Henri Guillemin was born on 19 March 1903 in Mâcon. He attended the École normale supérieure and obtained an agrégation in literature in 1972. A professor at several French universities, he was forced to leave Bordeaux in 1942 to take refuge in Switzerland. He maintained close ties with Neuchâtel, where he was a frequent visitor.
In 1945, Henri Guillemin became cultural adviser to the French embassy in Berne, then, from 1963 to 1973, professor at the University of Geneva. He died on 4 May 1992 in Neuchâtel.
A specialist in the nineteenth century, he was a historian, literary critic and prolific writer. This non-conformist intellectual was as much admired by the general public as he was fiercely criticised in academic circles. As a result, he was banned from French and Belgian television. This ostracism delighted viewers in French-speaking Switzerland, who were able to benefit from his talents as a lecturer between 1958 and 1973.
With Les Dossiers de l'Histoire, the historian made key historical issues accessible. Henri Guillemin also introduced viewers to the works of Arthur Rimbaud, Émile Zola and Leo Tolstoy. His televised lectures, a genre that has now disappeared, were an important feature on TSR.
