Raymond Delaporte

**Raymond Delaporte** (September 13, 1907 – November 7, 1990) was a Breton nationalist activist and lawyer. He supported the Breton language and was involved in collaboration with Nazi Germany during World War II. He was a strong Catholic and led the Bleun-Brug group and the Breton National Party.

## Early life

Raymond Delaporte was born on September 13, 1907, in Châteauneuf-du-Faou, Finistère, France. His father was a lawyer from a local noble family, and his mother was the daughter of a doctor and mayor. They were well-known in the area. His mother died shortly after giving birth to his younger brother in 1912. Raymond had two brothers, Hervé (born 1909) and Yves (born 1912).

## Political activity

Delaporte studied law at the University of Angers and became a lawyer in Châteaulin. He was a scholar of Celtic culture. In 1928, he joined the Breton Autonomist Party. When it split in 1931, he joined the Breton National Party (PNB). He left the PNB in 1937 because he thought Olier Mordrel was too extreme. In 1938, he became president of Bleun-Brug, a group that promoted Breton culture and Catholicism. He also led _Breuriez ar Brezoneg er Skoliou_, which worked to teach the Breton language in schools.

### Breton National Party

In December 1940, Delaporte became leader of the PNB after Mordrel resigned. He led the party until August 1944, with help from his brothers Hervé and Yves. Delaporte tried to keep the PNB neutral between Nazi Germany and the Vichy government. As a Catholic, he worked to lift the church’s 1940 ban on Breton nationalists. His brother Hervé, a doctor, treated injured Resistance fighters in Châteauneuf-du-Faou.

In 1941, Delaporte wrote in the PNB newspaper _L'Heure bretonne_. He criticized Vichy for demanding total obedience and said Bretons should work with other European peoples. He supported Germany’s fight against the Soviet Union, saying a Breton government would have joined Germany from the start. He also wrote that the Breton race needed protection.

In March 1943, Delaporte wrote that he wanted an autonomous Breton state within France, showing a more moderate view than extremists like Célestin Lainé. In October 1943, he stopped funding Lainé’s “Service spécial,” which became the Bezen Perrot group.

### Exile

At the end of World War II, Delaporte hid in Paris and then fled to Ireland, where he taught in Cork. His brother Yves hid in Scotland. Both were sentenced to 20 years of forced labor in absentia but were later cleared in court. Delaporte returned to France and told a military court that the PNB stayed neutral and was only tolerated by Germany, not supported.

## Later life and death

Delaporte returned to Châteauneuf-du-Faou and continued supporting the Breton language. He wrote dictionaries to help translate between Breton and English. He died on November 7, 1990, in his hometown.

## Publications

- _War Du ar Pal_, a magazine started in 1938 with his brothers.
- _Geriadur bihan brezhoneg-saozneg ha saozneg-brezhoneg_ (Small Breton-English Dictionary), 1985.
- _Geriadur brezhoneg-saozneg gant skouerioù_ (Breton-English Dictionary with Examples), 1986–1993, three volumes.

## Infobox (person)

- **name**: Raymond Delaporte
- **image**: L'Heure_Bretonne_-_17_mai_1941_-_Raymond_Delaporte.jpg
- **birth date**: September 13, 1907
- **birth place**: Châteauneuf-du-Faou, France
- **death date**: November 7, 1990
- **death place**: Châteauneuf-du-Faou, France
- **nationality**: French
- **occupation**: Lawyer, activist
- **known for**: Breton nationalism, Breton language
- **party**: Breton Autonomist Party (1928–1931)
Breton National Party (1931–1937, 1940–1944)