Léon Sultan
ليون سلطان
A portrait of Leon Sultan published with his obituary in Le Petit Marocain June 24, 1945.[1]
Born(1905-09-13)September 13, 1905
Constantine, Algeria
DiedJune 23, 1945(1945-06-23) (aged 39)
Casablanca, Morocco
Cause of deathStroke from complications of an injury sustained in combat

Léon Réne Sultan (Arabic: ليون سلطان; September 13, 1905 – June 23, 1945) was a French-Algerian lawyer and founder of the Communist Party of Morocco.[2][3][4][1]

Background

He was born to an Algerian Jewish family—one of 8 children—in Constantine, Algeria in 1905.[2][5] He was technically a French citizen due to the Crémieux Decree.[2] His father worked at the military factories in the city.[2]

Career

He studied at the College of Law of Algiers (Faculté de droit d’Alger), then from 1925 to 1929 practiced at his own law office in Constantine.[2] In 1929, he moved his practice to Casablanca, Morocco, where he joined young socialists and socialized with the city's Muslims as well as Jews.[2][5] He was fluent in Arabic and French.[4]

He was disbarred by the antisemitic French Vichy regime.[5][1]

Communist activity

In 1936, communist activity was legalized by the Popular Front government in France.[3] A branch of the French communist party was established in Morocco and based in Casablanca, and Léon Sultan served as its secretary.[3] It wasn't big, and it was made up almost exclusively of intellectuals.[3] Léon Sultan wrote articles for the Clarté, a weekly journal published by the group.[5][3] In 1939, the French communist party as well as its Moroccan branch were banned for Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact.[3]

In 1943, communist activity resurged in Morocco, and Léon Sultan served as the first general secretary of the Communist Party of Morocco.[3]

He died in June 1945, and Ali Yata assumed leadership of the party.[3]

Military service

He enlisted as a volunteer to fight against the Nazis in WWII.[1] He was a lieutenant of the 5th regiment of Moroccan tirailleurs (infantrymen).[1] He participated in Alsace, along the Rhine, in the Palatinate Forest, Württemberg, Bavaria, and Austria, where he was injured on April 29, 1945, fighting on the front.[1] He continued to fight at the head of his section, not being hospitalized until May 11, 1945.[1]

Death

He returned to Casablanca in June, where was due to resume his recovery.[1] His return was celebrated by the Communist Party and other democratic organizations.[1] He died unexpectedly of a stroke from complications of his injury at the military hospital in Casablanca.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Le Petit Marocain". Gallica. 1945-06-24. Retrieved 2020-03-22.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "SULTAN Léon-René [Dictionnaire Algérie] - Maitron". maitron.univ-paris1.fr. Retrieved 2020-01-27.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Busky, Donald F. (2002). Communism in History and Theory: Asia, Africa, and the Americas. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-275-97733-7.
  4. 1 2 "Sultan, Léon René". doi:10.1163/1878-9781_ejiw_sim_000782. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  5. 1 2 3 4 Alma Heckman, “Sultan, Léon René”, in: Encyclopedia of Jews in the Islamic World, Executive Editor Norman A. Stillman. Consulted online on 26 December 2023 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/1878-9781_ejiw_SIM_000782>
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