Barthélemy-Prosper Enfantin
Barthélemy-Prosper Enfantin | |
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Saint-Simonism Founder |
Barthélemy-Prosper Enfantin (8 February 1796 – 1 September 1864) was a French
Early life
Enfantin was born in
Initially, he began working for a country wine merchant, travelling to
In 1825 a new turn was given to his thoughts and his life by the friendship which he formed with
Preaching and politics
After the July Revolution of 1830 Enfantin resigned his office of cashier, and devoted all his energy to the cause. Besides contributing to Le Globe, he made appeals to the people by systematic preaching, and organized centres of action in some of the main cities of France.[1]
The headquarters in Paris were moved from the modest rooms in the Rue Taranne to the large halls near the Boulevard des Italiens. Enfantin and Amand Bazard were proclaimed Pères Suprêmes ("Supreme Fathers") – a union which was, however, only nominal, as a divergence was already manifest. Bazard, who concentrated on organizing the group, had devoted himself to political reform, while Enfantin, who favoured teaching and preaching, dedicated his time to social and moral change. The antagonism was widened by Enfantin's announcement of his theory of the relation of man and woman, which would substitute for the "tyranny of marriage" a system of "free love".[1]
Bazard and his disciples broke with Enfantin's group. The latter became sole "father", leading a chiefly religiously-oriented movement, joined by new converts (according to Enfantin's estimate, the total number of followers would have reached 40,000). He wore on his breast a badge with his title of Père, was referred to by his preachers as "the living law", declared himself to be the chosen of God, and sent out emissaries in a quest of a woman predestined to be the "female Messiah," and the mother of a new Saviour (the latter quest was very costly and altogether fruitless).[1]
Success and repression
Meanwhile, the new religion gathered believers in all parts of
This prosecution discredited the new society. Enfantin was released in a few months.[1]
Turkey and Egypt
Then, accompanied by twenty of his followers, many of whom were also engineers from the
Enfantin and his group then arrived in
Return to France
On his return to France, he occupied minor offices. He became first a
In 1845 he was appointed a director of the Paris & Lyons railway. Three years later he established, in conjunction with Duveyrier, a daily journal, entitled Le Credit, which was discontinued in 1850. He was afterwards attached to the administration of the railway from Lyons to the Mediterranean.
Société d'Études du Canal de Suez
Father Enfantin held fast by his ideal to the end, but he had renounced the hope of giving it a local habitation and a name in the degenerate obstinate world. His personal influence over those who associated with him was immense. "He was a man of a noble presence, with finely formed and expressive features. He was gentle and insinuating in manner, and possessed a calm, graceful and winning delivery" (Gent. M . Jan. 1865). His evident sincerity, his genuine enthusiasm, gave him his marvellous ascendancy. The Société d'Études du Canal de Suez was established by Enfantin in 1846 to continue study of the Suez Canal. Its members included Arlès-Dufour, Jules, Lon and Paulin Talabot, the British Robert Stephenson and Edward Starbuck, the Austrian Alois Negrelli, inspector of the Emperor Ferdinand Northern Railway, and Feronce and Sellier of Leipzig as representatives of the German interest.[6]
The Société sent surveying teams to Egypt, developed engineering plans, determined that the elevation difference between the Red Sea and the Mediterranean Sea was negligible, but Muhammad Ali was still reticent to the idea of a canal. Upon his death in 1848, the activities of the Société were minimized until his successor was assassinated in 1854 and
Not a few of his disciples ranked afterwards amongst the most distinguished men of France. Enfantin died suddenly in Paris on September 1, 1864.[9]
Literary works
Amongst his works are: Doctrine de Saint-Simon (written in conjunction with several of his followers), published in 1830, and several times republished; Economie politique et politique Saint-Simonienne (1831); Correspondance politique (1835–1840); Corresp. philos. et religieuse (1843–1845); and La Vie eternelle passee, presente, future (1861). A large number of articles by his hand appeared in Le Producteur, L'Organisateur, Le Globe, and other periodicals. He also wrote in 1832 Le Livre nouveau, intended as a substitute for the Christian Scriptures, but it was not published.[9]
See also
- Saint-Simonianism
Footnotes
- ^ a b c d e f g h Chisholm 1911, p. 402.
- ISBN 0-375-40883-5.
- ISBN 0-375-40883-5.
- ISBN 0-375-40883-5.
- ^ Chisholm 1911, pp. 402–403.
- ^ Wilson, Arnold T. (1939). The Suez Canal. 2nd ed., London: Oxford University Press
- ISBN 0-375-40883-5.
- ISBN 0-375-40883-5.
- ^ a b Chisholm 1911, p. 403.
References
- Burchell, S. C. (1966). Building the Suez Canal. Horizon Caravel series. American Heritage. pp. 38–41.
Attribution:
- public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Enfantin, Barthélemy Prosper". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 9 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 402–403. This work in turn cites: This article incorporates text from a publication now in the