Gustave Lefrançais

Gustave Adolphe Lefrançais (30 January 1826 in Angers, Maine-et-Loire[1] – 16 May 1901)[2] was a revolutionary anarchist militant, member of International Workingmen's Association (IWMA), the Paris Commune, and the Jura Federation.

Gustave Adolphe Lefrançais (1826–1901)

He was a socialist teacher and advocate of Laïcité, but was sacked in 1847. The following year, he took part in the French Revolution of 1848. His involvement with socialist organisations led to him being subject to police action. After the coup d'état of 1851, he fled to London. There he met Joseph Dejacque with whom he ran a co-operative restaurant "La sociale". In 1853, he returned to Paris, where he became a very popular socialist speaker. During the siege of Paris, he took part in the riots of 31 October 1870 for which he served four months in prison. On 26 March 1871 he was elected as a member of the Commune but was opposed to the Committee of Public Safety. He was a combatant in the Bloody Week, but managed to flee to Switzerland to avoid arrest. As a member of the IWMA he played a role in the creation of the Jura Federation and collaborated on various libertarian newspapers. He also helped Elisee Reclus develop "Universal Geography".

He returned to France in 1887, still denouncing "the deception of the vote for all". Although professing libertarian ideas, he refused to be called an anarchist, even though he once remarked to Kropotkin: "Although you are insane, you are still the man whom I love best. With you, one can work and remain oneself".