Candide (newspaper)
Encyclopedia
Candide was the name given to various French newspapers of the 19th and 20th century.
on 3 May 1865. It appeared on Wednesday and Saturday every week, and cost 5 centime
s. The main collaborators on Candide were Blanqui, Tridon Villeneuve, Vaissier, Watteau, Marchand, Viette, Verlière and Sumino.
. This paper was one of the main literary and political weeklies of the inter-war period, and its formula inspired other papers from Gringoire
on the extreme-right to Vendredi and Marianne on the left. As for itself, Candide was rooted in the Maurassist movement, nationalist and antisemitic: Pierre Gaxotte
, personal secretary of Charles Maurras
, was a member of the collective editorial leadership until 1940; Lucien Dubech as drama critic, Dominique Sordet as music critic, Maurice Pefferkorn for sports and Abel Manouvriez the legal columnist performed the same roles for both Candide and L'Action française; Lucien Rebatet
and Robert Brasillach
, two young Maurassian talents, wrote for Candide. Its numerous cartoons, particularly those of Sennep, were much appreciated by the readership.
Candide was anti-parliamentarian, anti-republican, keenly anti-communist, basically, antidemocratic, and it was not loath to antisemitic tones. After 6 February 1934 it became radicalised along with the rest of the extreme-right and a good part of the right, while not reaching the robust fascism of Je suis partout
and while retaining a light tone. Hostility towards Jews and foreigners was reasserted. While it was often watchful of the danger from Germany, Candide approved of the Munich Agreement
, following the general evolution of the Maurrassist movement.
Printed in large format (43x60 cm), the paper ran 80,000 copies in its first year, almost 150,000 in 1930, then at least 340,000 from 1936 onwards (465,000 in that year according to Pierre Albert, emeritus professor at Pantheon-Assas Paris II University). It exercised an important influence in politics in conservative and reactionary
circles, and its literary pages was respected more widely: Albert Thibaudet
, who had nothing in common with the extreme-right, wrote for Candide (although he died in 1936). Mainly from 1936 onwards, Candide tried to convince its readers of the imminence of a communist coup d'état
in France.
Under the German occupation, Candide left Paris for the zone libre
and supported the Révolution nationale
, which embodied substantially its political ideas, particularly from 1934–1936; however it avoided the Parisian collaborationism defended by Je suis partout. It disappeared after the liberation, banned for its compromising attitude towards the Vichy regime.
Other contributors included Georges Blond and Irène Némirovsky
.
, Paul Gordeaux and Gilles Perrault
among its columnists as well as Jean-François Steiner who would become the chair of Maurice Papon
's defense committee, appeared during the course of the 1960s. According to the revelations of Constantin Melnik, special adviser for prime minister Michel Debré
, this weekly received secret funding in order to counter the influence of papers opposed to the Algerian war, such as L'Express
and France-Observateur
.
Blanquist Candide
Candide was a newspaper founded by Gustave Tridon and Auguste BlanquiLouis Auguste Blanqui
Louis Auguste Blanqui was a French political activist, notable for the revolutionary theory of Blanquism, attributed to him....
on 3 May 1865. It appeared on Wednesday and Saturday every week, and cost 5 centime
Centime
Centime is French for "cent", and is used in English as the name of the fraction currency in several Francophone countries ....
s. The main collaborators on Candide were Blanqui, Tridon Villeneuve, Vaissier, Watteau, Marchand, Viette, Verlière and Sumino.
Maurassist Candide
The name was taken up in 1924 by a weekly newspaper launched by the bookseller Arthème FayardFayard
Fayard is a French Paris-based publishing house established in 1857. Fayard is controlled by Hachette Livre.-Works published:Works published by Editions Fayard include:...
. This paper was one of the main literary and political weeklies of the inter-war period, and its formula inspired other papers from Gringoire
Gringoire (newspaper)
Gringoire was a political and literary weekly newspaper in France, founded in 1928 by Horace de Carbuccia , Georges Suarez and Joseph Kessel....
on the extreme-right to Vendredi and Marianne on the left. As for itself, Candide was rooted in the Maurassist movement, nationalist and antisemitic: Pierre Gaxotte
Pierre Gaxotte
-Biography:Gaxotte was born in Revigny-sur-Ornain, Meuse. He began his career as a history teacher at the Lycée Charlemagne and later worked as a columnist for Le Figaro...
, personal secretary of Charles Maurras
Charles Maurras
Charles-Marie-Photius Maurras was a French author, poet, and critic. He was a leader and principal thinker of Action Française, a political movement that was monarchist, anti-parliamentarist, and counter-revolutionary. Maurras' ideas greatly influenced National Catholicism and "nationalisme...
, was a member of the collective editorial leadership until 1940; Lucien Dubech as drama critic, Dominique Sordet as music critic, Maurice Pefferkorn for sports and Abel Manouvriez the legal columnist performed the same roles for both Candide and L'Action française; Lucien Rebatet
Lucien Rebatet
Lucien Rebatet was a French author, journalist and intellectual, an exponent of fascism and virulent antisemite.-Early life:...
and Robert Brasillach
Robert Brasillach
Robert Brasillach was a French author and journalist. Brasillach is best known as the editor of Je suis partout, a nationalist newspaper which came to advocate various fascist movements and supported Jacques Doriot...
