Emile Zola's Dreyfus affair exile letters to be sold in Jerusalem

Following violent demonstrations outside Zola’s home, and being sued for libel by military and state, Zola was advised to go into exile until the end of the trial against him.

The Dreyfus affair caused an outburst of popular antisemitism in France.

The three letters will go on sale next month at the Kedem Auction House in Jerusalem.  

“Jewish history shows that although many came after us, we often had true friends,” says Meron Eren of Kedem.

“Emile Zola bought his name as a recognised writer in the culture of late 19^th century France and despite that, he did not hesitate to point out substantial wrongdoing,” Mr Eren explained.

Dreyfus spent four years in a penal colony in French Guyana, before returned to France and being pardoned by the French President Emile Loubet.

Mr Eren added: “His letters are a kind of historical mosaic of Zola’s willingness to be true to his ethics and to stand up for Dreyfus and the Jewish people.”