Georges Picquart - Picquart and The Dreyfus Affair

Picquart and The Dreyfus Affair

Picquart was then appointed to the General Staff in Paris. As a staff officer he acted as reporter of the debates in the first Dreyfus court martial for the then Minister of War and the Chief of the General Staff. Picquart was subsequently promoted to the rank of lieutenant-colonel on 6 April 1896. When appointed chief of the army's intelligence section (Deuxième Bureau, service de renseignement militaire) in 1896, Picquart discovered that the memorandum (the bordereau) that had been used to convict Captain Alfred Dreyfus had been the work of Major Ferdinand Walsin Esterhazy. Several high-ranking generals warned Colonel Picquart to conceal his discovery but Picquart persisted and continued his investigation. In this he was hindered and sabotaged by subordinate officers, notably Major Henry. As a consequence Picquart was relieved of duty with the Deuxième Bureau and sent (December 1896) to regimental duty in Tunis.

After the trial of Émile Zola, Picquart was himself accused of forging the note that had convinced him of Esterhazy's guilt. He was then arrested for forgery and was waiting for a court martial during the period that the French Supreme Court was reviewing the Dreyfus case. After the second court-martial - held as a consequence of the conclusions of the Supreme Court - Picquart resigned from the army but the exoneration of Alfred Dreyfus in 1906 also absolved Picquart, who was, by an act of the Chamber of Deputies, promoted to brigadier-general. General Picquart subsequently entered Georges Clemenceau's first cabinet as Minister of War. He held that position for the entire duration of the Clemenceau Cabinet, from 25 October 1906 to 24 July 1909.

A keen amateur pianist, Picquart was a regular visitor to the Chaigneau family, whose daughters formed the Trio Chaigneau. He later helped arrange concerts for them.

While still a serving army officer, Picquart died on 18 January 1914 from injuries received in a fall from a horse.