'J’accuse...!'

'J'accuse...!'

The infamous Dreyfus Affair, which played out in France between 1894 and 1906, was one of the first trials to become notorious worldwide for its (mis)use of forged documents and false testimonies. Considered ‘the trial of the century’ in its time, it divided French and European society for more than a decade on the question of the trial itself (whether Captain Alfred Dreyfus was a traitor or not) and on questions of scapegoating, antisemitism (unleashing public anger towards carefully constructed enemies), and forging evidence and then disregarding proof of forgery when such proof was delivered. Not only did the French Army resort to forgery to ensure Dreyfus’s condemnation, but it also continued to cover up its judicial mistake even when the real spy, Officer Ferdinand Walsin Esterhazy, was discovered. In an ironic twist to the tale, the French Army became the most ardent defender of the real spy, who they were trying to catch in the first place. Proving that the army was not wrong in finding Dreyfus guilty became a matter of ‘national security’. It was at this moment that Emile Zola involved himself in the affair and denounced the falsifications and injustice in his powerful article ‘J’Accuse...!’. Zola was brought to trial for libel for publishing his letter to the President, and was convicted two weeks later. He was sentenced to jail and was removed from the Légion d’honneur. To avoid jail time, Zola fled to England. Emile Zola died in 1902 before Dreyfus had been declared innocent.