THIERS, LOUIS ADOLPHE (1797-1877), French states man and historian, was born at Marseilles on April 16, 1797. He was educated, first at the lycee of Marseilles, and then in the faculty of law at Aix. Here he began his lifelong friendship with Mignet, and was called to the bar. In 1821 Thiers went to Paris, and became a contributor to the Constitutionnel. Cotta, the well known Stuttgart publisher, who was part-proprietor of the Con stitutionnel, made over to Thiers a share of his dividends and he was thus relieved of any money anxiety.
Meanwhile Thiers became very well known in Liberal society, and he had begun the celebrated Histoire de la revolution fran caise (io vols., 1823-27), which founded his literary and helped his political fame. Coming as the book did just when the reaction against the revolution was about to turn into another reaction in its favour, it was assured of success. In 183o Thiers, with Armand Carrel, Mignet, and others started the National, a new opposi tion newspaper. Thiers himself took a leading part in the actual revolution. He ranked as one of the Radical supporters of the new dynasty. At first Thiers, though elected deputy for Aix, obtained only subordinate places in the ministry of finance. After the overthrow of his patron Laffitte, he became much less radical, and, after the troubles of June 1832, was appointed to the min istry of the interior. He repeatedly changed his portfolio, but remained in office for four years, became president of the council and in effect prime minister, and began his series of quarrels and jealousies with Guizot.
At the time of his resignation in 1836 Thiers was foreign min ister, and, as usual, wished for a spirited policy in Spain, which he could not carry out. He travelled in Italy for some time, and it was not till 1838 that he began a regular campaign of parlia mentary opposition, which in March 1840 made him president of the council and foreign minister for the second time. But he held the position barely six months, and, being unable to force on the king an anti-English and anti-Turkish policy, resigned on Oct. 29. He now worked on his Historie du Consulat et de l'Empire, the first volume of which appeared in 1845. Though he was still a member of the chamber he spoke rarely, till after the beginning of 1846, when he was evidently bidding once more for power. When the revolution of February broke out he and Odilon Barrot were summoned by the king; but it was too late.
Under the republic he took up the position of conservative republican. The inconsistency of his conduct, especially in voting for Prince Louis Napoleon as president, was often and sharply criticized, one of the criticisms leading to a duel with a fellow deputy, Bixio. He was arrested at the coup d'etat, was sent to Mazas, and then escorted out of France. But in the following summer he was allowed to return. For the next decade his time was occupied for the most part on The Consulate and the Empire. It was not till 1863 that he re-entered political life, as deputy for a division of Paris. For the seven years following he was leader of the anti-Imperialists in the French chamber. While
nominally protesting against its foreign enterprises, he perpetually harped on French loss of prestige, and so contributed more than any one to stir up the spirit which brought on the war of 187o.
After the collapse of the empire Thiers visited in the autumn the different courts of Europe in the hope of obtaining some inter vention, or at least some good offices. The mission failed ; but the negotiator was immediately charged with another—that of obtain ing, if possible, an armistice directly from Prince Bismarck. Thiers was chosen deputy to the National Assembly by more than twenty constituencies (of which he preferred Paris), and was at once elected by the Assembly itself practically president, nom inally chef du pouvoir executif. He lost no time in choosing a coalition cabinet, and then personally took up the hard task of negotiating peace. He succeeded in convincing the deputies that the peace was necessary, and it was (March 1, 1871) voted by more than five to one. Thiers held office for two years after the peace. He had at first to meet and crush at once the Paris com mune, and on Aug. 3o he became president of the republic.
His strong personal will and inflexible opinions had much to do with the resurrection of France; they also made it inevitable that he should excite violent opposition. His talents and his temper made him utterly indisposed to maintain the attitude supposed to be incumbent on a republican president; and his tongue was never a carefully governed one. In January 1872 he formally tendered his resignation; and, though it was refused, almost all parties disliked him, while his chief supporters—men like Remusat, Barthelemy Saint-Hilaire and Jules Simon—were men rather of the past than of the present. In 1873 regulations were proposed, and on April 13, were carried, which were intended to restrict the executive and especially the parliamentary powers of the presi dent. The government was further weakened by a dissolution and reconstitution of the cabinet on May 19. Immediately after wards the question was brought to a head by an interpellation moved by the duc de Broglie. The president declared that he should take this as a vote of want of confidence; a vote of this character (though on a different formal issue, and proposed by M. Ernoul) was carried by 16 votes in a house of 704. Thiers at once resigned (May 24). He died on Sept. 3, His histories, in many different editions, and his speeches, as above, are easily accessible; his minor works and newspaper articles have not, we believe, been collected in any form. Several years after his death appeared Deux opuscules (1891) and Mélanges inedites (5892), while Notes et souvenirs, 1870-73, were published in 5901 by "F. D.," his sister-in-law and constant companion, Mlle. Felicie Dosne. Works on him, by M. Laya, M. de Mazade, his colleague and friend, M. Jules Simon, and others, are numerous. D. Halevy, Le Courrier de M. de Thiers (1921), pp. 521; L. A. Thiers, Thiers an pouvoir, 1871-73 (1921), pp. 357.