Pierre Magne (3 December 1806 – 17 February 1879) was a lawyer and French politician. He was a member of parliament from 1843 to 1848, a senator in the
Second French Empire
The Second French Empire, officially the French Empire, was the government of France from 1852 to 1870. It was established on 2 December 1852 by Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte, president of France under the French Second Republic, who proclaimed hi ...
, and a representative and then senator in 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 ...
. He was Minister of Finance several times.
Early years
Pierre Magne was born in
Périgueux
Périgueux (, ; or ) is a commune in the Dordogne department, in the administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France.
Périgueux is the prefecture of Dordogne, and the capital city of Périgord. It is also the seat of ...
, Dordogne, on 3 December 1806. As a youth he was sponsored by Marshal
Thomas Robert Bugeaud
Thomas Robert Bugeaud, marquis de la Piconnerie, duc d'Isly (15 October 178410 June 1849) was a Marshal of France and Colonial heads of Algeria, Governor-General of Algeria during the French colonization. Born an aristocrat, he has a complex le ...
. He studied law at the
University of Toulouse
The University of Toulouse (, ) is a community of universities and establishments ( ComUE) based in Toulouse, France. Originally it was established in 1229, making it one of the earliest universities to emerge in Europe. Suppressed during the ...
, and after qualifying as a lawyer joined the bar of Périgueux. For some time he was advisor to the prefecture of
Dordogne
Dordogne ( , or ; ; ) is a large rural departments of France, department in south west France, with its Prefectures in France, prefecture in Périgueux. Located in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region roughly half-way between the Loire Valley and ...
.
Second Republic and Empire
On 19 August 1843 Magne ran successfully for election as deputy for the 1st district of Dordogne. He joined the Conservative majority.
He presented various reports on finance for
Algeria
Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...
, and was a loyal supporter of his sponsor, Marshal Bugeaud.
He was appointed rapporteur of revenue estimates.
Magne was reelected on 1 August 1846, and was soon appointed Chief Counsel to the Ministry of Finance, then Deputy Secretary of State in the Ministry of War.
For this appointment he had to seek reelection, and succeeded on 18 December 1847.
During the
French Revolution of 1848
The French Revolution of 1848 (), also known as the February Revolution (), was a period of civil unrest in France, in February 1848, that led to the collapse of the July Monarchy and the foundation of the French Second Republic. It sparked t ...
Magne lost office, but as a supporter of the presidential goals of
Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte in November 1849 he was appointed Under-Secretary of State for the Finance department. In the cabinet of 9 January 1851 he was made Minister of Works. On 6 July 1851 he was elected Representative of the Dordogne, retaining his ministerial portfolio.
He lost power briefly in January 1852, but returned to office five months later.
On 31 December 1852 Magne was appointed to the Senate. In 1854 he was appointed Minister of Finance, holding this post until November 1860.
He then was appointed Minister without Portfolio. He resigned and was appointed to the Privy Council on 1 April 1863.
On 13 November 1867 he was again appointed Minister of Finance. His first act was to initiate the float of a loan on 27 January 1868 to cover army pensions.
On 27 December 1869 he retired before the cabinet of
Émile Ollivier
Olivier Émile Ollivier (; 2 July 182520 August 1913) was a French statesman. Starting as an avid republican opposed to Emperor Napoleon III, he pushed the Emperor toward liberal reforms and in turn came increasingly into Napoleon's grip. He en ...
was formed, but on 3 January 1870 was appointed to Ollivier's cabinet.
He lost power on 4 September 1870 during the
Franco-Prussian War
The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the War of 1870, was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the North German Confederation led by the Kingdom of Prussia. Lasting from 19 July 1870 to 28 Janua ...
(19 July 1870 – 10 May 1871).
Third Republic
On 2 July 1871 Magne ran successfully as candidate for Dordogne in the National assembly.
He joined the Orléanist parliamentary group, ''Centre droit'', voted with the monarchists and was a member of several committees on finance.
In the first cabinet of
de Broglie (25 May 1873 – 16 May 1874) he was again appointed minister of finance. He resigned from the cabinet on 15 July 1874.
On 30 January 1876 he was elected Senator for the Dordogne.
He was relatively inactive, often missing sessions due to illness.
He died at the
Château de Montaigne
The Château de Montaigne is a castle mansion situated on the borders of Périgord and Bordelais, near Bergerac and Saint-Émilion, in the small '' commune'' of Saint-Michel-de-Montaigne in the Dordogne ''département'' of France. The struct ...
, Dordogne, on 17 February 1879, aged 72.
References
Citations
Sources
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Magne, Pierre
1806 births
1879 deaths
People from Périgueux
Politicians from Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Orléanists
Ministers of agriculture and commerce of France
Finance ministers of France
Ministers of public works of France
Members of the 6th Chamber of Deputies of the July Monarchy
Members of the 7th Chamber of Deputies of the July Monarchy
Members of the National Legislative Assembly of the French Second Republic
French senators of the Second Empire
Members of the National Assembly (1871)
French senators of the Third Republic
Senators of Dordogne