MENTALMAGINOTLINES:ANTI-REPUBLICANISM,GENDER,ANDVOTING RIGHTSINTHEPOLITICSOFTHEFRENCHARMY,1871-1940 ADissertation SubmittedtotheGraduateSchool oftheUniversityofNotreDame inPartialFulfillmentoftheRequirements fortheDegreeof DoctorofPhilosophy by AndrewOrr,B.A.,M.A. ThomasKselman,Director GraduatePrograminHistory NotreDame,Indiana April2007 ©Copyrightby ANDREWORR 2007 Allrightsreserved MENTALMAGINOTLINES:ANTI-REPUBLICANISM,GENDER,ANDVOTING RIGHTSINTHEPOLITICSOFTHEFRENCHARMY,1871-1940 Abstract by AndrewOrr Thisdissertationusesvotingrights,gender,militarydoctrine,andmilitary identitytostudytheevolutionoftheFrenchArmy’srelationshiptotheRepublicanstate from1971until1940.DrawingonpapersfromtheArchivesNationalesandtheService Historiquedel’ArméedeTerre,thedissertationarguesthatFrenchmilitaryleaders respondedtopressuretoweakentheircontrolovertheirsoldiers’livesandtransitiontoa militia-stylearmybyredefiningmilitaryidentityinoppositiontotheThirdRepublicand civiliansociety. Duringthe1920s,militaryintellectualsreactedagainstthesocialandpolitical changescausedbytheGreatWarbytryingtoseparatethearmyfromtherestofFrench society.Thismanifesteditselfinthegenerals’oppositiontogivingsoldierstherightto vote,theirunexpectedintegrationofwomenintotheArmyascivilianemployees,and militarydoctrinesfocusedoncontrollingFrenchsoldiersandcivilians.Theprocessof separationbeganwithbatailleconduite(MethodicalBattle)theorists’focusonexercising politicalcontroloverconscriptsandescalatedinthemid-1920stoincludeplanstouse AndrewOrr civilemployees,includingwomen,clandestinelytomaintainalargerarmythan authorizedbylaw.Thesituationdeterioratedintheearly-1930s,leadingtoacrisisof civil-militaryrelationsinDecember1933,whenFrance’sgeneralsdirectlyattackedthe government,andescapedwithoutbeingpunished,shatteringtheThirdRepublic’ssystem ofcivil-militaryconsultationandconciliation. Thearmyattemptedtousewomen,veterans,andAfricanmenasdefensesagainst demandsforpoliticalandsocialequalityforandamongsoldiers.Studyingtheprocess wherebymilitaryleaderstriedtointegratethesegroupsrevealedarapidlygrowing separationbetweenthearmyandpoliticalsocietythatmanifesteditselfinafearofthe electoralsystemandunderminedciviliancontroloverthearmedforces.Attentionto genderanddoctrinerevealedthatoverthe1920s,armyleadersincreasinglydefined militaryidentityinoppositiontodemocracyandtheRepublicanpoliticalregime.This evolutioncreatedthepreconditionsnecessaryforMarshalPhilippePétainandGeneral MaiximeWeygandtochallengetheThirdRepublic’slegitimacyduringtheGerman conquestofFrancein1940. TomywifeSuzanne ii CONTENTS Acknowledgments..............................................................................................................iv Introduction:DebatingtheThirdRepublic ......................................................................... 1 ChapterI:CreatingtheGrandeMuette............................................................................. 16 ChapterII:FromÉlantoBatailleConduite......................................................................62 ChapterIII:RepublicanizingtheArmy........................................................................... 106 ChapterIV:TheGrandAllianceoftheDisenfranchised................................................ 155 ChapterV:TheBattleofFrance ..................................................................................... 203 Conculusion:TheAgeoftheGenerals ........................................................................... 243 Bibliography.................................................................................................................... 253 iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Iwouldliketothankthemanyprofessorswhohaveguidedmyeducationandthis dissertation,especiallymycommitteemembers,Dr.ThomasKselman,Dr.DorisBergen, Dr.GaryHamburg,andDr.MikolajKunicki.AtClaremontMcKennaCollege,Dr. GainesPostJr.andDr.HaroldRoodinspiredmyinterestinteaching,andtheirinfluence continuestoaffectmyscholarship.Iamparticularlygratefultomydissertationadvisor, Dr.ThomasKselman,whohasallowedmetoworkonatopichewouldnothavechosen. Iamthankfulfortohimforhispatience,confidence,andwillingnesstoacceptmyflaws. SomedayIhopetoinspirethesameconfidenceinmyownstudentsthatheinspiredin me. IwouldliketothankDr.GaryHamburg,nowtheOttoG.BehrProfessorof EuropeanHistoryatClaremontMcKennaCollege,andDr.DorisBergen,nowthe ChancellorRoseandRayWolfeChairinHolocaustStudiesattheUniversityofToronto forcontinuingtoserveonmycommitteedespitehavingleftNotreDame.Iappreciateall ofthetimetheyhaveinvestedinmyeducationandIamgratefultothemforalloftheir help.Overthelastsevenyears,DorisBergen’sfriendshipandinsightfuladvicehave beeninvaluableinhelpingmetocompletethisdissertation.IamalsogratefultoDr. PhilippeBurrinandtheprofessorsattheInstitutUniversitairedesHautesÉtudes