A VINTAGE ORIGINAL 8X10 INCH PHOTO FROM 1927 DEPICTING PRESIDENT OF FRANCE GASTON DOUMERGUE PAYING VISIT TO KING OF ENGLAND IN LONDON
Pierre Paul Henri Gaston Doumergue was a French politician of the Third Republic. He served as President of France from 13 June 1924 to 13 June 1931.
Gaston Doumergue, (born Aug. 1, 1863, Aigues-Vives, Fr.—died June 18, 1937, Aigues- Vives), French political figure whose term as 12th president of the Third Republic was marked by nearly constant political instability.
Doumergue, c. 1923
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Born: August 1, 1863 France
Died: June 18, 1937 (aged 73) France
Title / Office: president (1924-1931), France
Political Affiliation: Radical-Socialist Party
After service as an official in Indochina and Africa (1885–93), Doumergue was elected as a Radical-Socialist member of the Chamber of Deputies from Nîmes (1893). In June 1902 he was appointed to the first of his 11 ministerial posts. In 1910 he was elected to the Senate. On Dec. 13, 1913, he formed his own Cabinet, and, although it collapsed within seven months, he remained in various ministerial positions until March 1917. He then returned to the Senate and was its president until his election to the presidency of the republic on June 13, 1924.
Doumergue’s presidential victory came as a rebuff to the Cartel des Gauches, a coalition of leftist parties, which had just won a substantial parliamentary victory. Hence, his term was marked by constant ministerial problems—there were 15 different cabinets—as well as severe social tensions caused by the beginning of the Great Depression. In February 1934, three years after he left the presidency, Doumergue was called upon to form a new government, but his plans for a Union Nationale, a broad-based coalition of all parties, and constitutional reforms were unsuccessful. He resigned Nov. 8, 1934, and retired completely from political life.
1 August 1863
Pierre Paul Henri Gaston Doumergue was born in Aigues-Vives (Department of Gard), into a Protestant family. After earning a degree and a doctorate in Law in Paris, he joined the Nîmes Bar in 1885.
1890
Substitute (magistrate who assists the Prosecutor General and the French Public Prosecutor) in Hanoi, in Indochina.
1893
He was named justice of the peace in Algiers.
17 December 1893
Elected Radical Deputy for Nîmes, he was re-elected on 8 May 1898 and 27 April 1902.
7 June 1902-23 January 1905
He served as Minister of the Colonies in the Combes Government, under the Presidency of Émile Loubet.
17 January 1906
Armand Fallières was elected President of the Republic.
14 March-24 October 1906
He served as Minister of Trade, Industry and Labour.
25 October 1906-4 January 1908
He served as Minister of Trade and Industry.
4 January 1908-2 November 1910
He served as Minister of Public Instruction and Fine Arts.
6 March 1910
He was elected Senator for Gard and re-elected in 1912 and 1921.
9 December 1913-8 June 1914
He was Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs at the request of President Poincaré.
3-26 August 1914
He served as Minister of Foreign Affairs
26 August 1914-19 March 1917
He served as Minister of Colonies.
February 1923
He was President of the Senate.
June 1924
After the resignation of Alexandre Millerand, Gaston Doumergue was elected President of the Republic. He stated he was in favour of a policy of firmness vis-à-vis Germany in the face of a re-emerging nationalism. His seven-year-term was marked by strong ministerial instability.
1 July 1926
Gaston Doumergue appointed Raymond Poincaré as Prime Minister.
16-19 May 1927
The President visited London and was received by George V.
10-12 October 1929
He visited Brussels.
14 May 1930
He visited Algeria for the centenary celebrations of the conquest.
12-24 October 1930
He visited Morocco.
8-18 April 1931
He visited Tunisia for the 50th anniversary of the protectorate.
1931
Gaston Doumergue’s seven-year term ended.
February 1934
After the riot of 6 February, Gaston Doumergue was appointed Prime Minister again by President Albert Lebrun. He wanted to strengthen the executive power, but the Radicals were against his proposed constitutional reform.
8 November 1934
He resigned and retired from political life.
18 June 1937
Gaston Doumergue, affectionately known as “Gastounet”, died in Aigues-Vives.
French; President of the Republic 1924–31, Prime Minister 1913, 1934 Born in 1863, Doumergue studied law and became a colonial magistrate before being elected to the Chamber of Deputies. A moderate Radical, he enjoyed a reasonably successful career in government before the First World War and then settled comfortably into the role of regime dignitary. His moderation and respect for constitutional proprieties made him an attractive candidate for the presidency when the right-wing incumbent Millerand was forced to resign after the victory of the Socialist-Radical coalition in the 1924 elections. Doumergue was an outstandingly successful President for a political system which expected its head of state to behave like a constitutional monarch and allowed him to exercise surreptitious political influence. Jovial, shrewd, reliable, he appealed to the democratic left and reassured the middle classes. The national popularity he gained as President explains why his successor, Lebrun, invited him to take over the reins of government in the crisis circumstances created by the riots of 6 February 1934. Doumergue formed a government of national unity, which included Marshal Pétain. As Prime Minister, he offered no solution to the economic problems facing France and embarked instead on a programme of constitutional reform designed to strengthen the Executive. In so doing, he ignited the fears of those who regarded any attempt to constrain the powers of parliament as an assault on the principles of Republican democracy. By November 1934 his usefulness to the system parties of the Third Republic was at an end. Broadcasts to the nation, modelled on Roosevelt's fireside chats, allowed the political parties to accuse him of incipient Fascism. His coalition government fell apart and he was compelled to resign.
Gaston Doumergue was born in Aigues-Vives, France, on 1st August, 1863. After service as an official in Indochina and Africa (1885-93) Doumergue was elected to the Chamber of Deputies.
