Émile de Girardin
Encyclopedia
Émile de Girardin was a French
journalist
, publicist
, and politician
. He was born in Paris
in 1802, the son of General Alexandre de Girardin and of Madame Dupuy (née Fagnan), wife of a Parisian advocate.
His first publication was a novel, Émile
, dealing with his birth and early life, and appeared under the name of Girardin in 1827. He became inspector of fine arts under the Martignac ministry just before the revolution of 1830
, and was an energetic and passionate journalist
. Besides his work on the daily press he issued miscellaneous publications which attained an enormous circulation. His Journal des connaissances utiles had 120,000 subscribers, and the initial edition of his Almanach de France (1834) ran to a million copies. He founded the illustrated literary magazine Musée des familles
in 1833.
In 1836 he inaugurated penny press
journalism in a popular Conservative
organ, La Presse
, the subscription to which was only forty franc
s a year. This undertaking involved him in a duel
with Armand Carrel
, the fatal result of which made him refuse satisfaction to later opponents. In 1839 he was excluded from the Chamber of Deputies
, to which he had been elected four times, on the plea of his foreign birth, but was admitted in 1842. He resigned early in February 1847, and on February 24, 1848 sent a note to Louis Philippe
demanding his resignation and the regency of the duchess of Orléans
.
In the Legislative Assembly
he voted with the Mountain
. In 1850, Girardin wrote an article called Le Socialisme et l'Impot. In his article, Girardin suggested that there was a "good" socialism and a "bad" socialism. This article was reviewed by Karl Marx and Fredeerick Engels in a jointly written article carried in their newspaper--Neue Rheinisch Zeitung Politisch-Ökonomische Revue No. 4. Giradin defined "good socialism" as promoting harmony between capital and labor, while "bad socialism" promoted war between capital and labor. Marx and Engels criticized Girardin's theory of good socialism as not being socialism at all. Girardin's "good socialism" actually ignored workers in society and concluded that society was composed exclusively of caitalists.
Later, Girardin pressed eagerly in his paper for the election of Prince Louis Napoleon, of whom he afterwards became one of the most violent opponents. In 1856 he sold La Presse, only to resume it in 1862, but its vogue was over, and Girardin started a new journal, La Liberté
, the sale of which was forbidden in the public streets. He supported Émile Ollivier
and the Liberal Empire, but plunged into vehement journalism again to advocate war against Prussia
.
Of his many subsequent enterprises the most successful was the purchase of Le Petit Journal
, which served to advocate the policy of Thiers
, though he himself did not contribute. The crisis of the 16th of May 1877
, when Jules Simon
fell from power, made him resume his pen to attack MacMahon and the party of reaction in La France and in Le Petit Journal. Émile de Girardin married in 1831 Delphine Gay, and after her death in 1855 Guillemette Josephine Brunold, countess von Tieffenbach, morganatic
stepdaughter of Prince Frederick of Nassau. He was divorced from his second wife in 1872.
The long list of his social and political writings includes:
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...
journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
, publicist
Publicist
A publicist is a person whose job is to generate and manage publicity for a public figure, especially a celebrity, a business, or for a work such as a book, film or album...
, and politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
. He was born in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
in 1802, the son of General Alexandre de Girardin and of Madame Dupuy (née Fagnan), wife of a Parisian advocate.
His first publication was a novel, Émile
Emile (novel)
Émile is a 1827 autobiographical novel by Émile de Girardin, based on Girardin's early life....
, dealing with his birth and early life, and appeared under the name of Girardin in 1827. He became inspector of fine arts under the Martignac ministry just before the revolution of 1830
July Revolution
The French Revolution of 1830, also known as the July Revolution or in French, saw the overthrow of King Charles X of France, the French Bourbon monarch, and the ascent of his cousin Louis-Philippe, Duke of Orléans, who himself, after 18 precarious years on the throne, would in turn be overthrown...
, and was an energetic and passionate journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
. Besides his work on the daily press he issued miscellaneous publications which attained an enormous circulation. His Journal des connaissances utiles had 120,000 subscribers, and the initial edition of his Almanach de France (1834) ran to a million copies. He founded the illustrated literary magazine Musée des familles
Musée des familles
Musée des familles was an illustrated French literary magazine that was published in Paris from 1833 to 1900. It was founded by Émile de Girardin....
in 1833.
In 1836 he inaugurated penny press
Penny press
Penny press newspapers were cheap, tabloid-style papers produced in the middle of the 19th century.- History :As the East Coast's middle and working classes grew, so did the new public’s desire for news. Penny papers emerged as a cheap source with coverage of crime, tragedy, adventure, and gossip...
journalism in a popular Conservative
Conservatism
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...
organ, La Presse
La Presse (France)
-Overview:La Presse was founded on 16 June 1836 by Émile de Girardin as a popular conservative enterprise. While contemporary newspapers depended heavily on subscription and tight party affiliation, La Presse was sold by street vendors. Girardin wanted the paper to support the government, without...
, the subscription to which was only forty franc
Franc
The franc is the name of several currency units, most notably the Swiss franc, still a major world currency today due to the prominence of Swiss financial institutions and the former currency of France, the French franc until the Euro was adopted in 1999...
s a year. This undertaking involved him in a duel
Duel
A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two individuals, with matched weapons in accordance with agreed-upon rules.Duels in this form were chiefly practised in Early Modern Europe, with precedents in the medieval code of chivalry, and continued into the modern period especially among...
with Armand Carrel
Armand Carrel
Armand Carrel was a French journalist and political writer.-Biography:Jean-Baptiste Nicolas Armand Carrel was born at Rouen. His father was a wealthy merchant, and he received a liberal education at the Lycée Pierre Corneille in Rouen. , afterwards attending the military school at St Cyr...
