Jean Pelet
Encyclopedia
Jean Pelet, known as Pelet de la Lozère (Saint-Jean-du-Gard
, 23 February 1759 - Paris
, 26 January 1842) was a French politician.
after being from the nobility, having his lands confiscated and his castles razed for not revoking his Protestant faith. (Jean himself was a member of the consistory
of the reformed church of Paris and the father of Joseph Pelet de la Lozère (1785-1871), conseiller d'État, peer of France several times a minister in the July Monarchy
.) Jean was the son of the businessman Jean Pelet and his wife Marie Castanier. He became avocat to the parlement de Provence as a young man and was attached to the bar of Florac
.
. President of the directory of the department of Lozère
from 1791 onwards, on 5 September 1792 he was elected a deputy to the French National Convention for his department, coming fourth out of five, with 215 votes. Inclining towards the Girondist
position, he was absent on a government commission during the trial of Louis XVI
, and supported the opponents of Maximilien Robespierre
on 9 thermidor in 1794, saying:
As a result, he asked the surviving members of the former Committee of Public Safety
to stand down. Becoming secretary of the assembly in October 1794, he proposed substituting the death penalty with banishment on pain of death in certain cases. He presided over the assembly from March to April 1795 during the revolt of 12 germinal year 3 and then, after the sitting when the head of député Féraud was shown to the delegates, he said:
He was sent to the armée des Pyrénées-Orientales and began the negotiations with Spain which led to the Peace of Basel
. After the constitutional session, 71 departments elected him their deputy on the Council of Five Hundred
on 23 vendémiaire year 4, including Lozère by 123 votes out of 129. He presided over the Council from 19 June 1796, speaking in favour of émigrés' children and the freedom of the press. He left the Council in May 1797 and retired to his birthplace.
, Bonaparte made Pelet prefect of Vaucluse on 11 ventose year 8, then summoned him to join the council of state (in ordinary service from 27 fructidor year 10 to 1810), where he joined the Interior section. Pelet was also put in charge of the third arrondissement of the imperial general police in 1805 and then, during the general reorganisation of the police department, he was detached to head up the second division of the imperial general police, embracing 42 departments in the Midi from 1806 to 1813. He held these roles until 1814 and remained loyal to Napoleon's police chief Joseph Fouché
, though he and Fouché disliked each other, with Pelet mistrusting him for his intrigues and use of torture. It was Pelet who discovered the Malet conspiracy
's ramifications in southern France in 1812.
In 1801 he bought the château du Solier (Lasalle
) from the family of Cadolle de Voguë. He also became a conseiller d'Etat in ordinary service from 1810 to 1814 and was also attached to the commission for petitions in 1808 and 1809. He was made commissioner extraordinary in the 9th military division (Montpellier
) on 26 December 1813. He was made a knight (9 vedemiaire year 12) then a commander (25 prairial year 12) of the Légion d'honneur, then a comte de l'Empire (18 May 1808) and a commander of the Ordre de la Réunion in 1813.
he retired from office and, though he was made interim minister of police from 23 June to 9 July 1815 during the Hundred Days
, he retired again after . In return, on 5 March 1819, Louis XVIII made him a peer of France with an annual pension of 4,000 francs. Pelet took an oath ready to become a member of the upper chamber during the July Monarchy
, but ill health meant that he could only attend very occasionally. He died aged 83.
Saint-Jean-du-Gard
Saint-Jean-du-Gard is a commune in the Gard department in southern France.-History:This city of the Cévennes, first mentioned in a 12th century papal bull , was very much influenced by Protestantism in the 16th century and became the Mecca of the camisards' resistance.Thanks to the silk industry,...
, 23 February 1759 - 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...
, 26 January 1842) was a French politician.
Early life
Jean Pelet was descended from Pelet, baron de Salgas, who spent 14 years condemned to the galleysGalley slave
A galley slave was a slave rowing in a galley. The expression has two distinct meanings: it can refer either to a convicted criminal sentenced to work at the oar , or to a kind of human chattel, often a prisoner of war, assigned to his duty of rowing.-Antiquity:Contrary to the popular image of the...
after being from the nobility, having his lands confiscated and his castles razed for not revoking his Protestant faith. (Jean himself was a member of the consistory
Consistory
-Antiquity:Originally, the Latin word consistorium meant simply 'sitting together', just as the Greek synedrion ....
of the reformed church of Paris and the father of Joseph Pelet de la Lozère (1785-1871), conseiller d'État, peer of France several times a minister in the July Monarchy
July Monarchy
The July Monarchy , officially the Kingdom of France , was a period of liberal constitutional monarchy in France under King Louis-Philippe starting with the July Revolution of 1830 and ending with the Revolution of 1848...
.) Jean was the son of the businessman Jean Pelet and his wife Marie Castanier. He became avocat to the parlement de Provence as a young man and was attached to the bar of Florac
Florac
Florac is a commune of the Lozère department in southern France.-Twin towns:Florac is twinned with:* L'Anse-Saint-Jean, Quebec, Canada since 1984* Arbucies, Catalonia, Spain since 1987-References:* -External links:...
.
Revolution
Like other Protestants, he welcomed the French RevolutionFrench Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
. President of the directory of the department of Lozère
Lozère
Lozère , is a department in southeast France near the Massif Central, named after Mont Lozère.- History :Lozère is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790...
from 1791 onwards, on 5 September 1792 he was elected a deputy to the French National Convention for his department, coming fourth out of five, with 215 votes. Inclining towards the Girondist
Girondist
The Girondists were a political faction in France within the Legislative Assembly and the National Convention during the French Revolution...
position, he was absent on a government commission during the trial of Louis XVI
Trial of Louis XVI
The trial of Louis XVI was a key event of the French Revolution. It involved the trial of the former French king Louis XVI before the National Convention and led to his execution.- 10–11 December 1792 :The trial began on Camel 10 December...
