Maxime Quartenoud

Maxime Quartenoud

Maxime Quartenoud (born June 16, 1897 in Treyvaux , † May 14, 1956 in Friborg ) was a Swiss politician .

Live and act

His parents were Constant Quartenoud, blacksmith, and Mélanie geb. Schouwey, who died at the age of 102 as the oldest woman from Freiburg at the time. Quartenoud married Yvonne Butty and Germaine Pauchard in their second marriage.

After attending the St. Michael College , Maxime Quartenoud studied law at the University of Freiburg , from which he graduated in 1922 with a licentiate . He worked as a notary and became secretary of the Freiburg Farmers' Union and editor of the newspaper Le Paysan Fribourgeois. From 1926 to 1935 he sat as a representative of the Saane district in the Grand Council and was also Vice-President of the Saane District Court. In 1928 he strove for a seat on the National Council, but only reached seventh place on the list and was second among those who followed.

On April 7, 1935, he was elected to the State Council to succeed Emile Savoy and took over the management of the interior, agriculture, industry and trade. He was President of the State Council four times (1940, 1946, 1950, 1954).

From 1935 to 1947 he sat in the National Council and from 1947 until his death in the Council of States . When he was elected to the “Stöckli” as the successor to Joseph Piller , he received 110 out of 118 valid votes, as the minority parties voted for him. Although he supported the election of the liberal Pierre Glasson against Joseph Piller in the State Council election in 1946 , he was adamant on the question of the allocation of financial management, which Louis Dupraz was aiming for in late 1951 / early 1952.

As a shop steward and undisputed leader of the peasantry, Quartenoud led them during the economic crisis of the 1930s , in which he had to financially rehabilitate agriculture, during the Second World War, when production had to be increased to the maximum ( elections plan ), and finally after the war when it came to renewing their status. At that time the primary sector provided more than 40% of jobs. Before 1950, industrialization in the canton was not one of Quartenoud's main concerns. On November 13, 1936, he gave an important speech on the fight against unemployment, in which he pointed out the limited possibilities of the state. He was against the establishment of a cantonal unemployment fund because he believed that this was a matter for the social partners. He considered the possibility of creating a lottery to support the unemployed, denounced Bolshevism and declared that "communism is like a virus".

Being close to trade union circles and young conservatives, he managed family allowances and campaigned for professional organization and social security that looked different from those that the federal government wanted to introduce. Friborg was the only canton to oppose the introduction of the old age and survivors' insurance (AHV) , as it was believed that it was a matter for private initiatives that had to be supported by the family, companies and professional associations.

In 1954 Quartenoud vehemently opposed the liberal initiative for the democratization of the Friborg institutions, claiming that it violated the principle of the unity of matter, but admitted that he did not dislike the people's election of the Council of States. He also fought against the motion of the minority parties for the election of state councils according to the proportional representation system, an idea that he did not consider to be serious: "What weakness, what intrigues and what machinations would proportional representation bring into the executive?"

In a speech given in May 1952, Quartenoud enumerated the changes that had marked the last hundred years since the Posieux Assembly : population growth, rural exodus, mechanization and the creation of the university. As heir to the Friborg von Posieux, the conservative people had no need to look for useless utopias. It was able to rely on the treasure of its traditions to find solutions to the problems of that time. The defamers of the conservative state were mocked by the speaker, who was only too happy to repeat: "A bird that pollutes its nest is a dirty bird."

Maxime Quartenoud was very popular. With his pictorial style, he knew how to grab every audience and got the laughing on his side. The official journal of the Grand Council meetings repeatedly noted "cheerfulness" when he came before the members of parliament. In connection with his election, Léon Savary wrote: «Today's speaker, whose initially simple and familiar language suddenly gains momentum and quickly triggers the enthusiasm of the quietest listeners, was already recognizable in the young Quartenoud, a thoughtful, reserved boy who, however passionate about big things and noble ideas and always looking for the right, moderate, precise expression. "

He proved to be generous towards the disadvantaged. With his full hair and his winning smile, he found sympathy everywhere. The people valued the attractive and unmistakable personality of a man of dreaded agility. It was called the "Bull of Treyvaux" (allusion to the former French Prime Minister Édouard Daladier , who was nicknamed "Bull of the Vaucluse" and was like Quartenoud). He, who said "we servants of the people" when speaking of the State Council, became a legendary figure in Freiburg's public life.

His early death on May 14, 1956 moved the public. The press reacted with numerous articles and statements to the death of the strong man in the government.

literature

• Marius Michaud: Quartenoud, Maxime. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
• Georges Andrey , John Clerc, Jean-Pierre Dorand et Nicolas Gex: The Freiburg Council of State: 1848–2011. History, organization, members . Editions La Sarine, Freiburg 2012, ISBN 978-2-88355-153-4 .