDahomey, and despatched theLiotard mission to the upperUbangi. While in opposition, Delcassé devoted special attention to naval affairs, and in noted speeches he declared that the function of the French navy was to secure and develop colonial enterprise, deprecated all attempts to rival the British fleet, and advocated the construction of commerce destroyers as France's best reply to England.[1]
On the formation of the second Brisson cabinet in June 1898 he succeededGabriel Hanotaux asForeign Minister, and retained that post under the subsequent premierships of Dupuy,Waldeck-Rousseau,Combes andRouvier. In 1898 Delcassé had to deal with the delicate situation caused by Captain Marchand's occupation of the town ofFashoda in theSudan (theFashoda Incident) for which, as he admitted in a speech in the chamber on 23 January 1899, he accepted full responsibility, since it arose directly out of the Liotard expedition; and in March 1899 he concluded an agreement with Britain by which the difficulty was finally adjusted, and France consolidated her vast colonial empire in North-West Africa. In the same year he acted as mediator (the main mediator beingJules Cambon, French ambassador in Washington) between the United States of America and Spain, and brought the peace negotiations to a successful conclusion.[1]
Delcassé was originally a moderate willing to find a compromise with Germany, but Berlin ignored his overtures. He then became very anti-German, to the point thatKaiser Wilhelm called him "The most dangerous man for Germany in France." Delcassé improved relations between France and Italy: at the same time, he adhered firmly to the alliance with Russia, and in August 1899 made a visit to Saint Petersburg, which he repeated in April 1901. In June 1900he made an arrangement with Spain, fixing the long-disputed boundaries of the French and Spanish possessions in West Africa. Finally, in his greatest achievement, he concluded theEntente Cordiale with the UK, covering colonial and other questions which had long been a matter of dispute, especially concerningEgypt,Newfoundland andMorocco. Suspicion of the growing entente between France and the UK rose in Germany, and in 1905 German assertiveness was shown in acrisis which was forced on in the matter of French policy by Delcassé personally, a sore point with Germany.[1] The situation became acute, and Germany forced Delcassé's resignation in June 1906.[3] He retired into private life, but in 1908 was warmly welcomed on a visit to England.[1]
In 1909 Delcassé was appointed chairman of a commission appointed to investigate the French navy.The report was drawn up on 24 May 1909 and concluded that the French navy was unprepared and the naval administration and organization were in disarray.[4] Delcassé was appointed Minister of Marine on 2 March 1911 in the cabinet ofErnest Monis.[5] Delcassé promulgated closer cooperation between the British and French fleets. This arrangement was an important factor in leading Britain to side with France against Germany when World War I started.
On 25 September 1911, as the battleshipLiberté was moored inToulon harbor, an accidental explosion in one of her forward ammunition magazines for the secondary guns destroyed the ship.[6] 210 men died and 136 were seriously injured.[7] The captain,Louis Jaurès, was on leave at the time.[8] After the explosion there was a debate in the Chamber of Deputies in which the honour of Jaurès and the responsibility for the use of unstable powder by the navy was questioned. Jaurès had to face a court martial, but was acquitted unanimously on 21 December 1911.[8]Paul Painlevé, president of the navy committee, appointed a commission of inquiry after the explosion, which followed that of the battleshipIéna. CaptainAntoine Schwerer was a member of the commission of inquiry and wrote a scathing "Report on Naval Powders" (1912).[9] Delcassé ordered that all ammunition made before 1907 be replaced.[7] The older ammunition was removed from the ships, and the remainder was steadily replaced with a new explosive containingdiphenylamine as a stabilizer.[10] Continued efforts were made to improve the powders, and there were no more major disasters.[11]It was not until 1914 that the "powder crisis" was fully resolved.[7]
Delcassé retained his position in the cabinet ofJoseph Caillaux until its fall on 14 January 1912.Raymond Poincaré then urged Delcassé to become prime minister and minister of foreign affairs, but Delcassé declined; however, he would later agree to remain in Poincaré's cabinet as Minister of the Navy.[12]
PresidentArmand Fallières' term in office expired in January 1913, and Delcassé decided to leave the Ministry of Marine and run for the presidency. He did not succeed.[13] After the election, which was won by Poincaré, a new cabinet was formed byAristide Briand.Briand offered Delcassé the post of minister of marine or minister of war in the new cabinet, but Delcassé declined. He would soon be appointed ambassador to Russia, and then minister of war.[14] On 26 August 1914 after the Germans announced successes in the north and east,René Viviani announced the resignation of the cabinet.In the new cabinet, announced within an hour, Viviani retained his post.[15] Delcassé was minister of foreign affairs, Aristide Briand was minister of justice andAlexandre Millerand was Minister of War.[15]
Delcassé resigned from the Cabinet on 14 October 1915, partly on the grounds of differing opinions and partly because of ill health.[16]
Belgium: Grand Cordon of theRoyal Order of Leopold, 1900[17]
Principality of Bulgaria: Grand Cross of theOrder of St. Alexander, 1902[18]
Spain: Grand Cross of theOrder of Charles III, with Collar, 9 July 1900[19]
United Kingdom: Honorary Grand Cross of theRoyal Victorian Order, 4 May 1903[20]
Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1922)."Delcassé, Théophile".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 30 (12th ed.). London & New York: The Encyclopædia Britannica Company. p. 816.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Delcassé, Théophile".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 7 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 953.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Minister of Colonies 1894–1895 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister of Foreign Affairs 1898–1905 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister of Marine 1911–1913 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister of War 1914 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister of Foreign Affairs 1914–1915 | Succeeded by |
