HERRIOT, EDOUARD (1872— ), French politician, was born at Troyes, in Champagne, on July 5, 1872, the son of an officer. He was sent first to the Lycee of La Roche-sur-Yon, and afterwards to that of Louis-le-Grand, which bore the repu tation of being the best school in France. He then entered the Ecole Normale Superieure, which included many eminent teach ers such as Brunetiere and Gaston Boissier, both of whom were men of authority and unquestioned reputation. Here he remained working assiduously for several years, and while delighting in the pursuit of learning thoroughly enjoyed the interchange of ideas with his fellow-students, on whom he left an unforgettable impression. In 1894 he graduated with high honours. Whilst undergoing his military service at Nancy, his favourite relaxa tion was the study of Greek literature. His book Philon le Juif (1897) was crowned by the Academie Francaise.
Having been appointed a professor at the Lycee of Nantes, he was entrusted the following year first with the Chair of rhetoric, and then of higher rhetoric at the Lycee of Lyons. He imparted to his pupils not merely the principles of knowledge but also the love of it for its own sake; a scholar of great refinement, he pos sessed the gift of stimulating others, and his lucid and attractive lectures captivated all hearers. On relinquishing his chair he became a popular lecturer, as well as journalist and propagandist, and his book, Madame Recamier et ses Amis achieved widespread popularity. His Précis de l'histoire des lettres fran caises (1905) shows that his literary criticism was based on a minute study of the text.
In May 1904 Herriot was made a municipal councillor and deputy mayor of Lyons and the following year became mayor. Thenceforward, with the exception of three months, he guided the destinies of Lyons ; for at each successive election of the municipal council he resumed office. In 1910 he became a member of the conseil general and in 1912 senator for the department of the Rhone. From Dec. 1916 to March 1917 he occupied the post of minister of public works, transport and supplies in the Briand cabinet. During this time he inaugurated a policy of restriction which enabled France to economise her resources. Having to a large extent solved the problem of supplies, he brought order into the transport service; stations, railway lines and ports were cleared, and an efficient service was maintained.
Herriot now felt that by entering the Chamber, he would be better able to carry out his cherished ideas. He therefore renounced his office as senator, and was elected in Nov. 1919 deputy for the Rhone department. He was then appointed a mem ber of the finance Commission and reporter-general of the budget of public instruction. The Radical party now chose him as their leader, and as a defender of the principles of democracy he soon reached the front rank of French statesmen. As an orator he showed subtlety, versatility and imagination. Both in speaking as well as writing Herriot approached his subject from the lofti est standpoint—the result of his wide knowledge, culture and absolute integrity. His chief qualities might be summed up in three words : logic, wisdom and conviction; and it was the com bination of these which enabled him to draw up a formula for an experimental policy.
Even before hostilities had ceased, Herriot turned his atten tion to post-war problems. He insisted on the necessity for the reconstruction and economic development of France. In 1916, at the moment when the victory of January seemed imminent, he organized the Lyons Fair. In 1917 he published Agir, a book which at a time when the fate of France was so uncertain, bore the character of an unflinching act of faith ; for in • it Herriot maintained that the culture and civilisation of France were too deep-rooted and too strong to be overcome. This gospel of action soon inspired the faint-hearted with fresh hope.
After the victory, Herriot brought out a work in two volumes, Greer (1919), dedicated to the youth of France. It contained his programme of reconstruction, and gave his compatriots a fine example of resolution, fearlessness and patriotism. A similar example emerged from his visits to Russia, the United States of America and Canada. He was confronted with an even harder task than before, for as head of the Radical party the eyes of all French democrats were turned towards him. He inspired the opposition and acted as its mouthpiece. After the elections of May 1924 he became premier and minister of foreign affairs. Dur ing the London conferences, in the application of the Dawes plan and finally over the Geneva protocol, he displayed a rare combination of idealism and common sense, and outlined those great aims, in pursuit of which the nations of the world should unite to avoid war. By these efforts he gained the confidence of all men of good will, not only in Europe but over the whole world. Germany in consequence offered to draw up a security pact des tined to be signed eight months later at Locarno. (See SECURITY.) This achievement, however, by no means disarmed Herriot's adversaries. The financial problems which he had to face were the occasion of innumerable attacks upon him and finally a hostile vote of the Senate obliged him to resign in April 1925. (See FRANCE.) A few days later, he was elected president of the Chamber of Deputies by the deputies who desired to testify to the courage, zeal for work and talents of the leader of the Left. In June 1926 Briand invited Herriot to join him in a ministry of National Union. Herriot personally was willing, but his Radical followers objected. President Doumergue then asked Herriot to form a Government ; he tried, and failed, because the moderates, whose support was necessary, feared his radical ideas on finance. Briand then formed a cabinet which was defeated on July 17 on a bill asking for full financial powers for the Government. The defeat was partly due to the unexpected action of Herriot as president of the Chamber; he left the presidential chair to speak from his place as a deputy against the action of the Government which, he thought, threatened the rights of the Chamber.
Herriot formed a ministry, but it was defeated two days later. He then joined (July 23) the ministry of National Union formed by Poincare, as minister of public instruction. He resigned his presidency of the Radical Socialist Federation in the autumn, but of course retained his membership. In Nov. 1928 the party con gress withdrew its support in terms which made it necessary for Herriot to resign from the cabinet. He was again prime minister for a period in 1932. (L. RI.)