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Georges Bidault
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| Political Biography: Georges Augustin Bidault |
(b. Moulins, 5 Oct. 1899; d. 26 Jan. 1983) French; Prime Minister 1946, 1949 – 50, Foreign Minister 1945 – 6, 1947 – 8, 1953 – 4 Lycée history teacher, editor of the Christian Democratic daily paper L'Aube from 1936 to 1939, against Franco, and an opponent of the Munich agreement, Bidault was taken prisoner and on his liberation started Resistance activities in the Lyons region. In 1943 he became president of the Conseil National de la Résistance, which had been formed to co-ordinate the activities of different groups and movements and organized its commitment to de Gaulle. Although in August 1945 Bidault was in the Paris insurrection and met de Gaulle at the Hôtel de Ville and was at de Gaulle's side for the famous victory march down the Champs Elysée, he was never an unconditional Gaullist. Bidault was a founder and leader of the centrist Mouvement Républicain Populaire (of which he was president). Bidault became Foreign Minister in the provisional government and held that position from 1944 to 1948 and again from 1953 to 1954 — he was almost constantly in power. Bidault at the Quay was at first to express a strong anti-German feeling (against German reconstruction), supported the continuation of the French Empire, and was far from being strongly European (and in this was somewhat out of line with the urgent Europeanism of his MRP associates). Bidault was also strongly Atlanticist and flung France's weight behind the Western camp and into the Cold War in 1947. Bidault and the UK's Ernest Bevin joined in initiatives to consolidate the West European response to the Marshall Plan (such as the OEEC and NATO) and to parry the Soviet threat to the West: he was one of the founding fathers of European-American co-operation and when he returned as Prime Minister in October 1949 he was instrumental in promoting the Schuman plan for a Coal and Steel Community. Foreign Minister again in the Mayer and Laniel governments (1953 – 4), he had less success and, an imperialist, attempted to prevent the rising tide of nationalism in the colonies (ousting the Sultan of Morocco) and to bring America onto the French side in the Indochina War. The Laniel government fell over the military defeat of Dien Bien Phu. Bidault supported de Gaulle's return to power in 1958 and campaigned for a "Yes" vote in the September referendum but he had close Algerian connections and with de Gaulle's September 1959 speech on Algerian "self-determination" he went into opposition. This opposition quickly took an insurrectionary turn. He organized a new "Resistance Council" and then supported the 1962 Generals' putsch and the terrorist Organisation de l'Armée Secrète. Bidault was forced to flee, first to Spain and then to Brazil in a flight which was desperate and despairing (he never believed the "French Algeria" cause could prevail). He returned to France after the amnesty of June 1968. He was the author of a number of books of politics and autobiography but he has yet to be the subject of a solid biography.
| Columbia Encyclopedia: Georges Bidault |
Bidault, Georges (zhôrzh bēdō'), 1899-1983, French political leader. An influential columnist (1932-39), he was imprisoned (1940-41) in World War II and then joined the French underground, becoming its leader. A founder of the Mouvement Républicain Populaire (MRP), one of France's leading postwar parties, he was president of the provisional government (1946), premier (1949-50), and several times foreign minister. Although a strong supporter of Charles de Gaulle in 1958, Bidault opposed the Gaullist policy of Algerian independence and broke with the MRP. In 1962, announcing that he was going underground, he formed the National Council of Resistance within the terrorist Secret Army Organization (OAS); the French government accused Bidault of having become head of the OAS. In exile from 1962, Bidault lived in Brazil and then in Belgium before returning (1968) to France.
Bibliography
See his autobiography (tr. 1967).
| Quotes By: George Bidault |
Quotes:
"The weak have one weapon: the errors of those who think they are strong."
| Wikipedia: Georges Bidault |
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This article does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (January 2008) |
| Georges Bidault | |
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| In office 24 June 1946 – 28 November 1946 |
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| Preceded by | Felix Gouin |
| Succeeded by | Léon Blum |
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| In office 28 October 1949 – 2 July 1950 |
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| Preceded by | Henri Queuille |
| Succeeded by | Henri Queuille |
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| Born | 5 October 1899 Moulins, France |
| Died | 27 January 1983 (aged 83) Cambo-les-Bains, France |
| Nationality | French |
| Political party | MRP |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
Georges-Augustin Bidault (5 October 1899 – 27 January 1983) 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.
Contents |
Biography
Early life
Bidault was born in Moulins, Allier.
He studied in the Sorbonne and became a college history teacher. In 1932 he helped to found the Catholic Association of French Youth and the left-wing anti-fascist newspaper l'Aube. He had a column in the paper and, among other things, protested against the Munich Agreement in 1938.
World War II
After the outbreak of the Second World War he joined the French army. He was captured during the Fall of France and was briefly imprisoned. After his release in July 1941, he became a teacher at the Lycée du Parc in Lyon and joined the Liberté group of French Resistance that eventually merged with Combat. Jean Moulin recruited him to organize an underground press and the Combat underground newspaper.
In his work in the resistance, he was helped by his private administrative assistant Laure Diebold.
Bidault participated in the forming of the Conseil National de la Résistance and, after the Gestapo captured Moulin, he became its new chairman. In 1944 he formed a Resistance Charter that recommended an extensive post-war reform program. After the liberation of Paris he represented the Resistance in the victory parade. Charles de Gaulle appointed him as a foreign minister of his provisional government in 25 August. He was the founder of the Mouvement Républicain Populaire (MRP).
Fourth Republic
After World War II, Bidault served as foreign minister in Félix Gouin's provisional government in 1946. On 19 June 1946 the National Constituent Assembly elected him as president of the provisional government. His government, formed on 15 June, was composed of socialists, communists and Bidault's own MRP. He again became foreign minister. The government held elections to the National Assembly on 29 November after which Bidault resigned. His successor was Léon Blum.
