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How did the Dreyfus Affair divide French society?
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antisemitism
Demonstrators protesting antisemitism during a silent march in Paris. The march commemorated Mireille Knoll, a Jewish woman who had survived the Holocaust and was murdered in her home on March 23, 2018, in what authorities called a hate crime.
The Dreyfus Affair, a political crisis in the French Third Republic, deeply polarized society by forcing individuals to choose between two opposing camps: the Dreyfusards and the anti-Dreyfusards.12
The division was rooted in antisemitism, as the initial conviction of Alfred Dreyfusâa Jewish army captainâwas championed by nationalist groups who used him to symbolize the supposed disloyalty of French Jews.12
- Anti-Dreyfusards: Composed of nationalists and authoritarians, this group viewed the case as a matter of national security. They believed that reopening the trial would discredit the army and weaken France against its enemies, including international socialism and "Jewry".12
- Dreyfusards: This group, which included intellectuals and republican politicians, argued that the individualâs right to justice must be upheld. They sought to place the military under civilian parliamentary control and challenged the army's cover-up of the truth.12
The conflict intensified social and political antagonisms, leading to riots and a lasting cleavage between the right-wing nationalists and left-wing antimilitarists that persisted for decades.2