Jean Madiran

Jean Arfel (born 14 June 1920 in Libourne - dead 31 July 2013), better known by his pen name Jean Madiran was a French nationalist and a traditionalist Catholic writer.[1] He has also used the pen name Jean-Louis Lagor.

During the German occupation of France, he was the private secretary of Charles Maurras and was awarded the Order of the Francisque, the decoration, in the form of a stylised double-headed francisca, that was granted by Vichy France. He contributed to the newspaper Action Française. This was the organ of the movement of the same name and was published from 21 March 1908 to 24 August 1944.[2]

After the Second World War, he retired to Madiran in southwestern France (whence his pen name) and became noted as a journalist and essayist. In 1948, he published his first book, La Philosophie politique de saint Thomas (The Political Philosophy of Saint Thomas), under the pen name Jean-Louis Lagor and with a preface by Maurras. In 1956, he founded Itinéraires, a review of Catholic themes, which originally appeared monthly, but which after the 1988 Ecône Consecrations became quarterly, and he remained its editor until publication ceased in 1996. He was also one of the founders in 1982 of the daily newspaper Présent, of which he was editor in chief. This publication is associated with the Front National, but refused to take sides in the conflict between Jean-Marie Le Pen and Bruno Mégret, whereupon Le Pen called for it to be boycotted.

In an article published in Itinéraires, Madiran declared:[3]

If we are asked to state what we are and what our position is, our answer must be understood. Our answer modifies François Brigneau's formula or rather completes and develops it in its full truth: "We are to the right of the far right." This does not mean that we despise indiscriminately everybody and everything that official jargon calls "the far right". Here again we reject the arbitrary left-wing attitude that inspires and imposes a classification at variance with the truth. In reality there is no extremism, right-wing or other, in wishing a society based on "Work-Family-Fatherland",[4] "Serve God First".

On 6 February 1995, the fiftieth anniversary of the execution, for collaboration with the German occupation, of Robert Brasillach, the poet, writer and journalist supporter of Action Française, Madiran, with François Brigneau and others, organised a meeting in Paris, at which Madiran declared: "Young people who are here this evening, we entrust to your hands the remembrance of the National Revolution, we entrust to you the remembrance of the France that awaits, hopes for and desires its liberation."

Works

References

  1. ↑ "Mort de Jean Madiran, proche de Maurras". Lefigaro.fr. 2007-10-29. Retrieved 2013-08-09.
  2. ↑ Encyclopaedia Britannica: Action Française
  3. ↑ Mais si l’on nous demande de "nous situer", c’est-à-dire de déclarer nous-mêmes ce que nous sommes et où nous sommes, alors il faut entendre la réponse qui est la nôtre. C’est une réponse qui modifie la formule de François Brigneau, ou plutôt qui l’accomplit et l’épanouit dans sa complète vérité : "Nous sommes à droite de l’extrême droite." Ce n’est point mépris non différencié pour tous ceux et tout cela que le jargon officiel présente comme "l’extrême droite". Mais d’abord c’est, ici encore, refus de l’arbitraire de gauche qui inspire et impose un faux classement. Il n’y a en réalité aucun extrémisme, de droite ou d’ailleurs, à vouloir fonder la vie sociale sur "travail-famille-patrie", "Dieu premier servi". (Jean Madiran, « Notre politique », Itinéraires, n°256, septembre-octobre 1981)
  4. ↑ This was the motto of Vichy France.

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