Editing Félix Faure (section)

==Biography==
Félix François Faure was born in Paris, the son of a maker of small furniture pieces Jean-Marie Faure (1809–1889) and his first wife, Rose Cuissard (1819–1852). 

Having started as a [[Tanning (leather)|tanner]] and merchant at [[Le Havre]], Faure acquired considerable wealth, was elected to the [[National Assembly of France|National Assembly]] on 21 August 1881, and took his seat as a member of the Left, interesting himself chiefly in matters concerning economics, railways and the navy. Having remarked himself as an able politician and administrator whilst in the [[Chamber of Deputies (France)|Chamber of Deputies]], he was made under-secretary for the colonies in [[Jules Ferry|Ferry]]'s ministry in November 1882, and retained that post till 1885. During this period, he would maintain friendly relations with the [[Minister of the Navy (France)|minister of the navy]], and was able to obtain a significant degree of initiative. He held the same post in [[Pierre Tirard|Tirard]]'s ministry in 1888, and in 1893 was made vice-president of the chamber.{{sfn|Chisholm|1911}}<ref>{{Cite book |last=Cohen |first=William B. |title=Rulers of empire: the French colonial service in Africa |date=1971 |publisher=Hoover Institution Pr |isbn=978-0-8179-1951-1 |series=Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace (Stanford, Univ.). Publications |location=Stanford, Calif |pages=19}}</ref>

In 1894, he obtained cabinet rank as [[List of Naval Ministers of France|minister of marine]] in the administration of [[Charles Dupuy]]. In the following January, he was unexpectedly elected President of the Republic upon the resignation of [[Jean Casimir-Perier|President Casimir-Perier]]. The principal cause of his elevation was the determination of the various sections of the moderate republican party to exclude [[Henri Brisson]], who had had a plurality of votes on the first ballot, but had failed to obtain an absolute majority. To accomplish this end, it was necessary to unite the party, and such unity could be secured only by the nomination of someone who offended no one. Faure answered this description exactly.{{sfn|Chisholm|1911}}

He granted amnesty to the [[anarchism in France|anarchist movements]] in 1895, enabling the return from exile in England of several famous anarchists, such as [[Émile Pouget]].

[[File:Perelachaise-FelixFaure-p1000345.jpg|thumb|left|Félix Faure's grave at [[Père Lachaise Cemetery]]]]
In 1898 (and for the first few years of the following century), the French automobile industry was the largest in the world. President Faure was not impressed. Invited to address industry leaders at what, in retrospect, is recorded as the first [[Paris Motor Show]], Faure told his audience, "Your cars are very ugly and they smell very bad" ("{{lang|fr|Vos voitures sont bien laides et sentent bien mauvais&thinsp;!}}").<ref>[[:commons:File:Museum Label at French national auto museum quoting President Faure on cars.JPG|Museum]] label at the [[Cité de l'Automobile|French National Motor Museum]] for the 1901 [[:fr: Renault Type D|Renault Phaeton Type D]].   (A year after making the pronouncement Faure was dead. "L'automobile" lives on.)</ref>

His fine presence and his tact on ceremonial occasions rendered the state some service when he received the [[Nicholas II|Tsar]] at Paris in 1896, and in 1897 returned his visit, after which meeting the [[Franco-Russian Alliance]] was publicly announced again. The latter days of Faure's presidency were consumed by the [[Dreyfus affair]], which he was determined to regard as {{lang|fr|chose jugée}} ({{langx|la|[[res judicata]]}}, "adjudicated with no further appeal").{{sfn|Chisholm|1911}} This drew against him the criticism of pro-Dreyfus intellectuals and politicians, such as [[Émile Zola]] and [[Georges Clemenceau]].