, two young Maurassian talents, wrote for Candide. Its numerous cartoons, particularly those of Sennep, were much appreciated by the readership.
Candide was anti-parliamentarian, anti-republican, keenly anti-communist, basically, antidemocratic, and it was not loath to antisemitic tones. After 6 February 1934 it became radicalised along with the rest of the extreme-right and a good part of the right, while not reaching the robust fascism of Je suis partout
Je suis partout
Je suis partout was a French newspaper founded by Jean Fayard, first published on 29 November 1930. It was placed under the direction of Pierre Gaxotte until 1939...
and while retaining a light tone. Hostility towards Jews and foreigners was reasserted. While it was often watchful of the danger from Germany, Candide approved of the Munich Agreement
Munich Agreement
The Munich Pact was an agreement permitting the Nazi German annexation of Czechoslovakia's Sudetenland. The Sudetenland were areas along Czech borders, mainly inhabited by ethnic Germans. The agreement was negotiated at a conference held in Munich, Germany, among the major powers of Europe without...
, following the general evolution of the Maurrassist movement.
Printed in large format (43x60 cm), the paper ran 80,000 copies in its first year, almost 150,000 in 1930, then at least 340,000 from 1936 onwards (465,000 in that year according to Pierre Albert, emeritus professor at Pantheon-Assas Paris II University). It exercised an important influence in politics in conservative and reactionary
Reactionary
The term reactionary refers to viewpoints that seek to return to a previous state in a society. The term is meant to describe one end of a political spectrum whose opposite pole is "radical". While it has not been generally considered a term of praise it has been adopted as a self-description by...
circles, and its literary pages was respected more widely: Albert Thibaudet
Albert Thibaudet
Albert Thibaudet was a French essayist and literary critic. A former student of Henri Bergson, he was a professor of Jean Rousset...
, who had nothing in common with the extreme-right, wrote for Candide (although he died in 1936). Mainly from 1936 onwards, Candide tried to convince its readers of the imminence of a communist coup d'état
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
in France.
Under the German occupation, Candide left Paris for the zone libre
Zone libre
The zone libre was a partition of the French metropolitan territory during the Second World War, established at the Second Armistice at Compiègne on June 22, 1940. It lay to the south of the demarcation line and was administered by the French government of Marshal Philippe Pétain based in Vichy,...
and supported the Révolution nationale
Révolution nationale
The Révolution nationale was the official ideological name under which the Vichy regime established by Marshal Philippe Pétain in July 1940 presented its program...
, which embodied substantially its political ideas, particularly from 1934–1936; however it avoided the Parisian collaborationism defended by Je suis partout. It disappeared after the liberation, banned for its compromising attitude towards the Vichy regime.
Other contributors included Georges Blond and Irène Némirovsky
Irène Némirovsky
Irène Némirovsky was a French novelist who died at the age of 39 in Auschwitz, Nazi Germany occupied Poland. She was killed by the Nazis for being classified as a Jew under the racial laws, which did not take into account her conversion to Roman Catholicism.-Biography:Irène Némirovsky was born in...
.
Gaullist Candide
A weekly called Le Nouveau Candide which counted Jean DutourdJean Dutourd
Jean Gwenaël Dutourd was a French novelist. His mother died when he was seven years old. At the age of twenty, he was taken prisoner fifteen days after Germany's invasion of France in World War II...
, Paul Gordeaux and Gilles Perrault
Gilles Perrault
Gilles Perrault is a left-wing French writer and journalist.He attended the Collège Stanislas de Paris and then studied at the Institut d'études politiques, eventually becoming a lawyer, a profession he worked in for five years....
among its columnists as well as Jean-François Steiner who would become the chair of Maurice Papon
Maurice Papon
Maurice Papon was a French civil servant, industrial leader and Gaullist politician, who was convicted for crimes against humanity for his participation in the deportation of over 1600 Jews during World War II when he was secretary general for police of the Prefecture of Bordeaux.Papon also...
's defense committee, appeared during the course of the 1960s. According to the revelations of Constantin Melnik, special adviser for prime minister Michel Debré
Michel Debré
Michel Jean-Pierre Debré was a French Gaullist politician. He is considered the "father" of the current Constitution of France, and was the first Prime Minister of the Fifth Republic...
, this weekly received secret funding in order to counter the influence of papers opposed to the Algerian war, such as L'Express
L'Express (France)
L'Express is a French weekly news magazine. When founded in 1953 during the First Indochina War, it was modelled on the US magazine TIME.-History:...
and France-Observateur
Le Nouvel Observateur
Le Nouvel Observateur is a weekly French newsmagazine. Based in Paris, it is the most prominent French general information magazine in terms of audience and circulation ....
.