Herr, Lucien (1864-1926). Philosopher and socialist intellectual. Born in Altkirch, Alsace, he studied in Paris, entering the École Normale Supérieure to take the philosophy agrégation. Travelling in Russia and Germany, he encountered Hegelian philosophy and socialism, which he later did much to propagate in France. He became librarian at the École Normale, which occupied the rest of his life and made him an influential figure for generations of normaliens. He joined the Possibiliste branch of the French socialist movement, and directed many of his students towards it, including Jean Jaurès. Always something of an éminence grise, he is often regarded as the major socialist intellectual of his time.
[Michael Kelly]