, the fatal result of which made him refuse satisfaction to later opponents. In 1839 he was excluded from the Chamber of Deputies
Chamber of Deputies of France
Chamber of Deputies was the name given to several parliamentary bodies in France in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries:* 1814–1848 during the Bourbon Restoration and the July Monarchy, the Chamber of Deputies was the Lower chamber of the French Parliament, elected by census suffrage.*...
, to which he had been elected four times, on the plea of his foreign birth, but was admitted in 1842. He resigned early in February 1847, and on February 24, 1848 sent a note to Louis Philippe
Louis-Philippe of France
Louis Philippe I was King of the French from 1830 to 1848 in what was known as the July Monarchy. His father was a duke who supported the French Revolution but was nevertheless guillotined. Louis Philippe fled France as a young man and spent 21 years in exile, including considerable time in the...
demanding his resignation and the regency of the duchess of Orléans
Orléans
-Prehistory and Roman:Cenabum was a Gallic stronghold, one of the principal towns of the Carnutes tribe where the Druids held their annual assembly. It was conquered and destroyed by Julius Caesar in 52 BC, then rebuilt under the Roman Empire...
.
In the Legislative Assembly
Legislative Assembly
Legislative Assembly is the name given in some countries to either a legislature, or to one of its branch.The name is used by a number of member-states of the Commonwealth of Nations, as well as a number of Latin American countries....
he voted with the Mountain
The Mountain (1849)
The Mountain was a political grouping in the French legislative election, 1849. It drew its name from The Mountain, a group active in the early period of the French Revolution...
. In 1850, Girardin wrote an article called Le Socialisme et l'Impot. In his article, Girardin suggested that there was a "good" socialism and a "bad" socialism. This article was reviewed by Karl Marx and Fredeerick Engels in a jointly written article carried in their newspaper--Neue Rheinisch Zeitung Politisch-Ökonomische Revue No. 4. Giradin defined "good socialism" as promoting harmony between capital and labor, while "bad socialism" promoted war between capital and labor. Marx and Engels criticized Girardin's theory of good socialism as not being socialism at all. Girardin's "good socialism" actually ignored workers in society and concluded that society was composed exclusively of caitalists.
Later, Girardin pressed eagerly in his paper for the election of Prince Louis Napoleon, of whom he afterwards became one of the most violent opponents. In 1856 he sold La Presse, only to resume it in 1862, but its vogue was over, and Girardin started a new journal, La Liberté
La Liberté (1865 newspaper)
La Liberté was a French Legitimist newspaper created in July 1865 by Charles-François-Xavier Müller and sold in 1866 to Émile de Girardin. Its last issue was published in 1870....
, the sale of which was forbidden in the public streets. He supported Émile Ollivier
Émile Ollivier
Olivier Émile Ollivier was a French statesman. Although a republican, he served as a cabinet minister under Emperor Napoleon III and led the process of turning his regime into a "liberal Empire".-Early life and career:Émile Ollivier was born in Marseille...
and the Liberal Empire, but plunged into vehement journalism again to advocate war against Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
.
Of his many subsequent enterprises the most successful was the purchase of Le Petit Journal
Le Petit Journal
Le Petit Journal was a daily Parisian newspaper published from 1863 to 1944. It was founded by Moïse Polydore Millaud. In its columns were published several serial novels of Émile Gaboriau and of Ponson du Terrail.- Publishing :...
, which served to advocate the policy of Thiers
Thiers
Thiers is a French surname. Notable persons with the surname include:*Adolphe Thiers , French statesman and historian*Louisa Thiers , American supercentenarian*Harry D...
, though he himself did not contribute. The crisis of the 16th of May 1877
16 May 1877 crisis
The 16 May 1877 crisis was a constitutional crisis in the French Third Republic concerning the distribution of power between the President and the legislature. When the Royalist President Patrice MacMahon dismissed the Opportunist Republican Prime Minister Jules Simon, parliament on 16 May 1877...
, when Jules Simon
Jules Simon
Jules François Simon was a French statesman and philosopher, and one of the leader of the Opportunist Republicans faction.-Biography:Simon was born at Lorient. His father was a linen-draper from Lorraine, who renounced Protestantism before his second marriage with a Catholic Breton. Jules Simon...
fell from power, made him resume his pen to attack MacMahon and the party of reaction in La France and in Le Petit Journal. Émile de Girardin married in 1831 Delphine Gay, and after her death in 1855 Guillemette Josephine Brunold, countess von Tieffenbach, morganatic
Morganatic marriage
In the context of European royalty, a morganatic marriage is a marriage between people of unequal social rank, which prevents the passage of the husband's titles and privileges to the wife and any children born of the marriage...
stepdaughter of Prince Frederick of Nassau. He was divorced from his second wife in 1872.
The long list of his social and political writings includes:
- De la presse périodique au XIXe siècle (1837)
- De l'instruction publique (1838)
- Études politiques (1838)
- De la liberté de la presse et du journalisme (1842)
- Le Droit au travail au Luxembourg et à l'Assemblée Nationale (2 vols, 1848)
- Les Cinquante-deux (1849, etc.), a series of articles on current parliamentary questions
- La Politique universelle, décrets de l'avenir (Brussels, 1852)
- Le Condamné du 6 mars (1867), an account of his own differences with the government in 1867 when he was fined 5000 fr. for an article in La LibertéLa Liberté (1865 newspaper)La Liberté was a French Legitimist newspaper created in July 1865 by Charles-François-Xavier Müller and sold in 1866 to Émile de Girardin. Its last issue was published in 1870....
- Le Dossier de la guerre (1877), a collection of official documents
- Questions de mon temps, 1836 à 1846, articles extracted from the daily and weekly press (12 vols., 1858).