Analysis of information sources in references of the Wikipedia article "Louis Renault (industrialist)" in English language version.
The casket of Louis Renault, prewar owner of France's largest automobile factory, was raised from the family tomb today to press his widow's claim that he was murdered.
Renault's were the only manufacturer whose plants were confiscated permanently by the state, and indeed the Renault works, like the Berliet truck factory at Lyon, might have been returned to private hands, had M. Renault lived as long as M. Marius Berliet who built 2,330 trucks for the Germans but who stubbornly refused to recognize legal actions against him after the war. He died in 1949, and his firm remained in family hands.
The activities of Louis Renault led to the spectacular expropriation of his company by the State; what is less well known is that he died in prison awaiting trial, and therefore was never convicted. The car manufacturer Marius Berliet suffered the same fate of expropriation. At his trial in September 1945, Berliet claimed in his defence that his company had produced fewer cars for the German occupiers than any other car producer: 2,239 cars for the Germans vs. 6,548 for French customers. This is compared to Renault which had delivered 32,887 vehicles to the Germans and only 1,697 to French clients, a pattern followed by Citroen (32,248 produced for Germans and only 2,052 for French clients) (Aron, 1974). Managers at Renault claimed, for their part, that they had deliberately slowed down production, producing 7,677 fewer vehicles than the target of 41,909 vehicles imposed by the German occupiers. The argument, however, cut no ice with the Confederation Generale du Travail (CVT), who maintained that the go-slow had been organized by the workers, not the management. Louis Renault may have been punished more for his attitudes than his actions, which were mirrored by those of many other employers. Robert Aron reports that when a Gaullist came seeking his support for the Free French, Renault is alleged to have replied "De Gaulle connaît pas!" (Aron, 1974, 234).
Nearly 70 years after the pioneering automaker Louis Renault died in a French prison, accused of collaborating with the Nazis, his grandchildren are seeking to restore his reputation — and gain compensation for what they say was the illegal confiscation of his car company by the state.
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ignored (help)The casket of Louis Renault, prewar owner of France's largest automobile factory, was raised from the family tomb today to press his widow's claim that he was murdered.
En 1982, un résistant de l'OCM, et cadre de l'entreprise, Robert de Longcamps, réclamera en vain la réhabilitation de Louis Renault "injustement accusé de collaboration avec l'ennemi", mais sa lettre au Garde des Sceaux, Robert Badinter, restera sans réponse. Le 29 juillet 1967 une loi a reconnu le droit à l'indemnisation très partielle de Jean-Louis Renault, unique héritier direct de Louis Renault vis à vis de biens personnels non industriels. Louis Renault est titulaire de la Grand-croix de la Légion d'honneur pour sa contribution exceptionnelle à la victoire de la Première Guerre mondiale en 1918. Il a été radié par le gouvernement de Vichy.
En 1982, un résistant de l'OCM, et cadre de l'entreprise, Robert de Longcamps, réclamera en vain la réhabilitation de Louis Renault "injustement accusé de collaboration avec l'ennemi", mais sa lettre au Garde des Sceaux, Robert Badinter, restera sans réponse. Le 29 juillet 1967 une loi a reconnu le droit à l'indemnisation très partielle de Jean-Louis Renault, unique héritier direct de Louis Renault vis à vis de biens personnels non industriels. Louis Renault est titulaire de la Grand-croix de la Légion d'honneur pour sa contribution exceptionnelle à la victoire de la Première Guerre mondiale en 1918. Il a été radié par le gouvernement de Vichy.