Abstract EN:

This dissertation consists of a critical edition of the letters of Étienne de Nalèche, editor of the Journal des Débats, to the sugar magnate Pierre Lebaudy, during the First World War (1914-1919). With an annotated and indexed text, this corpus of more than 1000 letters provides the reader with much information about national politics, international relations and war. The historical introduction provides some guidance to the reader. It begins by giving a portrait of the two protagonists: Nalèche, who was a very prominent Parisian citizen, the editor of a well-known publication (Journal des Débats) and a liberal republican with ties to the business world and Lebaudy, an extremely rich sugar magnate and generous financial supporter of the Journal des Débats. Chapter 2 shows that theses letters were not simply personal correspondence but became a daily chronicle to preserve the memory of the war. Chapter 3 analyses Nalèche’s important social network made up of the Parisian elite and used by Nalèche exclusively to further the interests of his newspaper. Chapter 4 illustrates Nalèche’s journalistic vision, which incorporated many old fashioned notions, even though Nalèche managed to constitute a solid network of foreign correspondents and was not unaware of the new journalism. His working method was based on the very rich and crosschecked information provided by his network. The major interest and contribution of this correspondence lies in the richness of the story it tells and the daily analysis of Parisian life during the War of 1914, as seen by a quality observer with an alert writing style style situated at the crossroad of public opinion and the networks of power.