‘We are neither governed nor defended. Very grave matters have been brought forward’

‘The radical party long believed in the absence of external threats’

Three days before this article was published, Charles Humbert, vice-president of the armed forces committee revealed how ill-prepared France was for war. – Lara Marlowe

‘Fortunately, there is not . . . any serious dispute between France and Germany’

An ‘Irish Independent’ article highlights the French army’s lack of preparedness for a war with Germany