Ernest Mercier

Ernest Mercier (1878-1955) was a key figure in the rise of the technical-managerial class in early 20th-century France. A businessman and technocrat, he sought to overhaul the French political and economic system through his work in modernizing the electric power industry and promoting the creation of a native petroleum industry. As head of France's largest utilities syndicate, Mercier was influential within the business and political elite, forming connections with figures like Marshals Foch and Petain and Presidents Poincare and Lebrun. His technocratic movement, Redressement Francais (1925-1935), aimed at replacing the political establishment with a results-oriented, expert-driven system. Mercier's career, deeply intertwined with the rise of the managerial class, offers insight into the broader goals of technocrats to modernize France's economy and society while also seeking a shift in traditional political and social values.

Mercier's story also illustrates the tensions between modernization and the political climate of the era. Despite his drive for economic transformation, his elitist tendencies and authoritarian associations, including his involvement in the Croix de Feu, demonstrate the complexities of his character. As a technocrat, Mercier aimed to make France more efficient and productive, but his belief in authoritarian methods clashed with democratic ideals. His biography is not only a study of the man himself but also of the broader technocratic movement that sought to reshape France. While his efforts to modernize the French system largely failed during his lifetime, they laid the groundwork for the technocratic influence that would grow stronger in the postwar era.

This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press's mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1967.