View source for Frederic Coudert Jr.

{{Short description|American politician (1898–1972)}}
{{redirect|Frederic Coudert|the co-founder of Coudert Brothers|Frederic René Coudert Sr.}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name                = Frederic René Coudert Jr.
| image               = Frederic R. Coudert, Jr.jpg
| state               = [[New York (state)|New York]]
| district            = {{ushr|NY|17|17th}}
| term_start          = January 3, 1947
| term_end            = January 3, 1959
| predecessor         = [[Joseph C. Baldwin]]
| successor           = [[John Lindsay]]
| state_senate1       = New York State
| district1           = [[New York's 20th State Senate district|20th]]
| term_start1         = 1945
| term_end1           = 1946
| predecessor1        = [[Alexander A. Falk]]
| successor1          = [[MacNeil Mitchell]]
| state_senate2       = New York State
| district2           = [[New York's 17th State Senate district|17th]]
| term_start2         = 1939
| term_end2           = 1944
| predecessor2        = Leon A. Fischel
| successor2          = [[Robert S. Bainbridge]]
| birth_date          = {{birth date|1898|5|7}}
| death_date          = {{Death date and age|1972|5|21|1898|5|7}}
| birth_place         = [[New York City]], US
| death_place         = [[New York City]], US
| party               = [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]
| spouse              = {{ubl|{{marriage|[[Mary Callery]]|1923|1930|end=div}}|{{marriage|Paula Murray|October 27, 1931}}}}
| children            = 3
| alma_mater          = {{ubl|[[Columbia College (New York)|Columbia College]]|[[Columbia Law School]]}}
| allegiance          = United States
| branch              = United States Army
| serviceyears        = 1917–1919
| rank                = [[First lieutenant (United States)|First Lieutenant]]
| unit                = 105th Infantry Regiment, 27th Division
| battles             = [[World War I]]
| father              = [[Frederic René Coudert Sr.]]
|awards = Columbia University Medal for Distinguished Public Service<br/>[[Legion of Honor]] (Chevalier) (France)
}}

'''Frederic René Coudert Jr.''' (May 7, 1898 – May 21, 1972) was a member of the [[United States House of Representatives]] from [[New York (state)|New York]] from 1947 to 1959, and a member of the [[New York State Senate]] from 1939 to 1946. Prior to serving in Congress, he was best known for his role with New York's [[Rapp-Coudert Committee]], which attempted to identify the extent of [[communist]] influence in the [[New York (state)|state of New York]]'s [[public school (government funded)|public education]] system. The committee's inquiries led to the dismissal of more than 40 instructors and staff members at the [[City College of New York]], actions the committee's critics regarded as a political "witch-hunt."

==Background==
Coudert was born in [[New York City]] on May 7, 1898, the son of [[Frederic René Coudert, II]] (1871–1955) and Alice T. (Wilmerding) Coudert.<ref name="Directory">{{cite book |author=Joint Committee On Printing, U.S. Congress |date=1961 |title=Biographical Directory of the American Congress, 1774-1961 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZeBQAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA741 |location=Washington, DC |publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office |pages=741–742 |via=[[Google Books]]}}</ref> He attended the [[Browning School|Browning]] and [[Morristown School]]s in New York City,<ref name="Directory"/> then entered Harvard College in 1916, but when the US entered [[World War I]], Coudert joined the Army.<ref name="Directory"/> He served in France as a [[First lieutenant (United States)|first lieutenant]] assigned to the 105th Infantry [[Regiment]], a unit of the [[27th Infantry Division (United States)|27th Division]].<ref name="Directory"/><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ancestry.com/sharing/6543773?mark=7b22746f6b656e223a2249713379743477364b363441346175716164565163572f544a617372547169536753757663532f4432764d3d222c22746f6b656e5f76657273696f6e223a225632227d |title=New York Abstracts of National Guard Service in WWI, 1917-1919, Entry for Frederic Rene Coudert Jr. |website=Ancestry.com |publisher=Ancestry.com LLC |location=Lehi, UT |access-date=September 26, 2023 |url-access=subscription}}</ref> In 1918, he received his [[Bachelor of Arts]] degree from [[Columbia College (New York)|Columbia College]] as part of a program that awarded degrees to military members through a combination of academic study and military service.<ref>{{cite book |date=1919 |title=Columbia University Catalogue for 1918–1919 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wY1GAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA259 |location=New York, NY |publisher=Columbia University |page=259 |via=[[Google Books]]}}</ref>