, and supported the opponents of Maximilien Robespierre
Maximilien Robespierre
Maximilien François Marie Isidore de Robespierre is one of the best-known and most influential figures of the French Revolution. He largely dominated the Committee of Public Safety and was instrumental in the period of the Revolution commonly known as the Reign of Terror, which ended with his...
on 9 thermidor in 1794, saying:
As a result, he asked the surviving members of the former Committee of Public Safety
Committee of Public Safety
The Committee of Public Safety , created in April 1793 by the National Convention and then restructured in July 1793, formed the de facto executive government in France during the Reign of Terror , a stage of the French Revolution...
to stand down. Becoming secretary of the assembly in October 1794, he proposed substituting the death penalty with banishment on pain of death in certain cases. He presided over the assembly from March to April 1795 during the revolt of 12 germinal year 3 and then, after the sitting when the head of député Féraud was shown to the delegates, he said:
He was sent to the armée des Pyrénées-Orientales and began the negotiations with Spain which led to the Peace of Basel
Peace of Basel
The Peace of Basel of 1795 consists of three peace treaties involving France .* The first of the three treaties of 1795, France made peace with Prussia on 5 April; , * The Second was with Spain on 22 July, ending the War of the Pyrenees; and*...
. After the constitutional session, 71 departments elected him their deputy on the Council of Five Hundred
Council of Five Hundred
The Council of Five Hundred , or simply the Five Hundred was the lower house of the legislature of France during the period commonly known as the Directory , from 22 August 1795 until 9 November 1799, roughly the second half of the period generally referred to as the...
on 23 vendémiaire year 4, including Lozère by 123 votes out of 129. He presided over the Council from 19 June 1796, speaking in favour of émigrés' children and the freedom of the press. He left the Council in May 1797 and retired to his birthplace.
Consulate and First French Empire
After the coup of 18 brumaire18 Brumaire
The coup of 18 Brumaire was the coup d'état by which General Napoleon Bonaparte overthrew the French Directory, replacing it with the French Consulate...
, Bonaparte made Pelet prefect of Vaucluse on 11 ventose year 8, then summoned him to join the council of state (in ordinary service from 27 fructidor year 10 to 1810), where he joined the Interior section. Pelet was also put in charge of the third arrondissement of the imperial general police in 1805 and then, during the general reorganisation of the police department, he was detached to head up the second division of the imperial general police, embracing 42 departments in the Midi from 1806 to 1813. He held these roles until 1814 and remained loyal to Napoleon's police chief Joseph Fouché
Joseph Fouché
Joseph Fouché, 1st Duc d'Otrante was a French statesman and Minister of Police under Napoleon Bonaparte. In English texts his title is often translated as Duke of Otranto.-Youth:Fouché was born in Le Pellerin, a small village near Nantes...
, though he and Fouché disliked each other, with Pelet mistrusting him for his intrigues and use of torture. It was Pelet who discovered the Malet conspiracy
Claude François de Malet
Claude François de Malet was born in Dôle to an aristocratic family on June 28, 1754. Malet was executed by a firing squad on October 29, 1812, six days after Malet staged a failed republican coup d'état as Napoléon Bonaparte returned from the disastrous Russian campaign.-Before and during the...
's ramifications in southern France in 1812.
In 1801 he bought the château du Solier (Lasalle
Lasalle, Gard
Lasalle is a commune in the Gard department in southern France.-Population:...
) from the family of Cadolle de Voguë. He also became a conseiller d'Etat in ordinary service from 1810 to 1814 and was also attached to the commission for petitions in 1808 and 1809. He was made commissioner extraordinary in the 9th military division (Montpellier
Montpellier
-Neighbourhoods:Since 2001, Montpellier has been divided into seven official neighbourhoods, themselves divided into sub-neighbourhoods. Each of them possesses a neighbourhood council....
) on 26 December 1813. He was made a knight (9 vedemiaire year 12) then a commander (25 prairial year 12) of the Légion d'honneur, then a comte de l'Empire (18 May 1808) and a commander of the Ordre de la Réunion in 1813.
Bourbon Restoration and July Monarchy
On the First RestorationBourbon Restoration
The Bourbon Restoration is the name given to the period following the successive events of the French Revolution , the end of the First Republic , and then the forcible end of the First French Empire under Napoleon – when a coalition of European powers restored by arms the monarchy to the...
he retired from office and, though he was made interim minister of police from 23 June to 9 July 1815 during the Hundred Days
Hundred Days
The Hundred Days, sometimes known as the Hundred Days of Napoleon or Napoleon's Hundred Days for specificity, marked the period between Emperor Napoleon I of France's return from exile on Elba to Paris on 20 March 1815 and the second restoration of King Louis XVIII on 8 July 1815...
, he retired again after . In return, on 5 March 1819, Louis XVIII made him a peer of France with an annual pension of 4,000 francs. Pelet took an oath ready to become a member of the upper chamber during the July Monarchy
July Monarchy
The July Monarchy , officially the Kingdom of France , was a period of liberal constitutional monarchy in France under King Louis-Philippe starting with the July Revolution of 1830 and ending with the Revolution of 1848...
, but ill health meant that he could only attend very occasionally. He died aged 83.