Lazare Weiller

Lazare Weiller (1858-1928) was an industrialist and French politician born with Sélestat (the Low-Rhine) on July 20th, 1858 and died in Territet (Suisse) on August 12th, 1928.

Biography

Lazare Weiller, only sons of Léopold Weiller (born in 1807), hawker, and of Ducasse Queen (born in 1819), maidservant, is resulting from a modest Alsatian Jewish family originating in Seppois-le-Bas. After the annexation of Alsace-Lorraine by Germany in 1871, it is sent in September 1872 in a cousin, Moïse Weiller, industrialist in Charente, which enables him to profit from a grant and to preserve French nationality while benefitting from a clause from the Traité from Frankfurt. It appears a brilliant pupil, initially with the college of Angouleme then to the Lycée Saint-Louis in Paris, where it passes his baccalaureat and prepares the entrance examination to the Polytechnic school. But, embanked by a typhoid fever, it cannot undergo the tests and leaves to Oxford where it studies English, the Greek, chemistry and physics. Then it precedes the call and makes its military service in Versailles, before returning to Angouleme to work in the factory of metal sieves of his cousin.

In March 1882, Lazare Weiller converts with the Catholic religion and, on May 23rd, 1882, he marries his cousin Marie-Marguerite Jeanne Weiller. But she dies in layers the following year and their son, Jean, die two years later. It remarie on August 12th, 1889 with Alice Javal, girl of the famous opthalmologist Emile Javal, appointed of Yonne. The couple will have four children: twins on April 25th, 1890, Jean-Pierre and Marie-Therese, Georges-Andre on March 4th, 1892 and Paul-Louis on September 29th, 1893.

In 1893, the couple settles in a private mansion 36 rue de la Bienfaisance in Paris and acquires with Cannes the villa Insulate-Celesta, whose rosery is regarded as one of most beautiful of Europe. With Mougins, Lazare Weiller makes build with Lord Derby the first Golf of the Riviera.

From 1920, Weiller rent then buy (1922) the hotel of Lieutenancy with Sélestat (the Low-Rhine) and share from now on their time between Alsace and the capital.

Lazare Weiller dies in Suisse, with the private clinic of Valmont of Territet, at the edge of the Lac Léman, on August 12th, 1928 of a cardiac failure caused by a chronic diabetes. He is buried in Angouleme near his first wife.

Inventor and industrialist

As of the beginning of the year 1880, Lazare Weiller begins the research of an alloy which would make it possible to carry out metal wire fine and solid but as conducting as the copper, which is stretched with difficulty. He deposits the patents of the siliceous bronze and the phosphorous copper, which will be at the base of its fortune. The needs are indeed considerable with the creation of the networks of electricity and telephone. He makes build a factory with the Havre, at the same time point entrance of copper the imports and point exit towards the the United States and the England and founds into 1882 the Wire-drawing mills and Rolling mills of Le Havre, which will employ 1.500 workmen later ten years. He is the first to produce telephone cables with multiple drivers, then specializes in the underwater cables.

Pioneer of the Television, it makes, in 1889, a presentation with the Academy of Science describing an apparatus which it baptizes “Phorosphore”, which makes it possible to analyze mechanically and to remotely reconstitute an image of 10 centimetres side cut out in 250000 elements. The apparatus will be actually produced in 1898.

Its business is tested hard by the slump in prices of the Cuivre between 1900 and 1903. In 1901, Lazare Weiller sells part of his collection of tables and three castles of which that says today Grouchy to Osny (Val-d'Oise), that it had acquired in 1898 and in which it had undertaken important work.

In 1903, it buys the patent of the “taximeter” or automatic meter for the hackney carriages and takes part in the foundation of the general Company of the meters and the French Company of the cars of place (1905), and companies identical to London, Geneva, Milan, Berlin and New York, in partnership with the Banque Morgan.

In 1908, having a presentiment of the future developments of the Aviation, it creates a price of 100.000 gold francs to reward first the one hour flight in closed circuit. It makes it possible to attract in France the Frères Wright, pioneers American of aviation who gain the price. To exploit their patents, Lazare Weiller creates in 1908 the general Company of aerial navigation but this one never starts truly its activities for lack of support of the ministry for the War.

In 1912, it creates the universal Company of wireless telegraphy in partnership with the German company Goldschmitt. It makes the object of a denigration campaign at nationalist forts relents and anti-semites orchestrated by the concurrent firm, the international telegraphic Agency, emanation of the British company Marconi Wireless. In 1913, an agreement is found which makes it possible Lazare Weiller to obtain a fifth of the actions of Marconi Wireless and a balance of a million francs.

Politician

In 1883, Lazare Weiller is made knight of the Légion of honor. It is rewarded to have made economic information at the time of its voyages in Germany.

In 1888, he is republican candidate with the delegation in Angouleme against the bonapartise Gellibert of Seguins, which is elected, and the boulangist Paul Déroulède, in addition his close friend (they had been presented one to the other by the painter Edouard Detaille).

In 1901, the president of the Council, Pierre Waldeck-Rousseau, entrusts a mission with the the United States to him. He traverses the country to study the methods, to meet his leaders and to study the possibility of them of creating a school there where young French engineers could be formed with the techniques of management to American. It become acquainted there with John Pierpont Morgan and Vanderbilt. His report submitted to the government, it draws the matter from it from a book the Great ideas of new people (1904) in whom it suggests “ giving to the Old World a little the practical aspect of New the ” and which is a real best-seller. It also publishes an account of its voyage in the famous daily newspaper Time and binds with its director, influence it Adrien Hébrard.

In 1914, the Government entrusts to him a mission in Suisse, where the Germans established the general headquarter of their propaganda. It publishes in Time , of May 1915 in September 1918, a series of letters under the title Germany seen of Switzerland .

Elected official appointed of Angouleme in 1914 pennies the democratic label Alliance (left moderate), it is made the spokesperson of Alsatian oppressed, being defined as “ appointed Alsatian of Charente ”. In 1920, he is elected senator of the the Low-Rhine and is re-elected in 1927. He militates for the re-establishment of the diplomatic relations between France and the the Holy See and is interested in the relationship with Germany, the United States and Great Britain. He plays a big role at the time of the crisis of the franc in 1923 and 1924, recommending with Poincaré to launch his great loan guaranteed on the gold of the Banque de France.

Works of Lazare Weiller

Research on the electric conductibility of metals and their alloys, relationship with the calorific conductibility (1884)
electric and mechanical Studies on the solid bodies (1885)
Treated general of the lines and electric drives (with Henry Vivarez) (1892)
Forging mills, foundry, rolling mills and wire-drawing mill of pure copper and its alloys. Refining and electrolytic treatment of metals. Handbook practices for the use of the electric drivers produced by the factories Lazare Weiller and Co (1894)
the Great ideas of large people: diplomatic mission in the United States (1904)
Notes on the German activity in Switzerland (1915)
German Depression seen of Switzerland (1918)

References

Jacques Mousseau, the century of Paul-Louis Weiller. 1893-1993 , Paris, Stock, 1998

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