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Camille Ferdinand Dreyfus

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Camille Ferdinand Dreyfus
Born(1849-05-05)5 May 1849
Paris, France
Died15 July 1915(1915-07-15) (aged 66)
Paris, France
NationalityFrench
OccupationLawyer
Known forSenator of Seine-et-Oise (1909-1915)

Camille Ferdinand Dreyfus (5 May 1849 - 15 July 1915) was a French lawyer, historian and philanthropist who became Senator for Seine-et-Oise from 1909 to 1915.

Career

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Ferdinand Dreyfus was born in Paris on 5 May 1849. He became a lawyer and editor of Le Siècle (The Century). On 14 March 1880 he was elected to parliament in a by-election as deputy for the arrondissement of Rambouillet, taking his seat on the left. He was reelected on 21 August 1881, joining the Union républicaine (Republican Union) party.[1] He was associated with Léon Gambetta.[2] He voted with the opportunistic Republican majority on all issues. In the general elections of 4 October 1885 he ran on the opportunistic Republican list. He failed to be reelected.[1]

Dreyfus had a large fortune, and owned a townhouse at 98 avenue de Villiers in Paris as well as a chateau and farm property in Fontenay-lès-Briis, Essonne.[2] He became general counsel of Seine-et-Oise for the canton of Rambouillet, and was secretary of the council of Rambouillet.[1] He devoted himself to the question of public assistance, including Child Protection (1892), Tramps (1894) and Prisons (1895). He was also a historian, author of various historical works and studies, including Vauban économiste and La Rochefoucauld-Liancourt, both of which won awards. From 1907 to 1908 he taught a course at the Sorbonne on the protection of infants under the 3rd Republic. He was president of the Historical Society of the 1848 Revolution from 1908 to 1910.[2]

Senator

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Dreyfus ran as a candidate for the Senate in a by-election on 17 February 1906, but was defeated.[3] On 3 January 1909 Dreyfus was elected Senator for Seine-et-Oise in the first round. He joined the Republican Union.[3] He engaged in discussions, often as reporter, on subjects such as worker's pensions, mutual insurance, aid to large families and juvenile courts. He was vice-president of the high council on prisons, and a member of the high councils on public education, agriculture, workers pensions and labor.[2] On 11 November 1911 he presented the Legion of Honor to Sarah Monod, president of the National Council of French Women (Conseil national des femmes françaises).[4] During World War I he was offered a ministerial portfolio but turned it down.[3]

Ferdinand Dreyfus died in office on 15 July 1915 in Paris, at the age of sixty-six.[3] He had two son, Jacques and Charles Ferdinand-Dreyfus.[2]

Bibliography

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From 1886 to 1907, Dreyfus published numerous works:[3]

  • Vauban, economist (Leon Foucher prize, 1886)
  • Studies and Speeches (1887)
  • International Arbitration (1888)
  • Social Missions and historical studies (Fabien prize, 1890)
  • A former philanthropist: La Rochefoucauld-Liancourt (1901)
  • The republican school and feminine patronage (1902)
  • Assistance on the Legislative Assembly and the Convention (1905)
  • Assistance on the Republic from 1848 to 1907 Municipal Public Library (1907)

References

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Citations

Sources

  • Jolly, Jean (1977). Dictionnaire des parlementaires français: notices biographiques sur les ministres, sénateurs et députés français de 1889 à 1940. Presses universitaires de France. Retrieved 2013-09-22.
  • Meyer, Pierre-André (2011-12-01). Julien Cain, un humaniste en guerre: Lettres 1914-1917. Editions L'Harmattan. ISBN 978-2-296-47605-9. Retrieved 2013-09-22.
  • Monod, Alexandrine Elisabeth Sarah, retrieved 2013-09-21
  • Robert, Adolphe; Cougny, Gaston (1889). Dictionnaire Des Parlementaires Français, Comprenant Tous Les Membres Des Assemblées Françaises Et Tous Les Ministres Français Depuis ... 1789 Jusqu'au 1er Mai, 1889. Vol. 1-5). MM. A. Robert & G. Cougny (tom. 1, 2; de MM. A. Robert, E. Bourloton & G. Cougny. Retrieved 2013-09-22.

Further reading