A member of the Radical Party, Doumergue became minister for the colonies (1902-1905). In 1910 he was elected to the Senate and was appointed prime minister in December 1913. However his government only lasted until June 1914. Doumergue then served as minister for the colonies under Rene Viviani.
Doumergue was President of the Senate in 1923 and was elected President of the Republic after Alexandre Millerand resigned in 1924. Doumergue held power until his term ended in 1931.
Doumergue was recalled to power in February 1934, and attempted to form a government of Union Nationale. This broad coalition failed to agree on constitutional reform and Doumergue resigned from office on 8th November 1934. Gaston Doumergue died in Aigues-Vives on 18th June, 1937.
Gaston Doumergue , born on1 st August 1863in Aigues-Vives ( Gard ) and died on June 18 , 1937in the same city, is a statesman French . He is President of the French Republic of June 13 , 1924 to June 13 , 1931.
In charge of important ministerial portfolios, he was appointed President of the Council for the first time in 1913 , but was forced to leave power a few months after his appointment. Elected President of the Senate in 1923, the following year he was elected President of the Republic for a term of seven years; he succeeds Alexandre Millerand , who resigned.
At the end of his mandate, refusing to take part in his succession, Doumergue retired but then presided over a government of national unity during the crisis created by the riots of February 6, 1934 .
Summary
1 Personal situation
1.1 Protestant origins
1.2 Magistracy
2 Political background
2.1 Beginnings in Parliament (1893-1901)
2.2 Ministerial portfolios (1902-1910)
2.3 First government (1913-1914)
2.4 President of the Republic (1924-1931)
2.4.1 Presidential election
2.4.2 Domestic policy
2.4.3 Foreign policy
2.4.4 Particularities of his presidency
2.5 Return to the presidency of the Council (1934)
3 Death and funeral
4 Details of mandates and functions
4.1 Executive functions
4.2 Elective mandates
4.3 Others
5 Decorations
6 Tribute
7 Notes and references
7.1 Notes
7.2 References
8 Appendices
8.1 Related article
8.2 Bibliography
8.3 external links
Personal situation
Protestant Origins
Gaston Doumergue comes from a Languedoc Protestant family note 1 . His father, Pierre Doumergue, owns a winemaker in Aigues-Vives . His mother, Françoise Pattus i 1 , raises him in the Protestant faith c 1 and the admiration of republican ideas has 1 , 1 . He is also the great-uncle of playwright Colette Audry 2 and film director Jacqueline Audry .
A brilliant student, he claims to have belonged to the "generation of revenge, animated by a beautiful patriotic ardor" , after the defeat of 1870 i 2 . He studied at the boys' high school in Nîmes , future high school Alphonse-Daudet 3
Magistracy
After a license and a doctorate in law at the Faculty of Law of Paris , he enrolled in 1885 at the bar of Nîmes and participated in the resounding trial of deputy Numa Gilly 4 , a 2 , before entering the magistracy in 1890 as substitute in Hanoi , Indochina . His stay was brief because he returned to France on the death of his father in 1891 a 3 , note 2 .
Political journey
Debut in Parliament (1893-1901)
In 1893, while he was justice of the peace in Algiers , he returned to France , to Aigues-Vives , and presented his candidacy for a by-election in December 1893, intended to fill the seat of Émile Jamais , friend of longtime, just reelected in the elections of August 1893 but died suddenly onNovember 18, before the opening of the parliamentary session. Nothing destined him for politics and his grandfather had even refused in 1836 his appointment as mayor of the village because of the modesty of his fortune under a census system i 3 .
Gaston Doumergue.
Encouraged by his mother who follows his career step by step i 4 , Doumergue is elected radical deputy of Nîmes , beating in the second round, with 10,101 votes, the mayor of Nîmes , Gaston Maruéjol , who obtains only 24 votes 5 , has 4 , c 1 . He attended the banquet given in Lyon by President Sadi Carnot onJune 24, 1894during which the latter is fatally stabbed by the Italian anarchist Caserio . This event made him realize the seriousness and the danger of exercising power a 5 .
He was re-elected as a deputy on May 8 , 1898, in the first round of the ballot , by 11,514 votes against the conservative Albert de Nesmes-Desmarets. He is very involved in the colonial policy of France and, during his interventions at the rostrum, well received on the left benches, reproaches successive governments for their military interventionism c 1 and in particular the occupation of Madagascar j 1 . In 1894, he also denounced the "benign neglect rather pronounced sympathy" of public opinion vis-à-vis the colonial policy, which masks the plunder of conquered territories and the violence of the administration j 2 .
His secular and republican convictions made him take sides with Dreyfus . His successive mandates are also an opportunity for him to defend small agricultural producers. His influence within the left is growing. He is, for the third time, elected deputy on April 27 , 1902, from the first round.
A freemason since 1901, he was initiated into the L'Écho du Grand Orient lodge in the Orient of Nîmes, Grand Orient de France 6 .
Ministerial portfolios (1902-1910)
Under the presidency of Émile Loubet , he was Minister of the Colonies in the Émile Combes government from 1902 to 1905.
He was minister without interruption from 1906 to 1910 , first for Commerce and Industry, where he created the direction of the merchant marine, then for Public Instruction and Fine Arts, from 1908, replacing by Aristide Briand . As such, he pronounces theJune 4, 1908a speech, in the name of the government , during the transfer of the ashes of Émile Zola to the Pantheon , praising the "heroism" of the writer j 3 , just as he has, theMarch 19precedent, defended the organization of the translation ceremony at the Assembly platform, against the anti-Dreyfusards 7 .
