Roger Duchet
 Roger Duchet    (politician, vetinarian) | |
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| Born | 4 July 1904 Lyon, France |
| Died | 6 September 1981 (Age 77) Paris, France |
| Nationality | French |
French politician who attended the first Bilderberg in 1954
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Roger Duchet was a right-wing Member of Parliament and former French government Minister.
Life
By occupation veterinarian and winegrower, he was mayor of Beaune before the Second World War, for the Radical Socialist Party.
During the occupation, he supported the Vichy regime, and was confirmed as mayor in March 1941.
After the Liberation, he was dismissed in the autumn of 1944 from his functions as mayor in accordance with the special circular of the Ministry of the Interior. which provided for excluding "from the Municipal Councils and special delegations all the men compromised by their collaboration with the enemy, by their active adherence to the Vichy regime or by anti-national habits or activities”. However, he was not sanctioned by the national purification commission, and was re-elected in 1945.
He became one of the main leaders of the moderate right, elected without interruption to the Council of the Republic then to the Senate from 1946 to 1971. He represented the Côte-d'Or.
He is one of the initiators of the post-war recovery of the French right, which was fragmented between various parties. On January 6, 1949, he created with René Coty and Jean Boivin-Champeaux the National Center for the Independents (CNI,) which soon became the Independents and Peasants Party (CNIP), where Antoine Pinay was the most popular figure.
During the 1950s Duchet became more conservative. He fought against communism and was in favor of a French Algeria. In the second cabinet of René Pleven he was Secretary of State for Public works from 11 August 1951 to 4 October 1951, then Minister of Posts, Telegraphs, and Telephones. He retained the PTT portfolio in the cabinets of Edgar Faure, Antoine Pinay and René Mayer until 28 June 1953. He was Minister of Reconstruction and Housing from 23 February 1955 to 1 February 1956. He was reelected to the Senate on 19 June 1955.
He was in favor of a continued French presence in Algeria and declared himself in favor of the return of Charles de Gaulle in 1958, hoping that the return to power of De Gaulle would favor the retention of Algeria. Following the speech of September 29, 1959, where General de Gaulle pronounced himself in favor of self-determination for Algeria, he was one of the founders of the Rally for French Algeria. With André Morice, Jacques Soustelle and Georges Bidault, he then fought within the framework of the Comité de Vincennes against the Algerian policy of General de Gaulle.
During the French Fifth Republic Duchet was elected to the Senate on 26 April 1959, and was reelected on 23 September 1962. He belonged to the Groupe des Républicains et Indépendants (Group of Republicans and Independents). The CNI went into decline during the Algerian War. Duchet was often absent from Beaune, and resigned as mayor in 1965.
Event Participated in
| Event | Start | End | Location(s) | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bilderberg/1954 | 29 May 1954 | 31 May 1954 | Netherlands Hotel Bilderberg Oosterbeek | The first Bilderberg meeting, attended by 68 men from Europe and the US, including 20 businessmen, 25 politicians, 5 financiers & 4 academics. |
