Louis Louis-Dreyfus (September 6, 1867 – November 10, 1940) was a member of the French parliament and co-director of the commodity distribution and trading company,

Louis Dreyfus Group Louis Dreyfus Company B.V. (LDC) is a French merchant firm that is involved in agriculture, food processing, international shipping, and finance. The company owns and manages hedge funds, Ship management, ocean vessels, develops and operates tele ...

Biography

Louis-Dreyfus was born in Zurich to a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

family, the eldest of three sons of

Léopold Louis-Dreyfus Léopold Louis-Dreyfus (5 March 1833 – 9 April 1915) was a French businessman, diplomat, and investor who was best known as the founder of the Louis Dreyfus Group, and patriarch of the Louis-Dreyfus family. The French government awarded him t ...

(1833–1915) and Emilie Lang (1840–1918).The Cyclopedia of India: biographical, historical, administrative, commercial
retrieved August 16, 2013 His brothers were Charles Louis-Dreyfus (1870–1929) and Robert Louis-Dreyfus (1877–1907). In 1851, his father, the son of a farmer from

Alsace Alsace (, ; ) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in the Grand Est administrative region of northeastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine, next to Germany and Switzerland. In January 2021, it had a population of 1,9 ...

, founded the commodity distributor and trader

growing the business to the point that in 1900, it was the world's largest grain distributor.Funding Universe: "Groupe Louis Dreyfus S.A. History"
retrieved August 16, 2013 After obtaining his law degree, he joined the family business.
August 17, 2013 In 1915, his father died, turning over the family company to sons Louis and Charles, who served as co-directors. In 1917, the Louis Dreyfus Group was forced out of Russia by the

Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution, social change in Russian Empire, Russia, starting in 1917. This period saw Russia Dissolution of the Russian Empire, abolish its mona ...

catalyzing their international expansion.Callil, By Carmen
Bad Faith: A Forgotten History of Family, Fatherland and Vichy France
/ref> During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, the firm expanded into the maritime arms trade supplying the belligerents to war. In 1924, they expanded to South Africa and in the 1920s and 1930s built up their own shipping company, LD Lines. Known as the "King of Wheat," the Dreyfus Group dominated the

grain trade The grain trade refers to the local and international trade in cereals such as wheat, barley, maize, rice, and other food grains. Grain is an important trade item because it is easily stored and transported with limited spoilage, unlike other agri ...

through the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

and up to the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

purchasing grain at low cost in producing countries and selling at a higher price in countries that had shortages. Louis-Dreyfus served in the

French Parliament The French Parliament (, ) is the Bicameralism, bicameral parliament of the French Fifth Republic, consisting of the Senate (France), Senate (), and the National Assembly (France), National Assembly (). Each assembly conducts legislative sessi ...

during the

French Third Republic The French Third Republic (, sometimes written as ) was the system of government adopted in France from 4 September 1870, when the Second French Empire collapsed during the Franco-Prussian War, until 10 July 1940, after the Fall of France durin ...

as a deputy from

Lozère Lozère (; ) is a landlocked Departments of France, department in the Regions of France, region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitanie in Southern France, located near the Massif Central, bounded to the northeast by Haute-Loire, to the ...

from 1905 to 1910, a deputy from

Alpes-Maritimes Alpes-Maritimes (; ; ; ) is a Departments of France, department of France located in the country's southeast corner, on the France–Italy border, Italian border and Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean coast. Part of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'A ...

from 1930 to 1936, and a senator from Alpes-Maritimes from 1937 to 1940. He was a member of the Independents of the Left from 1930 to 1936. The Independents of the Left were one of a number of parliamentary groups that made up the

Democratic Republican Alliance The Democratic Alliance (, AD), originally called Democratic Republican Alliance (, ARD), was a French political party created in 1901 by followers of Léon Gambetta such as Raymond Poincaré, who would be president of the Council in the 1920s. ...

between 1928 and 1936. Louis-Dreyfus and his brother were shareholders in the French Communist paper ''

l'Humanité (; ) is a French daily newspaper. It was previously an organisation of the SFIO, ''de facto'', and thereafter of the French Communist Party (PCF), and maintains links to the party. Its slogan is "In an ideal world, would not exist." History ...

.''

Property seizures under Vichy France

In July 1940, the

Vichy France Vichy France (; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was a French rump state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II, established as a result of the French capitulation after the Battle of France, ...

, under Marshal Petain, ordered confiscation of the wealth and private estates of Baron Edouard de Rothschild and Louis Louis-Dreyfus because of their Jewish heritage.

Personal life

In 1906 he married Emma Lévi (1885–?); they had two children: Jean Louis-Dreyfus (1908–2003) and François Louis-Dreyfus (1910–1958). He was nicknamed ''King Two Louis'' by journalist Léon Daudet and – thanks to his wealth and very public profile as both a politician and businessman – was often referred to as the "Richest Man in France." After Louis Louis-Dreyfus's death in 1940 in Cannes in a carriage accident, his son Jean, and his two nephews, François Louis-Dreyfus (1909–1958) and Pierre Louis-Dreyfus (1908–2011) took over the family company.LD Commodities website: "Our heritage"
retrieved August 17, 2013

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Louis-Dreyfus, Louis 1867 births 1940 deaths Politicians from Zurich Businesspeople from Zurich Swiss emigrants to France Louis Louis-Dreyfus Jewish French politicians Radical Party (France) politicians Independents of the Left politicians Members of the 8th Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic Members of the 9th Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic Members of the 14th Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic Members of the 15th Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic Members of Parliament for Lozère Members of Parliament for Alpes-Maritimes French senators of the Third Republic Senators of Alpes-Maritimes french businesspeople in shipping French military personnel of World War I Commanders of the Legion of Honour Officers of the Ordre du Mérite Maritime Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Isabella the Catholic