French military officer (1859–1935) whose central role in the Dreyfus Affair, the most sensational cause célèbre in the final years of the 19th century, thrust him into the international spotlight. Discovering the murky circumstances—the recklessness of the French government in pursuing a speedy conviction, the sloppy procedure of the court-martial—author Emile Zola wrote his famous open letter, “J’Accuse!,” laying bare the entire disgraceful affair. Zola was convicted of libel and fled to England, though he returned to France in time to witness the fall of the government and Dreyfus’s release following an overturned second conviction. ALS in French, signed “A. Dreyfus,” one page, 4.5 x 6, no date. Letter to Emile Zola’s widow after he heard about the Senate’s decision to transfer Zola’s body to the Pantheon. In full, “I am reading this evening in the’Temps’ that the Senate has voted with a strong majority the urgency on the proposition to transfer Zola’s ashes to the Pantheon. I don’t need to tell you how happy I am. What well deserved amends for our great laborious and modest Zola.” In very fine condition. RRAuction COA.
