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French Parliament Poised to Posthumously Promote Alfred Dreyfus to Brigadier General

The measure seeks to correct the rank denied to Dreyfus when his 1906 reinstatement failed to credit five years of wrongful imprisonment.

Overview

  • The Senate is examining the bill on Thursday and is expected to approve an identical text, enabling final adoption after June’s unanimous National Assembly vote.
  • The one-sentence proposal from former prime minister Gabriel Attal declares that the French nation elevates Alfred Dreyfus posthumously to brigadier general.
  • The legislation follows the creation of a national day of commemoration on 12 July honoring his judicial exoneration, announced by President Emmanuel Macron this summer.
  • Centrist and Republican senators have voiced reservations and may abstain, with Armed Forces committee chair Cédric Perrin saying he is profoundly uncomfortable with the initiative.
  • Dreyfus’s descendants support the move as overdue recognition, noting the 1906 law reinstated him at a lower rank without counting his years of unjust detention.