A fervent supporter of the secular school, he launched the most violent school war in the history of France by submitting in June 1908 two “secular defense” projects aimed at punishing families who prevent their children from following an education, even anti-Catholic. . On this occasion, he received from the polemicist Édouard Drumont the nickname “escaped from Saint-Barthélémy ” 8 . In the school field, Doumergue also pleads in favor of the teaching of Arabic in Algeria .
He also becomes vice-president of the Chamber of Deputies for a year, from February 1905 To March 1906, between its two ministries. In 1910, he was elected senator for Gard 9 , after the death of Frédéric Desmons .
Doumergue was re-elected in 1912 and in 1921 10 .
First government (1913-1914)
Gaston Doumergue, Chairman of the Board .
Of December 9 , 1913 to June 8 , 1914, he is President of the Council and Minister of Foreign Affairs at the request of President Poincaré , who is looking in Doumergue for a conciliator capable of forming a cabinet "of republican understanding" a 6 . From then on, he endeavors to reconcile the demands of the radical party and the interests of the country, in a darkening international horizon: the statesman takes precedence over the party man a 7 , c 2 . Gaston Doumergue must defend the law of three-year military service , which he voted, not without scruple, inAugust 1913 : "None of you is waiting for us to reopen the debate: it is the h 1 law " . The proposal for the creation of an income tax by his finance minister Joseph Caillaux sparked a controversy within the conservatives, but was finally voted inJuly 1914by a Senate which had been hostile to it for five years. The " case Calmette " which led to the resignation of the minister puts in trouble the government while ending the X th Legislature and begins a difficult election campaign. Doumergue, however, warned that he "would not stay after the 8-member elections under any circumstances . "
The time has come for the policy of rearmament and closer alliances, which Poincaré and Doumergue h 2 are carrying out . However, he does not lose sight of the international situation and the chancelleries are continuously kept on alert at 9 . The Radical Party came out largely at the head of the legislative elections of spring 1914 and this left-wing majority, elected on the theme of peace, caused the President great embarrassment to constitute a cabinet that could succeed Doumergue h 3 . The latter takes advantage of the end of his duties to undertake a trip to Upper Austria at 10 .
the August 3 , 1914, the very day of the declaration of war of Germany on France, marking the beginning of the First World War , the new President of the Council René Viviani called on him to replace him at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, during the composition of its ephemeral first government . Then, he was Minister of the Colonies in the successive governments of August 26 , 1914 to March 19 , 1917( Viviani II , Briand V and VI governments ). During this mandate, in the midst of the war, he ensured the security of French possessions and established a peace treaty with Tsar Nicolas II of Russia - which however became null and void following the October Revolution .
In February 1923, he was elected president of the Senate , replacing Léon Bourgeois .
President of the Republic (1924-1931)
Election to the presidency
Gaston Doumergue during his investiture parade, in June 1924, aboard a Renault 40CV 11 .
His career culminated with his election to the presidency of the Republic on June 13 , 1924, for a term of seven years 12 . This accession to the head of state is the result of several successive political events. The 11 andMay 25who preceded see the victory in the legislative elections of the Cartel of the Left , despite a higher number of votes for the right and thanks to an electoral law granting a bonus to alliances h 4 . Raymond Poincaré , president of the Council since 1922, disowned, resigns to President Millerand . The cartellists claim power in "the smallest cogs of the administration h 5 " . Paul Painlevé is brought to the head of the Chamber thanks to the voices of the Cartel also led by Blum , Herriot and Briand, against the candidate of the rights, André Maginot . The appointment of François-Marsal is taken as a provocation and his government only lasts two days.
Thus, the left, which forced Alexandre Millerand to resign, then believes that it can bring Painlevé to the presidency, but the moderates thwart his ambitions by relying heavily on Gaston Doumergue, who already enjoys part of the votes from the left. He obtained 515 votes out of 815 voters, against 309 in Painlevé and 21 in Camélinat , the first Communist candidate in a presidential election.
Domestic policy
Unsurprisingly, he appointed the mayor of Lyon , Édouard Herriot , at the head of the government and charged him with establishing a policy of symbolic change to satisfy the electorate h 6 . The cartel state is installed, the presidencies of the parliamentary committees being mainly held by its members, as well as the main posts of the administration h 7 . The Banque de France irregularities scandal overthrows the government and Doumergue resolves to appoint Paul Painlevé as President of the Council in order to unite radical and socialist voices h 8, skilfully playing designations according to the parliamentary pendulum.
the July 5, 1924, Gaston Doumergue proclaims the official opening of the Paris Summer Olympics , during the opening ceremony being held at the Olympic Stadium in Colombes in the presence of the President of the International Olympic Committee , Pierre de Coubertin , the members of the IOC, the President of the National Olympic Committee , Justinien Clary , the members of the NOC as well as the 44 participating delegations.
Doumergue's seven-year term was marked by the prosperity of France between the wars and the Roaring Twenties , but also by strong ministerial instability and financial difficulties caused by the fall of the franc. Called to the Ministry of Finance inJuly 1926, Poincaré introduced an austerity policy by reducing the franc to its real value through a strong devaluation, restored confidence and managed to boost an economy at half mast. This neo-liberal policy also engendered a period of economic and financial prosperity, at a time when the United States was hit hard by the stock market collapse of 1929. The progress of the technical industry, in particular in the steel industry and the automobile, participate in the growth of the country. Production capacity thus increased by 45% over the 1920s. To support this development, Doumergue reinforced a centrist policy and instituted workers' social insurance [ref. necessary] .
Foreign Policy
Gaston Doumergue and the King of Afghanistan, Amanullah Khan (1928).
