Henri Brisson
Encyclopedia
Eugène Henri Brisson was a French
statesman, Prime Minister of France
for a period in 1885-1886 and again in 1898.
(Cher
), and followed his father’s profession of advocate. Having made his mark in opposition during the last days of the empire, he was appointed deputy-mayor of Paris after the government was overthrown. He was elected to the Assembly on 8 February 1871, as a member of the extreme Left
. While not approving of the Commune
, he was the first to propose amnesty for the condemned (on 13 September 1871), but the proposal was voted down. He strongly supported compulsory primary education, and was firmly anti-clerical. He was president of the chamber from 1881--replacing Léon Gambetta
--to March 1885, when he became prime minister upon the resignation of Jules Ferry
; but he resigned when, after the general elections of that year, he only just obtained a majority for the vote of credit for the Torigking expedition.
He remained conspicuous as a public man, took a prominent part in exposing the Panama scandals
, was a powerful candidate for the presidency after the murder of President Carnot
in 1894, and was again president of the chamber from December 1894 to 1898. In June of the latter year he formed a cabinet when the country was violently excited over the Dreyfus affair
; his firmness and honesty increased popular respect for him, but a chance vote on a matter of especial excitement overthrew his ministry in October. As a leader of the radicals he actively supported, the ministries of Waldeck-Rousseau and Combes
, especially concerning the laws on the religious orders and the separation of church and state. In 1899 he was a candidate for the presidency. In May 1906 he was elected president of the chamber of deputies by 500 out of 581 votes.
Changes
Changes
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
statesman, Prime Minister of France
Prime Minister of France
The Prime Minister of France in the Fifth Republic is the head of government and of the Council of Ministers of France. The head of state is the President of the French Republic...
for a period in 1885-1886 and again in 1898.
Biography
He was born at BourgesBourges
Bourges is a city in central France on the Yèvre river. It is the capital of the department of Cher and also was the capital of the former province of Berry.-History:...
(Cher
Cher (département)
Cher is an administrative department located in the centre of France. It is named after the Cher River.-History:Cher is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. Most of it was created, along with the adjacent department of Indre from the former...
), and followed his father’s profession of advocate. Having made his mark in opposition during the last days of the empire, he was appointed deputy-mayor of Paris after the government was overthrown. He was elected to the Assembly on 8 February 1871, as a member of 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...
. While not approving of the Commune
Paris Commune
The Paris Commune was a government that briefly ruled Paris from March 18 to May 28, 1871. It existed before the split between anarchists and Marxists had taken place, and it is hailed by both groups as the first assumption of power by the working class during the Industrial Revolution...
, he was the first to propose amnesty for the condemned (on 13 September 1871), but the proposal was voted down. He strongly supported compulsory primary education, and was firmly anti-clerical. He was president of the chamber from 1881--replacing 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...
--to March 1885, when he became prime minister upon the resignation of 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...
; but he resigned when, after the general elections of that year, he only just obtained a majority for the vote of credit for the Torigking expedition.
He remained conspicuous as a public man, took a prominent part in exposing the Panama scandals
Panama scandals
The Panama scandals was a corruption affair that broke out in the French Third Republic in 1892, linked to the building of the Panama Canal...
, was a powerful candidate for the presidency after the murder of President Carnot
Marie François Sadi Carnot
Marie François Sadi Carnot was a French statesman and the fourth president of the Third French Republic. He served as the President of France from 1887 until his assassination in 1894.-Early life:...
in 1894, and was again president of the chamber from December 1894 to 1898. In June of the latter year he formed a cabinet when the country was violently excited over the Dreyfus affair
Dreyfus Affair
The Dreyfus affair was a political scandal that divided France in the 1890s and the early 1900s. It involved the conviction for treason in November 1894 of Captain Alfred Dreyfus, a young French artillery officer of Alsatian Jewish descent...
; his firmness and honesty increased popular respect for him, but a chance vote on a matter of especial excitement overthrew his ministry in October. As a leader of the radicals he actively supported, the ministries of Waldeck-Rousseau and Combes
Émile Combes
Émile Combes was a French statesman who led the Bloc des gauches's cabinet from June 1902 – January 1905.-Biography:Émile Combes was born in Roquecourbe, Tarn. He studied for the priesthood, but abandoned the idea before ordination. His anti-clericalism would later lead him into becoming a...
, especially concerning the laws on the religious orders and the separation of church and state. In 1899 he was a candidate for the presidency. In May 1906 he was elected president of the chamber of deputies by 500 out of 581 votes.
