Editing Georges Clemenceau (section)

===Second term as prime minister===
In November 1917, at one of the darkest hours for the French war effort in World War I, Clemenceau was appointed to the prime ministership. Unlike his predecessors, he discouraged internal disagreement and called for peace among the senior politicians.<ref name="Watson, 1976"/>

====1917: return to power====
Clemenceau governed from the Ministry of War on [[Rue Saint-Dominique]]. Almost his first act as prime minister was to relieve General [[Maurice Sarrail]] from his command of the [[Salonika front]]. This was the main topic of discussion at the first meeting of the war committee on 6 December, at which Clemenceau stated, "Sarrail cannot remain there".<ref>Doughty 2005, p403</ref><ref>Palmer 1998, p157</ref> The reason for Sarrail's dismissal was his links with the socialist politicians Joseph Caillaux and Louis Malvy (at that time suspected of treasonable contacts with the Germans)

[[File:Georges Clemenceau.jpg|thumb|left|Clemenceau as prime minister of France]]
Churchill later wrote that Clemenceau "looked like a wild animal pacing to and fro behind bars" in front of "an assembly which would have done anything to avoid putting him there, but, having put him there, felt they must obey".<ref>Terraine 1978, p25</ref>

When Clemenceau became prime minister in 1917 victory seemed to be elusive. There was little activity on the [[Western Front (World War I)|western front]] because it was believed that there should be limited attacks until the American support arrived. At this time, Italy was on the defensive, Russia virtually had stopped fighting – and it was believed that they would be making a separate peace with Germany {{Crossreference|text=(See also [[Treaty of Brest-Litovsk]])}}. At home, the government had to deal with increasing demonstrations against the war, a scarcity of resources, and air raids that were causing huge physical damage to Paris as well as undermining the morale of its citizens. It also was believed that many politicians secretly wanted peace. It was a challenging situation for Clemenceau; after years of criticizing other men during the war, he suddenly found himself in a position of supreme power. He was isolated politically, however. He did not have close links with any parliamentary leaders (especially after he had antagonized them so relentlessly during the course of the war) and so, had to rely on himself and his own circle of friends.

Clemenceau's assumption of power meant little to the men in the trenches at first. They thought of him as "just another politician", and the monthly assessment of troop morale found that only a minority found comfort in his appointment. Slowly, however, as time passed, the confidence he inspired in a few, began to grow throughout all the fighting men. They were encouraged by his many visits to the trenches. This confidence began to spread from the trenches to the home front and it was said,{{by whom|date=November 2017}} "We believed in Clemenceau rather in the way that our ancestors believed in Joan of Arc." After years of criticism against the French army for its conservatism and Catholicism, Clemenceau would need help to get along with the military leaders to achieve a sound strategic plan. He nominated General [[Jean Jules Henri Mordacq|Henri Mordacq]] to be his military chief of staff. Mordacq helped to inspire trust and mutual respect from the army to the government which proved essential to the final victory.

Clemenceau also was well received by the media, because they felt that France was in need of strong leadership. It was widely recognized that throughout the war he was never discouraged and never stopped believing that France could achieve total victory. There were skeptics, however, who believed that Clemenceau, like other war-time leaders, would have a short time in office. It was said,{{by whom|date=November 2017}} "Like everyone else&nbsp;... Clemenceau will not last long – only long enough to clean up [the war]."

====1918: crackdown====
As the military situation worsened in early 1918, Clemenceau continued to support the policy of total war – "We present ourselves before you with the single thought of total war" – and the policy of "la guerre jusqu'au bout" (war until the end). His speech of 8 March advocating this policy was so effective that it left a vivid impression on [[Winston Churchill]], who would make similar speeches upon becoming British prime minister in 1940. Clemenceau's war policy encompassed the promise of victory with justice, loyalty to the fighting men, and immediate and severe punishment of crimes against France.<ref name="Watson, 1976"/>{{contradictory inline|date=September 2022}}

[[Joseph Caillaux]], a former French prime minister, disagreed with Clemenceau's policies. He wanted to surrender to Germany and negotiate a peace, thus Clemenceau viewed Caillaux as a threat to national security. Unlike previous ministers, Clemenceau moved against Caillaux publicly. As a result, a parliamentary committee decided that Caillaux would be arrested and imprisoned{{when|date=February 2021}} for three years. Clemenceau believed, in the words of [[Jean Ybarnégaray]], that Caillaux's crime{{clarify|date=September 2022}} "was not to have believed in victory [and] to have gambled on his nation's defeat".<ref>Edgard Holt, ''The Tiger: The Life of Georges Clemenceau, 1841–1929'' (1976) p 192.</ref>

The arrest of Caillaux and others raised the issue of Clemenceau's harshness, who in turn argued that the only powers he assumed were those necessary for winning the war. The many trials and arrests aroused great public excitement. These trials, far from making the public fear the government, inspired confidence, as the public felt that for the first time in the war, action was being taken and they were being firmly governed. The claims that Clemenceau's "firm government" was a dictatorship found little support. Clemenceau was still held accountable to the people and media. He relaxed censorship on political views as he believed that newspapers had the right to criticize political figures: "The right to insult members of the government is inviolable."<ref>Holt, p 192-93.</ref>

In 1918, Clemenceau thought that France should adopt [[Woodrow Wilson]]'s [[Fourteen Points]], mainly because of its point that called for the return of [[Alsace-Lorraine]] to France. This meant that victory would fulfil the war aim that was crucial for the French public. Clemenceau was sceptical about some other points, however, including those concerning the [[League of Nations]], as he believed that the latter could succeed only in a utopian society.<ref>{{cite book|author=L. Ambrosius|title=Wilsonianism: Woodrow Wilson and His Legacy in American Foreign Relations|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w9tlCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA69|year=2002|page=69|publisher=Springer|isbn=9781403970046|access-date=8 November 2018|archive-date=28 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231028202735/https://books.google.com/books?id=w9tlCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA69#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref>

====1918: German spring offensive====
On 21 March 1918, the Germans began their great [[German spring offensive|spring offensive]]. The allies were caught off guard and a gap was created in the British and French lines that risked handing over access to Paris to the Germans. This defeat cemented Clemenceau's belief, and that of the other allies, that a coordinated, unified command was the best option. It was decided that [[Ferdinand Foch]] would be appointed as "[[generalissimo]]".<ref>John McGroarty : The Gray Man of Christ: Generalissimo Foch (1919) Los Angeles, Walter A Abbott.</ref>

The German line continued to advance and Clemenceau believed that the fall of Paris could not be ruled out. Public opinions arose that if "the Tiger", as well as Foch and [[Philippe Pétain]] stayed in power for even another week, France would be lost and that a government headed by [[Aristide Briand]] would be beneficial to France, because he would make peace with Germany on advantageous terms.{{citation needed|date=February 2021}} Clemenceau adamantly opposed these opinions and he gave an inspirational speech in the Chamber of Deputies; the chamber subsequently voted their confidence in him by 377 votes to 110.{{citation needed|date=February 2021}}

As the [[Hundred Days Offensive|allied counter-offensives]] began to push the Germans back, it became clear that the Germans could no longer win the war. Although they still occupied vast amounts of French territory, they did not have sufficient resources and manpower to continue their attack. As countries allied to Germany began to ask for an armistice, it was obvious that Germany would soon follow. On 11 November 1918, an armistice with Germany was signed. Clemenceau was embraced in the streets and attracted many admiring crowds.{{citation needed|date=November 2017}}