In foreign policy, he declared himself in favor of a policy of firmness vis-à-vis Germany in the face of nationalism resurging in part of Europe, but also in France. He ran into difficulties: the Allies did not manage to come to an agreement on Germany. Forced to evacuate the Ruhr , the Saar and the Rhineland between 1925 and 1930, the France of Doumergue was also duped by German Chancellor Stresemann despite the signing of the Locarno collective security pact . The disagreements with his Minister of Foreign Affairs, Aristide Briand , only worsen the colonial crises in Syria and the Rif. After the failure of concertation attempts by the prefect in place in Morocco , Doumergue decides to send Marshal Pétain , who quickly wins the Rif war . At the same time, he participated in the inauguration of the Paris Mosque , with the Moroccan sultan Moulay Youssef , on an official visit to France. In Indochina , the Vietnamese nationalists of the VNQDD maintained an independentist agitation in the 1920s.
In South America, he helped Marcel Bouilloux-Lafont , director of the Compagnie générale aéropostale , to obtain from Brazil and Argentina the postal contracts and overflight rights necessary for the operation of an air transport line 13 .
In May 1930, he celebrates in Algeria , on the lands he knew in the first years of his career, the centenary of the French presence, accompanied by a delegation of eight ministers and several dozen deputies 14 . The following year, a few weeks before the end of his mandate, he commemorates the fiftieth anniversary of the French protectorate in Tunisia .
Distinctive features of his presidency
Gaston Doumergue in one of Time (1924).
In such an unstable political world, Doumergue strives to support the management of public affairs in leftist values and a conservative guideline. An affable and courteous man, he has seduced since the beginning of his political career by his good nature and his i 5 accent . After his election to the presidency of the Republic, his simplicity continued to earn him a popularity in public opinion which is reflected in particular by the familiar nickname of “Gastounet” 15 .
In addition, the accession of Gaston Doumergue to the presidency of the Republic makes him the only Protestant head of state that France has known since the abjuration of Henri IV , theJuly 25, 159316 . He was also, after Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte , the second president of the French Republic who was unmarried when he took office 17 . Although "old boy" , it is nonetheless, according to Adrien Dansette , "sensitive to the charm female" i 6 but frequent links are only the temporary "Parisian politicians morals" i 7 . He maintains a long-term relationship with Jeanne-Marie Gaussal , widow Graves, associate of the University. During his presidential term, he goes every morning to have breakfast with her at his former home at 73 bisavenue de Wagram , where he walks from the Élysée 18 . the1 st June 1931Twelve days before the end of his term, he married his companion before the mayor of the 8 th arrondissement , Gaston Drucker, came specially to the Elysee ; the secretary general of the presidency, Jules Michel, is his witness. Gaston Doumergue thus becomes the first President of the Republic to marry during his term of office 19 , 20 .
His presidential term ends on June 13 , 1931and he retired from political life in his wife's home in Tournefeuille , in Haute-Garonne 21 .
Back to the Presidency (1934)
Main article: State reform project of Gaston Doumergue .
Always popular, he was recalled as President of the Council , after the bloody events of February 6, 1934 , to form a government of national unity in which André Tardieu and Édouard Herriot rub shoulders .
The aim was to reform institutions to reduce ministerial instability. This attempt does not succeed: in poor health, it is difficult for him to arbitrate inside one of those cabinets in which we generally put the greatest hopes because they symbolize the unity of the nation, but which are in fact made up of ministers from all sides of the political spectrum who do not get along. There is, however, a recovery in public finances, which allows the price of government loans to gain ten to twelve points between March and June 22 . He was also weakened by the assassination of Louis Barthou , theOctober 9, and prefers to resign soon after, the November 8.
René Viviani said of him: "In a well-organized democracy, Doumergue would be a justice of the peace in the provinces 23 . ".
Death and funeral
He died on June 18, 1937, in his house in Aigues-Vives, at the age of 74 24 . His grave is located in the small cemetery of Aigues-Vives , where his wife Jeanne (née Gaussal) joined him in 1963 and was buried by his side.
The government decides to organize a national funeral for him , which takes place in Nîmes .
Details of mandates and functions
Executive functions
June 7, 1902 - January 18, 1905 : Minister of Colonies
March 14, 1906 - July 24, 1909 : Minister of Trade and Industry
January 4, 1910 - November 3, 1910 : Minister of Public Instruction and Fine Arts
December 9, 1913 - June 9, 1914 : President of the Council and Minister of Foreign Affairs
August 3, 1914 - August 26, 1914 : Minister of Foreign Affairs
August 26, 1914 - March 20, 1917 : Minister of Colonies
February 22, 1923 - June 13, 1924 : President of the Senate
June 13, 1924 - June 13, 1931 : President of the Republic
February 9, 1934 - November 8, 1934 : President of the council
Elective mandates
1893 - 1906: MP for the 2 th district Gard
1910 - 1924: senator for the Gard
Others
1932 - 1937: President of the French Union for the Rescue of Children
Decorations
Grand Cross of the Legion of Honor Grand Cross of the Legion of Honor (1924), ex officio as Grand Master of the Order
Fleece Or ribbonKnight of the Order of the Golden Fleece (Spain, 1926)
Order of the Royal House of Chakri (Thailand) ribbon Order of the Chakri Dynasty (Thailand), awarded on January 30 , 1925
Order of the Elephant Ribbon bar.svgKnight of the Order of the Elephant (Denmark)
Gaston Doumergue, né le 1er août 1863 à Aigues-Vives (Gard) et mort le 18 juin 1937 dans la même ville, est un homme d'État français. Il est président de la République française du 13 juin 1924 au 13 juin 1931.
Chargé d'importants portefeuilles ministériels, il est, une première fois, nommé président du Conseil en 1913, mais est contraint de laisser le pouvoir quelques mois après sa nomination. Élu président du Sénat en 1923, il est l'année suivante élu président de la République pour un mandat de sept ans ; il succède à Alexandre Millerand, démissionnaire.
