Marcel Héraud (5 May 1883 – 17 September 1960) was a French lawyer and politician who was briefly

Minister of Health A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare spending and other social security services. Some governments have separate ministers for mental heal ...

in 1940.

Early years (1883–1924)

Marcel Héraud was born on 5 May 1883 in

Cérilly, Allier Cérilly () is a commune in the Allier department in central France. It is in close proximity to the largest and oldest untouched oak forest in western Europe: the Forest of Tronçais. Many oak trees exceed 250 years in age. The Troncais (pr ...

. His parents were Adrien Héraud, a doctor and consultant at the thermal baths of

Luxeuil-les-Bains Luxeuil-les-Bains () is a commune in the Haute-Saône department in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté west of Mulhouse in eastern France. History Luxeuil (sometimes rendered Luxeu in older texts) was the Roman Luxovium and contained many ...

, and Alice Delarue. Marcel Héraud attended the

Collège Stanislas de Paris The Collège Stanislas de Paris (), colloquially known as Stan, is a private Catholic school in Paris, situated on " Rue Notre-Dame-des-Champs" in the 6th arrondissement. It has more than 3,000 students, from preschool to '' classes préparatoir ...

for his secondary education, then entered the Faculty of Law of Paris and the School of Political Sciences (

Ecole des sciences politiques Sciences Po () or Sciences Po Paris, also known as the Paris Institute of Political Studies (), is a public research university located in Paris, France, that holds the status of ''grande école'' and the legal status of . The university's unde ...

). He obtained a degree in law and began a career as a trainee advocate in 1908. He married Lucie Félix-Bouvier on 2 December 1909. They would have one daughter. In 1912 he was admitted to the bar of the Paris Court of Appeal. In 1912 he was awarded the Prix Laval. 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 ...

(1914–18) Héraud enlisted as a volunteer on 2 August 1914. He was a sergeant of the 2nd mixed regiment of ''

zouave The Zouaves () were a class of light infantry regiments of the French Army and other units modelled on it, which served between 1830 and 1962, and served in French North Africa. The zouaves were among the most decorated units of the French Army ...

s'' and riflemen in 1916 when he was wounded before the fort of

Douaumont Douaumont () is a former commune in the Meuse department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. On 1 January 2019, it was merged into the new commune Douaumont-Vaux. History The village was a single street lying on an east-west axis and appe ...

. He was demobilized in 1917. Héraud was made a Commander of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

and was awarded the Military Medal (''

Médaille militaire The ''Médaille militaire'' (, "Military Medal") is a military decoration of the French Republic for other ranks for meritorious service and acts of bravery in action against an enemy force. It is the third highest award of the French Republic, ...

'') and the 1914–18 War Cross (''

Croix de guerre 1914–1918 Croix (French for "cross") may refer to: Belgium * Croix-lez-Rouveroy, a village in municipality of Estinnes in the province of Hainaut France * Croix, Nord, in the Nord department * Croix, Territoire de Belfort, in the Territoire de Belfort depa ...

''). Héraud was elected municipal councilor in the 6th arrondissement of Paris,

Saint-Germain-des-Prés Saint-Germain-des-Prés () is one of the four administrative quarters of the 6th arrondissement of Paris, France, located around the church of the former Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés. Its official borders are the River Seine on the nor ...

, in 1919. In 1920 he was elected councilor-general of the

Seine department Seine is a former department of France, which encompassed Paris and its immediate suburbs. It was the only enclaved department of France, being surrounded entirely by the former Seine-et-Oise department. Its prefecture was Paris and its INSEE n ...

. He was mainly concerned with financial questions and services such as transport and electricity. He participated in the Federal Union of French Associations of the Wounded (Union fédérale des associations françaises de mutilés). In 1923 he was vice-president of the municipal council of Paris. He was elected president of FIDAC (The Interallied Federation of War Veterans Organisations) between 1926–1927.F.I.D.A.C. (Fédération Interalliée des Anciens Combattants), Paris, 1933, p. 6-7

Deputy (1924–1940)

On 11 May 1924 Héraud was elected deputy for the 3rd district of the Seine in the first round of voting, on the Democratic Republican Union (Union républicaine démocratique) list. He sat in the chamber with the Democratic Republic Left (Gauche républicaine démocratique). He was reelected on 22 April 1928 in the first round. During his long parliamentary career Héraud was active in various parliamentary committees, and was particularly involved in the committee on Foreign Affairs. He made proposals on various subjects, but his main interest was in legal topics such as the civil code, penal code, code of criminal procedure and so on. Héraud was under-secretary of state to the President of the Council from 3 November 1929 to 21 February 1930, and from 2 March 1930 to 13 December 1930. He became a member of the

Croix-de-Feu The Croix-de-Feu (, ''Cross of Fire'') was a nationalist French league of the interwar period, led by Colonel François de la Rocque (1885–1946). After it was dissolved, as were all other leagues during the Popular Front period (1936–38) ...

veterans' organization, probably mainly to win votes in the 1932 elections. Héraud was reelected on 8 May 1932 in the second round, and sat in the chamber with the Republican Center. He was reelected on 3 May 1936 in the second round, and sat with the group of Independent Republicans. He was Minister of Public Health from 21 March 1940 to 5 June 1940 in the cabinet of

Paul Reynaud Paul Reynaud (; 15 October 1878 – 21 September 1966) was a French politician and lawyer prominent in the interwar period, noted for his economic liberalism and vocal opposition to Nazi Germany. Reynaud opposed the Munich Agreement of Septembe ...

. On 10 July 1940, he voted in favour of granting the cabinet presided by Marchal

Philippe Pétain Henri Philippe Bénoni Omer Joseph Pétain (; 24 April 1856 – 23 July 1951), better known as Marshal Pétain (, ), was a French marshal who commanded the French Army in World War I and later became the head of the Collaboration with Nazi Ger ...

authority to draw up a new constitution, thereby effectively ending 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 ...

and establishing

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, ...

Later career (1940–60)

Héraud retired from politics after the vote of 10 July 1940. He returned to the Paris bar, where he was mainly involved in civil cases, but pleaded several high-profile criminal cases. He joined the Council of the Order of Advocates (Conseil de l'Ordre des avocats) in 1945. He was ''

Bâtonnier In some legal systems, the bâtonnier is the head of the legal profession (the bar). Jersey In Jersey, the Bâtonnier is head of the profession of advocate. The role includes administering the legal aid system for the island (the day-to-day adm ...

'' of the Order from 1953 to 1955. He defended the

collaborationist Wartime collaboration is cooperation with the enemy against one's country of citizenship in wartime. As historian Gerhard Hirschfeld says, it "is as old as war and the occupation of foreign territory". The term ''collaborator'' dates to the 19th ...

Jacques Benoist-Méchin Jacques Michel Gabriel Paul Benoist-Méchin (1 July 1901 – 24 February 1983) was a French far right politician and writer. He was born and died in Paris. Well known as a journalist, he later became prominent for his collaborationism under the ...

in the high court, and obtained the acquittal of Paul Creyssel, the former deputy of the Seine. He also participated in the notorious trial of Gaston Dominici. Marcel Héraud died in his home in Paris on 17 September 1960 at the age of 77.

Publications

* * * * *

Notes

Sources

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Heraud, Marcel 1883 births 1960 deaths People from Cérilly, Allier Democratic Republican Alliance politicians Republican Centre politicians Ministers of health of France Members of the 13th 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 the 16th Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic Members of Parliament for Seine Collège Stanislas de Paris alumni