Paul Valiant-Dressmaker

Origin

Born in a family from opera singers, Paul Valiant-Dressmaker continues his studies until the license of history and the Doctorat in right ; but he exerts then like lawyer only on rare occasions, in particular when he is in cold with the Communist party in 1930. Its first ambitions are arts persons. He writes in 1912 and 1913 a collection of poems (published in Edtions of Time Present) and two plays, played by troops in province.

First World War

He takes part in the First World War of 1914 to 1919 (he is tardily demobilized in October). Entered the war Dandy and Believing, it leaves there Socialiste and Pacifiste. It is in 1914 warrant officer in the infantry; it finishes the war second lieutenant in artillery of attack. During the war of 1914, it is wounded first once by glare of shell in September 1915, during the great Champagne offensive, then one second time in July 1918, it is gauze on board its tank. Its courage is worth to him five mentions in dispatches as well as the military decoration. Its pacifism which it expresses through press articles is sanctioned by the military hierarchy only in extremis on November 2nd, 1918. It is worth 30 days of fortress then to him. The words of the “song of Craonne” were retranscribed and published by Paul Valiant-Dressmaker in his book, the War of the soldiers . This song, sung by the soldiers on the face, then perhaps by the “ mutineers ” at the time of the events of April-June 1917, prohibited by the command, became then one of the great anthems of the Pacifisme.

Journalist

In December 1916, following his/her friend Raymond Lefebvre, it adheres to SFIO. Its experiment of journalist is reduced then to some participations in reviews of young artists of the beginning of the century.

With Henri Barbusse, in 1917, it creates the republican Association of the war veterans then in 1919, Clarté, a review and a grouping which seeks to gather members of the intellectual and artistic professions. In both cases, it is a question of organizing men (and women) strokes about it and above the political parties and existing associations in the name of the peace of the people to be built. In January 1917, it enters to the drafting of the Canard connected where it binds friendship with Henri Béraud and Roland Dorgelès. Of its collaboration, its heading “the worms put themselves at it” where it strips epigrams and ends rhymes with the address of personalities in sight or institutions. The June 18th and 25th 1919 under the title “ Of the uselessness of hairy during the war ”, it is devoted in this newspaper to a hot analysis of the war and denounces peace “ imperialist ” and belligene which the chancelleries were going to impose on the Germany. It develops also the topic of a “imaginary hairy ”, manufactured of all parts by the back and that of the fraternity of weapons between adversaries having lived the same sufferings. After the war, it leaves the Duck connected . It is also at the same time one of the collaborators of the Truth of Paul Meunier, of the Newspaper of the People and Popular of Paris, directed by Jean Longuet. It enters then to Humanity in 1920 when in the rows of socialist party SFIO the battle for adhesion in IIIe Internationale starts.

Political course

He is elected Député of Paris in 1919. After the Congrès of Turns in 1920, of which it is one of the speakers, it takes part in the foundation of the French Communist party, it is tendency of left of Boris Souvarine and Alfred Rosmer. The bolchevisation separates it from his/her companions, but does not lead it to disavow them, which is worth to him a first setting with the temporary variation of the leader organizations of the Communist party. Its great popularity acquired in the meetings where he excels galvanizing crowd, enables him to be re-elected in 1924 with the communist chief candidate in the department of the Seine, in suburbs. It is in prison where its articles against the Fascism mussolinien, led it, which he learns his election with the communist chief candidate in Villejuif with the municipal elections from 1929, a candidature imposed by the direction of the Communist party and that he tries to refuse, in vain. Elected official mayor then, it is re-elected in 1935 and the remainder until 1937. He also becomes, the same year, general adviser, and in May 1936, with the first turn, deputy of the district of Villejuif. He is during his two mandates a mayor concerned of culture and eager to fight against the effects of the economic crisis which are felt hard as from 1932. The school Karl Marx, conceived and built by the architect Andre Lurçat in pure international style, is its first philosopher's stone as a mayor. It is inaugurated on July 10th, 1933 in the presence of Maurice Thorez, of Marcel Cachin and the majority of the Communist leaders. It must precede the spirit of what the Communists will be able to make when they will have seized the power.

Transitory editor association of a communist daily newspaper of the evening international the , between September 1923 and January 1924, the same station falls to him to Humanity of April 1926 in September 1929, then officially again of July 1935 to his sudden death in 1937, but semi-officially as of May 1934, thanks to the support of Maurice Thorez, and Marcel Cachin. As an editor association of the communist daily newspaper, it attends the meetings of the Political office. Twice, he proposes substantial modifications to also make newspaper of opinion a newspaper of information. For that, he requests collaborations of intellectuals members or close to the communist movement. These journalistic choices and the dynamics of the movement make Humanité the principal newspaper of the Popular front.
For the Humanity , it carries out also great reports on the the USSR of the Five-year plan , in 1931 and 1932, on the China, in 1933, on the Spain in 1934 and 1936-1937. For the communist newspaper, they are the first of the genre.
In the same way, it launches into 1935 of great investigations to the sets of themes social and cultural new: young people and the economic crisis, the family, popular aviation. Louis Aragon celebrated them because some their articles speak about the love.