À l'issue de son mandat, refusant de concourir à sa succession, Doumergue se retire mais préside ensuite un gouvernement d'union nationale lors de la crise créée par les émeutes du 6 février 1934.
Sommaire
1 Situation personnelle
1.1 Origines protestantes
1.2 Magistrature
2 Parcours politique
2.1 Débuts au Parlement (1893-1901)
2.2 Portefeuilles ministériels (1902-1910)
2.3 Premier gouvernement (1913-1914)
2.4 Président de la République (1924-1931)
2.4.1 Élection à la présidence
2.4.2 Politique intérieure
2.4.3 Politique extérieure
2.4.4 Particularités de sa présidence
2.5 Retour à la présidence du Conseil (1934)
3 Mort et obsèques
4 Détail des mandats et fonctions
4.1 Fonctions exécutives
4.2 Mandats électifs
4.3 Autres
5 Décorations
6 Hommage
7 Notes et références
7.1 Notes
7.2 Références
8 Annexes
8.1 Article connexe
8.2 Bibliographie
8.3 Liens externes
Situation personnelle
Origines protestantes
Gaston Doumergue est issu d'une famille protestante languedociennenote 1. Son père, Pierre Doumergue, est propriétaire vigneron à Aigues-Vives. Sa mère, Françoise Pattusi 1, l'élève dans la foi protestantec 1 et l'admiration des idées républicainesa 1,1. Il est par ailleurs le grand-oncle de la dramaturge Colette Audry2 et de la réalisatrice de films Jacqueline Audry.
Élève brillant, il affirme avoir appartenu à la « génération de la revanche, animée d'une belle ardeur patriotique », après la défaite de 1870i 2. Il étudie au lycée de garçons de Nîmes, futur lycée Alphonse-Daudet3
Magistrature
Après une licence et un doctorat de droit à la Faculté de droit de Paris, il s'inscrit en 1885 au barreau de Nîmes et participe au procès retentissant du député Numa Gilly4,a 2, avant d'entrer en 1890 dans la magistrature comme substitut à Hanoï, en Indochine. Son séjour est bref car il revient en métropole à la mort de son père en 1891a 3,note 2.
Parcours politique
Débuts au Parlement (1893-1901)
En 1893, alors qu'il est juge de paix à Alger, il revient en France, à Aigues-Vives, et présente sa candidature à une élection législative partielle, en décembre 1893, destinée à pourvoir le siège d'Émile Jamais, ami de longue date, tout juste réélu lors des élections d'août 1893 mais mort subitement le 18 novembre, avant l'ouverture de la session parlementaire. Rien ne le destine à la politique et son grand-père avait même refusé en 1836 sa nomination comme maire du village en raison de la modestie de sa fortune dans un régime censitairei 3.
Gaston Doumergue.
Encouragé par sa mère qui suit pas à pas sa carrièrei 4, Doumergue est élu député radical de Nîmes, battant au second tour, avec 10 101 voix, le maire de Nîmes, Gaston Maruéjol, qui n'obtient que 24 suffrages5,a 4,c 1. Il assiste au banquet donné à Lyon par le président Sadi Carnot le 24 juin 1894 lors duquel ce dernier est mortellement poignardé par l'anarchiste italien Caserio. Cet événement lui fait prendre conscience du sérieux et du danger de l'exercice du pouvoira 5.
Il est réélu député le 8 mai 1898, au premier tour du scrutin, par 11 514 voix contre le conservateur Albert de Nesmes-Desmarets. Il est très impliqué dans la politique coloniale de la France et, lors de ses interventions à la tribune, bien accueillies sur les bancs de gauche, reproche aux gouvernements successifs leur interventionnisme militairec 1 et en particulier l'occupation de Madagascarj 1. Dès 1894, il dénonce d'ailleurs la « bienveillante indifférence et non la sympathie prononcée » de l'opinion publique vis-à-vis de la politique coloniale, qui masque les pillages des territoires conquis et la violence de l'administrationj 2.
Ses convictions laïques et républicaines lui font prendre parti pour Dreyfus. Ses mandats successifs sont aussi l'occasion pour lui de défendre les petits producteurs agricoles. Son influence au sein de la gauche grandit. Il est, pour la troisième fois, élu député le 27 avril 1902, dès le premier tour.
Franc-maçon depuis 1901, il a été initié au sein de la loge L'Écho du Grand Orient à l'Orient de Nîmes, Grand Orient de France6.
Portefeuilles ministériels (1902-1910)
Sous la présidence d'Émile Loubet, il est ministre des Colonies, dans le gouvernement Émile Combes, de 1902 à 1905.
Il est ministre sans interruption de 1906 à 1910, d'abord au Commerce et à l'Industrie, où il crée la direction de la marine marchande, puis à l'Instruction publique et aux Beaux-Arts, à partir de 1908, en remplacement d'Aristide Briand. À ce titre, il prononce le 4 juin 1908 un discours, au nom du gouvernement, lors du transfert des cendres d'Émile Zola au Panthéon, louant l'« héroïsme » de l'écrivainj 3, de même qu'il a, le 19 mars précédent, défendu l'organisation de la cérémonie de translation à la tribune de l'Assemblée, contre les anti-dreyfusards7.
Fervent partisan de l'école laïque, il déclenche la guerre scolaire la plus violente de l'histoire de France en déposant en juin 1908 deux projets de « défense laïque » visant à punir les familles qui empêchent leurs enfants de suivre un enseignement, même anticatholique. Il reçoit à cette occasion du polémiste Édouard Drumont le surnom d'« échappé de la Saint-Barthélémy »8. Dans le domaine scolaire, Doumergue plaide également en faveur de l'enseignement de l'arabe en Algérie.
