DREYFUS

dreyfus, alfred (1859- ), french soldier, of jewish parentage, the scandal of whose condemnation for treason and subsequent rehabilitation convulsed french political life between 1894 and 1899, and only ended in 1906, was born in mulhausen, upper alsace, removing to paris in 1874. after going through the usual course of military instruction with credit, he became a sous-lieutenant in the artillery in 1882, and was promoted captain in 1889; and, after passing through the _ecole de guerre_ with distinction, he was appointed to the general staff. his name was, however, unknown to the general public till he was arrested on the 15th of october 1894 on a charge of selling military secrets to germany, condemned, publicly degraded (january 4, 1895), and transported (march 10) to the ile du diable, french guiana. the story of the subsequent proceedings in this celebrated case is told in the article