Global InformationPierre Laval information
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Pierre Laval | |
|---|---|
 Laval in 1931 | |
| Prime Minister of France | |
| In office 18 April 1942 – 19 August 1944 | |
| Chief of the State | Philippe Pétain |
| Preceded by | Philippe Pétain |
| Succeeded by | Charles de Gaulle[a] |
| In office 7 June 1935 – 24 January 1936 | |
| President | Albert Lebrun |
| Preceded by | Fernand Bouisson |
| Succeeded by | Albert Sarraut |
| In office 27 January 1931 – 20 February 1932 | |
| President | Gaston Doumergue Paul Doumer |
| Preceded by | Théodore Steeg |
| Succeeded by | André Tardieu |
| Deputy Prime Minister of France | |
| In office 11 July 1940 – 13 December 1940 | |
| Prime Minister | Philippe Pétain |
| Preceded by | Philippe Pétain |
| Succeeded by | Pierre Étienne Flandin |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Pierre Jean Marie Laval 28 June 1883 Châteldon, France |
| Died | 15 October 1945 (aged 62) Fresnes Prison, Fresnes, France |
| Cause of death | Execution by firing squad |
| Criminal status | Executed |
| Conviction(s) | Treason |
| Criminal penalty | Death |
| Resting place | Montparnasse Cemetery[1] |
| Political party | SFIO (1914–23) Independent (1923–45) |
| Spouse |
Jeanne Claussat (m. 1909) |
| Relations | Joseph Claussat (father-in-law) René de Chambrun (son-in-law) |
| Children | Josée Laval |
| Signature |  |
Pierre Jean Marie Laval (French pronunciation: [pjɛʁ laval]; 28 June 1883 – 15 October 1945) was a French politician. During the Third Republic, he served as Prime Minister of France from 1931 to 1932 and from 1935 to 1936. He again occupied the post during the German occupation, from 1942 to 1944.
A socialist early in his life, Laval became a lawyer in 1909 and was famous for his defence of strikers, trade unionists and leftists from government prosecution. In 1914, he was elected to the Chamber of Deputies as a member of the French Section of the Workers' International (SFIO), and he remained committed to his pacifist convictions during the First World War. After his defeat in the 1919 election, Laval left the SFIO and became mayor of Aubervilliers. In 1924 he returned to the Chamber as an independent, and was elected to the Senate three years later. He also held a series of governmental positions, including Minister of Public Works, Minister of Justice and Minister of Labour. In 1931, Laval became Prime Minister, but his government fell only a year later.
Laval joined the conservative government of Gaston Doumergue in 1934 and served as Minister of the Colonies and then Foreign Minister. In 1935, Laval again became Prime Minister. Seeking to contain Germany, he pursued foreign policies favourable to Italy and the Soviet Union, but his handling of the Abyssinia Crisis, which was widely denounced as appeasement of Benito Mussolini, prompted his resignation in 1936.
After France's defeat by the blitzkrieg invasion of Nazi Germany, Laval, a well-known Fascist sympathizer,[2] served in prominent roles in Philippe Pétain's Vichy France, first as the vice-president of the Council of Ministers from July 1940 to December 1940 and later as the head of government from April 1942 to August 1944. During this time he displayed harsh treatment towards the people of France, sending thousands of French people, including Jews, to slavery in Poland and Germany, and often relied on heavy handed tactics to keep the populace in line, which only fueled opposition to the already unpopular government.
After the Liberation of France in 1944, Laval was imprisoned by the Germans. In April 1945, he fled to Spain but soon returned[3] to France, where he was arrested by the French government under Charles de Gaulle. After what has been described as a flawed trial, much akin to many under the Vichy regime suffered. [4] Laval was found guilty of plotting against the security of the state and of collaboration with the enemy. After a thwarted suicide attempt, Laval was executed by firing squad in October 1945.[5]
Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
lavalsbodylubbockwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "In the saddle". Library of Congress. Archived from the original on 8 December 2023.
- ^ Franco, Fundación Nacional Francisco; FNFF, Redacción (13 June 2019). "Entrevista del periódico francés Le Figaro a Franco en 1958". fnff.es. Archived from the original on 16 January 2021. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
- ^ Paxton, Robert O., Vichy France, Old Guard and New Order 1940–1944, New York: Columbia University Press, 1972 (1982), p. 425.
- ^ United Newsreel Corporation (1945), Pierre Laval executed for treason, viewed 09 February 2021.