Il devient par ailleurs vice-président de la Chambre des députés durant une année, de février 1905 à mars 1906, entre ses deux ministères. En 1910, il est élu sénateur du Gard9, après le décès de Frédéric Desmons.
Doumergue est réélu en 1912 et en 192110.
Premier gouvernement (1913-1914)
Gaston Doumergue, président du Conseil.
Du 9 décembre 1913 au 8 juin 1914, il est président du Conseil et ministre des Affaires étrangères à la demande du président Poincaré, qui cherche en Doumergue un conciliateur capable de former un cabinet « d'entente républicaine »a 6. Dès lors, il s'attache à concilier les revendications du parti radical et l'intérêt du pays, dans un horizon international qui s'obscurcit : l'homme d'État prend le pas sur l'homme de partia 7,c 2. Gaston Doumergue doit défendre la loi du service militaire de trois ans, qu'il a votée, non sans scrupule, en août 1913 : « Nul d'entre vous n'attend que nous rouvrions le débat : c'est la loih 1 ». La proposition de création d'un impôt sur le revenu par son ministre des finances Joseph Caillaux déclenche une polémique au sein des conservateurs, mais est finalement votée en juillet 1914 par un Sénat qui y était hostile depuis cinq ans. L'« affaire Calmette » qui aboutit à la démission du ministre met en difficulté le gouvernement alors que se termine la Xe législature et que s'amorce une campagne électorale délicate. Doumergue avait cependant prévenu qu'il ne « resterait en aucun cas après les électionsa 8 ».
L'heure est à la politique de réarmement et de resserrement des alliances, que mènent à bien Poincaré et Doumergueh 2. Il ne perd pas pour autant de vue la situation internationale et les chancelleries sont continuellement tenues en alertea 9. Le parti radical arrive largement en tête des élections législatives du printemps 1914 et cette majorité de gauche, élue sur le thème de la paix, occasionne au Président un grand embarras pour constituer un cabinet pouvant succéder à Doumergueh 3. Ce dernier profite de la fin de ses fonctions pour entreprendre un voyage en Haute-Autrichea 10.
Le 3 août 1914, le jour même de la déclaration de guerre de l'Allemagne à la France, marquant le début de la Première Guerre mondiale, le nouveau président du Conseil René Viviani fait appel à lui pour le remplacer au ministère des Affaires étrangères, lors de la composition de son éphémère premier gouvernement. Puis, il est ministre des Colonies dans les gouvernements qui se succèdent du 26 août 1914 au 19 mars 1917 (gouvernements Viviani II, Briand V et VI). Durant ce mandat, en pleine guerre, il assure la sécurité des possessions françaises et met en place avec le tsar Nicolas II de Russie un traité de paix — qui devient cependant caduc à la suite de la Révolution d'Octobre.
En février 1923, il est élu président du Sénat, en remplacement de Léon Bourgeois.
Président de la République (1924-1931)
Élection à la présidence
Gaston Doumergue lors de sa parade d'investiture, en juin 1924, à bord d'une Renault 40CV11.
Sa carrière culmine avec son élection à la présidence de la République, le 13 juin 1924, pour un mandat de sept ans12. Cette accession à la tête de l'État est le résultat de plusieurs événements politiques successifs. Les 11 et 25 mai qui précédent voient la victoire aux élections législatives du Cartel des gauches, malgré un nombre de voix supérieur pour la droite et grâce à une loi électorale accordant une prime aux alliancesh 4. Raymond Poincaré, président du Conseil depuis 1922, désavoué, remet sa démission au président Millerand. Les cartellistes réclament le pouvoir dans les « moindres rouages de l'administrationh 5 ». Paul Painlevé est porté à la tête de la Chambre grâce aux voix du Cartel emmené aussi par Blum, Herriot et Briand, contre le candidat des droites, André Maginot. La nomination de François-Marsal est prise comme une provocation et son gouvernement ne tient que deux jours.
Ainsi, la gauche, qui a obligé Alexandre Millerand à démissionner, croit alors pouvoir porter Painlevé à la présidence, mais les modérés déjouent ses ambitions en se reportant massivement sur Gaston Doumergue, qui bénéficie déjà d'une partie des voix de gauche. Il obtient 515 voix sur 815 votants, contre 309 à Painlevé et 21 à Camélinat, premier candidat communiste à une élection présidentielle.
Politique intérieure
Sans surprise, il nomme le maire de Lyon, Édouard Herriot, à la tête du gouvernement et le charge d'établir une politique de changement symbolique pour satisfaire l'électorath 6. L'État cartelliste est installé, les présidences des commissions parlementaires étant majoritairement tenues par ses membres, de même que les grands postes des l'administrationh 7. Le scandale des irrégularités de la Banque de France renverse le gouvernement et Doumergue se résout à nommer Paul Painlevé à la présidence du Conseil afin de souder les voix radicales et socialistesh 8, jouant habilement des désignations selon le balancier parlementaire.
Le 5 juillet 1924, Gaston Doumergue proclame l'ouverture officielle des Jeux olympiques d'été de Paris, lors de la cérémonie d'ouverture se tenant au Stade olympique de Colombes en présence du président du Comité international olympique, Pierre de Coubertin, les membres du CIO, le président du Comité national olympique, Justinien Clary, les membres du CNO ainsi que les 44 délégations participantes.
