Joseph Louis Anne Avenol
Encyclopedia
Joseph Louis Anne Avenol (June 9, 1879, Melle, Deux-Sèvres
, France
— September 2, 1952, Duillier, Vaud
, Switzerland
) was a French
diplomat. He served as the second Secretary General of the League of Nations
, from July 3, 1933 to August 31, 1940. He was preceded by Sir Eric Drummond
of the United Kingdom
, who was general secretary between 1920 and 1933, and he was succeeded by the Irish
diplomat Seán Lester
, who was general secretary between 1940 and 1946, when the League was dissolved.
Avenol was sent to the League of Nations from the French Treasury Department in 1922 to handle the League's finances. He was under secretary-general in 1933, when Eric Drummond resigned. He became secretary-general because the first secretary-general had been British and there had been a private agreement at Versailles that the next would be French. Avenol was accused of using the League as an extension of the French Foreign Office in its policy of appeasement of Germany and Italy. In fact, as he showed after the German occupation of Paris, he was a supporter of Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini and Marshal Philippe Pétain
of the Vichy
régime.
Avenol took office shortly after Japan had left the League. Shortly thereafter Germany also left. He worked to prevent action or criticism of those countries in an effort to lure them back to the League. When Italy invaded Ethiopia in 1935, Avenol's main concern was to keep the Italians in the organization, not to protect Ethiopia.
When the Germans marched into Paris in June 1940, Avenol was reported by his Greek aide, Thanassis Aghnides, to have said, "[W]e must work hand-in-hand with Hitler in order to achieve the unity of Europe and expel England." Later Avenol described "a new France, which was to be given a new soul to work in collaboration with Germany and Italy and keep the British out of Europe". He wrote to Marshal Pétain to affirm his loyalty to the Vichy government.
and the League of Nations for good. His services were not accepted by the Vichy government, and he was forced to flee back into Switzerland on New Year's Eve 1943 to avoid arrest by the Germans. He died in Switzerland in 1952, aged 73.
When Seán Lester
replaced him as secretary-general, the League had only 100 employees, including guards and janitors, of its original 700. Lester managed to keep the League's technical and humanitarian programs in limited operation for the duration of the war. In 1946 he turned over the League's assets and functions to the newly established United Nations
.
. It apparently was never rescinded.
Melle, Deux-Sèvres
Melle is a commune in the Deux-Sèvres department in western France.It is today best known as the home town of Ségolène Royal, the 2007 Socialist candidate for the election of the Presidency of the Republic. Laurent Cantet was also born here.-History:...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
— September 2, 1952, Duillier, Vaud
Vaud
Vaud is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland and is located in Romandy, the French-speaking southwestern part of the country. The capital is Lausanne. The name of the Canton in Switzerland's other languages are Vaud in Italian , Waadt in German , and Vad in Romansh.-History:Along the lakes,...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
) was a French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
diplomat. He served as the second Secretary General of the League of Nations
League of Nations
The League of Nations was an intergovernmental organization founded as a result of the Paris Peace Conference that ended the First World War. It was the first permanent international organization whose principal mission was to maintain world peace...
, from July 3, 1933 to August 31, 1940. He was preceded by Sir Eric Drummond
Eric Drummond, 7th Earl of Perth
James Eric Drummond, 16th Earl of Perth, GCMG, CB was a Scottish representative peer, a British diplomat and the first Secretary General of the League of Nations...
of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, who was general secretary between 1920 and 1933, and he was succeeded by the Irish
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
diplomat Seán Lester
Seán Lester
Seán Lester was an Irish diplomat and the last Secretary General of the League of Nations, from 31 August 1940 to 18 April 1946.-Early life:...
, who was general secretary between 1940 and 1946, when the League was dissolved.
Avenol was sent to the League of Nations from the French Treasury Department in 1922 to handle the League's finances. He was under secretary-general in 1933, when Eric Drummond resigned. He became secretary-general because the first secretary-general had been British and there had been a private agreement at Versailles that the next would be French. Avenol was accused of using the League as an extension of the French Foreign Office in its policy of appeasement of Germany and Italy. In fact, as he showed after the German occupation of Paris, he was a supporter of Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini and Marshal Philippe Pétain
Philippe Pétain
Henri Philippe Benoni Omer Joseph Pétain , generally known as Philippe Pétain or Marshal Pétain , was a French general who reached the distinction of Marshal of France, and was later Chief of State of Vichy France , from 1940 to 1944...
of the Vichy
Vichy France
Vichy France, Vichy Regime, or Vichy Government, are common terms used to describe the government of France that collaborated with the Axis powers from July 1940 to August 1944. This government succeeded the Third Republic and preceded the Provisional Government of the French Republic...
régime.
Avenol took office shortly after Japan had left the League. Shortly thereafter Germany also left. He worked to prevent action or criticism of those countries in an effort to lure them back to the League. When Italy invaded Ethiopia in 1935, Avenol's main concern was to keep the Italians in the organization, not to protect Ethiopia.
When the Germans marched into Paris in June 1940, Avenol was reported by his Greek aide, Thanassis Aghnides, to have said, "[W]e must work hand-in-hand with Hitler in order to achieve the unity of Europe and expel England." Later Avenol described "a new France, which was to be given a new soul to work in collaboration with Germany and Italy and keep the British out of Europe". He wrote to Marshal Pétain to affirm his loyalty to the Vichy government.
Last years and death
In the meantime, he had fired most of the League's staff, including all the British employees. On August 31, 1940, Avenol left GenevaGeneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
and the League of Nations for good. His services were not accepted by the Vichy government, and he was forced to flee back into Switzerland on New Year's Eve 1943 to avoid arrest by the Germans. He died in Switzerland in 1952, aged 73.
When Seán Lester
Seán Lester
Seán Lester was an Irish diplomat and the last Secretary General of the League of Nations, from 31 August 1940 to 18 April 1946.-Early life:...
replaced him as secretary-general, the League had only 100 employees, including guards and janitors, of its original 700. Lester managed to keep the League's technical and humanitarian programs in limited operation for the duration of the war. In 1946 he turned over the League's assets and functions to the newly established United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
.
Honours
In 1921, he was created an honorary Knight Commander of the Order of the British EmpireOrder of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
. It apparently was never rescinded.