Coudert was discharged from the army in 1919 and began attending [[Columbia Law School]].<ref name="Directory"/> He received his [[Bachelor of Laws|LL.B.]] degree in 1922, was [[Admission to the bar in the United States|admitted to the bar]] in 1923, and commenced [[Practice of law|practice]] in New York City.<ref name="Directory"/> He served as an assistant [[United States attorney]] for the [[United States District Court for the Southern District of New York|Southern District of New York]] in 1924 and 1925.<ref name="Directory"/>

==Politics==
Coudert was a member of [[The New York Young Republican Club]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://nyyrc.com/history/ |title=History: Timeline; 1945 |website=NYYRC.com |publisher=New York Young Republicans Club |access-date=September 26, 2023}}</ref> He was an unsuccessful [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] candidate for [[New York County District Attorney]] in 1929.<ref name="Directory"/> He was a delegate to the Republican state conventions every two years from 1930 to 1948, and the Republican National Conventions every four years from 1936 to 1948.<ref name="Directory"/>

From 1939 to 1946, Coudert was a member of the [[New York State Senate]], sitting in the [[162nd New York State Legislature|162nd]], [[163rd New York State Legislature|163rd]], [[164th New York State Legislature|164th]] and [[165th New York State Legislature]]s.<ref name="Directory"/>

He was elected as a Republican to the [[80th United States Congress|80th]], [[81st United States Congress|81st]], [[82nd United States Congress|82nd]], [[83rd United States Congress|83rd]], [[84th United States Congress|84th]] and [[85th United States Congress]]es, holding office from January 3, 1947, to January 3, 1959.<ref name="Directory"/> Coudert voted in favor of the [[Civil Rights Act of 1957]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.govtrack.us/congress/votes/85-1957/h42 |title=HR 6127, Civil Rights Act of 1957 |date=June 18, 1957 |website=Gov Track.us |publisher= Civic Impulse, LLC |access-date=September 26, 2023}}</ref>

==Post-congressional career==
He continued his practice of law in New York City, and was also a member of the State Commission on Governmental Operations of New York City from 1959 to 1961.<ref name="Directory"/> Coudert was an outspoken conservative and endorsed [[William F. Buckley]]'s 1965 Conservative campaign for the New York City mayoralty over liberal Republican Congressman [[John Lindsay]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Buckley |first=William F. Jr. |author-link=William F. Buckley Jr. |date=2015 |title=The Unmaking of a Mayor |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jqGOCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA379 |location=New York, NY |publisher=Encounter Books |page=379 |isbn=978-1-59403-847-1 |via=[[Google Books]]}}</ref>

==Retirement and death==
He retired due to ill health, and died in New York City on May 21, 1972.<ref name="Directory2005">{{cite book |author=Joint Committee On Printing, U.S. Congress |date=2005 |title=Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1774-2005 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=v9MBIctdjjkC&pg=PA879 |location=Washington, DC |publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office |page=879 |isbn=978-0-1607-3176-1 |via=[[Google Books]]}}</ref> He was buried at Memorial Cemetery in [[Cold Spring Harbor, New York]].<ref name="Directory2005"/>

