The 100th anniversary of the birth of Leon Blum, the French-Jewish Socialist leader who twice served as Premier of France, was marked in simple ceremonies here today. A wreath was placed on his grave by his widow who was accompanied by Francois Mitterand, First Secretary of the Socialist Party and Gilbert Grandval, president of the Workers Union, a Gaullist Leftist party.
Blum was born in Paris in 1872 and died in 1950. At first a literary critic and author, he became interested in the socialist movement and headed the Socialist Party from 1919. He was Premier in the Popular Front government of 1936-37, Vice-Premier 1937-38, and again Premier for a short time in 1938.
Imprisoned by Petain in 1940, he was brought to trial at Riom in 1942 and handed over to the Germans who deported him to Buchenwald in 1943. Liberated in 1945, Blum headed the interim government of France during 1946-47 and was again Vice-Premier in 1948. Although not religious, he was active in Jewish affairs, serving on the council of the Jewish Agency and taking an interest in the Jewish labor movement.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