Internationalesfortheirhelpfulcommentsonmydissertation. iv Severalfoundationsandinstitutionshavesupportedthisprojectthroughresearch andwritinggrantsandfellowships.IamgratefultotheInstitutUniversitairedesHautes ÉtudesInternationales(HEI),theFerrisFoundationofAmerica,theUniversityof Virginia,andfellowshipdirectorDr.AllenLynchforselectingmeasthe2006-2007 AlbertGallatinFellowandprovidingmewithaninvaluableyearlongfellowshipto completethisdissertation.IwouldliketothanktheUniversityofNotreDame’sNanovic InstituteofEuropeanStudiesforsupportingmyresearchwithaResearchandTravel GrantinconjunctionwiththeUniversityofNotreDame’sZahmTravelGrant.In addition,IgratefullyacknowledgetheUnitedStatesMilitaryAcademyatWestPointfor providingmewithfinancialassistancethroughits2004SummerMilitaryHistory Seminar,andgivingmeanopportunitytosharemyearlyresearchresultswithother historiansofthearmedforces. IwouldliketothankcomteAlexdeMartimpreyandPatrickMartimpreyfor allowingmeaccesstotheirfamily’srecords.IamalsoconsciousofmydebttoDrLaura Crago,Dr.JamesTurner,andDr.SemionLyandresforhelpingmeinmygraduatecareer atNotreDame. Aboveall,Iamgratefultomywife,SuzanneOrr,whohasenduredlong separationsandacceptedmyobsessionwiththelongagocontroversiesofafaraway land.Icouldneverhavewrittenthisdissertationwithoutherhelp.Asmyproject evolvedtoincludeastudyofidentityandgender,shebecamemyguideintothe unfamiliarworldofgenderhistory.Allwhoknowuscanseeherinfluenceinmy scholarship.Asbothmycompanionandascholar,shehasdonemorethansheknowsto helpmewritethisdissertation. v INTRODUCTION DEBATINGTHETHIRDREPUBLIC TheFallofFrancehasenergizedhistoricalandpoliticaldebatessince1940,but historianshavenotbeenabletoagreeonhoworwhyithappened.Somearguedthat FrancefellbecauseofdeepdivisionswithintheFrenchpopulation,andothersblamedthe vagariesofwar.Althoughhistorians,generals,andpoliticianshaveconceptualizedthe FallofFranceasasingleevent,itreallyconsistedoftwoseparatedefeats:themilitary defeatoftheFrenchArmybytheGermanArmyandthepoliticaldefeatoftheRepublic’s civilianleadersbyFrance’stopgenerals.Thedefeatswereseparate,sequential,but overlappingevents.Neitherdefeatwaspreordained,northenaturalresultoftheother, althoughthetwodefeatssharedsomecommoncauses.Thisdissertationfocusesonthe politicaldefeatandusesastudyofcivil-militarypoliticsininterwarFrancetoexplore whythemilitaryelitefeltjustifiedinchallengingtheRepublic’scivilianleadersduring themilitarydefeat. ThisdissertationdrawsheavilyfrompreviouslyunusedsourcesintheFrench ArmyArchiveintheChâteauVincennes.Thesesources,containedinaSupplementto theNseries,coverthe1919-1940period,butwereunavailabletoscholarsfordecades aftertheNSeries,covering1871-1940,wasopened.TheSupplementcontainspapers 1 capturedbytheGermansin1940andtheSovietsin1945.Thepapersremainedin RussiauntilBorisYeltsinreturnedthemoverthecourseofthelate-1990s.The SupplementcontainsatreasuretroveofmilitaryrecordsfromtheleveloftheGeneral Staffdowntoindividualunits,inmanycasestherearemorepapersinanoffice’sSeries NSupplementfilethanareintheoriginalSeriesN.AlthoughtheSeriesNSupplement hasbeenopenforseveralyears,itsrudimentaryindexandeclecticorganizationhave dissuadedmostscholarsfromusingitandhaveobscuredthevalueofitscontents. AlthoughtheSeriesNSupplementprovidesthedissertation’sbackbone,italsomakes extensiveuseoftheoriginalSeriesNandstudiesthemilitaryreformmovementthrough thepoliceandpoliticalsurveillancefilesintheArchivesNationales’sF/7Series. Inadditiontoarchivalsources,thefirstchapterusesearly-twentieth-centurylegal manualstoreexamineseveralpre-GreatWarlegalcontroversiesconcerningthepolitical rightsofsoldiersandtherelativepowersoftheparliamentversusarmedforces.Access tonewarchivalsourcesallowsthisdissertationtoreevaluateandfindnewsignificancein episodesstudiedbyotherhistoriansofFrance.ChapterIIIdrawsheavilyoninterwar newspaperaccountsandusespro-reformtractstosupplementarchivalsourcesand balancethebiasinherentingovernmentsurveillancerecords. Buildingonunresolvedtensionsfromthepre-GreatWarera,thedevelopmentof civil-militaryrelationsinthe1920sandearly1930sproducedamilitaryestablishment thatwasisolatedandgenerallysuspiciousoftheRepublic.AftertheendoftheGreat War,armydoctrinesandpersonnelpoliciesdefinedprofessionalismandinstitutional loyaltyinoppositiontotheThirdRepublic’svaluesandinstitutionsandexacerbatedthe military’spre-GreatWarseparationfromtheRepublic.Thisdysfunctionalcivil-military 2 relationshiphaditsrootsintheearlyThirdRepublic,butdevelopedinthe1920sinways thatprogressivelyunderminedthemilitary’sloyaltytothepoliticalregime,establishinga crucialcontextfortheeventsof1940,whenFrance’sseniorgeneralschosetotake advantageofthemilitarydefeattodeposetheRepublicangovernment. Previoushistorianshavefocusedoneitherpoliticiansorgeneralsasculpritsin explainingtheFallofFranceandtheemergenceoftheauthoritarianVichyRegime.