==Awards==
In 1941, Coudert received the Columbia University Medal for Distinguished Public Service.<ref name="Obituary">{{cite news |date=May 23, 1972 |title=Frederic Coudert Jr., 74, Dead; Represented East Side In House |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1972/05/23/archives/frederic-coudert-jr-74-dead-represented-east-side-in-house.html |work=[[The New York Times]] |location=New York, NY |page=45 |via=[[TimesMachine]]}}</ref> In addition, he was a recipient of the French [[Legion of Honor]] (Chevalier) to recognize his efforts on behalf of the French people, including serving as president of the federation of French Alliances In the United States.<ref name="Obituary"/>

==Family==
In June 1923, Coudert married sculptor [[Mary Callery]].<ref>{{cite news |date=June 24, 1923 |title=F. R. Coudert Jr. Married; Weds Miss Mary K. Callery in Sacred Heart Church, Hot Springs |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1923/06/24/archives/fr-coudert-jr-married-weds-miss-mary-k-callery-in-sa-cred-heart.html |work=[[The New York Times]] |location=New York, NY |page=26 |via=[[Times Machine]]}}</ref> The marriage ended in divorce in May 1931,<ref name="Divorce">{{cite news |date=May 31, 1931 |title=Mrs. Coudert Wins Divorce In Paris |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/times-union-divorce/132481313/ |work=[[The Brooklyn Daily Times]] |location=Brooklyn, NY |page=1 |via=[[Newspapers.com]]}}</ref> and in October of that year he married Paula Murray.<ref name="Obituary"/> With his first wife, Coudert was the father of daughter Catherine.<ref name="Divorce"/> With his second, he was the father of son Frederic R. "Fritz" and daughter Paula.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ancestry.com/sharing/6545368?mark=7b22746f6b656e223a22685059737a464864734c62754749452b4657344d4433486150583777744e645873724f34465847364253773d222c22746f6b656e5f76657273696f6e223a225632227d |title=1940 United States Federal Census, Entry for Fredrick Coudert Family |date=1940 |website=Ancestry.com |publisher=Ancestry.com LLC |location=Lehi, UT |access-date=September 26, 2023 |url-access=subscription}}</ref>

Coudert was the great-grandson of [[Benjamin F. Tracy]], who served as [[United States Secretary of the Navy]] from 1889 to 1893.<ref name="Obituary"/>

==See also==
* [[Frederic René Coudert Sr.]]
* [[Rapp-Coudert Committee]]
* [[Lusk Committee]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{Internet Archive film clip|id=gov.archives.arc.95732|description="Longines Chronoscope with Rep. Frederic R. Coudert (February 8, 1952)"}}
* {{Internet Archive film clip|id=gov.archives.arc.95774|description="Longines Chronoscope with Rep. Frederic R. Coudert (August 15, 1952)"}}
* {{CongBio|C000804}}

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{{succession box | title = Member of the [[New York State Senate]]<br>from the [[New York's 17th State Senate district|17th]] district | before = [[Leon A. Fischel]] | years = 1939–1944 | after = [[Robert S. Bainbridge]]}}
{{succession box | title = Member of the [[New York State Senate]]<br>from the [[New York's 20th State Senate district|20th]] district | before = [[Alexander A. Falk]] | years = 1945–1946 | after = [[MacNeil Mitchell]]}}
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{{US House succession box | state = New York | district = 17 | before = [[Joseph C. Baldwin]] | after = [[John V. Lindsay]] | years = 1947–1959}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Coudert, Frederic Rene Jr.}}
[[Category:1898 births]]
[[Category:1972 deaths]]
[[Category:United States Army personnel of World War I]]
[[Category:Columbia Law School alumni]]
[[Category:Republican Party New York (state) state senators]]
[[Category:Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state)]]
[[Category:Knights of the Legion of Honour]]
[[Category:Morristown-Beard School alumni]]
[[Category:Browning School alumni]]
[[Category:Columbia College, Columbia University alumni]]
[[Category:20th-century members of the New York State Legislature]]
[[Category:20th-century United States representatives]]