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'Édouard Daladier' (18 June 1884 - 10 October 1970) was a French Radical-Socialist politician, and Prime Minister of France at the start of the Second World War.

Contents

Career

See also

External links

References

Career

He was born in Carpentras, Vaucluse. A government minister in various posts during the coalition governments between 1924 and 1928, he was instrumental in the Radical-Socialist Party's break with the socialist SFIO in 1926 (the first ''Cartel des gauches'' - "Left-wing Coalition"), and with the conservative Raymond Poincaré in November 1928.
Daladier became a leading member of the Radicals. He first became Prime Minister during 1933, and then again in 1934 for a few weeks when the Stavisky Affair led to far right 6 February 1934 riots and the second ''Cartel des gauches'' ' fall from power.
Daladier became Minister of War for the Popular Front coalition in 1936, and became Prime Minister again on 10 April 1938 after the fall of the Popular Front.
His term in power saw the Munich Agreement, when France backed out of its obligations to defend Czechoslovakia against Nazi Germany. He was pushed into negotiating by Britain's Neville Chamberlain, without which war would have been impossible. On his return to Paris, Daladier, who was expecting a hostile crowd, was acclaimed. He then told his aid, Alexis Léger: "Ah, les cons (''the fools'') !"»^[1].
When the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact was signed, Daladier responded to the public outcry by outlawing the French Communist Party, which had refused to condemn Joseph Stalin's actions. In 1939, after the German invasion of Poland he was reluctant to go to war, but did so on 3 September 1939 - inaugurating the Phony War.
In March 1940 he resigned as Prime Minister in France, due to his failure to aid Finland's defense during the Winter War, and was replaced with Paul Reynaud. His antipathy to Paul Reynaud prevented Reynaud from replacing the aged Maurice Gamelin as Supreme Commander of all French armed forces. As a result, both Reynaud and Gamelin resigned on 9 May 1940, the day before the Germans began their invasion campaign on 10 May. Daladier fled with other members of the government to Morocco, under the impression that the government would continue in North Africa, but was arrested and tried for treason by the Vichy government during the "Riom Trial". He was kept in prison from 1940 to 1943, after which he was handed out to the Germans and deported to Buchenwald concentration camp until the end of World War II.
After the conflict ended, Daladier was a member of the Chamber of Deputies, and an opponent of Charles de Gaulle. He was also Lord Mayor of Avignon from 1953 until 1958. He died in Paris and is buried in the famous cemetery of Père-Lachaise.
==Daladier's First Government, 31 January - 26 October 1933==

★ Édouard Daladier - President of the Council and Minister of War

★ Eugène Penancier - Vice President of the Council and Minister of Justice

★ Joseph Paul-Boncour - Minister of Foreign Affairs

★ Camille Chautemps - Minister of the Interior

★ Georges Bonnet - Minister of Finance

★ Lucien Lamoureux - Minister of Budget

★ François Albert - Minister of Labour and Social Security Provisions

★ Georges Leygues - Minister of Marine

★ Eugène Frot - Minister of Merchant Marine

★ Pierre Cot - Minister of Air

★ Anatole de Monzie - Minister of National Education

★ Edmond Miellet - Minister of Pensions

★ Henri Queuille - Minister of Agriculture

★ Albert Sarraut - Minister of Colonies

★ Joseph Paganon - Minister of Public Works

★ Charles Daniélou - Minister of Public Health

★ Laurent Eynac - Minister of Posts, Telegraphs, and Telephones

★ Louis Serre - Minister of Commerce and Industry
'Changes'

★ 6 September 1933 - Albert Sarraut succeeds Leygues (d. 2 September) as Minister of Marine. Albert Dalimier succeeds Sarraut as Minister of Colonies.
==Daladier's Second Ministry, 30 January - 9 February 1934==

★ Édouard Daladier - President of the Council and Minister of Foreign Affairs

★ Eugène Penancier - Vice President of the Council and Minister of Justice

★ Jean Fabry - Minister of National Defense and War

★ Eugène Frot - Minister of the Interior

★ François Piétri - Minister of Finance

★ Jean Valadier - Minister of Labour and Social Security Provisions

★ Louis de Chappedelaine - Minister of Military Marine

★ Guy La Chambre - Minister of Merchant Marine

★ Pierre Cot - Minister of Air

★ Aimé Berthod - Minister of National Education

★ Hippolyte Ducos - Minister of Pensions

★ Henri Queuille - Minister of Agriculture

★ Henry de Jouvenel - Minister of Overseas France

★ Joseph Paganon - Minister of Public Works

★ Émile Lisbonne - Minister of Public Health

★ Paul Bernier - Minister of Posts, Telegraphs, and Telephones

★ Jean Mistler - Minister of Commerce and Industry
'Changes'

★ 4 February 1934 - Joseph Paul-Boncour succeeds Fabry as Minister of National Defense and War. Paul Marchandeau succeeds Piétri as Minister of Finance.
==Daladier's Third Ministry, 10 April 1938 - 21 March 1940==

★ Édouard Daladier - President of the Council and Minister of National Defense and War

★ Camille Chautemps - Vice President of the Council

★ Georges Bonnet - Minister of Foreign Affairs

★ Albert Sarraut - Minister of the Interior

★ Paul Marchandeau - Minister of Finance

★ Raymond Patenôtre - Minister of National Economy

★ Paul Ramadier - Minister of Labour

★ Paul Reynaud - Minister of Justice

★ César Campinchi - Minister of Military Marine

★ Louis de Chappedelaine - Minister of Merchant Marine

★ Guy La Chambre - Minister of Air

★ Jean Zay - Minister of National Education

★ Auguste Champetier de Ribes - Minister of Veterans and Pensioners

★ Henri Queuille - Minister of Agriculture

★ Georges Mandel - Minister of Colonies

★ Ludovic-Oscar Frossard - Minister of Public Works

★ Marc Rucart - Minister of Public Health

★ Alfred Jules-Julien - Minister of Posts, Telegraphs, and Telephones

★ Fernand Gentin - Minister of Commerce
'Changes'

★ 23 August 1938 - Charles Pomaret succeeds Ramadier as Minister of Labour. Anatole de Monzie succeeds Frossard as Minister of Public Works.

★ 1 November 1938 - Paul Reynaud succeeds Paul Marchandeau as Minister of Finance. Marchandeau succeeds Reynaud as Minister of Justice.

★ 13 September 1939 - Georges Bonnet succeeds Marchandeau as Minister of Justice. Daladier succeeds Bonnet as Minister of Foreign Affairs, remaining also Minister of National Defense and War. Raymond Patenôtre leaves the Cabinet and the Position of Minister of National Economy is abolished. Alphonse Rio succeeds Chappedelaine as Minister of Merchant Marine. Yvon Delbos succeeds Zay as Minister of National Education. René Besse succeeds Champetier as Minister of Veterans and Pensioners. Raoul Dautry enters the Cabinet as Minister of Armaments. Georges Pernot enters the Cabinet as Minister of Blockade.

See also

★ French Third Republic

★ 6 February 1934 crisis

External links

★ ''In Defense of France'' a 1939 book by Daladier at archive.org

References

1. Jean-Paul Sartre, Le Sursis