Lucien Rebatet

Passions

Vocation

French author, journalist, and intellectual. He was an exponent of fascism and virulent antisemite. Long before the outbreak of war between France and Nazi Germany, Rebatet expressed sympathy for National Socialism, notably in his articles for Je suis partout, in which he accused Jews of fomenting a war to topple Adolf Hitler’s régime. In 1940 he was drafted into the French Army and, although he served, openly hoped for a short and disastrous war for France. After the fall of France he became a radio reporter for the Vichy government. He soon left this post, as well as Action Française, to join Jacques Doriot's newspaper Cri Du Peuple, and to continue his writings for Je suis partout. In August 1944 Rebatet fled France for Germany, travelling to Sigmaringen (place of refuge for Vichy authorities as well as the more famous French writer, Céline). It was in Sigmaringen that Rebatet completed Les Deux Etendards, which would be published in 1952 by Gallimard. He was arrested in Austria in 1945. Rebatet was sent back to France and, in 1946, received a death sentence, which was commuted to forced labor the next year. Released from prison in 1952, he returned to journalism in 1953. Link to Wikipedia biography