The republican who bound a divided Resistance together
When German officers tried to force his signature on a false statement, Moulin chose attempted suicide rather than dishonour.
Jean Moulin was a senior French civil servant and republican organiser who linked the internal Resistance to Free France against the Nazi occupation. As Charles de Gaulle’s representative, he coordinated rival movements and brought political parties and trade unions into the National Council of the Resistance. His work of unification unfolded amid fierce tensions over the movements’ independence and ended with his arrest and death after torture in 1943.
Career Timeline
- 1922Chief of staff to the prefect of Savoie
- 1925–1930Sous-prefect of Albertville
- 1936Chief of staff in the Popular Front Air Ministry
- 1937–1939Prefect of Aveyron
- 1939–1940Prefect of Eure-et-Loir
- 1941–1943de Gaulle’s representative to the internal Resistance
- 1943First President of the National Council of the Resistance