FALLOUX DU COUDRAY, FRÉDÉRIC-ALFRED-PIERRE DE. - French politician, b. 7 May 1811 at Angers, d. there 6 Jan. 1885. A descendant of a family of merchants ennobled in 1823 by Louis XVIII with the title of viscount, he completed his studies at the college of his native city, whence he went to Paris. In the capital he frequented the circle of a Russian lady converted to Catholicism by De Maistre, Madame Swetchine, who decisively influenced the formation of his character in a monarchical and Catholic direction.

In 1840 he published a Histoire de Louis XVI, in which he exalted the "ancien régime," followed four years later by the Histoire de Pie V, pape, de l'Ordre des Frères précheurs, a pontiff whom F. ranks among the greatest figures in the history of the Church. Elected deputy in 1846, he became a member of the legitimist right. Upon the fall of the July monarchy he gave his adherence to the Republic. Opposed to the ateliers nationaux, as rapporteur of the parliamentary commission set up for them he proposed their abolition, which led to the Parisian revolt of June 1848, put down by General Cavaignac. Favorable to the candidacy of Louis Napoleon Bonaparte for the presidency of the Republic, he became on 20 Dec. 1848 Minister of Public Instruction and Worship. He appointed an extra-parliamentary commission for school reform, composed of 24 members and presided over by Thiers, a commission that drafted the so-called F. law, approved by the National Assembly on 13 March 1850. By virtue of this law the Church was assured broad influence and freedom in primary education, and a notable increase was given to Catholic secondary schools, whose opening was subject only to the presentation of a certificate of competence to be conferred by special state examining commissions. F. left the ministry a few months before the law was approved (on 31 Oct. 1849 Parieu had succeeded him) and was arrested after the coup d'état of 2 Dec. 1851, nor was he ever again elected deputy. In 1867 he took part in the congress of Malines. After the fall of the Second Empire he was in favor of the fusion between legitimists and Orleanists.

Bibliography3 works

BIBL.: Works: Comte F. A. P. de F., Ministre d'un royaliste, Paris 1888. Studies: A. Robert-G. Couany, Dictionnaire des parlementaires français, II, Paris 1890, pp. 906-98; G. Cognot, La question scolaire en 1848 et la loi F., ibid. 1948; G. Bourain, La question scolaire en 1848 et la loi F., in Accademia nazionale dei Lincei, Fondazione Alessandro Volta, Atti dei convegni, 10 (Convegno di scienze morali, storiche e filologiche, 4-10 Oct. 1948), Rome 1948, pp. 329-47.

Silvio Furlani

@incollection{ec5_falloux_du_coudray_frederic_al, author = {Furlani, Silvio}, title = {Falloux Du Coudray, frédéric-al-fred-pierre de}, booktitle = {Enciclopedia Cattolica}, volume = {V}, pages = {967--968}, note = {Cited by column}, publisher = {Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico}, address = {Città del Vaticano}, year = {1950}, url = {https://azioneromana.com/article/falloux-du-coudray-frederic-al-fred-pierre-de} }

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Falloux du Coudray, Frédéric-Alfred-Pierre de

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