These sets of themes prolong the work carried out in the rows of the AEAR, the Association of the Writers and Revolutionary Artistes that it founds in February 1932, of which he is the secretary until 1936, and who, after beginnings in the pure style of the agitprop, contributes to the birth of the movement of Popular front in the intellectual mediums by mobilizing them and by accommodating them without requiring an allegiance of blessed oui-oui. It is at least what its speech made before the central committee of PCF in October 1936 affirms. Its interventions at the time of the congress of the intellectuals at this meeting in Paris in June 1935 to prevent that the business Victor Serge is not evoked show that it was not inevitably of a great flexibility, nor of a large opening when the Soviet truth was put at evil publicly.

It is buried with the Cimetière of the Father-Lachaise, beside Henri Barbusse, opposite the Mur of Federate the. It is the first leading one of the PCF to which this honor is returned. A monument is set up in Villejuif with its memory. Hundreds of streets, avenues and boulevards, in France bear its name. They were baptized thus in 1937, or 1945, in all the cities directed by PCF. Longemps object of militant commemorations, also surviving a time through his wife Marie-Claude, it fell today into the lapse of memory.

Personal life

Paul Valiant-Dressmaker is first once the husband of an American academic, Ida Treat (1889-1978), of which he divorces after long years separation to marry, in 1937, his/her partner since 1934, Marie-Claude Vogel (1912-1996), more known under the name of Marie-Claude Valiant-Dressmaker, off-set with Auschwitz and Ravensbrück (1942-1945) and witness for the prosecution, with the Procès of Nuremberg (1946), member of the central committee of the PCF, appointed the Seine of 1946 with 1958 then of 1967 with 1973, member of the board of directors of Humanity and of the jury of the Literary prize Paul-Valiant-Dressmaker. He dies without descent. Throughout his life, Paul Valiant-Dressmaker is surrounded by very close friends, the writers and the artists with whom it divides all: Raymond Lefebvre, Jean d' Espouy, Guy of Battut initially that it meets all the three with the college Janson de Sailly, Leon Moussinac then whom it crosses in the clarteists mediums in 1921-22.

Quotations

Roland Dorgelès affirmed: “ I had bound with Valiant-Dressmaker to the connected Duck where we found ourselves each week around the ritual meat pie. It had immediately rained me by its ardor, its frankness. After a courageous war, it had returned from distinct the antimilitarist. I do not remember that we ever had political discussion. We were “against”, that was enough. Against the injustice, the brute force, the silly thing, the money . ”

“ Their offer of peace is well badly; The soldier answers it: “I advance” Ca is not nice for the general: The soldier fights, the chief thinks ”. January 3rd 1917. the Duck connected.

Works

the Visit of the shepherd, poems . Editions of time - Paris. 1913.
the War of the soldiers, Ernest Flammarion, 1918. (with Raymond Lefebvre).
Letters with my friends (1918 - 1919). Ernest Flammarion. 1920.
Jean without bread, history for all the children . 1921.
red Trains, poems . Editions Clearness, 1922.
One month in red Moscow it. Editions of the popular report, 1925.
the Ball of the blind men, Ernest Flammarion, 1927.
the Father July. 1927. With thesimilar one. (avec.la coll.de Leon Moussinac)
Asia, Three conscripts, the monster. Office of editions, 1929.
industrial Giants, builders of the new life: nine months of voyage in the the USSR of the five-year plan . Office of edition. 1932.
Misfortune D to be young person, new Editions, 1935.

Childhood. Memories of childhood and youth . ESI, 1938 (first edition, republished in 1946).

We will make rise the day. ED. of Yesterday and Today. 1947.

poor History of ass and fatty pig. ED. the farandole. 1956.
About the following days which sing . Social editions. 1962. Coll.Contribution with the history of the PCF. Compilation of selected texts.

Political booklets

has those of the fields, Editions of Humanity, 1920.
Three months of misery in Germany, Editions of Humanity, 1923.
Saber and hat, Bureau of editions, 1929.
Towards the classless society, Bureau of editions, 1932.
With the service of the spirit, ESI, 1936.
Parler to the people, Editions of the popular committee of propaganda, 1936.
Guerre, assassination, treason, sabotage, the lawsuit of the center of reserve trotzkyste-zinovievist, Bureau of editions, 1937. (with Marcel Cachin).

External bonds

Biography on the site of the town of Villejuif
Maitron, biography of Paul Valiant-Dressmaker by Annie Burger.

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