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Veil, Simone

(Encyclopedia)Veil, Simone, 1927–2017, French politician, b. Simone Jacob. Interned in Nazi concentration camps during World War II because she was Jewish, she became a lawyer and government official. She served ...

Portalis, Jean Étienne Marie

(Encyclopedia)Portalis, Jean Étienne Marie zhäN ātyĕnˈ märēˈ pôrtälēsˈ [key], 1746–1807, French statesman and lawyer. A moderate, he was suspected of royalist sympathies during the French Revolution b...

Helvetic Republic

(Encyclopedia)Helvetic Republic hĕlvēˈtĭk [key], 1798–1803, Swiss state established under French auspices. In Sept., 1797, several exiled Swiss leaders in France (notably Frédéric César de La Harpe) formal...

de Gaulle, Charles

(Encyclopedia)de Gaulle, Charles shärl də gōl [key], 1890–1970, French general and statesman, first president (1959–69) of the Fifth Republic. De Gaulle was reelected to a second seven-year term in 1965. A...

Husson, Jules

(Encyclopedia)Husson or Fleury, Jules shäNflürēˈ [key]. Considered a pioneer of French realism, Champfleury was an avid collector of French art and artifacts and conducted extensive research into French history...

Garneau, François Xavier

(Encyclopedia)Garneau, François Xavier fräNswäˈ zävyāˈ gärnōˈ [key], 1809–66, French Canadian historian. He was educated at the Quebec seminary. He is remembered for his Histoire du Canada (3 vol., 1845...

Jouvenel, Henry de

(Encyclopedia)Jouvenel, Henry de äNrēˈ də zho͞ovənĕlˈ [key], 1876–1935, French statesman and journalist. Although from an early age influential in politics, he refused to join a party, claiming that exist...

Joffre, Joseph Jacques Césaire

(Encyclopedia)Joffre, Joseph Jacques Césaire zhôzĕfˈ zhäk sāzĕrˈ zhôˈfrə [key], 1852–1931, marshal of France. He began his career as a military engineer in the French colonies and was appointed French ...

Assinie

(Encyclopedia)Assinie äsēnēˈ [key], town, SE Côte d'Ivoire, on a lagoon off the Gulf of Guinea. Because of its location on the coast and its contacts with the interior, Assinie became an early stopping place f...

Sarraut, Albert Pierre

(Encyclopedia)Sarraut, Albert Pierre älbĕrˈ pyĕr särōˈ [key], 1872–1962, French leader, a Radical Socialist. A member of the chamber of deputies from 1902, he was governor-general (1911–14, 1916–19) of...