François de Menthon
Encyclopedia
François de Menthon was a French politician and professor of law.
in Jura. He was a son of an old noble family from Menthon-Saint-Bernard
. He studied law in Dijon
, where he joined Action catholique de la Jeunesse française (ACJF). He also studied in Paris
. He was president of ACJF from 1927 to 1930, and was also the founder of the Jeunesse ouvrière chrétienne (JOC, a Christian working youth movement). He became a professor of political economy at the University of Nancy. He and his wife Nicole had six sons.
. He was severely wounded and captured in June 1940. He spent three months in a hospital in Saint-Dié, but escaped and joined the French Resistance
in Haute Savoie in September 1940.
Menthon received Jean Moulin
several times at his family's seat at the Château de Menthon-Saint-Bernard
. He founded the first resistance cell of the Liberté Resistance movement in Annecy
in November 1940, and a second one in Lyon
s shortly afterwards. He also edited the Liberté underground newspaper, with the first two editions printed in Annecy and later ones in Marseilles. He was a leader in the Combat
Resistance movement, created by the merger of Liberté with Henri Frenay
's Mouvement de Libération Nationale towards the end of 1941. Menthon was captured returning from a meeting with Frenay, and interrogated at Baumettes prison
in Marseilles, but he was released.
He left France in July 1943 to join General Charles de Gaulle
in London, and followed him to Algiers
where Menthon served as Commissioner of Justice in the Comité Français de Libération Nationale (CFLNC) from September 1943 to September 1944. He later became a Companion of the Ordre de la Libération
, and was also an Officier of the Légion d'Honneur
and received the Croix de Guerre
.
in de Gaulle's Provisional Government of the French Republic
from 10 September 1944 to 8 May 1945, and then became Attorney General of France. He led the Commission d'Épuration to root out collaborators, and oversaw the trials of Marshal Philippe Pétain
and other members of the Vichy regime. He came under attack for the zeal with which the purge was prosecuted, and resigned.
De Gaulle nominated him as the French lead prosecutor at the Nuremberg War Crimes Tribunal. He gave his opening speech, defining a crime against humanity
as: "crime contre le statut d'être humain motivé par une idéologie qui est un crime contre l'esprit visant à rejeter l'humanité dans la barbarie" ("crime against human laws, motivated by an ideology that is a crime against the spirit, returning humanity to barbarism"). He resigned in January 1946 to take up active politics and was replaced by Auguste Champetier de Ribes
.
Menthon was a founding member of the Mouvement Républicain Populaire (MRP). His political convictions were founded on humanistic and Christian principles. He served as a député
for Savoy
in the French Assemblée Nationale from 1946 to 1958. He was Minister for the National Economy in Georges Bidault
's first ministry, from 24 June to 16 December 1946. He was also involved in European politics, and was president of Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
from 1952 to 1954 (known as the Consultative Assembly until 1974) and was involved in the discussions to choose the design for the Flag of Europe. His promising political career was shortened by disagreements with de Gaulle and he returned to his university career at the University of Nancy in 1958.
He was mayor of Menthon-Saint-Bernard
from 1945 to 1977, and served as chairman of the Association des maires et conseiller général for 22 years.
Menthon died in Annecy, in Haute-Savoie.
Early and private life
Menthon was born in Montmirey-la-VilleMontmirey-la-Ville
Montmirey-la-Ville is a communes in the Jura department in Franche-Comté in eastern France.- References :*...
in Jura. He was a son of an old noble family from Menthon-Saint-Bernard
Menthon-Saint-Bernard
Menthon-Saint-Bernard is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.-References:*...
. He studied law in Dijon
Dijon
Dijon is a city in eastern France, the capital of the Côte-d'Or département and of the Burgundy region.Dijon is the historical capital of the region of Burgundy. Population : 151,576 within the city limits; 250,516 for the greater Dijon area....
, where he joined Action catholique de la Jeunesse française (ACJF). He also studied 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...
. He was president of ACJF from 1927 to 1930, and was also the founder of the Jeunesse ouvrière chrétienne (JOC, a Christian working youth movement). He became a professor of political economy at the University of Nancy. He and his wife Nicole had six sons.
Second World War
He was mobilised at the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939, becoming a captain in the French ArmyFrench 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...
. He was severely wounded and captured in June 1940. He spent three months in a hospital in Saint-Dié, but escaped and joined 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...
in Haute Savoie in September 1940.
Menthon received Jean Moulin
Jean Moulin
Jean Moulin was a high-profile member of the French Resistance during World War II. He is remembered today as an emblem of the Resistance primarily due to his role in unifying the French resistance under de Gaulle and his courage and death at the hands of the Germans.-Before the war:Moulin was...
several times at his family's seat at the Château de Menthon-Saint-Bernard
Château de Menthon-Saint-Bernard
The Château de Menthon is a medieval castle located in the commune of Menthon-Saint-Bernard, south of Annecy in the Haute-Savoie department of France. Standing on a tall rock, its stone towers loom over Lake Annecy, the Roc de Chère National Nature Reserve, and Menthon-Saint-Bernard...
