JAURÈS, JEAN LÉON°

JAURÈS, JEAN LÉON° (1859–1914), French Socialist politician. The dreyfus case brought him to the forefront of the political scene. At first Jaurès sided with the Socialists, who regarded the affair as a phase in the inner struggle of the ruling class. Later, however, brushing aside political expediency, he declared himself willing to "walk the darkened road which leads to justice." In association with Georges Clemenceau and emile zola , Jaurès headed a national campaign for the rehabilitation of Dreyfus. He was shot in Paris by a fanatic on the eve of World War I (July 31, 1914). Jaurès had considerable influence on Léon Blum , who regarded himself as his disciple, and on leaders of the Zionist labor movement, in particular Berl katzenelson . -BIBLIOGRAPHY: M. Auclair, La vie de Jean Jaurès (1954); H. Goldberg, Life of Jean Jaurès (1962), incl. bibl.