Brisson's 1st Ministry, 6 April 1885 – 7 January 1886
- Henri Brisson - President of the Council and Minister of Justice
- Charles de FreycinetCharles de FreycinetCharles Louis de Saulces de Freycinet was a French statesman and Prime Minister during the Third Republic; he belonged to the Opportunist Republicans faction. He was elected a member of the Academy of Sciences, and in 1890, the fourteen member to occupy seat the Académie française.-Early years:He...
- Minister of Foreign Affairs - Jean-Baptiste Campenon - Minister of War
- François Allain-Targé - Minister of the Interior
- Jean Clamageran - Minister of Finance
- Charles Eugène Galiber - Minister of Marine and Colonies
- René GobletRené GobletRené Goblet was a French politician, Prime Minister of France for a period in 1886–1887.He was born at Aire-sur-la-Lys, Pas-de-Calais and was trained in law. Under the Second Empire, he helped found a Liberal journal, Le Progrès de la Somme, and in July 1871 he was sent by the département of the...
- Minister of Public Instruction, Fine Arts, and Worship - Hervé Mangon - Minister of Agriculture
- Sadi CarnotMarie François Sadi CarnotMarie François Sadi Carnot was a French statesman and the fourth president of the Third French Republic. He served as the President of France from 1887 until his assassination in 1894.-Early life:...
- Minister of Public Works - Ferdinand SarrienFerdinand SarrienJean Marie Ferdinand Sarrien was a French politician of the Third Republic. He was born in Bourbon-Lancy, Saône-et-Loire and died in Paris. He headed a cabinet supported by the Bloc des gauches parliamentary majority....
- Minister of Posts and Telegraphs - Pierre Legrand - Minister of Commerce
Changes
- 16 April 1885 - Sadi CarnotMarie François Sadi CarnotMarie François Sadi Carnot was a French statesman and the fourth president of the Third French Republic. He served as the President of France from 1887 until his assassination in 1894.-Early life:...
succeeds Clamageran as Minister of Finance. Charles Demôle succeeds Carnot as Minister of Public Works. - 9 November 1885 - Pierre Gomot succeeds Mangon as Minister of Agriculture. Lucien Dautresme succeeds Legrand as Minister of Commerce.
Brisson's Second Ministry, 28 June – 1 November 1898
- Henri Brisson - President of the Council and Minister of the Interior
- Théophile DelcasséThéophile DelcasséThéophile Delcassé was a French statesman.-Biography:He was born at Pamiers, in the Ariège département...
- Minister of Foreign Affairs - Godefroy CavaignacJacques Marie Eugène Godefroy CavaignacJacques Marie Eugène Godefroy Cavaignac , known as Godefroy Cavaignac, French politician, was born in Paris. He was the son of Louis Eugène Cavaignac...
- Minister of War - Paul Peytral - Minister of Finance
- Ferdinand SarrienFerdinand SarrienJean Marie Ferdinand Sarrien was a French politician of the Third Republic. He was born in Bourbon-Lancy, Saône-et-Loire and died in Paris. He headed a cabinet supported by the Bloc des gauches parliamentary majority....
- Minister of Justice and Worship - Édouard Locroy - Minister of Marine
- Léon BourgeoisLéon Bourgeois-Biography:He was born in Paris, and was trained in law. After holding a subordinate office in the department of public works, he became successively prefect of the Tarn and the Haute-Garonne , and then returned to Paris to enter the ministry of the interior...
- Minister of Public Instruction and Fine Arts - Albert Viger - Minister of Agriculture
- Georges Trouillot - Minister of Colonies
- Louis Tillaye - Minister of Public Works
- Émile Maruéjouls - Minister of Commerce, Industry, Posts, and Telegraphs
Changes
- 5 September 1898 - Émile ZurlindenÉmile ZurlindenÉmile Zurlinden was French Minister of War between 5 September 1898 and 17 September 1898. He succeeded Godefroy Cavaignac. A general, he was previously governor of Paris, and he accepted the vacant post of minister of war at the personal request of the president of the republic...
succeeds Cavaignac as Minister of War - 17 September 1898 - Charles ChanoineCharles ChanoineCharles Sulpice Jules Chanoine was a French military officer who played an important role in the Far East, and later became Minister of War....
succeeds Zurlinden as Minister of War. Jules Godin succeeds Tillaye as Minister of Public Works. - 25 October 1898 - Édouard Locroy succeeds Chanoine as interim Minister of War, remaining also Minister of Marine.