Paul Reynaud
Paul Reynaud was a French politician and lawyer prominent in the interwar period, noted for his stances on economic liberalism and militant opposition to Germany. He was the penultimate Prime Minister of the Third Republic and vicepresident of the Democratic Republican Alliance centerright party. After the outbreak of war and the collapse of French resistance in 1940, Reynaud persistently refused to support an armistice with Germany and resigned. After unsuccessfully attempting to flee France, he was arrested by Philippe Petains administration. Surrendered to German custody in 1942, he was imprisoned in Germany and later Austria until liberation in 1945. Elected to the Chamber of Deputies in 1946, he became a prominent figure again in French political life, serving in several cabinet positions. He favoured a United States of Europe, and participated in drafting the constitution for the Fifth Republic, but resigned from government in 1962 after disagreement with President de Gaulle ove
Reynaud was born in Barcelonnette, AlpesdeHauteProvence. His father had made a fortune in the textile industry, enabling Reynaud to study law at the Sorbonne. He entered politics and was elected to the French Chamber of Deputies from 1919 to 1924, representing BassesAlpes, and again from 1928, representing a Paris district. Although he was first elected as part of the conservative Blue Horizon bloc in 1919, Reynaud shortly thereafter switched his allegiance to the centreright Democratic Republican Alliance party, later becoming its vicepresident.
Source: Wikipedia