Until August 31, 2025, a remarkable exhibition on the Dreyfus Affair,
entitled "Truth and Justice," is being held at the Museum of Jewish Artand History. Its catalog, remarkably curated by one of the leading
specialists on the Affair, Philippe Oriol (1), and Isabelle Cahn, a
specialist in 19th-century art, puts this moment into perspective. The
documents exhibited at the museum are reproduced and accompanied by
several summary texts, providing an overview and allowing those
unfamiliar with the details of the affair to familiarize themselves with
the subject. Briefly, the affair begins when Marie Bastian, the
housekeeper at the German embassy, retrieves some small blueprints from
the German military attaché's trash. The French military, eager to find
a culprit, conduct a botched investigation. The prevailing anti-Semitism
pointed to Alfred Dreyfus, a young Jewish officer. The free-speaking
anti-Semite Drumont relayed the information, using caricatures. Dreyfus
was tried behind closed doors and sentenced to public degradation. This
was without taking into account Dreyfus's moral strength and the courage
of the first three people convinced of his innocence: Lucie, his
partner; Mathieu, his brother; and Bernard Lazare, the anarchist
journalist and writer (2). Lazare was the first to stand up to defend
the innocent accused and quickly published texts to demonstrate the
captain's innocence.
At the same time, Colonel Picquart, a notorious anti-Semite, discovered
that Esterhazy, the German informant, was still serving. Picquart, out
of anti-Semitism, alerted the general staff. He did not want the
Dreyfuses to discover the truth and preferred that the army convict the
real culprit. Removed from his duties, Picquart was dismissed. Various
reports eventually reached political circles, especially Émile Zola,
who, three years after the start of the Affair, published his J'accuse.
From then on, the Affair inflamed public opinion. Dreyfus was retried,
still behind closed doors, and convicted again. The Dreyfusard camp
strengthened, and Dreyfus was finally pardoned. Before the Court of
Cassation overturned the trial, Dreyfus was rehabilitated.
The book covers all these events point by point. Several summary
articles demonstrate the extent of antisemitism, particularly in
military circles, and its spread throughout the rest of society. But,
also, and perhaps above all, it recalls the central role of Bernard
Lazare and, beyond the writer, the importance of libertarians in
supporting the innocent accused, artists like Félix Valloton and
Maximilien Luce, the role of the libertarian writers of La revue blanche
and the activists around the Journal du Peuple founded by Sébastien Faure.
A must-see exhibition and a fascinating book.
Alfred Dreyfus. Truth and Justice
Philippe Oriol
Gallimard/MAHJ 2025 286 p. EUR39
Notes:
(1) Note that Philippe Oriol has also just published a critical edition
of the works of Alfred Dreyfus (Complete Works, Les Belles lettres 2024
1098 p. EUR47). (2) Philippe Oriol published the works of Bernard Lazare
and a fine biography of him (Stock, 2003, unfortunately out of print).
https://monde-libertaire.fr/?articlen=8294
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