The French Journalist René Marchand: Some Facts about “Soviet Russia’s Friend”

This article is devoted to the life, political views and activities of Le Figaro correspondent René Marchand (1888-1962). Marchand became widely known in Soviet Russia thanks to his open letter to French President Raymond Poincaré in 1918, which criticized the republic’s policy vis-à-vis Moscow as well as acts of sabotage by the Allies. The missive became an important episode in the confrontation between the Entente’s special services and the young Bolshevik regime. French and Russian historians tend to argue that the French journalist’s sympathies turned to socialism and Bolshevism in 1918. However, they generally pay little attention the French Left in Soviet Russia. Based on research in French diplomatic and military archives at Courneuve and Vincennes, respectively, the author concludes that René Marchand was a multi-faceted individual and the nature of his sympathies to the Bolsheviks remains questionable