De 1864 à 1880 : Valentin Magnan (1835–1916), un anatomo-clinicien, expérimentateur, enseignant et fondateur d’une maison de santé privée à Suresnes fondée en 1875 avec Gustave Bouchereau (1835–1900) et Gustave Lolliot (1837–1882) ou l’histoire d’un évincement d’un aliéniste radical-socialiste à la chaire des maladies mentales et de l’encéphale en 1877 (Partie II)

Abstract

The Orleans monarchist Ferdinand Duval (1827–1896) that was the prefect of the Seine issued a decree abolishing the teaching of mental illness following the Teulat affair and in the name of Moral Order politic, this is very different from the republican project. This decree inaugurated a lot of debates. The reading of these about the question of the creation of a chair for mental illnesses and the brain (1877) at the General Council of the Seine and the French National Assembly reflected the political oppositions between monarchist and republican. Magnan was discredited by his participation at the so-called exhibition of the insane and his creation of a private health center in Suresnes (1875) with Gustave Bouchereau (1835–1900) and Gustave Loliiot (1840–1882). That was said to oust Magnan as a candidate to hold the Chair Mental Illness Clinic. Auguste Voisin (1829–1898) was eliminated for this job because he was the brother of the police prefect Félix Voisin (1832–1915). We believe that Magnan was not selected because his attitude of allegiance to Georges Clémenceau (1841–1929); their relationship went beyond a simple friendship. Magnan’ political orientation was a radical socialist. He was not in favored on the one hand with the President of the Council Jules Simon (1814–1896) and on the other hand with the Minister of Public Education and Fine Arts William Henry Waddington (1826–1889). The latter was the signatory of Ball's appointment order and his installation to the Chair Mental Illness Clinic at Sainte-Anne Asylum. In fact, Ball has Britannic origin and was Protestant as W.-H. Waddington. Thus, he was the minister's favorite. At a time when an ambient anticlericalism existed, the appointment of a Protestant alienist reflected a desire to maintain religious influence on the hospital ground for the Protestant community. Therefore, Benjamin Ball (1833–1893) appointment as the first holder of the Chair Mental Illness Clinic at Sainte-Anne asylum has been based on political and religious background.