Favre, Jules

Favre, Jules zhül fäˈvrə [key], 1809–80, French statesman. At first a partisan of the July Monarchy, he joined the republican opposition to King Louis Philippe. After the February Revolution of 1848 he was one of the leaders of the provisional government. Under Emperor Napoleon III he was a leader of the constitutional opposition. In 1858 he courageously defended Felice Orsini. At the end of the Franco-Prussian War, Favre served briefly as foreign minister of the provisional government (1871); he negotiated the final peace with Germany, but was forced to withdraw from the government because of the rigorous conditions imposed by Germany on France.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2024, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

See more Encyclopedia articles on: French History: Biographies