. He founded the first resistance cell of the Liberté Resistance movement in Annecy
Annecy
Annecy is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.It lies on the northern tip of Lake Annecy , 35 kilometres south of Geneva.-Administration:...
in November 1940, and a second one in 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....
s shortly afterwards. He also edited the Liberté underground newspaper, with the first two editions printed in Annecy and later ones in Marseilles. He was a leader in the Combat
Combat (French Resistance)
Combat was a large movement in the French Resistance created in the non-occupied zone of France during the Second World War .Combat was one of the eight great resistance movements which constituted the Conseil national de la Résistance....
Resistance movement, created by the merger of Liberté with Henri Frenay
Henri Frenay
Henri Frenay was a French military officer and French resistance member.Henri Frenay was born in Lyon, France on 11 November 1905, into a Catholic family with a military tradition. He studied the Germanic languages at the University of Strasbourg...
's Mouvement de Libération Nationale towards the end of 1941. Menthon was captured returning from a meeting with Frenay, and interrogated at Baumettes prison
Baumettes Prison
Baumettes prison is a prison in the 9th arrondissement of Marseille. The prison is named after the district of Les Baumettes where it was constructed between 1933 and 1939...
in Marseilles, but he was released.
He left France in July 1943 to join General Charles de Gaulle
Charles de Gaulle
Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle was a French general and statesman who led the Free French Forces during World War II. He later founded the French Fifth Republic in 1958 and served as its first President from 1959 to 1969....
in London, and followed him to Algiers
Algiers
' is the capital and largest city of Algeria. According to the 1998 census, the population of the city proper was 1,519,570 and that of the urban agglomeration was 2,135,630. In 2009, the population was about 3,500,000...
where Menthon served as Commissioner of Justice in the Comité Français de Libération Nationale (CFLNC) from September 1943 to September 1944. He later became a Companion 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...
, and was also an Officier of 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...
and received the Croix de Guerre
Croix de guerre
The Croix de guerre is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was awarded during World War I, again in World War II, and in other conflicts...
.
Political career
After the Liberation of France, Menthon was Minister of JusticeMinister of Justice (France)
The Ministry of Justice is controlled by the French Minister of Justice , a top-level cabinet position in the French government. The current Minister of Justice is Michel Mercier...
in de Gaulle's Provisional Government of the French Republic
Provisional Government of the French Republic
The Provisional Government of the French Republic was an interim government which governed France from 1944 to 1946, following the fall of Vichy France and prior to the Fourth French Republic....
from 10 September 1944 to 8 May 1945, and then became Attorney General of France. He led the Commission d'Épuration to root out collaborators, and oversaw the trials of Marshal 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 other members of the Vichy regime. He came under attack for the zeal with which the purge was prosecuted, and resigned.
De Gaulle nominated him as the French lead prosecutor at the Nuremberg War Crimes Tribunal. He gave his opening speech, defining a crime against humanity
Crime against humanity
Crimes against humanity, as defined by the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court Explanatory Memorandum, "are particularly odious offenses in that they constitute a serious attack on human dignity or grave humiliation or a degradation of one or more human beings...
as: "crime contre le statut d'être humain motivé par une idéologie qui est un crime contre l'esprit visant à rejeter l'humanité dans la barbarie" ("crime against human laws, motivated by an ideology that is a crime against the spirit, returning humanity to barbarism"). He resigned in January 1946 to take up active politics and was replaced by Auguste Champetier de Ribes
Auguste Champetier de Ribes
Auguste Champetier de Ribes was a French politician and jurist.A devout Catholic, he was an early follower of Albert de Mun and social Christianity. Wounded in the First World War, he was elected to the Chamber of Deputies from the Basses-Pyrénées as a Christian democrat from 1924 to 1934...
.
Menthon was a founding member of the Mouvement Républicain Populaire (MRP). His political convictions were founded on humanistic and Christian principles. He served as a député
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.*...
for Savoy
Savoy
Savoy is a region of France. It comprises roughly the territory of the Western Alps situated between Lake Geneva in the north and Monaco and the Mediterranean coast in the south....
in the French Assemblée Nationale from 1946 to 1958. He was Minister for the National Economy in Georges Bidault
Georges Bidault
Georges-Augustin Bidault was a French politician. During World War II, he was active in the French Resistance. After the war, he served as foreign minister and prime minister on several occasions before he joined the Organisation armée secrète.-Early life:...
's first ministry, from 24 June to 16 December 1946. He was also involved in European politics, and was president of Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe , which held its first session in Strasbourg on 10 August 1949, can be considered the oldest international parliamentary assembly with a pluralistic composition of democratically elected members of parliament established on the basis of an...
from 1952 to 1954 (known as the Consultative Assembly until 1974) and was involved in the discussions to choose the design for the Flag of Europe. His promising political career was shortened by disagreements with de Gaulle and he returned to his university career at the University of Nancy in 1958.
He was mayor of Menthon-Saint-Bernard
Menthon-Saint-Bernard
Menthon-Saint-Bernard is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.-References:*...
from 1945 to 1977, and served as chairman of the Association des maires et conseiller général for 22 years.
Menthon died in Annecy, in Haute-Savoie.
External links
- http://www.ordredelaliberation.fr/fr_compagnon/672.html