Here's #1001 in the Lumiere Brothers catalogue. It shows the military marching in dress uniforms at the funeral procession of Felix Faure, president of the Republic.
Faure was one of the more useless presidents of the Third Republic at a time when that was expected of them. The office was viewed as ceremonial at the time. As such, Faure was expected to be tactful, look good in a morning coat, and not say anything to offend anyone. On the plus side, relations with Russia improved. On the minus side, his presidency encompassed the Dreyfus affair, when he refused to reopen the case, despite the evidence presented to him. His tact can be summed up in his statement to the leaders of the automobile industry. At a time when France led the world in the production of cars, he told them "Your cars are very ugly and they smell very bad."
Faure was one of the more useless presidents of the Third Republic at a time when that was expected of them. The office was viewed as ceremonial at the time. As such, Faure was expected to be tactful, look good in a morning coat, and not say anything to offend anyone. On the plus side, relations with Russia improved. On the minus side, his presidency encompassed the Dreyfus affair, when he refused to reopen the case, despite the evidence presented to him. His tact can be summed up in his statement to the leaders of the automobile industry. At a time when France led the world in the production of cars, he told them "Your cars are very ugly and they smell very bad."
