Marcel Bucard
Encyclopedia
Marcel Bucard was a French
Fascist
politician.
Early career=
A decorated soldier who earned a reputation for bravery in World War I
, Bucard became active in politics after 1918, initially as a member of Action Française
(an Integralist royalist far right
group) and then as a member of the overtly fascist and antisemitic Faisceau
of Georges Valois
.
In September 1933, Bucard founded his own group, the Mouvement Franciste
- arguably the most extreme group of the time, and one financed by Benito Mussolini
's government. On February 6, 1934
, the Francistes joined the other right-wing parties in the riots in front of the Palais Bourbon
(a protest provoked by the Stavisky Affair
, and possibly intended as a coup d'état
). Subsequently, the Popular Front
government banned his movement (as well as other all other right wing 'leagues', fascist or otherwise) upon its emergence in 1936; Bucard was imprisoned briefly. His attempt to recreate the movement as a Party (Parti Franciste) in 1938 was without lasting success, as it too was outlawed.
World War II=
After the Fall of France in World War II
, and the start of the Nazi German
Occupation
and Vichy France
, Bucard's Parti was again active (from 1941), this time as a collaborationist force. Bucard called upon his Francists to give whatever support they could to the Germans, including military intelligence and information concerning the Resistance. His role in the period was, however, limited, as he was usually absent due to suffering caused by old wounds; nonetheless, he was the co-founder of the Légion des volontaires français contre le bolchevisme. After the D-Day landings he argued that Francists should join the French Waffen SS or French/foreign units in the NSKK
or Kriegsmarine
.
Death=
In 1946, after the German defeat, Bucard was sentenced to death for treason
, and executed a month later. At his trial the prosecutor, Vassart, accused the Francists of routinely infiltrating French resistance
groups to betray them to the Germans, of numerous crimes (including murder of opponents and violently resisting French police even before the Liberation) and Bucard was blamed for the deaths of Soviet, Allied and French combatants due to his wholehearted support for the German occupier and his recruitment activities on behalf of the LVF, Milice
and French Waffen SS
.
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...
Fascist
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
politician.
Early career=
A decorated soldier who earned a reputation for bravery in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, Bucard became active in politics after 1918, initially as a member of Action Française
Action Française
The Action Française , founded in 1898, is a French Monarchist counter-revolutionary movement and periodical founded by Maurice Pujo and Henri Vaugeois and whose principal ideologist was Charles Maurras...
(an Integralist royalist far right
Far right
Far-right, extreme right, hard right, radical right, and ultra-right are terms used to discuss the qualitative or quantitative position a group or person occupies within right-wing politics. Far-right politics may involve anti-immigration and anti-integration stances towards groups that are...
group) and then as a member of the overtly fascist and antisemitic Faisceau
Faisceau
Le Faisceau was a short-lived French Fascist political party. It was founded on November 11, 1925 as a far right league by Georges Valois. It was preceded by its newspaper, Le Nouveau Siècle - founded as a weekly on February 26, it became a daily after the party's creation.-Creation:Contributors...
of Georges Valois
Georges Valois
Georges Valois was a French journalist and politician.-Life and career:Born in a working-class and peasant family, Georges Valois went to Singapore at the age of 17, returning to Paris in 1898. In his early years he was an Anarcho-syndicalist...
.
In September 1933, Bucard founded his own group, the Mouvement Franciste
Mouvement Franciste
The Mouvement Franciste was a French Fascist and Antisemitic league created by Marcel Bucard in September 1933; it edited the newspaper Le Francisme. Mouvement Franciste reached of membership of 10,000, and was financed by Italian dictator Benito Mussolini...
- arguably the most extreme group of the time, and one financed by Benito Mussolini
Benito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
's government. On February 6, 1934
6 February 1934 crisis
The 6 February 1934 crisis refers to an anti-parliamentarist street demonstration in Paris organized by far-right leagues that culminated in a riot on the Place de la Concorde, near the seat of the French National Assembly...
, the Francistes joined the other right-wing parties in the riots in front of the Palais Bourbon
Palais Bourbon
The Palais Bourbon, , a palace located on the left bank of the Seine, across from the Place de la Concorde, Paris , is the seat of the French National Assembly, the lower legislative chamber of the French government.-History:...
(a protest provoked by the Stavisky Affair
Stavisky Affair
The Stavisky Affair was a 1934 financial scandal generated by the actions of embezzler Alexandre Stavisky. It had political ramifications for the French Radical Socialist moderate government of the day...
, and possibly intended as a 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...
). Subsequently, the Popular Front
Popular Front (France)
The Popular Front was an alliance of left-wing movements, including the French Communist Party , the French Section of the Workers' International and the Radical and Socialist Party, during the interwar period...
government banned his movement (as well as other all other right wing 'leagues', fascist or otherwise) upon its emergence in 1936; Bucard was imprisoned briefly. His attempt to recreate the movement as a Party (Parti Franciste) in 1938 was without lasting success, as it too was outlawed.
World War II=
After the Fall of France in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, and the start of the Nazi German
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
Occupation
Military history of France during World War II
The military history of France during World War II covers the period from 1939 until 1940, which witnessed French military participation under the French Third Republic , and the period from 1940 until 1945, which was marked by mainland and overseas military administration and influence struggles...
and Vichy France
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...
, Bucard's Parti was again active (from 1941), this time as a collaborationist force. Bucard called upon his Francists to give whatever support they could to the Germans, including military intelligence and information concerning the Resistance. His role in the period was, however, limited, as he was usually absent due to suffering caused by old wounds; nonetheless, he was the co-founder of the Légion des volontaires français contre le bolchevisme. After the D-Day landings he argued that Francists should join the French Waffen SS or French/foreign units in the NSKK
National Socialist Motor Corps
The National Socialist Motor Corps , also known as the National Socialist Drivers Corps, was a paramilitary organization of the Nazi Party that existed from 1931 to 1945. The group was a successor organization to the older National Socialist Automobile Corps, which had existed since the beginning...
or Kriegsmarine
Kriegsmarine
The Kriegsmarine was the name of the German Navy during the Nazi regime . It superseded the Kaiserliche Marine of World War I and the post-war Reichsmarine. The Kriegsmarine was one of three official branches of the Wehrmacht, the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany.The Kriegsmarine grew rapidly...
.
Death=
In 1946, after the German defeat, Bucard was sentenced to death for treason
Treason
In law, treason is the crime that covers some of the more extreme acts against one's sovereign or nation. Historically, treason also covered the murder of specific social superiors, such as the murder of a husband by his wife. Treason against the king was known as high treason and treason against a...
, and executed a month later. At his trial the prosecutor, Vassart, accused the Francists of routinely infiltrating French resistance
French Resistance
The French Resistance is the name used to denote the collection of French resistance movements that fought against the Nazi German occupation of France and against the collaborationist Vichy régime during World War II...
groups to betray them to the Germans, of numerous crimes (including murder of opponents and violently resisting French police even before the Liberation) and Bucard was blamed for the deaths of Soviet, Allied and French combatants due to his wholehearted support for the German occupier and his recruitment activities on behalf of the LVF, Milice
Milice
The Milice française , generally called simply Milice, was a paramilitary force created on January 30, 1943 by the Vichy Regime, with German aid, to help fight the French Resistance. The Milice's formal leader was Prime Minister Pierre Laval, though its chief of operations, and actual leader, was...
and French Waffen SS
33rd Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS Charlemagne (1st French)
The 33. Waffen-Grenadier-Division der SS Charlemagne and Charlemagne Regiment are collective names used for units of French volunteers in the Wehrmacht and later Waffen-SS during World War II...
.