The Dreyfus Affair: Anti-Semitism, Politics, and the Rise of Modern France, Study notes of History

Download The Dreyfus Affair: Anti-Semitism, Politics, and the Rise of Modern France and more Study notes History in PDF only on Docsity! 1 THE DREYFUS AFFAIR: MORE THAN A TRIAL I. Purpose and overview of the lecture A. To examine one of the most famous trials of history—as colorful and emotional but still more famous and certainly more long- lasting and influential than the O. J. Simpson trial 1. It divided France as no trial has ever divided a country a) Everyone French knows about it to this day, and many will still argue about it B. To place that trial, and the ensuing “affair”, in its historical context, to make understandable why it caused such an uproar C. To make some broader observations about the role of anti- Semitism in history, looking toward nazism and the Holocaust D. [Students should be reading my book, Anti-Semitism before the Holocaust} II. Long-range background in Europe A. Much of the previous lecture is relevant to the background to this trial 1. The general weakening of liberalism in many arenas 2. The Great Depression of 1873-1894, shocking liberals and undermining faith in the free-market economy 3. The so-called “Second Industrial Revolution,” witnessing much larger industrial concentrations, a move away from the “classical” economic system of many small industrial units a) A parallel tendency for industrial unions to grow up, larger, more “collectivist” b) In both of these there is a tendency to move away from the former sense that the individual could accomplish great things on his own (1) Now it was necessary to be part of a larger group 4. The rise of “irrationalist” trends and theories (Freud, Dostoevsky, Nietzsche, etc.) 5. The Rise of Germany and the relative decline of France 2 a) The special tension between those two countries by the end of the century b) The state system as a whole seemed to be engendering national tensions, especially after 1890, with alliance between France and Russia, etc. 6. The rise of mass politics, and the rise of the masses in many other regards a) Not only getting the vote, but new “yellow” journalism, new kinds of political parties (using demagogic devices to rally the people) III. Long-range background in France A. The situation of Jews in France in the nineteenth century: 1. They were widely believed to be unusually favored: 2. They got civil equality in 1791, rose in French society rapidly in 19th century a) Jews in other countries tended to envy them 3. French Jews prospered especially in the Third Republic, and most of them warmly supported it, which aligned them on the left, mostly the moderate left 4. Their numbers were quite small compared to the Jewish populations of central and eastern Europe a) French Jews constituted approximately .02% of the total population of France, around 40, 000 (1) German Jews were approximately 1% (500,000), Austrian 5%, Russian 10% -- approximately 100 times more numerous than in France b) And French Jews were strongly over-represented in various areas: the professions, commerce, academia, government; generally in the urban areas, Paris in particular, under-represented in agriculture, manual labor B. Anti-Semitism in France 1. A fair number of anti-Semitic writers or theorists appeared in France in the 19th century 2. But until the 1880s there had been relatively little overt 5 3. And the key question: Was he unfairly charged because of the anti-Semitism of his officers? D. Dreyfus was arrested, told the evidence against him was overwhelming, and offered the honorable way out: suicide 1. Since he was in fact innocent—as only later would become clear to large numbers of people—he was stunned, and refused the offer of a pistol, to commit suicide 2. How overwhelming was the evidence in fact? a) Not very: similar handwriting, and a few other rather doubtful documents (one that referred to that “dirty dog D. . .”), and circumstantial (1) (Dreyfus was supposedly in the right places to get that kind of information) b) Did his accusers in fact choose him because he was a Jew? (that is the question, one that in fact is not easy to answer) E. The plot then thickens: 1. News of Dreyfus’s arrest was leaked to the press, in particular to Drumont’s Libre Parole a) Drumont had already launched a campaign against “treason in the army” b) He now announced in his paper that Dreyfus had “admitted everything” but because Jewish influence and money he would finally be let free 2. Drumont’s “revelations” made it all the more difficult for figures in the army to back down, admit they had made a mistake a) If they did, Drumont would be sure to denounce them as being in the pay of the Jews V. The trial (December, 1894) A. It was held in camera before a military tribunal B. Most observers at the time recognized that the evidence against Dreyfus was thin, and to some degree contradictory 1. The bordereau was the main piece of material evidence a) Handwriting experts differed about whether it was written by Dreyfus, 6 b) It was in fact not clear that Dreyfus could have been in a position to know about the “secrets” in the list 2. There were other problems: a) Dreyfus was a rich man, unlikely to be selling secrets for the paltry sums involved b) He had been since a child devoted to the army and to France, a conservative super-patriot 3. What no outsider knew at the time, however, was that further evidence was given to the judges that the defense was not even allowed to see a) This of course violates courtroom rules, even for military trials, that someone charged with a crime must be able to see the evidence against him b) The excuse given was that the material was a military secret, and that if it were known, France’s national security would be threatened—perhaps even a war would ensue 4. Perhaps even more decisive was the testimony given by Commandant Henry a) He swore that a “secret informant” had told him that Dreyfus was a spy (but he could not reveal that informant, again for reasons of national security) b) Observers were all impressed with Henry's sincerity and apparent integrity (and he had a good record as an officer) C. Dreyfus was found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment on Devil’s Island 1. He also was sentenced to undergo a solemn military degradation D. Many applauded the verdict, although some complained that if he had not been a Jew, he would have gotten the death penalty 1. Such opinions were characteristic of right and left, Jew and non-Jew, pretty much across the board, including people who would later come to Dreyfus’s defense VI. The smoldering Affair A. There was yet no Dreyfus Affair, since nearly everyone believed that a guilty man had been caught and properly punished in a fair trial 7 B. Many congratulated the Army for being tough and vigilant, as well as incorruptible (unlike other branches of the government) C. For some time, Dreyfus was simply forgotten, although his brother, Matthieu, now devoted his life to free Alfred 1. But for some time, he had very little luck a) Indeed, he was shunned, both by Jews and by non- Jews, many of whom feared that any contact with him would make them appear to be in the pay of the Jews, or associated with the family of a traitor to France D. But disturbing indications of Dreyfus’s possible innocence began to emerge 1. First of all, military secrets continued to flow into the German Embassy 2. But more important, the new head of Military Intelligence came across strong evidence that the spy was in fact another man, a certain Esterhazy 3. This new head, Georges Picquart, was an intriguing man a) He had known Dreyfus, had in fact been his instructor in a military class b) And he did not like Dreyfus—indeed, was himself something of an anti-Semite c) But he also could not accept that an innocent man, even if a Jew, had been sentenced to life imprisonment E. Picquart communicated his doubts to his superior officers, who told him to drop the subject 1. When he would not, they saw to it that he was transferred—to a dangerous war zone in Algeria F. Henry was given Picquart’s position, and he then began to doctor and fabricate various documents to bolster the evidence of Dreyfus’s guilt VII. The Affair explodes A. By early 1898 various leaks and rumors about the Dreyfus case resulted in increasingly furious debate about it B. Now, much more than before, anti-Semitism came to play an undeniable and overt role C. And much of the debate came to range far beyond the issue of