Le septennat de Doumergue est marqué par la prospérité de la France d'entre-deux-guerres et les années folles, mais aussi par une forte instabilité ministérielle et des difficultés financières engendrées par la chute du franc. Appelé au ministère des Finances en juillet 1926, Poincaré instaure une politique d'austérité en ramenant le franc à sa valeur réelle par une forte dévaluation, ramène la confiance et parvient à doper une économie en berne. Cette politique néo-libérale engendre aussi une période de prospérité économique et financière, à l'heure où les États-Unis sont touchés de plein fouet par l'effondrement boursier de 1929. Les progrès de l'industrie technique, en particulier dans la sidérurgie et l'automobile, participent à la croissance du pays. La capacité de production augmente ainsi de 45 % sur la décennie 1920. Pour accompagner ce développement, Doumergue renforce une politique centriste et institue les assurances sociales ouvrières[réf. nécessaire].
Politique extérieure
Gaston Doumergue et le roi d'Afghanistan, Amanullah Khan (1928).
En politique extérieure, il se déclare partisan d'une politique de fermeté vis-à-vis de l'Allemagne face au nationalisme renaissant dans une partie de l'Europe, mais aussi en France. Il se heurte à des difficultés : les Alliés ne parviennent pas à s'entendre sur l'Allemagne. Forcée d'évacuer la Ruhr, la Sarre et la Rhénanie entre 1925 et 1930, la France de Doumergue est aussi dupée par le chancelier allemand Stresemann malgré la signature du pacte de sécurité collective de Locarno. Les désaccords avec son ministre des Affaires étrangères, Aristide Briand, ne font qu'aggraver les crises coloniales en Syrie et au Rif. Après l'échec des tentatives de concertation du préfet en place au Maroc, Doumergue décide d'envoyer le maréchal Pétain, qui remporte rapidement la guerre du Rif. Au même moment, il participe à l'inauguration de la Mosquée de Paris, avec le sultan marocain Moulay Youssef, en visite officielle en France. En Indochine, les nationalistes vietnamiens du VNQDD entretiennent dans les années 1920 une agitation indépendantiste.
En Amérique du Sud, il aide Marcel Bouilloux-Lafont, dirigeant de la Compagnie générale aéropostale, à obtenir auprès du Brésil et de l'Argentine les contrats postaux et les droits de survol nécessaires à l'exploitation d'une ligne de transport aérien13.
En mai 1930, il célèbre en Algérie, sur les terres qu'il a connues dans les premières années de sa carrière, le centenaire de la présence française, accompagné d'une délégation de huit ministres et de plusieurs dizaines de députés14. L'année suivante, à quelques semaines de la fin de son mandat, il commémore en Tunisie le cinquantenaire du protectorat français.
Particularités de sa présidence
Gaston Doumergue en une du Time (1924).
Au sein d'un monde politique aussi instable, Doumergue s'évertue à soutenir la gestion des affaires publiques dans des valeurs de gauche et une ligne directrice conservatrice. Homme affable et courtois, il séduit depuis le début de sa carrière politique par sa bonhomie et son accenti 5. Après son élection à la présidence de la République, sa simplicité continue de lui valoir dans l'opinion publique une popularité qui se traduit notamment par le surnom familier de « Gastounet »15.
Par ailleurs, l'accession de Gaston Doumergue à la présidence de la République fait de lui le seul chef de l'État protestant qu'ait connu la France depuis l'abjuration d'Henri IV, le 25 juillet 159316. Il est aussi, après Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte, le deuxième président de la République française célibataire au moment de son entrée en fonction17. Bien que « vieux garçon », il n'en est pas moins, selon Adrien Dansette, « sensible au charme féminin »i 6 mais ses fréquentes liaisons passagères ne sont que les « mœurs parisiennes d'hommes politiques »i 7. Il entretient une liaison de longue durée avec Jeanne-Marie Gaussal, veuve Graves, agrégée de l'Université. Durant son mandat présidentiel, il va tous les matins prendre son petit déjeuner avec elle à son ancien domicile du 73 bis avenue de Wagram, où il se rend à pied depuis l'Élysée18. Le 1er juin 1931, douze jours avant la fin de son mandat, il épouse sa compagne devant le maire du 8e arrondissement, Gaston Drucker, venu spécialement à l'Élysée ; le secrétaire général de la présidence, Jules Michel, est son témoin. Gaston Doumergue devient ainsi le premier président de la République à se marier au cours de son mandat19,20.
Son mandat présidentiel s'achève le 13 juin 1931 et il se retire de la vie politique dans la demeure de son épouse à Tournefeuille, dans la Haute-Garonne21.
Retour à la présidence du Conseil (1934)
Article détaillé : Projet de réforme de l'État de Gaston Doumergue.
Toujours populaire, il est rappelé comme président du Conseil, après les événements sanglants du 6 février 1934, pour former un gouvernement d'union nationale où se côtoient André Tardieu et Édouard Herriot.
Le but était de réformer les institutions pour diminuer l'instabilité ministérielle. Cette tentative ne réussit pas : en mauvaise santé, il lui est difficile d'arbitrer à l'intérieur d'un de ces cabinets dans lesquels on met généralement les plus grands espoirs parce qu'ils symbolisent l'unité de la nation, mais qui sont en réalité composés de ministres venus de tous les bords de l'échiquier politique et qui ne s'entendent pas. Il y a cependant un redressement des finances publiques, qui permet au cours des emprunts d'État de gagner dix à douze points entre mars et juin22. Il est par ailleurs affaibli par l'assassinat de Louis Barthou, le 9 octobre, et préfère démissionner peu après, le 8 novembre.
René Viviani disait de lui : « Dans une démocratie bien organisée, Doumergue serait juge de paix en province23. ».
Mort et obsèques
Il meurt le 18 juin 1937, dans sa maison d'Aigues-Vives, à l'âge de 74 ans24. Sa tombe se situe dans le petit cimetière d'Aigues-Vives, où son épouse Jeanne (née Gaussal) l'a rejoint en 1963 et fut inhumée à ses côtés.