Bidault served in various French governments, first as foreign minister under Paul Ramadier and Robert Schuman. In 1949 he became the President of the Council of Ministers (prime minister) but his government lasted only 8 months. In Henri Queuille's governments in 1950-1951 he held the office of Vice-president of the Council and under Rene Pleven and Edgar Faure also the post of defense minister.
In 1952 Bidault became an honorary president of MRP. On 1 June 1953 President Vincent Auriol assigned him to form his own government but the National Assembly refused to give him the official mandate at 10 June. In 1953 Bidault became a presidential candidate but withdrew after the second round.
Fifth Republic
In April 1958 Bidault again became prime minister but did not form a cabinet and had a hand in forming the conservative Christian Democratic Movement. He also supported De Gaulle's presidency after the outbreak of the Algerian War of Independence.
In 1961 Bidault became President of the Executive Council of the Rally for French Algeria and opposed De Gaulle's policy of Algerian independence. He established his own National Resistance Council within the OAS. In June 1962 he was accused of conspiring against the state as the head of the OAS and stripped of his parliamentary immunity. He left for exile in Brazil. In 1967 he moved to Belgium and in 1968 returned to France after benefiting from an amnesty.
Georges Bidault died in 1983 in Cambo-les-Bains.
Governments
First ministry (24 June – 16 December 1946)
- Georges Bidault - Chairman of the Provisional Government and Minister of Foreign Affairs
- Maurice Thorez - Vice Chairman of the Provisional Government
- Félix Gouin - Vice Chairman of the Provisional Government and Minister of National Defense
- Charles Tillon - Minister of Armaments
- Édouard Depreux - Minister of the Interior
- Robert Schuman - Minister of Finance
- François de Menthon - Minister of National Economy
- Marcel Paul - Minister of Industrial Production
- Ambroise Croizat - Minister of Labour and Social Security
- Pierre-Henri Teitgen - Minister of Justice
- Marcel Edmond Naegelen - Minister of National Education
- François Tanguy-Prigent - Minister of Ariculture
- Yves Farge - Minister of Supply
- Marius Moutet - Minister of Overseas France
- Jules Moch - Minister of Public Works and Transport
- Robert Prigent - Minister of Population
- François Billoux - Minister of Reconstruction and Town Planning
- Jean Letourneau - Minister of Posts
- Alexandre Varenne - Minister of State
- Francisque Gay - Minister of State
Second ministry (28 October 1949 - 7 February 1950)
- Georges Bidault - President of the Council
- Jules Moch - Vice President of the Council and Minister of the Interior
- Henri Queuille - Vice President of the Council
- Robert Schuman - Minister of Foreign Affairs
- René Pleven - Minister of National Defense
- Maurice Petsche - Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs
- Robert Lacoste - Minister of Commerce and Industry
- Pierre Segelle - Minister of Labour and Social Security
- René Mayer - Minister of Justice
- Yvon Delbos - Minister of National Education
- Louis Jacquinot - Minister of Veterans and War Victims
- Pierre Pflimlin - Minister of Agriculture
- Jean Letourneau - Minister of Overseas France
- Christian Pineau - Minister of Public Works, Transport, and Tourism
- Pierre Schneiter - Minister of Public Health and Population
- Eugène Claudius-Petit - Minister of Reconstruction and Town Planning
- Eugène Thomas - Minister of Posts
- Pierre-Henri Teitgen - Minister of State
Changes:
- 2 December 1949 - Gabriel Valay succeeds Pflimlin as Minister of Agriculture
Third Ministry (7 February - 2 July 1950)
- Georges Bidault - President of the Council
- Henri Queuille - Vice President of the Council and Minister of the Interior
- Robert Schuman - Minister of Foreign Affairs
- René Pleven - Minister of National Defense
- Maurice Petsche - Minister of Finance and Economics Affairs
- Jean-Marie Louvel - Minister of Commerce and Industry
- Paul Bacon - Minister of Labour and Social Security
- René Mayer - Minister of Justice
- Yvon Delbos - Minister of National Education
- Louis Jacquinot - Minister of Veterans and War Victims
- Gabriel Valay - Minister of Agriculture
- Jean Letourneau - Minister of Overseas France
- Jacques Chastellain - Minister of Public Works, Transport, and Tourism
- Pierre Schneiter - Minister of Public Health and Population
- Eugène Claudius-Petit - Minister of Reconstruction and Town Planning
- Charles Brune - Minister of Posts
- Pierre-Henri Teitgen - Minister of State
Quotes
- "Ho Chi Minh is about to capitulate. We are going to beat him."[citation needed]
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Pierre Laval |
Minister of Foreign Affairs 1944–1946 |
Succeeded by Léon Blum |
| Preceded by Félix Gouin |
Chairman of the Provisional Government 1946 |
Succeeded by Léon Blum |
| Preceded by Léon Blum |
Minister of Foreign Affairs 1947–1948 |
Succeeded by Robert Schuman |
| Preceded by Henri Queuille |
President of the Council of Ministers 1949–1950 |
Succeeded by Henri Queuille |
| Preceded by Henri Queuille |
Vice President of the Council of Ministers 1950 |
Succeeded by — |
| Preceded by — |
Vice President of the Council of Ministers 1951–1952 |
Succeeded by — |
| Preceded by Jules Moch |
Minister of National Defense 1951–1952 |
Succeeded by René Pleven |
| Preceded by Robert Schuman |
Minister of Foreign Affairs 1953–1954 |
Succeeded by Pierre Mendès-France |
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- Rulers of France since 987 (table)
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- Economic Cooperation Act of 1948 (Marshall Plan)
