Gaston Thomson - Minister of the Marine 1905-1908
Gaston Thomson was a French politican born January 29, 1848 in Oran (Algeria) and died May 14, 1932, at Bône (Algeria). He was an early associate of Leon Gambetta, the French prime minister. In 1877 he was elected as a moderate Republican in the House of Deputies (Chamber of Deputies) chosen for the department of Constantine. He met with the moderate Republican groups in the French parliament, as the Republican Left (Republican Democratic Alliance) and - from 1924 - the Radical Left. During the Dreyfus affair, he was a passionate Dreyfusard.
Leon Miram, a Radical Socialist, was wounded by Gaston Thomson in a duel on 06 June 1897. The affair of honor, in which M. Miram was slightly wounded in the arm, grewing out of a letter written by M. Miram attacking M. Thomson. Miram had gained considerable notoriety through his protest against being confined in barracks as a conscript during the election of a President to succeed M. Casimir-Perier
Gaston Thomson began his career on Gambetta's staff. In November 1871, Gambetta founded the Republique Franfaise. His collaborators were Challemel-Lacour, de Freycinet, both Academicians, Spuller, Isambert, Rouvier, Paul Bert, Marcellin Pellet, Gaston Thomson,3 Girard de Rialle, Colani, Andre Lefevre, the whole team of coming Opportunism. This paper was grave, sententious, dogmatic. Its leading articles were political events.
Thomson was Minister of the Marine from 24 January 1905 to 22 October 1908 in the Cabinets of Clémenceau, Sarrien and Rouvier [Rouvier I (January 24 1905 to 18 February 1906), Rouvier II (February 18 to March 6 1906), Sarrien (March 14 to October 22 1908) and Clemenceau I (October 25, 1906 to July 20, 1909)]. Before the 1890s, this position also usually had responsibility for France's colonies, and was usually known as Minister of Marine and Colonies. In that position he was mainly concerned with the modernisation of the navy. His tenure saw the construction of numerous warships, cruisers and battleships, improving the power of the French Navy. His modernization of the navy was continued by his successors, especially Georges Leygues [1917-1920].
In March 1907 the pre-dreadnough Iena was being refitted in dock at Toulon when a series of massive magazine explosions devastated the after part of the ship, with considerable loss of life. On 11 March 1907 the Minister of Marine, who was accompanied by his staff, traveled from Paris during the night, and immediately upon his arrival here the morning proceeded to the scene of the disaster. Minister of Marine Thomson reviewed the survivors and addressed to them a few touching words, after which the men who are engaged in searching the vessel returned to their task, at which they worked all night. Minister Thomson, with a small party, boarded the hulk of the Iena, which was found to be almost intact, but the utmost precautions were necessary in passing through the after part, owing to the fact that partitions were occasionally falling in. The Minister remained on board an hour. Later in the afternoon the Minister interrogated the officers who escaped. and obtained their views regarding the causes of the disaster. He then visited the injured officers; and men in the hospitals, and promised promotion to the most deserving. Minister Thomson made a second visit to the Iena late the next afternoon, after the dry dock had been emptied of water, and made a careful examination of everv part of the battleship that was accessible.
On 18 October 1908 Théophile Delcassé launched an attack on the Naval Minister in the Chamber of Deputies. Five ships and two submarines had been lost in the preceeding three years. A vote in the Chamber of Deputies cited the negligence in his department, as indicated by the explosion of the battleship Iena at Toulon in March of 1907. She was the first of a series of ships to be destroyed due to decomposing (or badly maintained) gun propellant. Navy Minister Gaston Thomson resigned and was replaced by Alfred Picard.
Gaston Thomson later served as Minister of Commerce, Industry, Posts, and Telegraphs in Viviani's First Government [13 June - 26 August 1914] and Second Ministry [26 August 1914 - 29 October 1915]. Thomson was a member of the French Chamber of Deputies for the Department of Constantine / Bône for fifty years and three months. A reception given on April 22, 1927, honored the fifty-year parliamentary career of the colorless Gaston Thomson, then the longest-serving deputy.
Bougie, a seaport of Algeria, is the chief town of an arrondissement in the department of Constantine, 120 m. E. of Algiers. The town, which is defended by a wall built since the French occupation, and by detached forts, is beautifully situated on the slope of Mount Guraya. Behind it are the heights of Mounts Babor and Tababort, rising some 6400 ft. and crowned with forests of pinsapo fir and cedar. When the French took the town from the Algerians in 1833 it consisted of little more than a few fortifications and ruins. It is said that the French word for a candle is derived from the name of the town, candles being first made of wax imported from Bougie.
With his friend Marshal Franchet d'Esperay, they felt that the Port of Toulon had become too vulnerable because of rapid development of aviation European (Germany, Italy, England). Since 1925 they felt the need to transfer the fleet from Toulon to Bougie [in Thomson's constituency]. Thus started the construction of large dam in deep water which closed the Bay of Sidi Yahia at the foot of Cape Bouak. A large shelter for submarines was required under the cap with two entrances, one to the Port and the other to sea. The inner harbor was built as a naval air station with buoys anchor for seaplanes and Goliath CAMS 53. The arsenal of Toulon was to be transferred to ten years on land where there are now large oil tanks at Hassi-Messaoud (formerly it was a huge deposit of garbage across the region de Bougie). Gaston Thomson was involved in the framework of the study of the future port.
In 1930, there was scandal around the Port of Bougie with the assassination of accountant Treuillon by the foreman Bendinelli, the complete disappearance of accounting papers [burned in the hearth of an engine], caused a huge financial scandal. A portion of the appropriations provided was assigned to Mers El Kebir, which started its development. Thereafter Bougie was a link between Bizerte and Mers El Kebir. Many seaplanes did stop on the water, calm and free of 3000 meters from East to West with off the top of the large dam. Thus Bougie inherited a preliminary port which would ultimately served until the start of oil extraction in Algeria.
Gaston Thomson died at the age of 84, on May 14, 1932 in Bône (Algeria).
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