Le gouvernement décide de lui organiser des obsèques nationales, qui se déroulent à Nîmes.
Détail des mandats et fonctions
Fonctions exécutives
7 juin 1902 – 18 janvier 1905 : ministre des Colonies
14 mars 1906 – 24 juillet 1909 : ministre du Commerce et de l'Industrie
4 janvier 1910 – 3 novembre 1910 : ministre de l'Instruction publique et des Beaux-Arts
9 décembre 1913 – 9 juin 1914 : président du Conseil et ministre des Affaires étrangères
3 août 1914 - 26 août 1914 : ministre des Affaires étrangères
26 août 1914 – 20 mars 1917 : ministre des Colonies
22 février 1923 – 13 juin 1924 : président du Sénat
13 juin 1924 – 13 juin 1931 : président de la République
9 février 1934 – 8 novembre 1934 : président du Conseil
Mandats électifs
1893 – 1906 : député pour la 2e circonscription du Gard
1910 – 1924 : sénateur pour le Gard
Autres
1932 - 1937 : président de l'Union française pour le sauvetage de l'enfance
Décorations
Grand-croix de la Légion d'honneur Grand-croix de la Légion d'honneur (1924), de droit en tant que grand maître de l'ordre
Toison Or ribbonChevalier de l'ordre de la Toison d'or (Espagne, 1926)
Order of the Royal House of Chakri (Thailand) ribbon Ordre de la Dynastie Chakri (Thaïlande), décerné le 30 janvier 1925
Order of the Elephant Ribbon bar.svg Chevalier de l'ordre de l'Éléphant (Danemark)
Pierre Paul Henri Gaston Doumergue (French pronunciation: [ɡastɔ̃ dumɛʁɡ]; 1 August 1863 in Aigues-Vives, Gard – 18 June 1937 in Aigues-Vives) was a French politician of the Third Republic. He served as President of France from 13 June 1924 to 13 June 1931.
Contents
1 Life
2 Doumergue's First Ministry, 9 December 1913 – 9 June 1914
3 Doumergue's Second Ministry, 9 February – 8 November 1934
4 See also
5 References
6 External links
Life
Doumergue, c. 1910–1915
Doumergue came from a Protestant family and was a freemason.[1][2][3] Beginning as a Radical, he turned more towards the political right in his old age. He served as prime minister from 9 December 1913 to 2 June 1914. He held the portfolio for the colonies through the ministries of René Viviani and Aristide Briand until Alexandre Ribot's ministry of March 1917, when he was sent to Russia to persuade Alexander Kerensky's government not to make a separate peace with Germany and Austria-Hungary. He was elected as the 13th French President on 13 June 1924, the only Protestant to hold that office. He served until 13 June 1931 and again was Prime Minister in a conservative national unity government, after the riots of 6 February 1934. That government lasted from 6 February to 8 November 1934.
He was widely regarded as one of the most popular French presidents, particularly after the controversial Alexandre Millerand, who had been his predecessor. Doumergue was single when he was elected and became the first President of France to marry in office.[4]
Doumergue's First Ministry, 9 December 1913 – 9 June 1914
Gaston Doumergue – President of the Council and Minister of Foreign Affairs
Joseph Noulens – Minister of War
René Renoult – Minister of the Interior
Joseph Caillaux – Minister of Finance
Albert Métin – Minister of Labour and Social Security Provisions
Jean-Baptiste Bienvenu-Martin – Minister of Justice
Ernest Monis – Minister of the Marine
René Viviani – Minister of Public Instruction and Fine Arts
Maurice Raynaud – Minister of Agriculture
Albert Lebrun – Minister of Colonies
Fernand David – Minister of Public Works
Louis Malvy – Minister of Commerce, Industry, Posts, and Telegraphs
Changes
17 March 1914 – René Renoult succeeds Caillaux as Finance Minister. Louis Malvy succeeds Renoult as Minister of the Interior. Raoul Péret succeeds Malvy as Minister of Commerce, Industry, Posts, and Telegraphs.
20 March 1914 – Armand Gauthier de l'Aude succeeds Monis as Minister of Marine.
Doumergue's Second Ministry, 9 February – 8 November 1934
Time cover, 21 Jul 1924
Gaston Doumergue – President of the Council
Louis Barthou – Minister of Foreign Affairs
Philippe Pétain – Minister of War
Albert Sarraut – Minister of the Interior
Louis Germain-Martin – Minister of Finance
Adrien Marquet – Minister of Labour
Henri Chéron – Minister of Justice
François Piétri – Minister of Military Marine
William Bertrand – Minister of Merchant Marine
Victor Denain – Minister of Air
Aimé Berthod – Minister of National Education
Georges Rivollet – Minister of Pensions
Henri Queuille – Minister of Agriculture
Pierre Laval – Minister of Colonies
Pierre Étienne Flandin – Minister of Public Works
Louis Marin – Minister of Public Health and Physical Education
André Mallarmé – Minister of Posts, Telegraphs, and Telephones
Lucien Lamoureux – Minister of Commerce and Industry
Édouard Herriot – Minister of State
André Tardieu – Minister of State
Changes
13 October 1934 – Pierre Laval succeeds Barthou (assassinated 9 October) as Minister of Foreign Affairs. Paul Marchandeau succeeds Sarraut as Minister of the Interior. Louis Rollin succeeds Laval as Minister of Colonies.
15 October 1934 – Henri Lémery succeeds Chéron as Minister of Justice.
See also
Interwar France
6 February 1934 crisis
List of people on the cover of Time Magazine: 1920s – 21 July 1924, 2 Aug. 1926